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.
Good afternoon.
**South Sudan
I have the following statement attributable to the Spokesman for the Secretary-General on South Sudan.
The Secretary-General strongly condemns the escalation of hostilities in the past ten days between the Sudan People's Liberation Army (SPLA) and the SPLA in Opposition and their allied forces in Unity and Upper Nile States.
He is appalled by the reports of human rights violations committed by the SPLA and their allied forces, including the burning of villages and the killing and rape of civilians, in the course of their military operations in Unity State. He also deplores the death of four internally displaced persons (IDPs) caught in the crossfire in the protection of civilians site within the UNMISS (United Nations Mission in South Sudan) compound in Melut. He demands that immediate national investigations be conducted so that those responsible for these crimes are held accountable by their respective leadership.
The Secretary-General underscores that this fighting is unacceptable. It is part of a series of violations of the Cessation of Hostilities Agreement signed by the parties on 23 January 2014 and undermines the ongoing Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD) efforts to find a political solution to the conflict in South Sudan.
The Secretary-General calls upon President Salva Kiir and former Vice-President Riek Machar to immediately cease all military operations and reminds them of their obligations to protect civilians under international human rights and humanitarian law. He reminds the parties that they must respect the inviolability of UNMISS premises, including protection of civilian sites, which are now host to more than 120,000 internally displaced persons.
**Secretary-General’s Travels
This morning, the Secretary-General attended the Seoul Digital Forum, a global communications event sponsored by the Seoul Broadcast Service. At the start of his speech, the Secretary-General announced the cancellation of his planned visit to the Kaesong Industrial Complex by the authorities of the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea. The Secretary-General said no explanation was given for this last-minute change, which he called “very regrettable”. However, he added that he would not spare any effort to encourage the DPRK to work with the international community for peace and stability on the Korean peninsula and beyond.
The Secretary-General met later in the day with President Park Geun-hye and her cabinet ministers and senior advisers. They shared their views on the critical importance of making progress on the post-2015 agenda, climate change, development assistance funding, protection of refugees and migrants, and other urgent global issues.
He also met with the Speaker of the National Assembly of Korea, Chung Ui-Hwa, and other senior members of the Assembly. At the meeting, the Secretary-General expressed his hope for the Republic of Korea’s continued contributions towards the post-2015 sustainable development agenda, climate change efforts, countering violent extremism, and other global issues.
The Secretary-General attended a number of events during the day and he was granted an honorary doctorate from Ewha Womans University. In his remarks following the official ceremony, the Secretary-General said that there is no better investment than women’s empowerment. All of his remarks are posted online.
**Yemen
The Secretary-General this morning announced the launch of inclusive consultations starting on 28 May in Geneva to restore momentum towards a Yemeni-led political transition process.
This initiative, bringing together a broad range of Yemeni governmental and other actors, follows extensive consultations by the Secretary-General's Special Envoy, Ismail Ould Cheikh Ahmed, as well as strong expressions of support by the United Nations Security Council in its resolutions for a peaceful and Yemeni-led political transition process. In particular, in resolution 2216 (2015), the Security Council emphasized the need for the return to the implementation of the Gulf Cooperation Council Initiative and its Implementation Mechanism and the outcomes of the comprehensive National Dialogue Conference, and reaffirmed its full support for, and commitment to, the efforts of the United Nations to relaunch the political dialogue.
The Secretary-General urges all the participants to engage in these United Nations consultations in good faith and without preconditions. The only durable resolution to the crisis in Yemen is an inclusive, negotiated political settlement. The United Nations has worked closely with Yemenis since 2011 to support national aspirations for change. With this experience and coupled with Yemen’s tradition of dialogue, the Secretary-General hopes these consultations will help Yemen re-launch the political process, reduce the levels of violence and alleviate the intolerable humanitarian situation.
Ismail Ould Cheikh Ahmed also briefed the Security Council on Yemen this morning in its closed consultations.
**Iran
The Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator, Valerie Amos, arrived in Tehran today for an official one-day visit. This is her third visit to the country in her capacity as Emergency Relief Coordinator.
Ms. Amos is expected to meet senior Iranian Government officials in Tehran, including Minister of Foreign Affairs Javad Zarif and Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister Hossein Amir Abdollahian. She will discuss regional issues, including the situation in Iraq, Yemen and Syria.
**Occupied Palestinian Territory
I was asked earlier about plans concerning the transfer of Palestinian Bedouins, and I have the following to say:
The Humanitarian Coordinator for the occupied Palestinian territory, James W. Rawley, and the Director of UN Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) Operations for the West Bank, Felipe Sanchez, expressed their grave concern today that Israel is rapidly advancing plans to transfer Palestinian Bedouins in the central West Bank from their current communities.
