DAILY PRESS BRIEFING BY THE OFFICE OF THE SPOKESMAN FOR THE SECRETARY-GENERAL
| Press Briefing |
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.
**Secretary-General Addresses Johannesburg Summit
"Let there be no more disguising the perilous state of the earth", the Secretary-General told world leaders gathered at the Johannesburg Summit yesterday, "or pretending that conservation is too expensive, when we know that the cost of failure is far greater".
"The model of development we are accustomed to has been fruitful for the few, but flawed for the many", he said in his statement at the opening of the high-level segment of the meeting on sustainable development. "A path to development that ravages the environment and leaves a majority of humankind behind in squalor will soon be a dead-end road for everyone."
He concluded his statement saying, "It is said that to everything, there is a season. The world needs today to usher in a season of transformation, a season of stewardship. Let it be a season in which we make a long overdue investment in the survival and security of future generations."
In the margins of the Summit this morning, he met with Iraq's Deputy Prime Minister Tariq Aziz as part of his ongoing dialogue with the Iraqi authorities aimed at agreeing on the return of UN weapons inspectors to the country, which in turn could lead to a lifting of UN sanctions against Iraq.
In an interview afterwards, he commented, "At this stage I cannot say they've taken a decision to allow inspectors", adding, "They would want to have an assurance that things would be different this time."
He went on: "And also the fact that there's a threat of military action, [Tariq Aziz] is not sure what difference allowing the inspectors would make."
In addition to the speech he delivered to the Summit today and to his talk with Tariq Aziz, the Secretary-General has had bilateral meetings with many of the heads of delegation while in Johannesburg, where he arrived on Sunday.
The bilaterals included President Robert Mugabe of Zimbabwe, Foreign Minister Shimon Peres of Israel, President Yoweri Museveni of Uganda and Prime Minister Jean Chretien of Canada.
Over the past two days the Secretary-General attended a number of events organized on the sidelines of the official summit, including a meeting of the Business Action for Sustainable Development. The Secretary-General also participated in a question and answer session with members of the Civil Society Forum.
Yesterday, Nane Annan participated in a number of water and sanitation related events organized by the non-governmental organization WASH -– which spells out Water, Sanitation and Hygiene for All.
We have more information available upstairs on both the Secretary-General’s and Mrs. Annan’s activities over the last three days.
**WSSD
The General Debate at the High-Level Segment of the World Summit on Sustainable Development continues today with 84 speakers expected.
The negotiations on the major outcome document are almost complete after round-the-clock sessions at the ministerial level concluded with agreements on all major issues. There are still two or three objections on issues relating to health and human rights.
Among the agreements reached was a goal to reduce the proportion of people who lack access to proper sanitation by half by 2015, an agreement towards increasing the use of renewable energies, and a number of targets and timetables aimed at protecting or restoring ecosystems.
Summit Secretary-General Nitin Desai said today that the Summit has been successfully sustainable in imparting a sense of urgency, in achieving “reasonably clear commitments to action in key areas”, and in creating partnerships in the five priority areas -— water, energy, health, agriculture and biodiversity.
In addition to the Secretary-General and South Africa’s President Thabo Mbeki, 71 speakers addressed the plenary yesterday.
Several European leaders said they would increase their official development assistance in the years ahead, while leaders from developing countries stressed that greater international cooperation was necessary to promote sustainable development.
The High-Level Segment of the Summit is expected to wrap up tomorrow with the remaining speakers, which include US Secretary of State Colin Powell. At the final plenary session the Summit outcome documents will be submitted for approval, and we have the full text of the Secretary-General’s speech and a number of press releases with more information available upstairs.
**ICC
The First Assembly of States Parties to the International Criminal Court begins today here in New York. The one-week meeting will adopt auxiliary documents negotiated at the Preparatory Commission, including Rules of Procedure and Evidence, Financial regulations, the budget, an agreement on privileges and immunities and a headquarters agreement.
The meeting is also expected to adopt procedures for the elections of Judges and the Prosecutor and will appoint the first senior officer of the Court, the Director of the Common Services Division. The Director will be charged with preparing job descriptions, recruiting and overseeing the work of the staff that will establish the Court over the next few months.
