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

Following is a near-verbatim transcript of today’s noon briefing by Stéphane Dujarric, Spokesman for the Secretary-General.

**Guest

Good afternoon.  Our guest today is Joe Sills, someone you know well, who is currently the spokesman for the U.N. Compensation Commission in Geneva.  And he’ll be joining us today to speak about the work of the Commission and the Commission’s Governing Council.

**Secretary-General in London

Starting off with the Secretary-General, he’s in London today, where he is scheduled in a short while to deliver an address at St. Paul’s Cathedral, at an event organized as a challenge to the Group of Eight on global poverty and the Millennium Development Goals.  The Secretary-General will draw attention to the make-or-break moment we now face on achieving these Goals.  The Secretary-General is to say that the Goals are people-centred, time-bound and measurable, and that they are achievable and have unprecedented support.  Considering how far we’ve come to achieve them, he will argue, a failure by some countries not to meet many, or any, of the Goals by 2015 would be a tragic missed  opportunity.

He will call on governments to take courageous decisions at the G-8 meeting in Gleneagles and at the World Summit in New York in September, which is expected to be the largest gathering of world leaders in history.  We have copies of that speech, embargoed until 1:30 this afternoon New York time, and they’re available upstairs.

The Secretary-General is in the United Kingdom to attend the G-8 Summit tomorrow in Gleneagles, Scotland.  In advance of that meeting, he met with a group of London schoolchildren today, who presented him a message asking their leaders to keep their promises on the Millennium Development Goals and asking, “Please make the world a better place for all of us by 2015.”

**Secretary-General in Sudan

Also in the Secretary-General’s travels, he will travel to the Sudanese capital, Khartoum, immediately following his participation in the G-8 Summit.  He will be in Khartoum to attend the inauguration of the Government of National Unity and he is expected to deliver remarks at that event.  His visit comes at a time of funding shortfalls for humanitarian programmes in the Sudan.  As of the end of June, of the required $1.3 billion, only $643 million had been received.  This means that critically important programmes cannot be carried out in full, or, in some cases, at all.  The vast majority of pledges made by the donors have yet to be converted into cash, and the Secretary-General has urged donors not to wait too long to provide the Sudanese people with the support they deserve.  And more information on the funding shortfall is available upstairs.

**Myanmar

I have a statement on the latest developments in Myanmar.

“The Secretary-General welcomes the release of 249 prisoners today, reportedly including two prominent journalists and a close aide of the still-detained National League for Democracy (NLD) leader Aung San Suu Kyi.  The Secretary-General reiterates his call for the lifting of remaining constraints on all political leaders and the reopening of NLD offices.  He further calls on the Myanmar authorities to resume their political dialogue with all parties concerned.”  And that statement is, of course, available upstairs.

**Security Council on Côte d’Ivoire

Just a short while ago, the Security Council adopted a presidential statement on Côte d’Ivoire, in which Council members demanded that all signatories to last week’s Pretoria Agreement implement fully and without delay all the commitments taken before the African Union mediator.  The Council also affirmed that it stands ready, in close consultation with the African Union mediator, to implement individual sanctions against those who do not comply with these commitments or constitute an obstacle to their full implementation.

After voting on this presidential statement, the Council had an open meeting on Bougainville, which Assistant Secretary-General for Political Affairs Danilo Türk said “marked a successful cooperative effort at the international, regional, national and local levels”.  He said that Bougainville’s war had been little noticed, but brutal, and Türk said the United Nations became part of a process of “breaking spears and mending hearts” in Bougainville.  And we have copies of his statement available upstairs.

**Zimbabwe

The Secretary-General’s Special Envoy in Zimbabwe, Anna Tibaijuka, is continuing her mission today.  Just about now, she is holding a town meeting in the city of Bulawayo, the second largest city in Zimbabwe.  She is talking with representatives of NGOs, faith-based groups and women affected by the evictions.  And Ms. Tibaijuka is continuing her mission in the days ahead.

**Democratic Republic of Congo

We have available for you upstairs an information note from the UN Mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, with accompanying maps, which help put into context the ongoing military operation called Operation Falcon Sweep in South Kivu province, which we mentioned to you yesterday.