Mr. Rawley said that Israeli practices in Area C of the West Bank, including a marked increase of demolitions and confiscations of donor-funded structures in the first quarter of 2015, have compounded an already untenable situation for Bedouin communities.
The plan occurs against the backdrop of a discriminatory zoning and planning regime that facilitates the development of illegal Israeli settlements at the expense of Palestinians, for whom it is almost impossible to obtain permits for construction. Instead, they live in constant fear of eviction and home demolitions. The forced urbanization of Bedouin communities in the three relocation sites would destroy their culture and livelihoods. There is a press release with more details.
**Mali
From Mali, the UN Stabilization Mission in the country, known as MINUSMA, strongly condemned an attack overnight against a residence where several UN military personnel are living in Bamako.
An unidentified armed assailant shot and wounded a local security guard, who prevented an attempt to set fire to a MINUSMA vehicle parked outside. Two grenades were later found on site.
The UN Mission stresses that attacks against UN staff and premises is a serious crime and that the Malian authorities are responsible for the security of UN personnel.
MINUSMA is also very concerned by an eruption of violence in many localities in the north of Mali and intensified its contacts with all parties to restore calm and continue to advance the peace process.
**South-East Asia
The UN refugee agency (UNHCR) today welcomed the commitment announced by the Foreign Ministers of Malaysia, Indonesia and Thailand to resolve the issue of the thousands of refugees and migrants stranded in the Bay of Bengal and off the coast of South-East Asia.
The agency said this is an important initial step in the search for solutions to this issue and vital for the purpose of saving lives. It is now urgent for people to be brought ashore without delay and that immediate first aid and other care is provided for all who are in need.
The agency said it agrees with the ministers that further action will be needed, and that this includes addressing root causes and looking properly at the needs of those in need of international protection.
It added that countries in the region will need to work together for this to be addressed meaningfully and successfully.
The full statement is available online.
**Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia
Assistant Secretary-General for Human Rights Ivan Šimonović will begin a visit to the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia tomorrow.
This will be the first visit to the country by a senior UN human rights official since 1999.
Mr. Šimonović, who will be joined on his two-day visit by colleagues from the Department of Political Affairs, will meet with Government officials, the Ombudsman, political party leaders, human rights defenders, representatives of civil society, the UN country team and the international community.
**Press Conferences
Following this briefing, at 12:45 p.m., there will be a press conference here on the UN Sustainable Energy for All Forum, which is taking place this week. Speakers will include Kandeh Yumkella, Special Representative of the Secretary-General and Chief Executive Officer of the Sustainable Energy for All Forum, and Akon, R&B artist and co-founder of the Akon Lighting Africa initiative.
And then tomorrow, I will be joined by Gordon Brown, the UN Special Envoy for Global Education, as the noon briefing guest. He will be here to talk to you about youth education.
**Questions and Answers
That's it for me. Yes, Sherwin?
Question: Hi, Farhan. Does the Secretary-General support sanctions being imposed by the Security Council on — individual targeted sanctions against politicians and members of the military in South Sudan?
Deputy Spokesman: This is an issue up for the members of the Security Council. You have heard the very direct and very tough criticism the Secretary-General has made of the leaders in South Sudan for their actions. And he believes it is — it has been their responsibility to put aside their armed efforts and return to talks under the auspices of the Intergovernmental Authority for Development. They haven't acted in good faith for quite some time, and the people of South Sudan have paid quite a price. But in terms of specific sanctions measures, that's really for the Security Council membership to consider.
Question: What does he believe are next steps, though? Because these calls for cessation of hostilities, a number of them have been ignored. His appeals from the Security Council have been ignored. Where do we go from here? More statements?
Deputy Spokesman: No. I think there need to be actions, and certainly we, in collaboration with the Intergovernmental Authority for Development, have tried to push the parties back to the peace table. Yes, further steps probably need to be considered. The Security Council is considering further steps at this moment, and let's see where they go with that. Yes, Whitney?
Question: Farhan, on Yemen, the talks announced in Geneva, who will be invited to these talks? And can you give us more information about the makeup? Will everyone be sitting around one table together? Or will there be individual consultations with the envoy?
Deputy Spokesman: At this stage, the format's being worked out. What the Secretary-General announced today is consultations. It's not an international conference. And the whole point of the consultative process is to bring the Yemenis together with UN facilitation. Although we appreciate the support of regional and international actors, we expect the actual dialogue to take place at least initially between Yemenis and the UN. And that's what we'll try to do.
