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 Stéphane Dujarric, Spokesman for the Secretary-General.
**Noon Briefing Guest
In a short while, I will be joined by Richard Kollodge, the editor of the UN Population Fund’s latest report on adolescents, entitled “The Power of 1.8 Billion: Adolescents, Youth and the Transformation of the Future”.
**Jerusalem
I do expect a statement from the Secretary‑General on the attack in Jerusalem today which should come down shortly.
In the meantime, I can tell you that the Special Coordinator for the Middle East Peace Process, Robert Serry, said today that he abhorred the attack this morning on a synagogue in West Jerusalem. There can be no justification whatsoever for these deliberate killings, which he strongly condemns. The Special Coordinator reiterates the United Nations urgent call on all sides to do everything they can possibly do to avoid further escalation in the already very tense situation in Jerusalem. His thoughts are with the families of the victims.
And as I mentioned, we should get a statement from the Secretary‑General very shortly.
**Burkina Faso
On Burkina Faso, the Secretary‑General continues to follow closely the situation in that country. He commends the people of Burkina Faso for the establishment of transitional organs and congratulates Mr. Michel Kafando, who was sworn in as Transitional President today. The Secretary‑General looks forward to the early appointment of the Transitional Prime Minister, as well as other members of the transitional organs. He reiterates his appreciation to all Burkinabé stakeholders for their continuing commitment to peacefully engage in dialogue to address all outstanding issues.
The United Nations, in cooperation with the African Union (AU), the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) and other international partners, will continue to accompany Burkina Faso’s efforts during the transitional period leading to the holding of elections in November 2015.
**Security Council
Back here, the Security Council held an open meeting on Iraq this morning, during which it heard from Special Representative Nickolay Mladenov, Emergency Relief Coordinator Valerie Amos and High Commissioner for Human Rights Zeid Ra’ad al-Hussein.
Mr. Mladenov discussed the response by the Iraqi parties to the atrocities of the Da’esh group, also known as ISIL. He noted the recent steps taken by the Iraqi Government to restore confidence and encouraged the Government to kick-start national dialogue. He said that today, the oil refinery of Beiji has been brought back under the control of the Government.
And High Commissioner Zeid said that the scale and violence of Da’esh’s brutality towards civilians shreds every principle relevant to human rights. He called for the perpetrators of the group’s crimes to be brought to justice and urged the Security Council to support efforts to overturn Da’esh’s ideology of violence and death.
Ms. Amos provided an update on UN efforts to provide aid to groups displaced by Da’esh military operations.
All three speakers are scheduled to speak to you at the stakeout a bit later on following consultations.
**Ebola
Our regular update on Ebola: the World Health Organization (WHO) says that as of today, Mali has officially reported a total of six cases of Ebola, with five deaths. WHO is working closely with the Government of Mali to keep the Ebola outbreak from spreading. After intense tracing and monitoring of contacts of the first case (the first case which was, as you will recall, a little girl), all 118 contacts have now passed through the 21-day incubation period without developing symptoms. The virus was almost certainly re-introduced into Mali by a 70-year-old Grand Imam who fell ill in Guinea and died in Mali on 27 October.
WHO is currently assisting the Government of Mali to identify all potential chains of transmission, monitor contacts, and prevent the outbreak from growing larger. To date, 554 contacts have been identified and nearly all have been placed under surveillance. The Ministry of Health, supported by WHO, has augmented the number of staff engaged in contact-tracing by drawing on polio surveillance teams and using local medical students with training in epidemiology. The country is also ramping up its capacity to perform exit screening at the Bamako airport.
As the successful experiences in Senegal and Nigeria show, aggressive contact-tracing, which seeks to find and break every chain of transmission immediately after an imported case, can hold the number of additional cases to very small numbers and support a rapid end to the outbreak.
Meanwhile, UNICEF [United Nations Children’s Fund] also intensified its emergency response to Ebola in Mali, increasing food and water delivery, and providing support on hygiene and sanitation. UNICEF is bringing additional support to local clinics, particularly in the area close to the frontier with Guinea.
And the Head of the UN Mission for Ebola Emergency Response (UNMEER), Anthony Banbury, is today in Bamako to consult with national authorities and partners on the ground.
Also on Ebola, the World Health Organization stressed today that efforts to contain the outbreak are currently hampered by slow and complex diagnostic tests that impose a number of additional logistical challenges. Therefore, WHO has launched two urgent initiatives to stimulate diagnostic innovation and expedite the delivery of better and faster tests to West Africa. One aims to minimize the barriers faced by diagnostic companies to develop and deploy their tests. The second comes with the establishment of an emergency quality assessment mechanism. We have more from WHO on their efforts.
