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 afternoon.

**Statement on Ethiopia

I’ll start off with a statement from the Secretary-General on the situation in Ethiopia:

The Secretary-General condemns the violence in Addis Ababa that resulted in the shooting and reported killing of a number of demonstrators by security forces.

The Secretary-General is seriously concerned about the tense situation that has arisen due to controversies regarding the conduct of the recent elections.

The Secretary-General calls on the Ethiopian Government and the opposition leaders to do everything possible to resolve their differences through dialogue and legal means.  The efforts of the National Electoral Board of Ethiopia to investigate the allegations of election irregularities, with the participation of all relevant parties, must be fully supported.

The Secretary-General urges the parties to commit themselves firmly to accept the final results that will be announced after investigations are completed.  In the meantime, he calls on all parties for calm, respect for the law and the rights of the people.

And, a full statement is available upstairs.

**Security Council

Earlier this morning, the Security Council met in closed consultations.  Demetrius Perricos, Executive Chairman of the United Nations Monitoring, Verification and Inspection Commission, better known as UNMOVIC, briefed the Council members on the latest report concerning the Commission’s activities.

And that report is available on the racks upstairs.

**Côte d’Ivoire

Going back to yesterday afternoon, Hédi Annabi, the Assistant Secretary-General for Peacekeeping Operations, briefed the Security Council on the situation in Côte d’Ivoire.

Following that briefing, Council members issued a press statement condemning the massacres that occurred in the region of Duékoué, in western part of the country.

Council members urged the Ivorian authorities to conduct without delay an inquiry on these crimes, so that their perpetrators are quickly brought to justice and condemned.

On the ground, the Special Representative of the Secretary-General and head of the UN Mission in Côte d’Ivoire, Pierre Schori, as well as the UN Force Commander, General Fall, travelled to Duékoué today to assess the situation and see how best the UN Mission can help restore peace in the area.

In a statement issued earlier today from Côte d’Ivoire, Pierre Schori condemned the killings and other abuses perpetrated in the area around Duékoué and urged parties to avoid all acts that could aggravate the situation.

The situation in Duékoué and its surrounding area is reported to be tense and unpredictable, all according to the UN Mission there.

**Security Council/Lebanon

Also yesterday, the Security Council, after a brief formal meeting, adopted a presidential statement in which it condemned in the strongest terms the June 2nd terrorist bombing in Beirut that killed Lebanese journalist Samir Qassir.  The Council called Qassir “a symbol of political independence and freedom”.

The Council welcomed the determination and commitment of the Government of Lebanon to bring to justice the perpetrators, organizers and sponsors of this assassination.

It warned that the sponsors of recent terrorist acts against all political leaders and leading members of civil society in Lebanon should not be permitted to jeopardize the holding of parliamentary elections in transparent, free and democratic conditions.

**Sudan

Turning to the Sudan, the Secretary-General’s Special Representative in Sudan, Jan Pronk, as well as other senior officials, will head tomorrow to Abuja, Nigeria, where they will attend the talks between the Government of Sudan and the two main rebel groups of Darfur, which are scheduled to start on Friday.

Earlier this week, Pronk met with the African Union’s Chief Mediator for the talks, Salim Ahmed Salim.  They discussed preparations for the forthcoming Abuja talks, including the representation of the parties, particularly the rebel groups.

At its weekly press briefing in Khartoum, the UN Mission also reported that the second Crude Mortality Survey in Darfur, conducted by the World Health Organization and the Sudan Ministry of Health, is ongoing.  And, it is expected that the interviews and data processing will be completed by the end of the month of June.

**Cyprus

Turning to Cyprus, the Secretary-General describes the situation in Cyprus as calm in his latest report to the Security Council, but he adds that the distrust between the Turkish Cypriot and the Greek Cypriot side has persisted, as has the military posture and the perception of threat.

As such, he says, the presence of UN peacekeeping forces on the island remains necessary.  The Secretary-General recommends that the mandate of the Mission be extended by another six months, until December 15^th of this year, under its present authorized strength and concept of operations.

The report is now out on the racks, and consultations on Cyprus are scheduled in the Council for tomorrow. 

**US-UK Initiative for Africa

In a statement we issued late yesterday afternoon, the Secretary-General welcomed the joint initiative by the United States and the United Kingdom appealing to the world donor community for a significant increase in emergency funding for Africa.

The Secretary-General joins them in their call on behalf of people in acute need in many parts of Africa and encourages other nations to follow with their own contributions.

The Secretary-General hopes that this focus on African needs will be translated into action at the Group of Eight meetings in its upcoming Summit later this month in Scotland.

We have a full text of the statement available upstairs and on the web.

**Burundi

The Deputy Secretary-General, Louise Fréchette, arrived in Bujumbura this morning from Kosovo.  She told reporters at the airport that her visit was aimed at raising awareness of the Secretary-General’s zero-tolerance policy on sexual exploitation.

She also said she would have an opportunity to discuss the challenges ahead with the Secretary-General’s Special Representative in Burundi, Carolyn McAskie, and adding that the holding of elections shows how much has been done right in Burundi so far.

