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
Following is a near-verbatim transcript of today’s noon briefing by Stephane Dujarric, Associate Spokesman for the Secretary-General.
Good morning.
**SG in Brazil
Starting off with the Secretary-General’s travel, as you know, he is in Brazil and this morning he opened the eleventh ministerial meeting of the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development, in Sao Paulo, and he congratulated UNCTAD on its fortieth anniversary.
The Secretary-General said that the world has what it takes to improve living standards for all people, but too often lacks coherence in its approach, as well as a development-friendly trading regime. He called for a successful conclusion to the Doha negotiations, and urged nations to take advantage of the opportunities offered by South-South trade cooperation and integration.
The Secretary-General also took the occasion to pay tribute to Sergio Vieira de Mello, saying that his death last year in Iraq “was a tragedy for Brazil, for the United Nations and the whole world.”
We have copies of his speech upstairs.
The Secretary-General should now be holding a press conference in Sao Paulo, and we’ll try to provide a transcript of that press conference as soon as possible.
Also today, he expects to meet with President Luis Inacio Lula da Silva of Brazil. He is also expected to meet with the head of Sudan’s delegation to the conference, Finance Minister Hassam Ahmed Taha.
The Secretary-General arrived in Brazil on Saturday, and that day he attended a special ministerial meeting to mark the fortieth anniversary of the Group of Seventy-Seven developing nations.
He noted that "the sad truth is that the world today is a much more unequal place than it was 40 years ago" when the G-77, which now has more than 130 members, was founded. He said, "If these years have taught us anything, it is that opportunities for development need to be more equally distributed."
Also on Saturday, the Secretary-General had a half-hour meeting with Brazilian Foreign Minister Celso Amorim, during which they discussed Iraq and areas of common concern in the Latin American region. The Secretary-General expressed his deep gratitude for Brazil’s contribution toward their common efforts in Haiti.
In a separate programme, Nane Annan yesterday spoke at an UNCTAD panel exploring the importance to development of indigenous creative industries, such as music, publishing and photography. She highlighted the cross-fertilization of cultures around the world and the contribution of women's small-scale economic activities, like weaving, basketry and pottery, to the preservation of local cultures. Brazilian musician and Minister of Culture Gilberto Gil chaired the panel.
And we have a more complete list of the Secretary-General’s activities over the weekend as well as the information on Nane Annan’s programme while in Brazil.
**Security Council
Turning to the Security Council, today it’s holding an open debate on the protection of civilians in armed conflict. The UN’s Emergency Relief Coordinator Jan Egeland, told Council members that the tenth anniversary of the Rwanda genocide provided “a chilling impetus for us to reflect on ways to better protect vulnerable civilian populations.”
Egeland highlighted the continuing problems of gaining humanitarian access to some 20 million people who are cut off from aid in ten conflicts around the world, and the security threats that humanitarian workers face in going about their work.
Egeland said the United Nations believes the time is right for the Security Council to consider adopting another resolution on the protection of civilians in armed conflict, noting that the Secretary-General’s recent report sets out a number of recommendations to this end. We have copies of his remarks upstairs.
And Mr. Egeland will be available to take questions from you at 1:00 p.m. at the Council stakeout area.
**IAEA/Iran Nuclear
Dr. Mohamed ElBaradei, the Director-General of the International Atomic Energy Agency, said today that while progress is being made in understanding the extent of Iran’s nuclear programme, investigations are still under way into whether all of Iran’s nuclear-related activities have been fully declared.
He described Iran’s engagement with the IAEA as less than satisfactory, and noted that Iran needs to be proactive and fully transparent.
Dr. ElBaradei made the comments in a meeting with the Agency’s Board of Governors in Vienna.
The meeting covered a broad range of issues, including the Agency’s annual report and a number of other topics.
**OIC Meeting
At a meeting of the Organization of the Islamic Conference in Istanbul, the Secretary-General called on members of the OIC to respond favourably to the Iraqi Interim Government’s request for support. His message was delivered by his Special Adviser, Lakhdar Brahimi, earlier today.
He said that the OIC has an interest in helping Iraq to surmount the many challenges it faces, including the creation of adequate conditions for elections and the convening of a national conference.
In the message, the Secretary-General also draws attention to the appalling suffering in Sudan’s Darfur region, and he asked for support in persuading Sudan to neutralize and disarm the brutal “Janjaweed” militia and to allow humanitarian supplies and equipment to reach the population without further delay.
And we have copies of his speech available upstairs.
**Sudan
Also on Sudan, the UN special rapporteur dealing with executions, Asma Jahangir, finished her visit to Sudan yesterday with a press conference in which she said she received numerous accounts of extra-judicial and summary executions carried out by government-backed militias and the security forces in Darfur.
She said she is also deeply concerned about the current humanitarian situation, where millions of civilians are in desperate need of assistance. She added that, “The crisis is not over, and the right to life of all these people is seriously threatened.” And we have more information in a communiqué available upstairs.