**Secretary-General’s Travel
The Secretary‑General, on Thursday and Friday, will chair the twice-yearly meeting of the Chief Executives Board (CEB), bringing together all the heads of the UN system to discuss issues of mutual interest. The Deputy Secretary‑General and the heads of UN agencies, funds and programmes will also attend.
The World Bank Group will host this session of the CEB at its headquarters in Washington, D.C. Discussions will focus on the post-2015 development agenda, among other topics. One of the CEB sessions on Friday will be on Ebola response. Following that session, at about 12:45 pm, the Secretary‑General and the CEB members will have a brief press encounter at the World Bank on Ebola. And we will see to give you details if you can watch that on the World Bank webcast.
**Libya
The UN Support Mission in Libya (UNSMIL) reports that violence in parts of Libya has led to a deteriorating displacement crisis. According to the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR), at least 100,400 people have fled their homes in the past month alone, due to intense fighting in the eastern towns of Benghazi and Derna as well as in the Libya’s south-east and west regions. Since May, nearly 400,000 people have been displaced in Libya. Many displaced people, scattered around 35 towns or cities, are urgently in need of food, water, shelter, health care and other basic commodities. Aid organizations are assessing the scale of displacement and humanitarian needs.
**Sahel
Today, the Secretary‑General reaffirmed the solidarity and commitment of the whole UN system to the people of the Sahel, as expressed, together with leaders from the African Union, the European Union, the World Bank and the African Development Bank, during their joint visit last year.
In a message to the third meeting of the ministerial coordination platform for the Sahel, he added that the UN was determined to reinforce its coordination with national, regional, and international partners to help improve the lives of millions of people across the region.
He added that the peace talks between the Malian Government and armed groups that resumed this week in Algiers would be crucial for the whole region. He also noted the direct impact of the deterioration of the situation in North-East Nigeria as well as of the instability in Libya on the Sahel.
**Democratic Republic of the Congo
From the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), the UN refugee agency expressed deep concern today about the humanitarian situation in the DRC's Katanga Province, which has displaced hundreds of thousands of people. Violence in the south-eastern province has forced some 400,000 people to flee their homes since the end of 2012. The total number of internally displaced people in the province is nearly 600,000. The limited presence of humanitarian and development organizations is a serious problem, leading to insufficient assistance to displaced people who struggle to have access to basic services. We have more information on UNHCR’s website.
**Appointment
One appointment today. The Secretary‑General has appointed Lenni Montiel of Venezuela as Assistant Secretary‑General for Economic Development in the Department of Economic and Social Affairs (DESA). He succeeds Shamshad Akhtar of Pakistan. Mr. Montiel brings with him wide-ranging experience and expertise on various issues on the development agenda of the United Nations. He is currently Director of Economic, Social and Development Affairs in the Executive Office of the Secretary-General. His bio is available in my office.
**Press Conferences
Tomorrow is World Toilet Day and I will be joined here at noon by UN Deputy Secretary‑General Jan Eliasson, along with Ambassador Karen Tan of Singapore, and Michel Jarraud, Secretary-General of the World Meteorological Organization and Chair of UN-Water, who will brief you on that topic.
Then at 3 p.m., there will be a press conference by Juan Carlos Pinzón, the Minister of National Defence of Colombia.
**Questions and Answers
Question: Sure. Thanks a lot, Stéphane. I wanted… you had said this was a regular update on Ebola. But I wanted to ask, until it’s resolved, is there any update on the rapes in Darfur and the attempts by UNAMID [African Union-United Nations Hybrid Operation in Darfur]) how many days afterwards to actually gain access? And also there's some hunger strikers now in Khartoum about this case and they say they're also protesting the Government's eviction of Darfuri students from their dorm and colleges in Khartoum. Was there any statement from the UN on that?
Spokesman: I haven't seen anything on that report so I don't have anything for you on that. Obviously, we continue to press for access; the Joint Mission continues to press for access. We've asked for clearance by either road or by air to go to Thabit. We've not yet received any clearance, and we continue to press the Government and obviously you heard what the Secretary‑General had to say yesterday, but as soon as we get the clearance, we will go.
Question: And while you were away, some questions arose about the… UNAMID's initial 9 November press release, which not only said they found evidence of rape but also said the residents reiterated that they get along fine with the military authorities. And it’s just, I guess, if it still stands, how are these… are these run through DPKO [Department of Peacekeeping Operations]? Is this something that DPKO would say that's the UNAMID African Union-UN Mission that wrote it or who wrote that, because it seems it many, including on the Security Council, to be a very thin line.
Spokesman: UNAMID is a joint mission of the African Union and the UN. We continue to press for access, because obviously the best way to verify whether or not these things happened is for us to have direct access. Evelyn?
