Daily Press Briefing by the Office of the Spokesman for the Secretary-General

AND THE SPOKESMAN FOR THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY PRESIDENT

 

Following is a near-verbatim transcript of today’s noon briefing by Stéphane Dujarric de la Rivière, an Associate Spokesperson for the Secretary-General, and Djibril Diallo, Spokesman for the General Assembly President.

Good afternoon.

I’d like to welcome our guests from BostonUniversity.  Excellent. Welcome.

**Middle East

Starting off with the Security Council and the Middle East, in his periodic briefing to the Security Council, Under-Secretary-General for Political Affairs Kieran Prendergast, said that since his last briefing “violence, not negotiation, continues to be the all too frequent mode of communication in the Middle East.”  He noted a palpable sense of drift and foreboding; and added that neither side has fulfilled its obligations under the Road Map.

He highlighted the major Israeli operation in the Gaza Strip which resulted in the deaths of a large number of Palestinians, including many civilians.  He also underscored the fact that the terror attacks in Taba, Egypt, were attacks on a place which had been known as haven of coexistence and peace.

He told Council members that the United Nations remains gravely concerned at the extensive destruction of civilian property by the Israeli army, adding that movement restrictions imposed on Palestinians continue to erode the humanitarian situation.  He also expressed renewed concern at the continuous, illegal Israeli policy of targeted assassination.

Prendergast also called on the Palestinian Authority to do everything possible to quell the terror emanating from territory under its control; and to pursue a determined course of reform, which includes the appointment of an empowered Prime Minister.

He reminded Council members that the planned Israeli pullout from Gaza and the northern West Bank must be full and complete, and be carried out in the context of the Road Map.  Israel and the Palestinian Authority, he said, must coordinate the implementation of the pullout.

In conclusion, Prendergast said that the time had come for a renewed commitment and effort:  the international community’s more vigorous engagement is an indispensable ingredient if we want end the violence and restore hope for a just, lasting and comprehensive peace -- as the parties cannot succeed left to themselves.

Council members are now continuing their discussions in closed consultations.

And a full text of Mr. Prendergast’s remarks is available upstairs.

**Security Council - Other

Following the Middle East, Council members are expected to turn to the situation in Guinea-Bissau.  Assistant Secretary-General for Political Affairs Tuliameni Kalomoh will brief the Council on the situation in that country.

Once consultations are done, the Security Council will hold a formal meeting to vote on a resolution extending the mandate of the UN peacekeeping force in Cyprus.

**Sudan

Turning to the Sudan, the number of people in Darfur who are now in critical need of relief has risen by nearly 10 per cent in the past month, according to a new report from the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs.  This increase means that 2 million of Darfur’s 6 million people are now affected by the crisis.

Emergency Relief Coordinator Jan Egeland said, “Though we are steadily increasing the amount of aid we deliver to Darfur, we are constantly running to catch up with growing needs.”  He noted that the number of humanitarian personnel in Darfur has tripled, to more than 6,000, since July.

Of the 2 million people in Darfur affected by the crisis, some 1.6 million are internally displaced persons.  The number does not include an additional 200,000 Darfuri refugees in Chad.

And a press release from the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs is available upstairs with more detail.

**NEPAD

Today the Secretary-General will be hosting a lunch of the members of his Advisory Panel on International Support for the New Partnership for Africa, otherwise known as NEPAD.

Ibrahim Gambari, the Special Adviser on Africa, briefed you on that panel a few days ago.  And upstairs we have the list of the members of that panel.

**Western Sahara

Turning to Western Sahara, the Secretary-General’s report on the United Nations Mission in Western Sahara is out today.  It includes a description of the recent activities of his Special Representative Alvaro de Soto, and other activities on the ground, as well as a review of the UN Mission’s strength. 

The Secretary-General observes in the report that the parties are no closer to an agreement on the Peace Plan for the Self-Determination of the People of Western Sahara than they were when he last reported in April. Moreover, he adds, there is currently no agreement on what can be done to overcome the existing deadlock.

The Secretary-General expresses his concern regarding the recent escalation of public rhetoric emanating from the parties and the region and he urges them to exercise the utmost restraint.

Regarding the Security Council’s call for the UN to review its military strength in Western Sahara, the Secretary-General recommends either the maintenance of the status quo or the withdrawal of no more than 37 military observers from the Mission.

**Haiti

We received a short update from our Mission in Haiti.

The Secretary-General’s Special Representative, Juan Gabriel Valdés, is travelling to the northern coastal city of Cap Haitien today where he will hold meetings with the Mayor, the Government delegate as well as the Archbishop among other local authorities.

Valdés will also be showing support for the Government’s office to support the demobilized military, which started its work yesterday.  There are a number of former members of the Haitian army that are still operating in the Cap Haitien area, according to the United Nations Mission.