We have a press release on that upstairs.
**Middle East
The UN Special Coordinator for the Middle East Peace Process, Terje Roed Larsen, said today the we was “deeply disturbed by the recent Israeli military attacks in the West Bank and Gaza that killed at least 12 Palestinian civilians”.
In a statement released today, Larsen urged the Israeli Government to fully investigate these incidents and if breaches of international law are found, hold accountable those in violation.
To that end, Larsen welcomed the announcement by Israel’s Defence Minister that he is conducting a speedy inquiry.
“While the killing of so many Palestinian civilians in such a short period has focused the world’s attention on this issue he said, deaths of innocents on both sides has been a recurring phenomenon of this conflict”, Larsen said.
He went on to add that he had consistently condemned the suicide bombings by Palestinian groups as morally reprehensible acts of mass murder.
Such attacks, however, he said are no validation for the killing of more innocents.
In his statement he reminded both Israeli and Palestinian authorities that whatever the threat, both must act in accordance with the standards of conduct prescribed by international law. “No justification can be offered he said, for the intentional or unintentional killing of civilians.”
**Security Council
This month’s President of the Security Council, Ambassador Stefan Tavrov of Bulgaria, is meeting today with other members for bilateral consultations.
He is scheduled to brief you tomorrow following closed consultations here in the morning.
**Democratic Republic of the Congo
We have two mentions from the UN Mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.
First, yesterday the head of the UN mission, Amos Namanga Ngongi, welcomed the release of Congolese Minister for Human Rights Ntumba Luaba who had been taken hostage last Thursday in the town of Bunia in the northeast of the country.
Ngongi, who had condemned the abduction as an “unacceptable act,” also said that the incident raised once more the problem of increasing insecurity in Bunia and the surrounding area. He added that this was a source of concern and the issue must be addressed.
The minister was released on Sunday and arrived the same day back in Kinshasa.
Also from the DRC, the UN mission reports that on Saturday in Kisangani, the 54 future civilian police instructors completed their training course.
The course, which began on 29 July, is meant to enable them to function as executive trainers in various national police training centers.
Authorities of the Congolese Rally for Democracy (RCD) who control the city have expressed their satisfaction after the training session. They consider it as a proof of their good will to move forward towards the demilitarization of the city of Kisangani.
The second class of 54 students is to begin studying on 9 September.
**Liberia-UNHCR
After weeks of negotiations, the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees yesterday secured the release of five nurses abducted by Liberian rebels on 20 June. They were handed over to UNHCR staff late yesterday afternoon at the Liberia-Guinea border and are now safe in a southern Guinea town.
The nurses were working for a local NGO, MERCI which is Medical Emergency Relief Cooperative International, at the time of the attack on a refugee camp that forced some 24,000 Sierra Leonean refugees and displaced Liberians to flee.
We have more details in a press release upstairs.
**Ethiopian Appeal
The Ethiopian Government and the United Nations say that nearly $12 million is required to stave off the effects of poor rains in that country.
In a joint appeal launched today, the UN and the government’s Disaster Prevention and Preparedness Commission (DPPC) said the failure of rains in some parts of the Country had led to a further 2.3 million people seeking additional or continued relief assistance as of July 2002.
The appeal is available on the Relief website.
**Afghanistan
The UN High Commissioner for Refugees reports today that the last six months have seen the largest single refugee repatriation since 1972, with total returns to Afghanistan currently standing at more than 1.63 million people.
In 1972, more than 9.8 million Bengalis who had earlier fled East Pakistan returned to Bangladesh.
**Religion
The Special Rapporteur for Religious Freedom, Abdelfattah Amor, will visit Algeria from 16 to 26 of this month.
During this visit, which is being conducted at the invitation of the Algerian government, the Special Rapporteur will go to Algiers, Constantine and Oran to meet with government officials, religious leaders as well as representatives of non-governmental organizations.
We have press release on that.
**Press Releases
Also, the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) in Johannesburg today, launched a new report on Great Apes, which says that less than ten per cent of the remaining habitat of the African great apes will be left undisturbed by 2030 if current levels of development continue. The report comes from a study coordinated by the Great Apes Survival Project of which UNEP is a part.