Question: But can you talk about the makeup? Will everybody be sitting down at one table together? Are they going to —
Deputy Spokesman: Well, I think Mr. Ould Cheikh Ahmed will look at the format. Ultimately, what he's trying to do is see what can be done to bring the Yemeni parties together. It may be he will need to meet with the parties individually, but we'll see when we get there how he works out the format. Yes, Anna?
Question: Thank you, Farhan. I wanted to ask a question about grave violations of human rights in Azerbaijan. Yet another journalist, Khadija Ismayilova, who was exposing the Azerbaijani Government of corruption, she was jailed, imprisoned in December. And unfortunately, her imprisonment, for no apparent reason, it was extended till now. And actually, Index on Censorship chief Jody Ginsburg said that this is cruel and unjust, the continued harassment of the journalist, and she added, as Azerbaijan prepares to host this summer’s annual European games, it's worth remembering that the treatment of Ismayilova flies in the face of press freedom and human dignity enshrined in the Olympic Charter. What kind of comment do you have on this?
Deputy Spokesman: Of course, we have concerns about mistreatment of journalists anywhere. We would, of course, have to look at the details of particular cases, but in Azerbaijan and elsewhere, journalists need it to go about their work without hindrance and without fear of persecution. Mr. Abbadi?
Question: Thank you, Farhan. Two leaders of the Burundi and leaders of the civil society and of the opposition have written an urgent letter to EAC (East African Community) to the International Conference on the Great Lake Region, and to COMESA (Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa), urging the establishment of an interceding force to prevent a breakdown of security in the country. They alluded to the genocide of 1994 in Rwanda and asked the international community to remain vigilant. Has the Secretary-General received a copy of the letter, and what is his position with regard to this proposal?
Deputy Spokesman: I don't believe we have issued — received a copy of the letter, but I'll check on that. Yes?
Question: Thank you, Farhan. Two questions: First, can you confirm reports that the Iranian ship that's carrying aid for Yemen is, in fact, headed to Djibouti, where the UN has its hub for the distribution of aid?
And, secondly, can you also say whether the Secretary-General, as reports have said, will be attending the opening session of the Yemen conference?
And has there been any indication — because I would assume there were contacts with the Houthis, the Hadi Government, and perhaps former President [Ali Abdallah] Saleh before this announcement, whether there are indications that they plan to attend these consultations?
Deputy Spokesman: Taking your questions backwards, in backwards order: In terms of attendance, of course, it's still a bit early to say who will be attending and who won't be. We just made the announcement a few hours ago. Yet at the same time, Ismail Ould Cheikh Ahmed has been in touch with a range of parties, and he believes we have the understandings that are sufficient for us to proceed and that the parties will be able to come to Geneva and participate in good faith. Our hope is that they will participate without preconditions and in good faith, and we will try to hold them to that.
Regarding the Secretary—General, of course, I don't have an official announcement to make about his further travels to what is already an extremely long trip, as you may have noticed, but our expectation is that he will be there in Geneva for the start of this process.
Regarding your first question about the Iranian ship, we have received word from the Government of Iran that the Iranian ship with humanitarian supplies will proceed to Djibouti. Given concerns about the situation on the ground in Yemen, the Secretary-General has urged all countries and organizations with in-kind donations to arrange with the UN deliveries to Djibouti for onward distribution in Yemen. Yes, Carol?
Question: Farhan, back on Yemen, so we understand that Ismail Ould Cheikh Ahmed is on his way to Tehran. Can you talk about that leg of his talks? Thank you.
Deputy Spokesman: I don't know whether your microphone was working, but Carol was just asking whether Ismail Ould Cheikh Ahmed is on his way to Tehran. Yes, I believe that's the case. The expectation is that he will be in Tehran tomorrow.
Question: Can you talk about what he will be talking about?
Deputy Spokesman: He will be in talks with Iranian officials concerning the situation in Yemen. Once we have had — once he's had those talks, we'll see whether we can get some further update on that. But that remains for tomorrow. Matthew?
Question: Sure. Thanks a lot. Something on the Secretary-General, but I wanted to ask a follow-up on Yemen. This morning, the Permanent Representative of Yemen in front of the Security Council said — or as best as I could make out seemed to say that the Secretary-General's Special Envoy, speaking of the humanitarian pause extension, said, quote, "I was trying to get that, but I realized that all of these acts on the ground were not giving me any chance to show that objective." So I wanted to know, is it the case that the Secretary-General's envoy’s basically saying for the failure to extend the pause is all the fault of the people on the ground, or does it have anything to do with airstrikes?
