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.
**Nobel Peace Prize
In a statement issued this morning, the Secretary-General said he was pleased that the 2015 Nobel Prize for Peace has been awarded to the Tunisian National Dialogue Quartet. He congratulated the members of the Quartet and saluted the Tunisian people, saying that this recognition belongs to all those who gave birth to the Arab Spring and are striving to safeguard the sacrifices of so many. Above all, he said, this tribute highlights that lasting progress required by an inclusive process. The Arab Spring began with great hopes that were soon replaced with grave doubts. Tunisia has managed to avoid the disappointment and dashed hopes that have tragically emerged elsewhere.
As leaders of civil society, the Tunisian National Dialogue Quartet has helped drive the change the Tunisian people demanded — and has been central to the country’s stability, integrity and pursuit of justice. The Tunisian National Dialogue Quartet offers hope that serious political challenges can be overcome through dialogue and consensual politics. Their example is an inspiration to the region and the world. The United Nations will continue to proudly stand in solidarity with the awardees as they work to build the peaceful and democratic nation that the Tunisian people deserve.
**Security Council
And the Security Council, as you all know, by a vote of 14 in favour and 1 abstention, approved a resolution this morning concerning the situation of migrants and human trafficking on the high seas off the coast of Libya. The Council also extended the mandate of the UN Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS) until 15 December.
**Libya
Also relating to Libya, in a statement we issued last night, the Secretary-General welcomed the proposal of nominees for the Presidency Council of the Libyan Government of National Accord. He commended the dialogue participants for having reached a final text of a political agreement after comprehensive and broad consultations.
After months of turmoil and uncertainty, the Secretary-General urges leaders not to squander this opportunity to put the country back on the path to building a State that reflects the spirit and ambitions of the 2011 revolution. Now is the time for the parties to the political dialogue to endorse this proposal and to sign the Agreement without delay. The Secretary-General remains committed to supporting the Libyan people through his Special Representative and the United Nations [Support] Mission in Libya (UNSMIL).
**Peru
And the Secretary-General is in Lima, Peru, today for the 2015 Annual Meetings of the Boards of Governors of the World Bank Group (WB) and the International Monetary Fund (IMF). He will be attending several events today, including a climate finance ministerial lunch.
I would also like to invite you to follow an interactive panel discussion with the Secretary-General, President Ollanta Humala of Peru, the [United Kingdom] Secretary of State for International Development, Justine Greening, as well as the Heads of the World Bank and the IMF [International Monetary Fund]. And you can follow that panel by webcast on the World Bank webcast at http://live.worldbank.org. And that’s at 6:30 p.m. this afternoon.
And as you know, the Secretary-General will be flying tomorrow to Bolivia for the “Peoples World Conference on Climate Change and Defence of Life”. He’ll be back at work on Monday. And also related to the meetings in Lima, yesterday, the Finance Ministers of the Vulnerable Twenty, or the V20 as they’re known, representing close to 700 million people threatened by climate change and spanning world regions, launched their new group in Lima.
This UNDP [United Nations Development Programme]-backed initiative announced actions to foster greater investment in climate resiliency and low emissions development—at home and internationally. The V20 is led by the Philippines and other members include, among others, Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Barbados, Costa Rica, Ethiopia, Ghana, Kiribati, Maldives, Nepal, Rwanda, [United Republic of] Tanzania, Timor-Leste, Tuvalu and Viet Nam. And more is on the UNDP website.
**Yemen
And turning to Yemen, late yesterday, the Emergency Relief Coordinator, Stephen O’Brien, said in a statement that he was deeply disturbed by the news of civilians being killed by coalition air strikes that hit a wedding party in Yemen's Dhamar Governorate on Wednesday. He noted that some 4,500 civilians have reportedly been killed or injured by explosive weapons in Yemen during the first seven months of this year, which is more than in any other country during the same period.
Ninety-five per cent of the Yemeni people killed or injured by explosive weapons in towns or cities are civilians, according to recent reports. More than half of all the air strikes have occurred in towns or cities, often in densely populated areas, resulting in high numbers of civilian casualties. Mr. O’Brien called for a swift, transparent and impartial investigation into the latest incident. Real accountability for parties to conflict, whether they are States or non-State armed groups, is urgently needed, to ensure that the commitment under international law to protect civilians is meaningful.
