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

Following is a near-verbatim transcript of today's noon briefing by Farhan Haq, of the Office of the Spokesman for the Secretary-General.

**Secretary-General -- Financing for Development Speech

Hello.  Good afternoon.  In just a few minutes from now, we'll be pleased to have with us Carla Del Ponte, the Prosecutor of the two international criminal tribunals, for the former Yugoslavia and for Rwanda.  She is here to brief you about recent developments in the International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia.

This morning, the Secretary-General spoke to the plenary of the International Conference on Financing for Development, in Monterrey, Mexico, saying that no one in this world can feel comfortable, or safe, while so many are suffering and deprived.

He told the plenary that those who have come to the Financing for Development Conference from the developing world are not asking for handouts, but they are asking for the chance to make their voices heard, and the chance for their countries to trade their way out of poverty.

The Secretary-General noted that all serious studies concur that, in order to meet the targets set under the Millennium Development Goals to fight poverty, illness and disease by 2015, an additional $50 billion a year in official aid -– or about twice the present levels –- is needed.

He added of the final document that is to come out at the end of the Conference:  "The ‘Monterrey Consensus’ is not a weak document, as some have claimed.  It will be weak if we fail to implement it.  But if we live up to the promises it contains, and continue working on it together, it can mark a real turning point in the lives of poor people all over the world.”

We have that speech upstairs.

**Secretary-General -- Financing for Development Meetings

The Secretary-General was introduced by Vicente Fox, the President of Mexico, who said that the meeting marked the beginning of a new era of development. 

After the plenary session, the Conference broke down into two round tables.  The Secretary-General was to divide his time between the two before having a bilateral meeting with the Prime Minister of Canada, Jean Chrétien, which should be taking place now.  At midday he was to have a press conference with the heads of the World Bank, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the World Trade Organization (WTO).  His time in the afternoon was to be divided among the plenary, two more round tables and a string of bilateral meetings.  [The Spokesman later said the meeting with Prime Minister Chrétien had been cancelled.]

After he arrived in Monterrey yesterday, the Secretary-General attended a meeting on investment in least developed countries, hosted by the International Chamber of Commerce and the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development.

He then went to the conference centre to confer with his senior advisers on the progress of the Monterrey Conference, and he then began a series of bilateral meetings, starting with one with Chinese Finance Minister, Xiang Huaicheng.

The Secretary-General then discussed prospects for the Middle East, leading up to the Arab Summit in Beirut, with Tunisian Foreign Minister Habib Ben Yahia, with whom he also discussed Iraq and Western Sahara.

He then met with the Director-General of the World Health Organization (WHO), Gro Harlem Brundtland, to review the status of the Global AIDS Fund.

His next meeting was with President Omar Bongo of Gabon, with whom he discussed peace efforts in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and the situation in Burundi.

His last meeting of the day was with the Foreign Minister of Spain, Josep Pique.  They focused on the Middle East, and also touched on Western Sahara and rising levels of official development assistance (ODA).

**Secretary-General's Report on Afghanistan

The Secretary-General’s report on Afghanistan has gone to the Council today.

In it, he writes, “Afghanistan is a shattered society” and adds, “It will take much more than 36 months to heal the wounds left by 23 years of war.”

The report describes the establishment of the Afghan Interim Administration and United Nations support for that process.  The report also covers the security situation, including efforts to create Afghan security institutions, as well as humanitarian relief, recovery and reconstruction activities carried out by United Nations agencies and other partners on the ground.

The Secretary-General also proposes a mandate and structure for a future United Nations Assistance Mission for Afghanistan, or UNAMA for short.   This structure, which will be headed by his Special Representative, Lakhdar Brahimi, contains two "pillars":  one for political affairs, and the other for relief, recovery and reconstruction.  Both pillars will coordinate their work to ensure that they are mutually reinforcing.

The Secretary-General notes the importance of the upcoming emergency Loya Jirga, or Tribal Council, and urges Afghan leaders to recognize that dialogue and compromise with political rivals depends not on international financial assistance, but on the will and courage to transcend ethnic and regional parochialism in favour of national unity and lasting peace.

Stressing the importance of security in protecting the peace process, the Secretary-General says “speed is of the essence” in deciding what form of security assistance the Security Council and Member States will provide to Afghanistan in its hour of need.

The Council is scheduled to hold a public meeting on Afghanistan next Tuesday, and its members will discuss the Secretary-General’s report in closed consultations on Wednesday.

**Afghanistan -- School Feeding Programme

Also on Afghanistan, the World Food Programme (WFP) today announced the launch of a major drive to feed up to 1 million students in Afghanistan.