The UN mission meanwhile reported that the re-voting at polling centres that were most affected by the violence in Burundi’s June 3rd local elections took place yesterday without incident.

**OCHA/Horn of Africa Funding

The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs says that current shortfalls in funding for humanitarian assistance in the Horn of Africa stands at $596 million.

Up to now, Ethiopia’s humanitarian appeal of $320 million has received close to half of that amount.  However, only $19 million -– or just 12 per cent -– of the $157 million needed for Eritrea has been received.

More worrying, only 9 per cent, or only $14.8 million, has been received for Somalia’s appeal, despite the need there for $164 million.

The appeal for Djibouti, for $7.5 million, has received only $400,000 -– or just 5 per cent of what’s needed for that country.

And, more details are available from the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs in a press release upstairs.

**Upcoming Events

A couple of events to point out to you -- an international conference on information and communication technologies and health care will be held tomorrow, from 1 to 6 p.m., in the ECOSOC Chamber.  It will examine how information and communication technologies can improve health-care delivery and effectiveness.  And, it is co-organized by the United Nations ICT Task Force.

Also at 3 p.m. tomorrow in the Trusteeship Council, the Office of Legal Affairs will be hosting a panel discussion on the theme “Terrorism:  A Challenge to Civilized Society”.  The event, which will be webcast, brings together a distinguished group of international terrorism experts, who will make a brief presentation, followed by a question-and-answer period.  And, Nicolas Michel, the UN’s Legal Adviser, will moderate the forum. 

More details are available upstairs. 

And, lastly, as we mentioned to you yesterday, the Secretary-General will be here in this room at 11:45 tomorrow to launch a progress report on reaching the Millennium Development Goals.  The Secretary-General’s remarks will be followed by a briefing by Under-Secretary-General for Economic and Social Affairs Jose Antonio Ocampo, and possibly other UN agency chiefs.

Embargoed copies of the report, along with a press release, are available upstairs.  And, I think that’s it for me.  Any questions?

**Questions and Answers

Question:  Could you confirm whether the Secretary-General is considering appointing Danilo Türk as Mr. Prendergast’s replacement?

Associate Spokesman:  No, we expect, hopefully, an announcement in the coming days on the new head of the Political Affairs Department.

Question:  Is he on the short list?

Associate Spokesman:  As we said, we will not be making public any short list for internal jobs.

Question:  On North Korea -– Maurice Strong is still out of commission for obvious reason.  Does the Secretary-General intend to appoint anybody in his place?  Because the situation where North Korea is concerned is getting ...

Associate Spokesman:  He’s obviously following the recent developments involving North Korea and the six-party talks very closely.  We continue to follow it from the Department of Political Affairs, and, should the need arise, arose, we would appoint someone to fill Mr. Strong’s shoes.

Question:  Washington yesterday reversed -– concerning the declaration on the assassination of Samir Qassir in Lebanon -– do you know why the US has dropped the international investigation?

Associate Spokesman:  No.  You would have to ask them.  I don’t know what changed their position.

Question:  Yes, Stephane, Chief Prosecutor for Former Yugoslavia Carla del Ponte sent a letter to the President of the Security Council in front of that huge discussion that is going to be held next Monday, in which she claims that still there is not full cooperation from the States in the region.  What are you expecting from that meeting, and are there going to be some kind of consequences for those countries who are found ...?

Associate Spokesman:  The consequences would have to be drawn by the Security Council.  The point that Ms. del Ponte was making is that, obviously, they’re having trouble getting their closing strategy together if they still don’t have in custody some of the main suspects from that region in the Tribunal at The Hague. 

Question:  So, if all the suspects are not in custody, there is no closing strategy?

Associate Spokesman:  That’s not what she said.  Obviously, it’s difficult for her to elaborate this closing strategy without all those suspects in custody.  That’s the point she was trying to make in the report.

Question:  Stephane, I just wanted to ask you -– you gave some update on Ethiopia, Eritrea, and Djibouti -– do you have any update on the flash appeal for Niger?

Associate Spokesman:  No I do not, but we can get one right after the briefing.

Question:  Steph, I just wanted to make a request -– the similar letter released yesterday from the President of the Rwanda Tribunal was a tough read, and I was hoping it would be possible to have him come to brief us next week, if possible, on Monday?

Associate Spokesman:  Sure, sure.  I’ll put in that request.

Question:  Mr. Roed-Larsen will be arriving in Syria.  What is he expected to say to the President?

Associate Spokesman:  His travel details are still being worked out, but we expect him to go soon.  As for the message he’s carrying for Mr. Assad, I think it’s only normal that President Assad himself learn of that message first.  So, we’ll wait for him to deliver it. 

Question:  Did you have any observer at Ethiopia’s election?

Associate Spokesman:  I will find out.  I’ll ask our electoral folks if we did. 

Question:  Stephane, the Secretary-General is going to have a press conference tomorrow besides the luncheon?

Associate Spokesman:  No.  Here, he will make some opening remarks and then he will leave, and then the others will take the questions.

Question:  What’s the status of the Carina Perelli investigation?

Associate Spokesman:  I don’t have an update.  If there is one, I’ll get one for you.

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