**UNICEF/Bellamy in Darfur
One last item on Darfur, Carol Bellamy, the head of UNICEF, was in the region this past weekend.
Bellamy is in Darfur to see first-hand the situation faced by hundreds of thousands of children there, and to inspect UNICEF’s efforts to step up its response to the crisis.
Along with other agencies, UNICEF has been speeding up relief efforts that have been under way for more than six months. It is focusing on providing access to safe drinking water, primary health care, shelter material, education and hygiene kits for families.
**Kosovo/Privatization
Turning to Kosovo, consultations on the privatization process in Kosovo were held at UN Headquarters last week.
They were attended by representatives of the European Union-led component of the UN Mission in Kosovo, as well as a representative of the European Commission, and UNMIK’s Legal Adviser.
An understanding was reached by all involved on the basis under which privatization can continue.
This understanding represents a major step forward in ensuring that privatization in Kosovo can proceed in an effective manner and in a way that provides a positive contribution to Kosovo’s economic development.
**Anti-Semitism
Next Monday on June 21, the Secretary-General will open a seminar on “Confronting Anti-Semitism: Education for Tolerance and Understanding,” which is being organized by the Department of Public Information as part of a series of events to promote respect and understanding among peoples.
The Monday seminar will be held in Conference Room 1, and will include a keynote address from Nobel laureate Elie Wiesel and panel discussions offering different perspectives on anti-Semitism today and ways to confront it more effectively.
And we have a press release available upstairs.
**Afghanistan
And upstairs we also have a release from the UN Mission in Afghanistan, on the visit by the head of the UN Mission there, Jean Arnault, to Iran where he is meeting with senior Iranian Government officials.
That’s it from me, any questions? Yes?
Questions and Answers
Question: Hi, Stephane. One thing that’s come out of the Secretary-General’s office and also out of Paul Volcker’s mouth; in the oil-for-food independent investigation is that there has been inadequate funding for the investigation. But there is a piece in the Times today that said that part of the problem with going ahead with this investigation is that there has been lack of funding. I was wondering f the Secretary-General could comment?
Associate Spokesman: Sure. The Secretary-General has provided Mr. Volcker and his investigative team with $4 million to cover initial cost. This was approved by the ACABQ, which is the Advisory Committee on Administrative and Budgetary Questions. We will await from him a fuller budget as to what his needs are. But in no way has the UN constrained Mr. Volcker’s work financially. We’ve given him the $4 million as starter’s costs and we’re waiting for the fuller budget from him to see what his needs are going to be.
Question: Okay. When he is going to get the fuller budget, is that with the three-months sort of...(interrupted).
Associate Spokesman: I don’t know. You’ll have to ask him as to what his... But we’re awaiting the budget. I think as to the details for the budget, you’d have to ask him. Anybody else?
Question: The HIV prevention programme for Haiti; is for all the missions or only for Haiti?
Associate Spokesman: On the peacekeeping...(interrupted)?
Question: Peacekeeping operation.
Associate Spokesman: That one, that particular one I think as flagged is for Haiti because that is a new mission. But, as you may be aware, the peacekeeping department has been very active in AIDS prevention programme in almost all its peacekeeping missions. But the reason, I think this particular programme was flagged because it’s a new mission. Richard?
Question: Dileep Nair was out of the country last week. There was some request for him to appear regarding the black box. Is there any update on that and I have a follow-up?
Associate Spokesman: I’ll check. I believe he is available if you do want to interview him. But I’ll double-check for you.
Question: And lost in the Iraq shuffle were the results of the UN employee survey that Fred announced June 4. Could Mr. Nair, or someone else who can interpret the findings or do a briefing on it, come here?
Associate Spokesman: Sure, I’ll be happy to see who we can find to face your questions. Anybody else?
Question: Any new developments in the Congo?
Associate Spokesman: No, I don’t have anything from today from the mission. But I’ll see what I can get for you.
Question: We’re checking on this: Was the Deputy Foreign Minister who was killed in Iraq over the weekend, was he here in the Security Council for the vote?
Associate Spokesman: My understanding is that he was here with the delegation f the Foreign Minister.
Question: But you don’t know if he was here...(interrupted)?
Associate Spokesman: No, I’m not... That’s what I was told. I can check with Protocol for you if he was on that trip on the list and if he was there.
Question: Any results on the powdery, mystery, probable non-story substance?
Associate Spokesman: I think the operative word is “non-story”. As you may know, there were two incidents earlier today. A powdery substance was found on the desk of a staff member on the 27th floor. For precautionary measures, the UN security department called in the NYPD and the Fire Department HAZMAT teams. They bagged the substance. It’s been taken away to be analyzed. No other evacuation took place. There was a second, while the team was still in the building; there was a second report of a substance being seen on a desk by one of the ATMs on the first floor. The HAZMAT team was also asked to take samples of that substance for analysis. According to our security and safety service, the area down by the ATM has been cleaned and is now safe to use. And we expect to have the tests available within a few days. Meanwhile, business as usual.
Thank you very much.
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