**UNEP – Kyoto - Russian Duma

Turning to the Kyoto Protocol, Klaus Toepfer, the Executive Director of the UN Environment Programme, today welcomed the Russian Duma’s decision to ratify the Kyoto Protocol.

In a statement released today, and available upstairs, he said that while the United States has declined to ratify the treaty, dialogue on the issue must be kept open so that hopefully it can eventually be won over.

And we have more upstairs.

**UNEP - Southern Caucasus

Also from UNEP, a new reportfinds that environmental degradation and access to natural resources could deepen contention in areas of existing conflicts in the southern Caucasus.

The report also says that the demilitarized situation in the region is holding back economic growth because it hampers waste management and disposal, as well as the maintenance of irrigation and hydroelectric dams.

And we have a press release on that upstairs.

**SG - Almaty Message

In a message on behalf of the Secretary-General, sent to a meeting today in Kazakhstan of the foreign ministers of the Conference on Interaction and Confidence Building in Asia, the Secretary-General noted that the geopolitical and security situation in Asia and the world is changing rapidly, as we face challenges like terrorism, weapons of mass destruction, drug trafficking and regional conflict.

We have a copy of the message upstairs.

**WFP - South Korea Donation

The World Food Programme (WFP) today welcomed a donation of 100,000 tons of maize from South Korea for an emergency operation in North Korea.

The operation seeks to help 6.5 million vulnerable people, most of them women and children.

The WFP says the donation will allow it to keep providing vital rations to the neediest of the needy in North Korea throughout the harsh winter.

**UNICEF - Grenada

And, lastly, from UNICEF, thousands of children have begun returning to school in Grenada just one month after Hurricane Ivan battered the island.

The children’s agency says that schools have reopened thanks to the clean-up efforts of school administrators, teachers, government officials and children themselves, as well as help from several neighbouring governments.

Children are resuming schooling in classrooms whose roofs have been temporarily sealed with plastic sheeting provided by the United States Government -- and a shipment of 74 UNICEF-provided tent classrooms will provide more classroom space when it arrives next week.

We have more on that upstairs.

**Press Conferences

Press conference this afternoon at 12:30:  Ambassador Heraldo Muñoz of Chile, the Chairman of the Security Council Sanctions Committee on Al-Qaida and the Taliban, as well as Ambassador Lauro Baja of the Philippines, will be here to brief you on their recent trip to the Philippines, Cambodia, Thailand and Australia in relation to the Committee’s work.  And today, thank God being Friday, we have for you the Week Ahead.

That’s it.  Any questions?  Colin? 

Questions for the Associate Spokesperson

Question:  The Times story about the United Nations refusing to train the Iraqis involved in the Tribunal.  Can you lay out your policy on the Tribunal?  And have you basically lost confidence in their ability to carry this out in a fair way?

Associate Spokesperson:  Earlier this month, as you saw in the media, the United Nations Secretariat sent a letter to the International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia (ICTY) concerning a request that had been sent to us to authorize the prosecutor’s attendance at a training session being organized for judges and prosecutors from the Iraqi Special Tribunal.  We informed the ICTY that accepting such an invitation would divert Tribunal officials from performing their duties at the Tribunal at a time when it’s expected to do its utmost to meet the target dates for its completion strategy, as stressed by the Security Council and the General Assembly.  From a legal point of view, we added that it’s doubtful whether United Nations officials should be involved in the establishment of a Tribunal that is not a United Nations body.  In this case, we have no specific mandate for this, from a competent political organ of the United Nations.  And, in addition, we noted that we have serious doubts regarding the capability of the Iraqi Special Tribunal to meet the relevant international standards.  You know, the Secretary-General recently stated that United Nations officials should not be directly involved in lending assistance to any court or tribunal that is empowered to impose the death penalty.

Question:  You, guys, had done these kinds of courts, these mixed courts, in Sierra Leone and Cambodia.  Has there been any discussion about beginning a conversation, or negotiation, with the Iraqis about doing something similar in Iraq? 

Associate Spokesperson:  We have no mandate to work in with this Iraqi court.  I think the special court that you referred to, Sierra Leone and Cambodia, they were mandates from the General Assembly and Security Council.  And, the issue of the death penalty is of serious concern to us.

Question:  But don’t you cooperate in courts in places where they do have the death penalty?  Afghanistan?

Associate Spokesperson:  We’re not involved, I mean to the best of my knowledge, we’re not involved in the judiciary in Afghanistan.

Question:  Yesterday, the Secretary-General mentioned that elections in Iraq are technically possible by January.  Is it possible that [inaudible].  Does it mean that the elections could be postponed?  Does it mean that the current concern of the security situation [inaudible].