And we have a press release on that.
**Signings
Signings today: a few to mention.
The Protocol on firearms supplementing the United Nations Convention Against Transnational Crime received three more signatures. They are from Germany, Portugal and Thailand.
And then this afternoon, Finland will deposit instruments of acceptance to the Stockholm Convention on Persistent Organic Pollutants and the Protocol to the 1979 Convention on Long-Range Transboundary Air Pollution on Persistent Organic Pollutants.
**Press Conferences Tomorrow
One other press conference to mention for tomorrow in addition to the President of the Security Council: at 11:00 a.m., the Mission of Canada is sponsoring a press conference on the International Criminal Court’s Assembly of States parties. Speakers will be Bill Pace from the Coalition for the ICC and Richard Dicker from Human Rights Watch.
That’s my news for today. Yes, Julia?
Questions and AnswersQuestion: Fred, the Secretary-General in his meeting with Tariq Aziz, his comments are stressing the possibility of lifting sanctions. I am wondering, what did the Secretary-General say to Tariq Aziz about possible progress towards lifting the sanctions and did he press Mr. Aziz on the issue of the United Nations weapons inspectors?
Spokesman: It was a private meeting. We haven’t said anything about what was said in that meeting. These comments were made in an interview that happened to have been scheduled before we knew that this meeting would take place. But clearly, in the meeting with the Deputy Prime Minister, as in the previous three meetings with Iraqi delegations -- two here in New York and one in Vienna -- the first item on the Secretary-General’s agenda was the return of inspectors. That’s what the Security Council expects will happen, and that’s a necessary first step for any progress to be made on the lifting of sanctions. Yes?
Question: Fred, to follow up on that. Tariq Aziz had also indicated some possible flexibility about inspectors. Can you tell us what that might mean or whether he indicated anything to the United Nations about that?
Spokesman: I can’t, except to repeat what I said the Secretary-General said in this – I might as well say it – CNN interview with Charlayne Hunter-Gault that, let me get the precise wording here: “at this stage I cannot say they have taken the decision to allow inspectors”. Robert?
Question: Fred, you quoted the Secretary-General as saying that Tariq Aziz was not sure what difference the return of the inspectors might make. What in his view, if anything, should be done or could be done to persuade the Iraqis that would make a difference?
Spokesman: I don’t think he’s in a position to give assurances. This matter is not between him and Iraq. It’s between the Security Council and Iraq. The Council has given him their blessing to carry on a dialogue with the Iraqis. On the matter of the conduct of United Nations inspectors, he has gone a long way to assure the Iraqis that the inspectors will carry out their work in a professional way, that they are all international civil servants reporting directly to Hans Blix, the Head of UNMOVIC. But he’s not in a position to make any commitments on behalf of Security Council members. Yes, Bill?
Question: A couple of things on next week. Do you have yet a list of the bilateral meetings the Secretary-General will be having, including a meeting with Iraqi Foreign Minister Sabri?
Spokesman: We don’t have that list yet. I understand that the Iraqi Foreign Minister is one of those who’s asked for a meeting with the Secretary-General, but I think his programme is still being finalized, so I can’t tell you what that is and we probably will only put it out day-by-day. Starting at the end of the previous day, we’ll release the Secretary-General’s programme. Whether I can -- if you have a specific interest in the meeting with the Foreign Minister, I can see if we can release that in advance once it’s set.
Question: Also concerning next week: When he returns on Monday or any day subsequent, will there be possibilities of press availability of the Secretary-General?
Spokesman: On his first day back after being away for a while, you traditionally wait for him in the Lobby and he traditionally stops and talks to you for more than just a few minutes. We’ll try to find out whether he will come back on Monday or Tuesday. I am not sure that we know yet, but you’re welcome to wait for him and we’ll tell him that you’ll be there hoping to talk to him. Lee?
Question: Do we have the final list of scheduled speakers for the General Assembly?
Spokesman: Oh, I don’t know what the status of that is. Come to my office we’ll see what we can dig out for you. Okay?
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