Daily Press Briefing by the Office of the Spokesperson for the Secretary-General
The following is a near-verbatim transcript of today's noon briefing by Farhan Haq, Deputy Spokesman for the Secretary-General.
**Gaza Board of Inquiry
First off, I have the following statement attributable to the Spokesperson for the Secretary‑General regarding the Gaza Board of Inquiry.
The Secretary‑General has established an internal and independent United Nations Headquarters Board of Inquiry into certain incidents that occurred in the Gaza Strip between 8 July and 26 August 2014.
The Board will be led by Mr. Patrick Cammaert of The Netherlands and includes, as its other members, Ms. Maria Vicien‑Milburn of Argentina, Ms. Lee O’Brien of the United States, Mr. Pierre Lemelin of Canada and Mr. K.C. Reddy of India. It will review and investigate a number of specific incidents in which death or injuries occurred at, and/or damage was done to, United Nations premises. The Board will also review and investigate incidents in which weapons were found to be present on United Nations premises. The Secretary‑General expects that the Board will enjoy the full cooperation of all parties concerned.
**Secretary-General’s Travels
The Secretary‑General is on his way now to Myanmar, where he will attend the sixth summit between the United Nations and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) and the ninth East Asian Summit.
He will also meet with leaders, including the President of Myanmar, on the margins of these meetings.
From Myanmar, he will travel to Australia, where he will take part in sessions of the Group of 20 leaders’ summit in Brisbane.
**Syria
Staffan de Mistura, the Special Envoy for Syria, arrived in Damascus over the weekend and met with President Bashar al‑Assad this morning.
Then, in the afternoon, Mr. de Mistura visited the city of Homs, where he met with Government officials and a delegation from al-Waer.
During his meetings, the Special Envoy discussed the proposals that he made when he briefed the Security Council on 30 October, concerning freeze zones, starting with the city of Aleppo.
**Burkina Faso
On Burkina Faso, the Secretary‑General’s Special Representative for West Africa, Mr. Mohammed Ibn Chambas, continued his consultations with all the parties to help establish a democratic and civilian‑led transition period in the country.
He is encouraged by the engagement of all the parties to establish a civilian‑led government that will hold democratic elections in a reasonable period of time.
He calls on all the parties to do their utmost to ensure that a peaceful transition period be initiated soon in the interest of the people of Burkina Faso.
**Darfur
In Darfur, a verification team of the African Union–United Nations Mission in Darfur (UNAMID) was granted access yesterday to Tabit, a village in North Darfur — following media reports of an alleged mass rape incident perpetrated against 200 women and girls in the area.
The team included representatives from police, military and civilian components. It spent several hours touring the village and interviewing residents as well as community leaders, teachers and students to ascertain the veracity of the media reports. The team also interviewed the local Sudanese Armed Forces Commander.
UNAMID reports that none of those interviewed confirmed that any incident of rape took place in Tabit on the day of that media report.
The team neither found any evidence nor received any information regarding the media allegations during the period in question.
The Mission intends to conduct further follow‑up actions including possible further investigations and patrols.
**South Sudan
The World Food Programme (WFP) is welcoming the safe arrival of the first convoy of food assistance moved through Sudan to South Sudan.
Eighteen trucks transporting 700 metric tons of food, enough to feed about 45,000 people for one month, have arrived in Upper Nile state from Kosti, marking the opening of a humanitarian corridor to enable the delivery of food assistance to South Sudan through the Republic of Sudan.
The World Food Programme says that this will help reduce the reliance on costly air operations to provide assistance in conflict‑affected areas of South Sudan, and to reach more vulnerable people with food assistance.
The current cross‑border operation will see WFP use trucks and river barges to deliver a total of 4,650 metric tons of food to feed around 275,000 people for one month in the northern parts of South Sudan. There is more in a WFP press release.
**Central African Republic
The Senior Humanitarian Coordinator in the Central African Republic, Claire Bourgeois, visited the north‑east of the country this weekend with representatives of the Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs, agencies and partners.
They travelled to Vakaga province, which has suffered from years of instability, violence and chronic insecurity, while its geographical remoteness and poor infrastructure have cut it off from the rest of the country. They found that the most urgent needs are food, health support and education.
Ms. Bourgeois said that some people fled Bangui to get to this remote area. She said that it was imperative to secure access for convoys delivering aid supplies from Bangui and to increase protection programmes or else there could be a further deterioration of the humanitarian situation in the region.
**UNESCO
The head of the UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) took part in today’s opening of the World Conference on Education for Sustainable Development in the Japanese city of Nagoya.