**Côte d’Ivoire
And on Côte d’Ivoire, the Secretary-General’s Special Representative in that country called for the electoral campaign to take place peacefully. She urged presidential candidates to ensure peaceful electoral campaigns and called on the media to show professionalism in their coverage of this campaign. And there is more information online.
**Guinea
And from Guinea, also on an electoral issue, the High Commissioner for Human Rights, Zeid Ra’ad al Hussein, said today that he has received worrying reports of violent unrest and looting in Conakry, Guinea, since yesterday. These new incidents come after a series of violent clashes between supporters of Guinea's ruling party and members of the opposition last week in the southwestern city of N'Zerekore, which left more than 45 people injured.
The High Commissioner condemned all acts of violence and destruction of property, and called for calm, ahead of the first round of the Presidential elections, which is scheduled to take place this Sunday. He urges all political leaders to use their influence to calm their supporters and to bring an end to the unrest.
**Office of United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees
And the UN High Commissioner for Refugees, António Guterres, will visit Greece starting tomorrow to assess the humanitarian response to the Mediterranean crisis and determining how UNHCR [Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees] can further support those efforts. He will visit the island of Lesvos, the main entry point for most of the more than 428,000 people who have made the sea crossing from Turkey to Greece so far this year. He will get a first-hand look at the arrival areas, visit reception centres and meet with local authorities, NGOs, volunteer groups and others involved in the relief effort.
Also on the same subject, UNHCR says that a first group of 19 asylum-seekers was relocated from Italy to Sweden today under a European Union relocation scheme. The asylum-seekers who arrived in Sicily by boat over the last few weeks were registered in Lampedusa and accepted to take part in the relocation scheme that will allow them to be relocated to other EU [European Union] countries. There is much more on UNHCR’s website.
**Ukraine
Six weeks after an outbreak of polio in Ukraine, the UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF) and the World Health Organization (WHO) are concerned that a further delay in a nationwide polio campaign could put 1.8 million children’s lives at risk. On 1 September, the Ukrainian Ministry of Health confirmed two cases of polio in children who had not been vaccinated against the disease. UNICEF and WHO said that risk of further polio outbreak remains unless a full-scale immunization campaign begins immediately to stop the transmission of the polio virus.
**Death Penalty
And tomorrow is the World Day against the Death Penalty, which this year will focus on the death penalty and drug crimes. In a [message], the Secretary-General said that international law limits the application of the death penalty to the “most serious crimes”. This means that it should only — if at all — be applied to the crimes of intentional killing. The United Nations human rights bodies have repeatedly stressed that the use of the death penalty for drug-related crimes does not meet this threshold. The Secretary-General adds that the death penalty does not deter drug crimes, nor does it protect people from drug abuse. The full statement is online.
**Press Conference
Monday, at 11 a.m., right here in this room, UN-Women on the fifteenth anniversary of Security Council resolution 1325 (2000) and a new global study on women, peace and security. And Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka, UN-Women Executive Director, will be joined by Radhika Coomaraswamy, independent lead author of the Global Study, and as you know, former Special Representative on Children and Armed Conflict. She will be here to talk to you about that topic.
**Questions and Answers
Question: Thanks, Stéphane. Two questions. One is a second attempt to get a comment regarding the fact that the Secretary-General has declined the proposal to have the High Commissioner for Refugees, Mr. Guterres, remain for one more year, given the crisis; and we have this on the record, including from the chairman of the UNHCR Executive Committee. So, maybe now that it's out there you could say a bit more, given that, you know, one year doesn't seem that long and the crisis is severe. The Deputy High Commissioner and Assistant High Commissioner are brand new. Second question, if you have any updates on the OIOS [Office of Internal Oversight Services] examination of relations between the UN Secretariat and the PGA's [President of the General Assembly] office.
Spokesman: No, no update — your second question. On your first question, just to repeat what I've said, is that the recruitment process is under way according to the timeline of Mr. Guterres' mandate. Nizar?