Question: Two quick questions. Sorry. The UNAMID situation seems to require the Security Council to do something with Khartoum, and I wondered if anyone is moving in that direction? And secondly, there's a very disturbing report on the Congo, aside from all the other reports you just mentioned, that the police in the capital have killed at least 51 young people, whom I suspect is who knows what, you know, gang members and whatnot, and some… and executed them.
Spokesman: Sure. On your first question, obviously, the Security Council is well aware of the situation regarding UNAMID and Thabit, but you would have to ask the presidency what action they plan to take.
On the second, if you will recall, this is the same incident that the UN Office for the High Commissioner for Human Rights in the Congo flagged, which led to the declaration of one of our colleagues being PNG’d… the Head of that Office being PNG [persona non grata]. So we're well aware of that situation and have raised our concerns publically. Mr. Klein?
Question: Yes. Is the Secretary‑General… does the Secretary‑General have any comment on the recommendation that apparently was made recently by a UN panel urging the Security Council to put a moratorium on the sale of antiquities from both Syria and Iraq, not just from the territories controlled by ISIL but from the entire countries, both Iraq and Syria, the objective being to cut off a source of revenue for the terrorists? But in imposing a global moratorium on the two countries entirely in terms of sale of antiquities, could that be seen as going too far and potentially hurt Iraq itself as it's trying to foster development there?
Spokesman: Well, you know, Joe, I haven't seen the reports you're referring to. However, I think the illegal sale of antiquities and cultural artifacts is a big problem, not only in terms of providing revenue to… illegal revenue to groups who participate in that black market but also I would say, almost more importantly, it's the pillaging of a country, and we've seen what's happened in Syria with the loss of artifacts; the destruction of artifacts and the destruction of history and a destruction of culture has a tremendous negative impact on a country and is something that is almost impossible to get back. Anna and then Abdelhamid?
Question: Thank you, Stéphane. During G20 Summit in Australia, which you also were a part of, some world leaders criticized Russia…
Spokesman: I was not a part of it. I was just there. I don't want to inflate my role. [laughter] But thank you. Go ahead.
Question: Some world leaders criticized Russia over the situation in Ukraine. But meanwhile, in Brussels during the meeting of ministers of foreign affairs, Chief of Foreign Affairs, Federica Mogherini, for European Union asserted that there is a need to re-launch a dialogue with Russia and also to find new ways for Ukraine to better implement economic and institutional reforms. And some experts agreed, actually, that this is a more constructive and result-oriented approach. How would you comment on this?
Spokesman: Well, I think the Secretary‑General had… I would refer you to what he said in his press conference in Brisbane, and the Secretary‑General has been repeatedly calling for increased dialogue between Russia and Ukraine as well as a recommitment to the Minsk Agreement and Protocols. Abdelhamid and then Anne?
Question: Thank you, Stéphane. On the attack on the synagogue this morning in Jerusalem, the Special Coordinator issued a statement condemning that attack. Rightfully so. The SG will issue also a statement which, as we understand also. However, a number of Palestinians were killed in the last few days, including a bus driver on Sunday. He was strangled, tortured and strangled to death by six settlers, and three boys, two boys and one girl were shot and wounded. Three fishermen disappeared from Gaza but all these crimes do not make it to radar of both the Coordinator and the Secretary‑General. How long we… the Palestinian would wait for some kind of equal treatment for the innocent lives when it killed on both sides should be condemned?
Spokesman: You know, you and I have had this running disagreement on interpretation of statements…
Question: Probably will continue to…
Spokesman: …and probably will continue to do so. I think the Secretary‑General has been very clear in his condemnation of violence, of deaths of civilians, whatever their religion, whatever their nationality, whatever their ethnicity. He spoke out very forcefully during the conflict in Gaza on the death of innocents, the death of children. We continue to condemn violence from which… whichever corridor it comes from. And I don't think the Secretary‑General's commitment to condemning that violence can be questioned, at least from where I stand. Anne?
Question: During her visit to Australia for the recent G20 meeting, German Chancellor [Angela] Merkel was quoted in today's The Wall Street Journal as saying this is not just about Ukraine. This about Moldova, about Georgia, and if this continues, then one will have to ask about Serbia and one will have to ask about the countries of the Western Balkans. Do you think the Secretary‑General would agree with Chancellor Merkel's assessment of the situation in Ukraine and the other European countries that she mentioned?
Spokesman: I think what the Secretary‑General has said a number of times is that the tensions in Ukraine, the conflict in Ukraine has an impact well beyond the region, has a negative impact well beyond the region, and that's one of the many reasons why it needs to be solved as quickly as possible. Mr. Lee?
Question: Sure. I wanted to ask, in… I know I've asked before about the returning peacekeepers from Liberia being quarantined by the Philippines, all of them. But there's now an announcement that all overseas foreign workers that return to the country having been in the…
Spokesman: Which country?