To achieve sustainable development, UNESCO Director‑General Irina Bokova said that technology, political regulations and financial incentives will not suffice. She said that we need to change the way we think and act, both as individuals and as societies. You can find more information on the Conference on UNESCO’s website.
**Burundi
I have an appointment for you: The Secretary‑General appointed today Cassam Uteem of Mauritius as his Special Envoy and Head of the UN Electoral Observation Mission in Burundi (MENUB).
Mr. Uteem served as President of Mauritius from 1992 to 2002, and is credited for having promoted his country's "Unity in Diversity" policies, which succeeded in establishing national unity and a stable inclusive democracy in a multi‑ethnic, multi‑religious society.
Issaka Souna of Niger has also been appointed as Deputy Head of the Mission that will start its operations on 1 January 2015 to follow and report on the 2015 electoral process in Burundi, immediately at the end of the current UN Office in Burundi’s mandate. We have more on these appointments in my office.
**Nigeria
On Nigeria, the UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF) has condemned the attack today on the Government Science Technical School Potiskum in Yobe State, which killed dozens of children and injured many more.
UNICEF says that these repeated and relentless attacks on children and schools are attacks on the future of Nigeria, a country that already has the largest number of children out of school in the world.
UNICEF calls on those with the responsibility and power to bring the perpetrators to justice, and to uphold their responsibilities to protect children.
And we expect to have a statement by the Secretary‑General as well, shortly.
**Holocaust
For the first time in 70 years, the records of the United Nations War Crimes Commission are now open to the public at the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum in Washington, D.C.
Correspondents are invited to attend a panel discussion entitled “United Nations War Crimes Commission Records (1943‑1948): Past, Present and Future” tomorrow from 1:15 p.m. to 2:30 p.m. in Conference Room 1, where participants will examine the historical significance of the records and their future potential use.
**Zambia
And tomorrow, the UN Flag will be lowered to half‑mast at UN Headquarters as a mark of respect for the funeral ceremony of Michael Chilufya Sata, President of the Republic of Zambia, which will take place on the same day.
**Questions and Answers
That's it from me. Any questions? Yes, Matthew?
Question: I'd like to ask you about this, what was said from the podium last week about the alleged rapes in Tabit in Darfur. There was the… not only has the Government denied it, but UNAMID has put out a press release, saying that they subsequently entered the camp and were told by the residents that they get along well with the military. I'm paraphrasing here. I can read it to you. But basically, the UNAMID press release makes things appear peachy‑keen, whereas a Council member just now coming out said that there was a sense that the UNAMID team, when they got in, were surrounded by military and that the residents of the camp weren't comfortable speaking. How can the UNAMID press release — is this DPKO's [Department of Peacekeeping Operations] actual position on the non-evidence of rape? Or how do we read the press release?
Deputy Spokesman: The way to read it is as part of a process. We reported, as you know, on the blockages that caused delays in actually getting to Tabit. Now that the team got to Tabit, they reported on what they saw. And as we made clear, the Mission intends to conduct further follow-up actions, including possible further investigations and patrols. And we do expect to continue keeping the Security Council apprised of the progress of the Mission's work. The work is not done, and they'll continue with — as we had said, with further activities. But ultimately they had to report on the things that they did and did not see.
Before you go any further. I have the following, as I expected, statement attributable to Spokesman for the Secretary‑General on the attacks in Yobe State, Nigeria:
The Secretary-General strongly condemns the suicide bombing today at the government boarding school in Potiskum, in north-eastern Nigeria’s Yobe State, which has reportedly killed dozens of students and wounded countless others. He extends his sincere condolences to the families of the bereaved and to the Government and people of Nigeria.
The Secretary-General is outraged by the frequency and brutality of attacks against educational institutions in the north of the country and reiterates his demand for an immediate cessation to these abominable crimes.
The Secretary-General calls for the perpetrators to be swiftly brought to justice through a process respectful of Nigeria’s human rights obligations and for adequate security measures to be provided for the protection of civilians. The Secretary-General reiterates his firm conviction that no objective justifies wanton violence against civilians.
Question: Could I ask, finish the question?
Deputy Spokesman: Let me get to another. I'll get back to you. Luke?
Question: On the WFP deliveries into South Sudan, the WFP framed this as an operational success, something like a six or sevenfold cost savings. On the political front, though, I was hoping you could add a perspective, if the SG thinks the improvement in the aid sphere could improve bilateral security between Khartoum and Juba?