Question: Regarding the situation, the escalations in the Occupied Palestinian Territory, even inside Israel, as well. There are so many killed today. A woman was shot dead, shown on video. Seven soldiers were surrounding her and then they started shooting at her when she was not armed, and the video speaks for itself about that. What does the Secretary-General think about what's going on there?
Spokesman: I think the Secretary-General this week has continued to be profoundly alarmed by the level of violence that we've seen and continues to condemn the deaths of civilians and the attacks on civilians wherever they occur; and again reiterates that we need to have negotiations between the parties and put the peace process back on track. To that end, the Quartet envoys will be in the region early next week. Yes, Mr. Lee?
Question: I wanted to ask you about the documents that you sent out yesterday afternoon about the auditing or what I thought was going to be auditing of the President of the General Assembly’s offices. There didn't seem to be that much in it about that. There was a line called trust fund, and audit numbers for a trust fund in support of the office of PGA. There was also one of the other few references was to close protection, meaning that the UN provides DSS [Department of Safety and Security] security, and I mean, we see it to the eye. I wanted to ask you something about that. Given the allegations particularly against Mr. [John] Ashe, but also to some degree about now Mr. [Sam] Kutesa, what is the duty of the UN DSS personnel performing close protection to, if they witness a crime, to report it?
Spokesman: The duty of DSS is to protect the people they have to protect. Obviously, if they see a crime being committed, they would report that crime up the chain of command. But, I think you're jumping and making all sorts of… what's the word I'm looking for? I think all sorts of conclusions as to what your security officer sees or may not see.
Question: I'm asking because in the indictment it describes… for example, this is one example of John Ashe going to Macau and negotiating in advance how much it would cost to have it be an official UN trip and or an unofficial UN trip; and he presumably… he then… to Macau took with him this close protection. From the tenor of the indictment it doesn't seem that any of this was really hidden. So, I'm just wondering…
Spokesman: Obviously… I mean, listen, I'm not going to reinvestigate what the Attorney General… the Attorney for the Southern District has said, but I think as a matter of principle and a matter of operational duty, it's clear that security officers are not in meetings, do not listen into phone calls and are not in any private discussions.
Correspondent: I want to ask one other thing. There was an event during this most recent General Assembly debate week on the fourth floor here, the Delegates’ Dining Room. It was sort of strange. It was on in-house EZTV, but was not put on the webcast. I've been unable to get the video, but it involved ITU [International Telecommunications Union] and Sam Kutesa, no longer the PGA, handing out awards to… at the end of the event, a number of businessmen from Asia. I can't say what country they are from. Unclear. It's unclear what the event was. Since it was held in the UN and it was filmed by UN TV and it involved UN personnel…
Spokesman: I would refer those questions to the ITU, who, like any UN organization, are free to book services that we offer in the Secretariat.
Question: What capacity is Mr. Kutesa with the UN at this time?
Spokesman: I don't know and I would refer you to the ITU about that event. Yes, Masood?
Question: Yes, Stéphane. I feel this inquiry in all this that Secretary-General… is Secretary-General at any point in time going to consider appointing a commission which would change the rules of engagement as far as the PGA and that office and NGOs [non-governmental organizations] who are being accused…
Spokesman: I think what we announced yesterday was an initial step. I'm not going to preclude whatever else we feel we need to do, but it is clear that the office of the President of the General Assembly, the way the General Assembly conducts its work is for the Member States to decide and is their responsibility. Mr. Abbadi?
Question: Thank you, Stéphane. Regarding the Nobel Peace Prize, the Secretary-General congratulates the Democratic Quartet in Tunisia and also the people… the Tunisian people, but he doesn't say anything about the Government of Tunisia, which allowed for the free operation of the Quartet. What about it?
Spokesman: You know, I think the Secretary-General, when he congratulates the people of Tunisia, I think that would include the Government, as the Government represents the people. Sir?
Question: Next question on Yemen. Secretary-General has had communications from the Houthis and the Government. The Houthis in their letter to the Secretary-General made clear that they embraced the Security Council resolutions, including [resolution] 2216 (2015), but it seems that President [Abd Rabbuh Mansur] Hadi continues to balk at the idea of resuming negotiations. Is the Secretary-General concerned, because it seems like all the preparations have been made to get things going, but someone's stalling?