Deputy Spokesman: I wouldn't characterize what the Ambassador's reading of the Special Envoy's comments were. Where we stand on the humanitarian pause — and our regret about the failure to extend the humanitarian pause — is a matter of record. We have also said it ourselves about our regrets concerning the failure of that. And that is — and in terms of the blaming, the blame lays on all the parties in terms of their failure to halt — to extend the pause and to halt fighting.
Question: And on Burundi — can I ask you one question on Burundi? Yesterday I thought you'd said — again, it seemed you said that Mr. [Said] Djinnit was going to brief the Council today and he might brief us. Doesn't seem that that's happening. Is there some schedule for him to brief, if not the Council, the press on what's happening there? And does he have any comment on the extension of the election?
Deputy Spokesman: Well, we're still trying to get him to brief you. There's no formal scheduled briefing by Djinnit to the Security Council, although we are trying to provide them with information about Burundi regularly, given their interest in the matter. But, yes, we're still trying to see whether he can speak to the press and we'll let you know when that can be arranged.
Regarding your other question regarding the legislative elections, yes, we take note of the announcement today to postpone the legislative and communal elections in Burundi from 26 May to 5 June. The dialogue involving the Government, political parties and religious organizations is currently ongoing at the UN Electoral Mission, MENUB, with the facilitation of Special Envoy Said Djinnit. The issue of the electoral calendar will be discussed in line with the decisions in the extraordinary summits of the East African Community and the inter… international con… con… sorry. This is an acronym, ICGLR, the International [Conference] of the Great Lakes Region, or something like that, as well as the communiqué of the Peace and Security Council of the African Union.
Iftikhar?
Question: Thank you, Farhan. In connection with the statement you read about Israeli settlements and the difficult situation of Bedouins, has the Secretary-General or the United Nations taken note of an article in The New York Times today which is headlined, "Give up on Mr. Netanyahu, Go to the United Nations"?
Deputy Spokesman: We don't comment on headlines of news articles if that's what you're asking.
Question: It’s a proposal. He is making a serious proposal. Has the United Nations seen this article by [Henry] Siegman, who's making a proposal that the United Nations Security Council should take up the question of talks between Israelis and Palestinians and come to a — and make and issue a resolution on a two-State solution?
Deputy Spokesman: Yes, sir, with respect, the Security Council is itself seized of the matter, and in fact, they last had a briefing on the situation between Israelis and Palestinians yesterday afternoon, where they heard from Nickolay Mladenov, so I would just refer you to yesterday's Security Council meeting on that topic. Yes?
Question: Thank you, Farhan. On Qatar, Qatar is busy preparing for the FIFA 2022 World Cup. They're currently using slave labour to build the infrastructure. They're luring Bangladeshis, Nepalese, Pakistanis away from home using labour traffickers, who promise them a certain wage. And then, when they arrive in Qatar, their passports are taken away, and they labour 16 hours a day. They sleep 8 to 12 to a room. And if they try to run away, despite the fact that they have no passport, their families are threatened. Is the UN looking into this at all?
Deputy Spokesman: Yes. I believe our colleagues in the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights and the International Labour Organization are looking into any relevant allegations, and they'll be following up. Yes, Go?
Question: Thank you, Farhan. Regarding the DPRK, could you give us a little more details on how the Secretary-General was informed about the cancellation of his visit? And can you give us also if you have an example in the past when the Secretary-General was refused by any specific country for his visit?
Deputy Spokesman: Well, regarding your second question, because the business of this organization is diplomacy, I cannot actually tell you about other examples when delegations were refused in any specifics other than to say, yes, it's happened sometimes before.
Regarding this — to this date, we still don't have a reason or an explanation for why the cancellation happened, but I do know that we had had a series of communications, including through the DPRK Mission to the United Nations here in New York, that gave us the assurances we needed to proceed. Then late Wednesday night, Seoul time, the Secretary-General was informed otherwise that, in fact, the trip was now off. And as he has pointed out, that was given without explanation. He does regret this, but he will continue to work for peace on the Korean peninsula. Yes, yes, whoever you are? Don't have your name.
Question: Yeah. Thank you, Farhan. Israeli Minister of Military Affairs Moshe Ya’alon, in a news conference, has chosen to use nuclear weapon against Iran. Quote, “A surgical operation, it might take certain steps such as the US did in Japan in World War II”. I was wondering, what is the Secretary-General's position on that?
Deputy Spokesman: You're well aware of our position against the use of nuclear weapons or, indeed, against the deployment of nuclear weapons. The stand that we have against weapons of mass destruction is well known. Yes?