Deputy Spokesman: This is certainly a good sign that this agreement allows aid to go from the Republic of Sudan to South Sudan. This is a step forward in relations which will, of course, primarily be useful in terms of helping the people who have been in humanitarian need. As you know, the World Food Programme and others have been getting assistance to South Sudan, but anything that makes that delivery easier and quicker will help ultimately to save people's lives and save their health and allow them to get back a certain measure of normal livelihood. So that's a major step forward in and of itself. But, yes, we're certainly happy with the way that this expedites the process of aid deliveries, and it's a reasonably positive sign for the relationship as a whole. Yes? And then Anna after you.
Question: Definitely. Thanks a lot. I have to because I heard — and it does say that the inquiry will go on. But the press release from UNAMID has this line, "village community leaders reiterated to UNAMID that they coexist peacefully with local military authorities in the area." And since this line sort of reads as if dictated by the Government, I'm wondering, when you say "we", do you mean the UN side? Do you mean the African Union side? If the inquiry is going on, why would they send out a press release saying that there's no evidence of rape and the people get along with the Army? It seems very inconsistent.
Deputy Spokesman: I've read what I have. Like I said, this is part of a work in progress. Ultimately, the investigation will continue. They'll try to continue to follow up on available information and we will also continue to keep the Security Council apprised of these developments as they come.
Question: Are these press releases put out by UNAMID? Are they reviewed by UN DPKO before they go out?
Deputy Spokesman: I don't know about the full review process, but of course there's regular consultations that take place between the Headquarters and the operations on the ground. Yes?
Question: Thank you, Farhan. I wanted to ask a follow-up question on Nigeria, actually. From the statement that you read of Secretary‑General, it's obvious that we don't know for sure who the perpetrators are. But obviously there is an ongoing investigation. Is UN going to take any part or maybe oversee this investigation? And also do we know — I mean, can there be any ties to Boko Haram, for example? Do we know anything about this?
Deputy Spokesman: Well, that's a possibility. And of course you've heard what we had to say about the attacks that have been definitively attributed to Boko Haram. And we have been very clear about our condemnation about those attacks. At this stage, we don't know who the perpetrators are. But as both the Secretary‑General and UNICEF have made clear, we want all those responsible to help bring the perpetrators to justice, and ultimately it will be for the authorities on the ground to do that. Yes? Sarah, and then Go.
Question: Thank You, Farhan. On Syria, is there going to be a readout with the meeting with Bashar al‑Assad?
Deputy Spokesman: Like I said, I gave basically the readout of that meeting, which was that, as you know, Mr. De Mistura did discuss the proposal that he had also brought up at the Security Council two weeks back concerning freeze zones, starting with Aleppo. And I believe that on their side, that there has been a statement made by President Assad following that meeting.
[The following note to correspondents was issued after the briefing: The Special Envoy for Syria, Staffan de Mistura, had today constructive discussions with the Syrian President Bashar al-Assad and Syrian Government officials on the proposals he put forth to the Security Council on 30 October 2014, which addressed implementation of all relevant Security Council resolutions, including 2170 (2014) and 2178 (2014). Mr. de Mistura takes note of the expressed intent of the Syrian authorities to work with the United Nations to identify common ground for implementing his proposal on incremental "freezes", starting with the city of Aleppo, on the basis of the concept outlined in the Council briefing. The proposed "freezes" as envisaged by the United Nations are intended first and foremost to lead to a de-escalation of violence, starting from specific areas with a national impact, and allow for return to some normalcy for the civilians caught in the conflict. In this respect the city of Aleppo has taken on renewed significance. Ongoing diplomatic efforts would then also build on such an incremental freezing of military activities to arrive to a national all-inclusive political process. The Special Envoy and his team intend to proceed now expeditiously on working out the modalities of a freeze in Aleppo city, through further discussions with the Syrian authorities, and intensified consultations with all parties concerned.]
Question: Quick follow-up. Will he be visiting anywhere else in the region?
Deputy Spokesman: Sorry. Didn't quite hear you.
Question: Sorry. Will he be following up anywhere else in the region?
Deputy Spokesman: We'll try to inform you of any other stops as they arise. Right now he's in Syria and we get the updates as the team travels. Yes, Go?
Question: Thank you, Farhan. Does the Secretary‑General have any comment on that first meeting between Japanese Prime Minister and Chinese President? Apparently they agreed to disagree on the territorial matters, but keep continuing to improve their relationship.
Deputy Spokesman: Well, as you know, our position on this has always been our hope that the two countries would deal with this matter through discussions with each other and that they could resolve the situation through dialogue, and so any sign of dialogue is encouraging. And certainly today's dialogue fits in with that. Yes? Yeah, you.