The Executive Director of the World Food Programme, Catherine Bertini, stressed that well-fed and educated children are key to Afghanistan’s future.  She said, “By providing food to the country’s poor students, we can make sure they are well nourished, are able to concentrate on their lessons and, most importantly, are given a new start in life.”

When school officially starts later this week, Afghan girls will be attending for the first time in six years.

**Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC)

We've been informed that the inter-Congolese dialogue resumed today in Sun City, South Africa, following an agreement, reached in Lusaka, Zambia, in the early hours of the morning, that the Congolese Rally for Democracy, or RCD, and the Government of the Democratic Republic of the Congo will mutually withdraw their forces from four locations in the eastern half of that country.

The RCD will withdraw from Moliro within five days and Pweto within 10 days, while the Congolese Armed Forces will withdraw from Yayama and Kayaya,

120 kilometres west of Pweto, within 10 days.

United Nations military observers and observers from the Joint Military Committee will monitor the withdrawal and report to the Chairman of the Political Committee within 15 days of this agreement being implemented.

The Political Committee, made up of senior officials from the parties to the conflict in the DRC, finalized the agreement on the second day of a two-day meeting.

**Security Council

Today in the Security Council, the Secretary-General’s Special Representative for Sierra Leone, Oluyemi Adeniji, is briefing the Council on the work of the United Nations Mission in Sierra Leone and the Secretary-General’s latest report on that mission, which came out on the racks yesterday.

You’ll recall that in that report, the Secretary-General noted progress both in disarming combatants and in registering voters for the 14 May elections, and recommended a six-month extension in the United Nations Mission’s mandate, until 30 September.

We hope that Mr. Adeniji can come to speak to you, possibly at the Security Council stakeout, once he is done briefing the Council.  That briefing is still going on.

**Middle East

The United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) reports that the damage done by the Israeli military incursion into United Nations-run refugee camps and the bombing of Gaza City during March would cost at least $3.8 million in immediate needs.

The Israeli actions caused damage to 22 schools, four United Nations health clinics, two United Nations ambulances and four camp service centres.  The cost of immediate repairs to the Agency’s installations will be at least $270,000 and the United Nations will have to spend $225,000 on urgently needed road and infrastructure repairs inside the camps.  Much more money will be needed to rebuild the 141 refugee homes that were destroyed during the incursion.

In addition, of course, one United Nations employee for the Relief and Works Agency, Kamal Hamdan, had been killed in the West Bank town of Tulkarm while travelling in a United Nations ambulance.

The Agency’s Commissioner-General, Peter Hansen, said that the assault has multiplied the burden on UNRWA’s scarce resources, not just by damaging much of its infrastructure, but by creating more victims of violence and destruction.  We have a press release with more information.

**Bosnia

On Bosnia, the United Nations Mission in Bosnia and Herzegovina welcomed the decision yesterday by the Council of Europe’s Committee of Ministers to invite Bosnia and Herzegovina to join the Council as its 44th member.  That expression of confidence, the mission says, will take the country a step closer to its rightful place in the European community of nations.  We have more information in a press release.

**East Timor

On East Timor, today’s briefing notes from Dili tell us that the Constituent Assembly passed the preamble to the draft Constitution.  The Assembly is expected to pass the full draft of the 17-article document tomorrow, ending a six-month process.

In other news, the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) is adding to its staff at Batugade, on East Timor's border with Indonesia, in anticipation of a further upsurge in refugees returning from West Timor.  The UNHCR attributes the increase in returnees to the end of the harvest in West Timor and ongoing reconciliation activities.

We have more details in the briefing notes available upstairs.

**Day Against Racial Discrimination

Today is the International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination.

In his message marking the occasion, the Secretary-General recalls that this Day commemorates the 1960 Sharpeville massacre, when nearly 70 peaceful demonstrators were killed in South Africa.

The Secretary-General notes that last year’s World Conference against Racism achieved progress on a number of issues, but it also revealed deep disagreements on the issue of racism.

He says, “Overcoming the painful divisions in the human family would be an achievement worth celebrating in its own right, but it is also essential if we are to unite and address the challenges and insecurities of our time.”

**Press Releases

Last, we have a couple of press releases to highlight for you today.

First, from the International Labour Organization (ILO).  It says that the ILO's governing body, meeting in Geneva, today welcomed the signing yesterday of a Memorandum of Understanding with the Government of Myanmar.  In the memorandum, the Government agrees to the appointment of a Liaison Officer in Myanmar by June 2002, as a first step in the establishment of a full and effective ILO representation in that country.  We have the text of the Memorandum available upstairs.

Also, the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees announced today that the proceeds from the annual concert by Italian tenor Luciano Pavarotti will this year benefit Angolan refugee children in Zambia.  In past years, Pavarotti, a United Nations Messenger of Peace, has helped the agency raise $1.5 million for Afghan refugee children in Pakistan and $1 million for Kosovo refugees.  This year’s concert will be held on 28 May in Modena, Italy.