Associate Spokesperson:  What the Secretary-General said, and what’s been our position all along, is that from a technical standpoint, it is possible to hold these elections in January.  We are working closely with the Iraqi Independent Electoral Commission providing them support and assistance.  But the thing that needs to be underscored is that it is an Iraqi-run election.  The ultimate decisions, on whether or not to hold the election, will be an Iraqi one.  It’ll be the Iraqi’s call.  Our assistance is a technical one, and from where we stand, technically, it is possible to hold these elections in January.

Question:  The Secretary-General has said that he plans to send technical advisors over soon.  Can you define “soon?”

Associate Spokesperson:  No.  We keep looking at the security situation and whether or not to raise the staff ceiling.  We have, currently on the ground, about eight electoral workers.  But those should really be seen as the tip of the iceberg.  We have eight in country but anything that can be done out of country, in terms of electoral support, is being done out of country.  So, it is really a much larger effort than that number may lead you to believe.

Question:  The Secretary-General expressed serious doubts about the Iraqi Special Tribunal.  If he expressed serious doubts, why is he hesitant to participate in the training process? 

Associate Spokesperson:  Well, because he has serious doubts.  First, we have no mandate to work with this special court.  And, as I said, United Nations officials should not be directly involved in lending assistance to any court that is empowered to impose the death penalty.

Anyone else?  Mr. Diallo, please, join us.

Spokesman for General Assembly President

Good afternoon,

The General Assembly is taking up the subject of Cooperation between the United Nations and regional and other organizations, and in this framework, 18 reports of the Secretary-General, and 2 notes will be reviewed -- all of them on cooperation.

On committee work, two items for your consideration.  The Fifth Committee is in a closed informal meeting today on the report of the Board of Auditors.  The Committee will meet next week, on Tuesday, on Peacekeeping missions and on Wednesday, it will take up issues relating to the reform of the Office of Human Resources Management, and the International Civil Service commission.  As you know, the International Civil Service Commission is responsible for the regulation and coordination of the work of civil servants in the United Nations, the specialized agencies and other international organizations that participate in the UN common system.  The Committee, the Fifth Committee, will also take up the report on the Joint Inspection Unit.  This Committee will be very busy because it will take up more than 200 reports on various issues relating to administration and budget of the UN.

The Sixth Committee, as I mentioned to you yesterday, started its discussions on cloning.  Those discussions continue today.  Twenty-five speakers are expected to take the floor today, and yesterday 21 countries spoke.  We also had statements by the permanent observer of the Holy See and by the Representative of UNESCO.

You remember that yesterday, I mentioned to you, that there were two resolutions being tabled.  One resolution introduced by Costa Rica, which said that the resolution was endorsed by 61 countries.  That draft resolution calls for a total ban of all forms of human cloning and use of “embryonic” stem cells.

The second draft resolution was introduced by Belgium, with the difference that it provides for three options for countries to choose from.  One option is to impose a moratorium; a second option would be a ban; or third option to legislate them nationally.  Both draft resolutions reject all forms of human cloning.

Another item, as you know Sunday is 24 October, United Nations Day.  And on that occasion, President Jean Ping of the General Assembly, is issuing a statement where he says, among other things, that United Nations Day provides us with an opportunity to renew our attachment to the ideas of peace and security, as well as sustainable development as enshrined in the Charter.  President Ping also said that on this day, we are particularly encouraged by the fact that the international community truly believes in the United Nations.  One-hundred and ninety countries participated in the debate of the Fifty-Ninth General Assembly.  And, by so doing, they reaffirmed their determination to deal with the multiple challenges and threats to international peace and security, including the fight against deadly diseases, such as HIV/AIDS and malaria; global partnerships to combat terrorism, promote respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms; efforts to advance initiatives for sustainable development and poverty eradication.

The President also referred to the sixtieth anniversary next year, and he said this would be an opportunity for all of us to celebrate the achievements of the United Nations, to assess the results since the Millennium Declaration and to plan for the future.

That’s all I have for you.  Any questions?  Yes?

Question:  Regarding cloning is there any date set for when they would vote on it?

Spokesman:  No, date as of yet.

Question:  What is the position of the OIC (Organization of Islamic Conference)?

Spokesman:  I can’t tell you, it might be better to call the Secretariat, you know, at the Organization of Islamic Conference.  But you can see from the list of speakers there’s a wide span of speakers.

Another item that I would like to flag to you for coverage, is at 6:30 this evening, there’s an event called the International Day for the Eradication of Poverty, where six young men and women will be honoured coming from the five regions of the world.  And it will be in the Delegate’s Dining Room and arrangements are being made for press coverage.  Anything else? If not, thank you.

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