Question: Thanks a lot. I wanted to ask a couple things. First, I guess it's kind of in‑house. I wanted to know whether you would confirm the head of the Ethics Office, Miss [Joan] Dubinsky, has left the position, and if you could explain why and what the process is for replacing her?
Deputy Spokesman: She has not left the position. I believe in a few months ago she will be at retirement age and at that point she will retire. But she's currently filling out her term. We are looking into the question of how to replace her once she has retired.
Question: Right. There's an ad for the post, for the position.
Deputy Spokesman: Of course, that's us preparing for the period. Since we all know when people's birthdays come up, we know how to prepare for this sort of thing. Yes, Anna?
Question: Thank you, Farhan. This is the first time in a long while, thankfully, that Ebola wasn't largely mentioned in your report. Does this mean that — is this an indication that the situation is finally getting under control? Or do you have any updates on this, like any news or any tidbits?
Deputy Spokesman: Well, I don't have any particularly fresh news. You're aware of the updates that have been provided by WHO, the World Health Organisation, concerning the tolls in the respective countries. We expect there to be actually quite a bit of activity around Ebola this week. And, in fact, later in the week, we do expect the Member States, potentially on Thursday, to receive briefings from Dr. David Nabarro and Anthony Banbury about the work that the UN system has been doing on Ebola. And as soon as I can lock it in, we'll try to also bring Mr. Nabarro — Dr. Nabarro and Mr. Banbury here to the noon briefing and hopefully that can happen sometime in the coming days.
Question: Just a little follow-up. Has there been any positive change in the financial situation, like donations for Ebola?
Deputy Spokesman: Yeah, there have been some. I believe we pointed out that on the 7 November, for example, the Government of Japan decided to provide medical and epidemic prevention equipment to Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone for about $4 million worth for each government, or $12 million in all, and to make a financial contribution to the UN Ebola Response Multipartner Trust Fund of about, close to $6 million. And so that was one of a series of contributions we received on Friday. I believe we continue to have on our web page updated figures in terms of that. But we have, I think, received well over half of what we have been seeking for that trust fund. Yes?
Question: Thank you, Farhan. Bob Geldof of Band Aid, who did the big famine relief concert, announced today that he's putting together a whole group of top flight musicians, singers to do another big Band Aid‑style concert in support of Ebola, to try to raise money to fight Ebola. Is this something that the United Nations will welcome and support in any way?
Deputy Spokesman: Well, certainly we would welcome any effort, including by private citizens, to help raise money for this cause. That's something we have been appealing to. Of course, we've made our plea to Governments, but we're also trying to make sure that civil society, the private sector and indeed people like entertainers can get involved in this fight; and certainly any sign that it's all hands on deck against this disease is really quite welcome. Yes?
Question: On Iran, again and again this is new negotiation between Iran and 5+1. Does the Secretary‑General has comment about this new negotiation?
Deputy Spokesman: There's no new comment on this. As you're aware, we've been following the discussions by whether you call it the P5+1 or the E3+3 with the Government of Iran. We hope that Iran will fulfil all of its obligations, including those under the relevant resolutions of the Security Council. And we hope that the parties will be able to resolve any remaining differences on the issue of nuclear weapons programmes through dialogue and in the time that's allotted to them. Yes?
Question: Sure, thanks. I wanted to ask about Sri Lanka and separately about Tony Blair. On Sri Lanka, I'd asked here about these comments by the Government about blank human rights forms. And last week High Commissioner Zeid [Ra’ad al-Hussein] said that this is not true and that the Government's not cooperating. Over the weekend, I guess, or at least it was reported over the weekend, the Permanent Representative of Sri Lanka in Geneva has said, has denounced everything that Prince Zeid said and has said this is now why they're constrained from constructively engaging with the inquiry. I wanted to know, given the Secretary‑General's travels to Sri Lanka in 2009 and his engagements since, what does he make about this? Does he have any comment on how the Government rejected what the High Commissioner said and said this is the reason why they won't cooperate? Should they cooperate? Will he call President [Mahinda] Rajapaksa? What's his response?
Deputy Spokesman: The Secretary‑General supports the views of High Commissioner Zeid, and he agrees with High Commissioner Zeid that the Government of Sri Lanka should cooperate. And we will continue to urge that they do so. Yes?
Question: On Yemen, it seems the Houthi group are disgruntled with the formation of the Government, which has gained the support of the United Nations; and also about these sanctions about Ali Abdullah Saleh and some of the leaders of Houthis. Does the Secretary‑General believe that more inclusiveness and more dialogue in this case will be more productive than resorting to sanctions and punishment, also exercising certain groups, certain vital groups in the country?