**WHO on Bird Flu Virus

Following a three-day conference on bird flu in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, a senior official from the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) has said that without international support, poor countries will not be able to battle the bird flu virus.  In that regard, the World Health Organization (WHO) has said that $150 million is needed to fight the spread of bird flu in humans.  And FAO and the World Organization for Animal Health have announced that they need around $100 million to control the virus in animals throughout Asia.  And we have a press release available upstairs.

**Srebrenica Anniversary

On 11 July, we will mark the tenth anniversary of the fall of Srebrenica.  Mark Malloch Brown, the Secretary-General’s Chief of Staff, will travel to Srebrenica to deliver a message on behalf of the Secretary-General.  And in advance of that anniversary, a discussion will be hosted here tomorrow by the Department of Peacekeeping Operations.  Panellists will include, among others, Ambassador Diego Arria, the former Venezuelan Ambassador to the United Nations; Prince Zeid Al-Hussein of Jordan, the Permanent Representative of Jordan to the U.N; and Professor Samantha Power of the Carr Center for Human Rights Policy at Harvard.  And this will take place from 12:30 to 2 p.m. in the Dag Hammarskjöld Auditorium.  And media, all of you, are invited to attend.  And we have a press release upstairs also with more information.

**Olympics

One word on the Olympics, the Secretary-General had two words to say about London’s 2012 successful Olympic bid today.  Those were “congratulations, London”.  In a statement he issued from London, the Secretary-General said that he had no doubts that this will be a magnificent international sporting event, good for the world and good for the United Kingdom.  He added that, obviously, others are disappointed today as this was a hotly contested decision, and he was sorry for the other cities that did not make it this time around.  But the intensity and drama surrounding the choice is a good omen for friendly international competition on and off the sports field.  And we have copies of that statement upstairs.

**Sudan Latest

We have a statement just in on the Sudan.

“The Secretary-General welcomes the signing by the Government of Sudan, the Justice and Equality Movement and the Sudan Liberation Movement, in Abuja on 5 July, of a Declaration of Principles for the resolution of the conflict in Darfur.  The Declaration signals the parties’ intention to bring an end to the conflict in Darfur.  The Secretary-General congratulates African Union mediator Salim Ahmed Salim and the U.N. team that participated in the negotiations on the successful conclusion at this stage.  He encourages the parties to move forward decisively and promptly when they restart the talks on 24 August and to conclude a lasting political settlement to bring an end to the enormous suffering of the people of Darfur.”

That is actually it for me.  Before we turn to Joe, any questions?

**Questions and Answers

Question:  This is more of a GA question, but is there any scheduling yet of a vote on the G-4 resolution?

Spokesman:  No, not that we’re aware of.

Question:  We’re not getting any readout on Anna Tibaijuka in Zimbabwe, her impressions and observations.  Do you have anything on what she might be learning?  When will we get that kind of readout?

Spokesman:  It’s an information gathering tour.  She is listening to all those affected by the Government operations.  She is listening to NGO’s, both local and international.  She’s also hearing from the Government for their point of view.  And she will report back to the Secretary-General.  And I think all of her impressions will be contained in that report.

Question:  And will she be available to us, as well?

Spokesman:  We very much hope so.  When we have more details and when she comes here, we’ll sort that out for you.

Question:  Was that some sort of grimace on your face as you read the Olympic congratulations to London?  And that was more than two words on the Olympics.

Spokesman:  Not at all.  As you know, two words for the United Nations is often more than two.

Question:  Tomorrow’s commemoration of Srebrenica events is sponsored by the United Nations or in cooperation with someone else?

Spokesman:  It’s sponsored by the Peacekeeping Department.

Question:  Who’s organizing it and why isn’t the Secretary-General going to Srebrenica?

Spokesman:  The Peacekeeping Department put together the panel.  For the Secretary-General, it’s a travelling issue.  He’ll be in Khartoum on 9 and 10 July, so it won’t be possible for him to go.

Question:  What role did the U.N. play in reaching the agreement in the Sudan?

Spokesman:  The U.N. team was very much backing the leading role taken by the African Union mediator, Ahmed Salim.  We worked with him and complemented his efforts.

Question:  No mediation role?

Spokesman:  The mediation role was led by the African Union.  We were there in support of the African Union’s work.

Question:  It’s just coincidence that the Secretary-General is going there now?

Spokesman:  He’s going there to take part in the inauguration of the Government of National Unity.

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