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

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 Fred Eckhard, Spokesman for the Secretary-General.

Good afternoon.

Welcome to the visiting journalists from Asia and two from Argentina, is that correct?  Nice to have you here.

**Secretary-General Travels

The Secretary-General arrived in Jakarta, Indonesia, this morning, and met later in the day with Indonesian President Megawati Sukarnoputri.

The President informed the Secretary-General that she would go to East Timor to attend the Independence Celebration on 20 May which the Secretary-General, in comments to the press afterwards, welcomed as a “conciliatory, wise and courageous decision.”

The President and the Secretary-General also exchanged views on the Middle East, and the Secretary-General reiterated his views that the situation needed a comprehensive approach.  He also explained his reasons for disbanding the fact-finding team to Jenin.

They also discussed the upcoming meeting, to take place in Bali from 27 May to 7 June, of the Preparatory Committee of the World Summit on Sustainable Development.

In his comments to the press afterward, the Secretary-General applauded President Megawati’s “efforts in this difficult period of transition, and the competence with which she has managed the reform process.”

Speaking on the Middle East, he said they had both agreed there is no military solution, and they both looked forward to “a conference that will help in our search for a final settlement of this long drawn-out problem.”  We have a transcript of his comments upstairs.

Earlier today, the Secretary-General attended a luncheon hosted by the President in his honor.  Tomorrow morning, he will have a working breakfast with Foreign Minister Noer Hassan Wirayuda, before holding a meeting with him.

**Secretary-General/East Timor Trip

Then on Sunday, he will arrive in Dili, East Timor, for the start of the celebration of East Timor’s independence, which takes place at the stroke of midnight that night, as Monday, 20 May, begins.

The Secretary-General and the General Assembly President Han Seung-soo will kick off the ceremony with speeches at about half past 11 on Sunday night.  Then, just a few minutes before midnight, the UN flag will be lowered.  And at midnight itself, East Timor will be declared independent and the East Timor flag will be raised.

The Secretary-General will hand over power to the President of the Parliament, Francisco “Lu-Olo” Guterres, who will administer the oath of office to the new President, Xanana Gusmão.  Gusmão will then address the nation, prior to a fireworks display.

The new government of East Timor will be sworn in the following morning, and the Secretary-General will attend that ceremony, as well as an Independence Day street parade.  He will also dedicate a UN House for East Timor, before returning to Indonesia on Monday afternoon.

**East Timor

Also on East Timor, the Chief Minister of East Timor, Mari Alkatiri, announced that negotiations with Australia on the implementation of the Timor Sea Treaty were concluded yesterday and the Council of Ministers approved the treaty and associated documents.  The treaty will be signed on 20 May and submitted to the East Timor Parliament for ratification.  The treaty creates a framework for oil and gas investment in the Joint Petroleum Development Area.

We have the briefing notes from Dili, along with press releases from the World Food Programme and the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights, on East Timor’s independence.

The United Nations Web site now carries a public service announcement video on East Timor, produced by the UN Information Centre in Sydney, and this can be found on the News Focus page and the independence celebrations will be webcast on the UN Foundation’s Web site.

**Security Council

The Security Council began the day today with consultations on a draft resolution on East Timor.  Then they held three back-to-back formal meetings to adopt three resolutions.  All three were adopted unanimously.

The first was on East Timor, which establishes the UN Mission of Support in East Timor (UNMISET) on 20 May, when East Timor becomes independent.  The second resolution was on the International Criminal Tribunals for the former Yugoslavia and Rwanda, which clarifies the national status of any persons who have two or more nationalities who serve on either of the Tribunals.  The third resolution adopted was on Angola.  It suspends a travel ban for 90 days on members of the National Union for the Total Independence of Angola (UNITA) aimed at facilitating travel by UNITA members for the peace process and national reconciliation.

Following the formal meetings, the Council resumed consultations.  The agenda item is the Great Lakes region of Africa.  Council members first heard a briefing by Amos Namanga Ngongi, the Secretary-General’s Special Representative for the Democratic Republic of the Congo, on developments in Kisangani and Pweto in the DRC.  The discussion was also on the follow-up on the report of the Security Council’s recent mission and how the Council can further contribute towards the peace processes in the DRC and in Burundi.

The Web site of the current President of the Security Council, which is Singapore, has posted an annotated agenda of meetings in advance as well as items discussed under so-called “other matters” in consultations and draft resolutions being considered.  So, it’s a highly recommended resource tool and I suggest you look it up.  We can give you the code number or whatever it is in my office.

**Peter Hansen

This morning in Geneva, Peter Hansen, Commissioner-General of the UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East, better known as UNRWA, briefed journalists following his speech earlier this week at the World Health Assembly.

Hansen said that the situation in the West Bank was “very far from having normalized, at least not normalized back to a definition of normalcy that ought to apply.”  The major problem faced by UNRWA and other humanitarian agencies, he said, is that of access.

Hansen reported that there had been some positive movement from the Israeli side but he fears that if the Israeli government puts into effect plans to close off the West Bank from Jerusalem with buffer zones, the operations of humanitarian agencies will come to “a grinding halt.”

In response to a question, Hansen said that UNRWA had estimated the damage to its installations in the camps in the West Bank as a result of the recent military operations to be about $3.8 million.  As for Jenin specifically, he added that the agency estimates that it will take $35 to 40 million to repair damaged infrastructure and rebuild shelters for about 800 families.  The full text of his press briefing we expect to have for you shortly.

**Guatemala

The United Nations Verification Mission in Guatemala, or MINUGUA, today issued another of its thematic verification reports, this one on the Army.  Of particular concern is the increase in the Army’s budget over the limits agreed on in the Peace Accord, which the report says will divert funds from social development. We have a press release and the report, both only in Spanish.