Question: Thank you, Farhan. I wanted to ask about the situation with the fight against Ebola. UN has been at the forefront of this crisis and it has always been on UN's agenda, thankfully. But recently, it's been reported that some companies use this Ebola crisis for their corporate promotion and to have corporate gain, especially specifically like Peabody Energy, promoting their coal as a possibility to fight poverty, which is causing Ebola and so on and so forth. Many people, many experts consider this amoral, to say the least. What is UN's attitude towards this?
Deputy Spokesman: It's not for me to comment on the morality of corporations per se, but what I would like to emphasize is that in the fight against Ebola, it's — the need is for all players, whether it be Governments, businesses, civil society, or others, to focus on making sure that we can get to zero cases and that we can, therefore, save and spare thousands of lives. Yes, Matthew?
Question: Thanks a lot, Farhan. Farhan, I wanted — I'm sorry I'm returning to this. Because I tried to ask you yesterday about business conducted with the UN by Colliers International where the Secretary-General's nephew worked, and you said: Ask Colliers. So I've done some research. Basically, it seems on the FF building, the plaque of Colliers International is right on the front as having done that deal for the UN. Daily News building, they signed two leases. There's also one on 605 Third Avenue. But I have no idea if this list is complete. So I went back, and it turns out in 2009, UN then-spokeswoman Michèle Montas were totally willing to provide information about contracts concerning Petrocelli Electric. So I wanted to know, it's obviously not the policy not to provide information on contracts. I wanted to ask you again, since a relative of the Secretary-General works at Colliers International, can you — obviously not from this podium but in some reasonable time — come up with a list of the amount of business done with Colliers International where the nephew works? If not, why not?
Deputy Spokesman: Those are actually two separate issues. Yes, we can provide information about any company's contracts with the UN because they have contracts with the UN. That's one thing. But you said “since they have employed a relative”. That's irrelevant.
Question: That's why I'm asking.
Deputy Spokesman: The contracts that they have have nothing to do, and we have said this repeatedly, with any relation of the Secretary-General.
Question: Can you understand that if you can provide it and if — you don't have to acknowledge that there's a connection. I'm not even saying there's a connection.
Deputy Spokesman: We can — we can certainly check with UN procurement what the total number of contracts and their value with Colliers are. That's standard for any business. But I would like to put in this note: that it's not related one way or another to the family of the Secretary-General. Procurement doesn't work that way. Yeah?
Question: Thank you, Farhan. Yesterday this Special Coordinator for peace in the Middle East, Mr. Nickolay Mladenov, gave a chilling report about Gaza. He said Gaza is desperate. Gaza is angry. And he went on to talk about how angry they are and how desperate they are. And everything goes normal. Business as usual. Human tragedy is in the making, and nothing is being done. Why?
Deputy Spokesman: That is a larger question than just involving the UN. The Secretary-General, as well, has talked about the need to reverse the sort of dynamic we're in so that we do not keep coming to the same problem again and again. In Gaza in particular, he has now visited Gaza three times over the last six years to see it destroyed by fighting. And to see a community there that is not just affected by fighting but is also impoverished and unable to conduct normal commercial business. That can't go on. The Secretary-General has repeatedly brought this to the attention of the Security Council. And ultimately, other nations need to be involved and, in particular, the Israelis and Palestinians need to return to the peace table with each other, resolve their outstanding issues, and we need to work with them to realizing the vision of a two-State solution. Otherwise, we'll keep coming back to the same problem again and again. They've had this warning, and we can't say it often enough, but ultimately, people need to learn the lessons of the failures of the past. Yes?
Question: Thank you, Farhan. Regarding Yemen, Valerie Amos is obviously there to discuss the humanitarian crisis and the SG's special rep is expected — in Iran. This is both in regards to Iran. Is this just coincidental, or are they planning to coordinate their efforts or…
Deputy Spokesman: No, no, they're separate trips and they have separate objectives.
All right. Yes?
Question: I just wanted to see if there's a comment. Burkina Faso has announced that it's banning live political broadcasts for three months in the run-up to elections, and a number of press organizations have been critical of it. Given DPA (Department of Political Affairs) and the UN's kind of involvement in different stages in Burkina Faso, do you have any view of that banning of live political broadcasts?
Deputy Spokesman: I don't know whether it's a banning or whether it's restrictions. There are a number of countries that restrict political broadcasts in the run-up to elections, and sometimes that's designed to lessen the threat of electoral violence, so that's a more complicated issue. So at this stage, we wouldn't have anything to say about that. If there are concerns about actual harassment of journalists, that would be a case for concern.
Have a good afternoon, everyone.