There are no other press conferences scheduled for today.  For tomorrow, our guest at the noon briefing will be Joseph Connor, the Under-Secretary-General for Management, to respond to some of the demands that you've been making for information about the financial picture here at the United Nations.

Hopefully, we will be joined soon by Carla Del Ponte.  Before we go to her or to Jan, who's here to give the General Assembly briefing, any questions?

**Questions and Answers

Question:  On the destruction in the refugee camps, is the United Nations going to ask for compensation from the Israeli Government?

Spokesman:  I believe we are trying to raise the question of compensation for damages done.  I don't have any information or progress to report to you on that, though.

Question:  There was a report in the press today sort of belittling the Austrian contribution to peacekeeping.  It goes back to the repatriation of the police officer and the perceived threat of Austria withdrawing their support for peacekeeping.  Can you comment on this article?

Spokesman:  Well, in terms of the actual article that you're referring to, I can't comment on unattributed remarks that were made in the media.  Of course, you know the United Nations welcomes the contributions of all Member States to peacekeeping operations, including that of Austria.

In terms of the case you're referring to, the investigation into events allegedly involving an Austria civilian police officer in Kosovo is not yet complete.  We expect a conclusion to this investigation by the end of this month.  Until then, we don't have any comment on the case while it's still being investigated.

Question:  Do you have anything new on the United States demand for Jose Bustani's resignation as head of the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW)?

Spokesman:  Well, as you know, the Director-General of the OPCW,

Mr. Bustani, made some comments yesterday, which are available as a press release.  You can find the press release upstairs.

In terms of other comments on that, I'd like to let you know that the matter of Mr. Bustani's tenure at the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons does not fall under the Secretariat or the Secretary-General.  The Secretary-General does not have any authority over appointing or removing, for that matter, the head of the OPCW.  We do have a relationship agreement with that Organization but it's an independent body.

I'd refer all questions over to their spokespeople.  I have a number for a spokesman at the OPCW, if you want to contact them.

Question:  Is the Secretary-General hopeful that the $50 billion in terms of additional official aid per year will be reached?

Spokesman:  We're certainly hopeful.  That's what this conference, ultimately, is all about.  As you know, we've seen in recent days more statements from European governments, from the United States, for increases in their aid.  While those contributions don't make that $50 billion yearly target, at least they indicate that the argument that more aid is needed is, in fact, being won, and that hearts and minds all over the world are realizing the need for this.

So we do hope that money will materialize and certainly some indications are that, at least in part, some further contributions are coming this week.

If there are no further questions, first we will go to Jan.

Briefing by the Spokesman for the President of the General Assembly

Good afternoon.

After statements by President Fox and the Secretary-General, General Assembly President Han Seung-soo addressed the summit segment of the Financing for Development Conference in Monterrey this morning.

He stressed that no country can achieve rapid development without meeting at least three preconditions.  “First”, he said, “it must have access to financial resources, domestic or external, or most likely a combination of the two.  Second, it needs the human capacity to efficiently absorb those resources and the wherewithal to build greater human capacity as more resources are generated.  And third, it requires the 'appropriate' intangible infrastructure, such as markets to make productive use of the available resources.

"The core elements of intangible infrastructure include free enterprise, good governance, sound macroeconomic policies, a strong anti-corruption ethic, and  transparently applied rule of law.”

The full text of his statement is available upstairs and on the conference Web site.  That's un.org/ffd.

Well, spring is here and so is the International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination.  Referring to the Durban Declaration, the President in his message says that “We now have a legal and practical framework in place to assist us in dealing with the problem of racial discrimination.  The greatest challenge we face is for the international community to live up to its commitment expressed at the Durban Conference.”

He went on to say that this was a requirement to fulfil the high hopes of all people still suffering from racism and racial discrimination.

The full text of his statement is available upstairs.

That's what I have for you today. Are there any questions before we go to Ms. Del Ponte?  Thank you.

NOTE:  In the 20 March summary of the briefing by Under-Secretary-General Ibrahim Gambari, Special Adviser to the Secretary-General on Africa, the penultimate paragraph should read as follows:

Responding to a question on the lifting of the travel ban on UNITA officials, Mr. Gambari said that if UNITA was to be allowed to come up with its own new leadership, it would be logical to suspend the travel ban.  But, that had to be done by the Security Council.  It could happen in a number of ways -– by a Council member, the Angolan Government, or the Secretary-General –- believing that in the interests of peace the ban should be suspended.  “I would like to emphasize that what is being spoken about now is just a suspension of the travel –- all other aspects of the sanctions have to be left in place until the peace process is irreversible.”

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