Question: Return to the Philippines, which many go out to from other places — that they have now instituted a policy that all overseas foreign workers, Filipinos returning to the Philippines from those three countries, will automatically be quarantined. I know in an earlier stage of all this, the Secretary‑General or Secretariat had some statements about these kind of mass quarantines. Is there…
Spokesman: I think you… look at what the Secretary‑General said in Brisbane. He said that health workers need to be respected for their devotion, for their volunteerism in going to these areas and they should not be quarantined without right scientific facts. People are contagious when they show symptoms of the virus. And that health procedures need to be based on science and we've… this remains our position, whether you're talking about New York, New Jersey, the Philippines or anywhere else around the world.
Question: Also, I wanted to ask you, there's a lot of committee action today, not only in the Third but the Fifth Committee's having, it's kind of looking at labour practices in the UN. And so I wanted to ask you a couple of things. One is, the Head of the Staff Union from Geneva is here, and he spoke about continuing lack of whistle-blower protections and saying… quoting the case of Mr. [James] Wasserström but also… so I'm wondering, I know the Secretary‑General at one point was commissioning some study of whistle-blower protections, and has that ever… seems like the deadline for that has gone by.
Spokesman: I'll check that.
Question: And I also wanted to ask, in the union dispute inside the building, the people that say that they won or at least got the most votes in December have circulated a document to the Fifth Committee, saying that Mr. [Yukio] Takasu has refused to recognize them or give them time release and this is akin to basically union busting at the UN. And I wanted to know, where does that stand?
Spokesman: I would very much hope that issues relating to our staff union are resolved peacefully, as we say. I think UN staff deserve to have one staff union and we hope there can be some way to resolve the issue between the different factions here.
Question: Right. But it seems like there was, some weeks ago, there was a document given of all the former arbitrators, saying that the result that took place in December was the result, and I wanted to know, so what mechanism is there to resolve this? Or is there going to be a union going forward?
Spokesman: As I said, I really have nothing to add to what I've just said. I hope this gets resolved within the staff union. Ms. Fasulo and Mr. Klein?
Question: Stéphane, thank you. I have two housekeeping questions. One is, are you…
Spokesman: I love housekeeping.
Question: Get out your broom!
Spokesman: Go ahead.
Question: The first is, are you aware of the 2139 report on humanitarian conditions in Syria is out? I guess it's due today.
Spokesman: Okay. I will check.
Question: Okay. And secondly, regarding the counter-terrorism debate in the Security Council tomorrow, are you aware if any high-level government officials will be attending that?
Spokesman: You should check with the presidency of the Security Council. I believe the Australian Foreign Minister is in town. So my understanding is that she will be attending the meeting, but I would take… you can take my advice but don't take my word. I would check with Ambassador [Gary] Quinlan's office. Mr. Klein?
Question: Yes. I know in response to a prior question, you said that the Secretary‑General has frequently reiterated his call for de-escalation, and reduction of violence on both sides in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. I wonder if he would have any comment on the fact that on the Israeli side, for example, the mayor of Jerusalem today called on the citizens of Jerusalem, in response to the synagogue attack, not to take the law into their own hands and the Prime Minister, [Benjamin] Netanyahu, has in the past called for de-escalation and in terms of not having Jews go up and prey on the Temple Mount as a means to de-escalate. But on the other side, Hamas leaders have just praised the Palestinian terrorists who killed four Jews. So does the Secretary‑General take into account or note that distinction — that on the one side you have incitement of violence by the Palestinian leaders, on the other side you have calls for restraint by Israeli leaders?
Spokesman: We would encourage all leaders to encourage restraint and to do whatever they can to de-escalate the situation. We welcome those kinds of statements. I think rhetoric… rhetoric does matter and we need to do whatever we can to lessen the rhetoric and de-escalate the violence. Anna, and then we'll go to our guests.
Question: I wanted to ask a question about the situation in Somalia. It's been reported that there are serious political tensions between the President, Hassan Sheikh Mohamud, and Prime Minister Abdiwali Sheikh Ahmed, and it's been reported that it's destabilizing the situation in the country gravely. Fourteen cabinet ministers actually have been pressed to send a letter to Prime Minister's office, asking for his resignation. And this is the second Prime Minister that President Mohamud is trying to oust in less than a year. And we all know that the UN envoy, Nicholas Kay, met with both of them along with a delegation of Western Ambassadors this past Sunday and tried to reconcile them both, President Mohamud and, you know, Prime Minister Ahmed. But unfortunately, that attempt failed. And he reported later on that if this continues, this whole situation and tension, then this will hamper further progress in this country. What other additional information do you have on this issue and which steps is UN going to take to stabilize it?
Spokesman: I will try to get an update from Mr. Kay's office as to what else is being considered. I will get Mr. Kollodge. I'll be back in two seconds.