DAILY PRESS BRIEFING BY THE OFFICE OF THE SPOKESMAN FOR THE SECRETARY-GENERAL

The following is a near-verbatim transcript of today’s noon briefing by Manoel de Almeida e Silva, Deputy Spokesman for the Secretary-General.

Good afternoon.  Welcome to the briefing.

**Videotape

An Israeli delegation led by Ambassador Yehuda Lancry, accompanied by General Dani Arditi and four other Israeli officials, viewed this morning the videotapes of 7 and 8 October last year, which are related to the abduction of three Israeli soldiers by the Hezbollah.  The delegation was also shown items found in the vehicles allegedly used in the abduction and which might have a bearing on the condition of the soldiers.

According to the agreement between the United Nations and the Israeli authorities, there will be another viewing at a United Nations office in Europe, where other Israeli officials and family members of the three detained soldiers could also view the tapes and the items.

**Security Council

As we mentioned to you yesterday, the members of the Security Council are meeting informally today at the Princeton Club for a discussion on “Regional Approaches to Conflict Management in Africa.”  It is organized by the Mission of Colombia, which holds the Council Presidency for August, and by the International Peace Academy. 

Tomorrow morning, the Council is scheduled to hold closed consultations on Sierra Leone.

**MONUC

The United Nations Mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (MONUC) reports that today General Mountaga Diallo, the Force Commander of MONUC and acting head of the Mission, traveled to Gbadolite with the visiting British Secretary of State for International Cooperation, Clare Short.  There they were scheduled to meet with the leader of the Congolese Liberation Movement (MLC) Jean-Pierre Bemba and review with him the peace process within the framework of the Lusaka Ceasefire agreement and the Kampala and Harare disengagement plans.

The humanitarian boat convoy, which is heading to Mogalo in Equateur Province, is now scheduled to arrive there on 12 August, two days ahead of schedule.  A team of the United Nations Mission in the DRC left Kinshasa today for Equateur province to meet with MLC officials to prepare for the arrival of the boats. 

**Rwanda Tribunal

Today in Arusha, Tanzania, the former Bourgmestre -- or senior municipal official -- of Rukara commune, Jean Mpambara, pleaded "not guilty" to one count of genocide in his initial appearance before the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda.  He is alleged to have been involved in attacks against Tutsis in his commune, including by promoting anti-Tutsi propaganda, training Interahamwe militias and distributing arms.

Mpambara told the Tribunal today that he was a victim of mistaken identity who had been arrested illegally.  He was arrested in a refugee camp in Tanzania in late June and transferred to the Tribunal's Detention Facility in Arusha.

Additional details are available in a press release we have in our Office upstairs.

**East Timor

From East Timor:  the Chief of Staff of the United Nations Transitional Administration in East Timor, Nagalingam Parameswaran, -- known to everybody working at the Mission as Param -- hosted a meeting yesterday at the border between East and West Timor, bringing together almost 250 community representatives from the district of Cova Lima and pro-autonomy leaders.

The meeting -- which was also attended by Xanana Gusmão and other East Timorese national representatives -- was "very successful and very emotional," the Chief of Staff said.  Yesterday's meeting is part of an effort to bring back refugees to Cova Lima from camps in West Timor.  Similar meetings will be held for all districts of East Timor.

We have additional details in today's briefing notes from Dili, which also mention the filing yesterday of an indictment against four militia members, accused of crimes against humanity in Manufahi as part of the campaign of violence that surrounded the 1999 popular consultation.

**Mary Robinson

Tomorrow, Mary Robinson, High Commissioner for Human Rights and Secretary-General of the World Conference Against Racism, will take part in an Internet ‘chat’ hosted by MSNBC.com at 11:00 New York time.

"It is very exciting to harness the power of the World Wide Web to bring people together and communicate a message of respect for difference and of cherishing diversity", Mrs. Robinson said in a press release issued today.  And she added:  "This is especially important as we need to counter the use of the Internet to spread hate".

Mary Robinson will also hold a press conference in Geneva on Friday at

9 a.m. New York time, on the closing of the third meeting of the Conference’s preparatory committee.

A press release from her office is available upstairs.  We are discussing with our Geneva colleagues the possibility of having a live feed of that press conference to you here.  We’ll see later on if that will be possible.

**Indigenous People

The International Day of the World’s Indigenous People will be observed tomorrow, when the traditional Sacred Pipe Ceremony will take place on the Public Plaza at the Visitor’s Entrance.  It will be carried out by Dr. Arvol Looking Horse, who is the nineteenth-generation keeper of the Sacred White Buffalo Calf Pipe.  The Mohawk Singers and Dancers will also perform.  This event is open to the public.

Starting tomorrow, there will also be consultations, which are open to the press, on the recently established Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues, which will meet for the first time here at Headquarters from 6 to 17 May of next year. 

At 11 a.m. tomorrow in room 226, Nobel Laureate Rigoberta Menchu and Chief Ted Moses of the Cree will give a press conference on indigenous issues.

**Signings

And finally today, Mauritania became the ninety-seventh country to sign the Stockholm Convention on Persistent Organic Pollutants.

I see the first question.

**Questions and Answers

Question:  Could you comment on the Israeli Ambassador’s statement today that Israel stands behind the demand of the families of the abducted soldiers to see every item that belongs to them.  Also, what is your reaction to the fact that the families have announced that they do not want to participate in the viewing of the tapes according to the United Nations rules?

Deputy Spokesman:  Well, what I can tell you is that we have made a proposal, we discussed with the Israeli officials yesterday and the day before.  This morning, they confirmed agreement to view the two tapes and to view the items that may bear significance on the conditions of the abducted soldiers.  To make it easier for the families, there is a European venue for this viewing.  And that is the understanding that we reached with them.

Question:  When you say “to view the items”, are you talking about the seven items, or all 53?

Deputy Spokesman:  I think, we are talking about the seven items that the delegation saw today. 

Question:  The question is, are the 53 items available for viewing?

Deputy Spokesman:  What is on the table are those items that the delegation saw today.

Question:  Is this going to be the final showing, or is there room for negotiations about further viewings down the line?

Deputy Spokesman:  The viewing in Europe is supposed to be the showing.  The final one.

Question:  The final one?  No plans for future showings?

Deputy Spokesman:  Yes.  No plans.

Question:  When is the date of the showing to be determined?

Deputy Spokesman:  It is being determined.  We are making arrangements, and we expect it to happen within the next week to ten days, or so.  Very very shortly.

Question:  I recall from Under-Secretary-General for Management, Joseph E. Connor‘s briefing that when he talked about the 53 items, he suggested that any of them could be brought here if there was interest.  Could you double-check on that?

Deputy Spokesman:  I’ll have to check on that.  I was not here then. 

If there are no other questions, I wish you a very pleasant afternoon.  Thank you.

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