SECRETARY-GENERAL ESTABLISHES MANAGEMENT COMMITTEE FOR LEBANON’S SPECIAL TRIBUNAL;

SAYS EXPECTED CONTRIBUTIONS TO COURT WILL MEET OPERATIONAL NEEDS FOR FIRST YEAR

The following statement was issued today by the Spokesperson for the UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon:

The Secretary-General today established the Management Committee of the Special Tribunal for Lebanon.  This Committee, which will inter alia, provide advice and policy direction on all non-judicial aspects of the operations of the Special Tribunal and review and approve its annual budget, is composed of the main donors to the Tribunal. 

The Secretary-General believes that this step, along with other steps announced in December of last year -– the selection of the judges, the appointment of the Prosecutor, the finalization of a headquarters agreement with the Government of the Netherlands enabling the Tribunal to be based in that country, and agreement on a building near The Hague to house the Tribunal -– are decisive landmarks in the process of making the Special Tribunal a reality.

The Secretary-General also wishes to announce that he has today received indications that expected contributions to the Special Tribunal will meet the budgetary requirements for the establishment and first twelve months of operations of the Tribunal.  This will assist greatly in the effort by the Secretariat to establish the Special Tribunal in a timely manner as requested by the Security Council in resolution 1757 (2007).  This development, as well as the others previously set out, confirms the Secretary-General’s belief in the irreversibility of the establishment of the Tribunal.

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For information media • not an official record