Deputy Spokesman: As you know, the question of sanctions is a question to be addressed by Member States themselves. It's the Member States who decide on those. As for your larger question, I would just refer you back to the statement that we put out on Friday. And in particular, the fact the Secretary‑General reminded the parties of the political commitments they made in signing the Peace and National Partnership Agreement. And he went on to say "Yemen is facing enormous challenges at present, which can only be overcome if all sides work together in the greater national interest to implement the agreement without delay."
Question: But I mean, threatening with different ways, given that Yemen is facing a critical moment at the moment. Does the Secretary‑General not believe that more dialogue needs to be done here?
Deputy Spokesman: Again, I would refer you back to the language of the statement. And on the question of sanctions and issues of that, those are issues to be addressed by the Member States themselves. Ozlem?
Question: Thank you, Farhan. Secretary‑General’s Special Representative for Cyprus, Mr. [Espen Barth] Eide, has wrapped up his visit to Turkey, Greece and Cyprus. And do you know when he's coming back to New York and is he going to report what he has found out in Cyprus? Do you have any update, please?
Deputy Spokesman: We do expect him to report back on his travels once they've concluded. I'll try to see what the dates are for when he's back in New York. Yes?
Question: Sure. I wanted to ask on this question of Tony Blair and his UN role in the Middle East process. It's been reported over weekend that he has a contract with Petro Saudi for 41,000 pounds a month to lobby for their interests. And so it's been raised in the press in the UK. But I thought to ask the UN, is this viewed in any way as a potential conflict of interest given his role in the Middle East peace process? And who reviews that in the UN?
Deputy Spokesman: As you know, he is not a UN employee. He is an envoy of the Quartet rather than of the United Nations. Ultimately, your questions would have to go to Tony Blair Associates.
Question: But I mean, the thing is, he can’t… It seems strange to ask him if he thinks that receiving 41,000 pounds a month is a conflict. The Secretary‑General, as a member of the Quartet, is he comfortable with those payments? How does he explain — what does he say to those, given Saudi Arabia has a particular view of that conflict, that taking this amount of money may present a conflict?
Deputy Spokesman: I think any questions about the envoy for the Quartet would have to be involved between the members of the Quartet themselves. I wouldn't speak individually for the Secretary‑General on that. Yes?
Question: Thank you, Farhan. On Ebola, the Japanese Government had expressed its readiness to contribute more than $100 million, in addition to what it had announced, the 40 million, right? So are you — is the UN informed on that? And what could be your reaction?
Deputy Spokesman: Yes. We were informed that the Government of Japan on Friday, 7 November, announced to provide further assistance amounting up to $100 million in a continuous and timely manner to respond more effectively to the Ebola outbreak. And so we have received, been informed of that. And certainly we welcome that, along with various other contributions that have been made. Yes, Linda?
Question: Thank you, Farhan. Regarding ISIS, are there any — is there further information about the latest developments regarding that conflict? Perhaps humanitarian consequences? And also, how would you characterize the UN role there in dealing with the conflict?
Deputy Spokesman: We have been trying to foster a spirit of international unity to deal with the threats posed by Da’esh, or ISIS, as you might call them. And, of course, we have been working on that. You're aware of the resolutions passed recently by the Security Council concerning this matter. And, yes, we have been trying to get humanitarian aid to people affected by the fighting, both in Iraq and Syria. And as you can see, we put out sporadic updates about the humanitarian efforts in that zone. Yes?
Question: Yes. On the same subject. Some Libyan groups have sworn allegiance to ISIS. Would the United Nations make dialogue with these people, as well, these groups? Armed groups in Libya declaring… even one group in Egypt has declared allegiance to ISIS. Are these to be spoken to, for example, by the United Nations anymore?
Deputy Spokesman: Well, it's difficult to say how our negotiations would be conducted. We, of course, have come out very strongly against the activities of Da’esh, and we would view with concern any alliances that they make with other groups.
Question: But when it comes to Libya, for examples, the dialogue in Libya, it shows it was inclusive so far, would these groups be excluded from such dialogue?
Deputy Spokesman: Well, Mr. [Bernardino] Leon and his delegation have been trying to reach out to all the various groups to see what they can do to restore stability and democratic governance throughout Libya, and he'll continue with that process. But in terms of any alliances with groups like Da’esh, that would, of course, be a very strong source of concern.
Have a good afternoon, everyone.