**Somali Refugees

The Office of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees said this morning it airlifted relief supplies to some 10,000 Somali refugees who have fled to the remote north-eastern border town of Mandera, Kenya, to escape weeks of clan warfare in towns and villages just over the border.

The UNHCR also reported that on Wednesday, four refugees were killed by stray gunfire as fighting flared again between rival sub-clans in the town of Bula Hawa, just opposite Mandera on the Somali side of the border.  The dead refugees were among a group of several thousand currently living in makeshift shelters.  Seven other refugees at the site suffered shrapnel wounds.

The outbreak of fighting in Somalia's Upper Gedo region in mid-April has sent two waves of refugees into north-eastern Kenya.  A first wave of some

5,000 entered Mandera nearly a month ago.  A second influx sought safety at the beginning of May, bringing to some 10,000, the total number of Somali refugees who have crossed into the Mandera area.  You can read more about this in the briefing notes from UNHCR.

**Liberia

The UNHCR also reports today that some 4,000 Liberian refugees have arrived this week in Guinea from Liberia's strife-torn Gbarnga region.  According to the newly arrived refugees, there could be another 6,000 to 10,000 Liberians heading to the border from the Gbarnga area, the scene of new fighting between government and rebel forces in recent weeks.

In all, Guinea hosts an estimated 73,000 Liberian refugees, of whom

26,000 are in camps.  The others are in urban areas or villages.  The Office of the Coordination for Humanitarian Affairs reports that the fighting in the Gbarnga area resulted in large displacement of the local population.

**Angola

At the conclusion of a week-long visit to Angola, Olara Otunnu, the Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Children and Armed Conflict called for immediate action to provide urgent assistance to displaced persons, especially those emerging from previously UNITA-controlled areas.  Otunnu drew attention to the plight of children suffering from severe malnutrition, malaria, pneumonia, scabies and other preventable diseases.

The impact of the 30-year civil war in Angola has been particularly devastating for children.  For example, out of over 4 million who have been displaced within the country, more than 50 per cent are children. Some 100,000 children have been separated from their families.  More than 50,000 children have been orphaned.  We have a press release on this issue, which outlines seven specific actions for the benefit of the children in Angola.

**Afghanistan

In Geneva, there was a 40-nation donor’s conference on the security sector reform in Afghanistan.

The Afghan Foreign Minister, Abdullah Abdullah, introduced the Interim Administration’s vision and operational plan for the creation of a new armed force, and the strategy for demobilization and reintegration of ex-combatants.

The Secretary-General’s Representative there, Lakhdar Brahimi said that he was encouraged by the response of the donors.  A summary of the press conference just ended will be made available shortly.

**Human Rights

Also today in Geneva, the Committee Against Torture concluded its three-week spring session and, among its review of reports from six countries, the panel said that Saudi Arabia should re-examine the imposition by authorities of corporal punishments, including flogging and amputation, that were not in conformity with the Convention against Torture.  It asked for Russia to ensure prompt, impartial and full investigations into many allegations of torture reported to the authorities, including in Chechnya.  We have a press release upstairs with a complete summary of its recommendations, which include those concerning reports on Sweden, Uzbekistan, Denmark and Norway.

**Vienna

The new Director-General of the UN Office in Vienna, Antonio Maria Costa, today addressed the permanent representatives to the UN in Vienna, and assured them of the importance of good governance, saying, “First and foremost, we must take care not to commit ourselves to more than we can deliver.”  He invited the Member States to study with him, as frequently as necessary, any proposals before they become policy initiatives.  And he promised that contributions to drug

control and crime prevention programs will be regarded by his office as a “commitment to deliver” rather than “an entitlement to spend.”  We have more details in a press release from Vienna.

**Telecommunications

Today is World Telecommunication Day.  The Secretary-General, in a message to mark the occasion, calls for resolve to bridge the digital divide between countries, and between rural and urban areas, rich and poor, educated and illiterate peoples, and men and women.  The role of women, who make up 60 per cent of the world’s poor, is particularly crucial, he said, calling it essential to promote access to information and communications technologies among women.

**Signings

The Stockholm Convention on Persistent Organic Pollutants received a number of signatures again today.  Egypt, Ethiopia, Honduras, Lithuania and Mongolia all signed, bringing the total of signatories to 141.

Also today, Benin signed the Protocols to the United Nations Convention Against Organized Crime on the manufacturing and trafficking in firearms and smuggling of migrants.

**Budget

We got a little bit of money today.  Three more Member States paid their 2002 regular budget dues in full.  Ecuador with payment of more than $277,000; Japan’s payment of more than $207 million; and that’s a relief, we’ve been waiting for that for a while. Spain’s contribution, more than $28 million, that’s another nice boost.  We now have 77 fully paid up Member States, which is exactly the same number we had on this date last year.

**Week Ahead

Finally, if you want to follow the United Nations next week, we have the "Week Ahead", which you can pick up in my office.

That’s all I have for you.  We can have a quiet weekend, I hope.  Bill?

Questions and Answers

Question:   Fred, has there been any response from either the Palestinian Authority or Israel concerning the request for information that the United Nations sent out relating to its inquiry into the Jenin and the West Bank incursion?

Spokesman:  I don’t think that I have announced that we had sent those.  I said a couple of days ago that those letters were about to go out.  I’ll have to double check that they have indeed gone out.  And if they have, it seems too soon to expect a response.  But I’ll let you know the status right after the briefing.

Good.  Have a nice weekend.

[The Spokesman later announced that the letters went out to both the Palestinian Authority and the Israeli Government on 14 May.  He added that there would be no further up-dates on this issue.]