Spokesman: I think we've been in this situation before. The political situation in Yemen was raised by the Deputy Secretary-General in his meeting with the Foreign Minister of Saudi Arabia yesterday, as were the latest aerial attacks that caused these casualties. And that's why the Secretary-General’s Special Envoy is in the region to further his contacts with the parties to move the process forward.
Question: Another follow-up: I mean, it's all set to go forward. It should be happening, but it's not. I mean, is the Secretary-General concerned that President Hadi, in particular, appears to be stalling?
Spokesman: You know, I think, again, the Secretary-General’s Special Envoy is in the region. These discussions about talks have been… for Yemen's future have been complicated, time-consuming and delicate. I think when we're ready to announce a further step, we will. Hold on. It's still my show. Olga?
Question: Thank you, Stéphane. The Security Council adopted right now the resolution on migrants and that is only to approve the actions to intersect the activities of illegal traffickers in the Mediterranean. What else… what can be the next step, because this resolution doesn't mean that the migrants won't try to achieve Europe and doesn't mean that the conflicts will be ended?
Spokesman: No, indeed. I think we obviously take note of the decision of the Council. It's focused on something that needs to be addressed, which is the criminal smuggling of tens of thousands of people across the Mediterranean, which costs lives and increases the power of criminal networks. But, obviously, it's vital to look at the problem in a much more holistic way and review… Member States review the broader policies related to displacement, including protection of migrants and refugees, improve policies to facilitate safe, orderly and regular migration, which would take away the business models for these criminal enterprises. It's focused on one thing, as you say, but we do need a much broader approach to the problem. Nizar?
Question: On Yemen, obviously Mr. O'Brien is asking for a swift investigation to the wedding bombardment. Who does he expect to carry out such an investigation? Another thing, given that there's, of course, this tragic situation in Yemen, there are spoilers and until now neither Mr. [Ismail] Ould Cheikh Ahmed nor anybody else have named these spoilers. Mr. Hadi considered the letter by the Houthis as a maneuver, as a political maneuver. Do you share that view with him?
Spokesman: I think I will leave the analysis to you, because you're very good at it. I will refer you to what I have just said to Lou. Obviously, in terms of an investigation, it should be done by the coalition and by the authorities on the ground in Yemen.
Correspondent: There are many authorities on the ground.
Spokesman: All those who have competency should do it. Ken?
Question: On South Sudan, it seems like there is some Member States who are not necessarily happy with the language of the drone use. What is the UN's position on this?
Spokesman: On what? Sorry?
Correspondent: On drone use. UAVs [unmanned aerial vehicles].
Spokesman: What is the UN's position on our use…
Question: How would you describe the necessity to use drones?
Spokesman: Obviously I think we have used these aerial… unmanned aerial observation drones in a number… in the DRC [Democratic Republic of the Congo]. They provide us with the technology that's necessary especially to survey areas which are hard [to] access and in which it may be too dangerous to deploy peacekeepers. Masood?
Correspondent: Stéphane, yesterday, I asked you this question about the dossiers, submitted…
Spokesman: I would give you an answer if I had more information. Mr. Abbadi and Matthew?
Question: Thank you, Stéphane. Yesterday, you announced that the Special Representative of the Secretary-General in Libya, Bernardino León, announced that they will be a national government formed soon. What does the Secretary-General say about the Government of Morocco, which provided all the facilities and encouraged the parties throughout to unite and reach an agreement?
Spokesman: Well, you know, obviously, the agreement will survive if all the political parties in Libya commit to it and if all those in the international community that have an influence on those parties also apply the right positive pressure. We are obviously very grateful for the Government of Morocco for the support it's provided to the talks led by Mr. León over the last few weeks. Mr. Lee and then Oleg?
Question: Just to follow up on this drone question. The critique was that when the drones were first proposed by Mr. [Hervé] Ladsous to the C-34, he said they would only be used with the consent of the countries in which the missions are. It seems at least in the Council today that they are going to be using drones without the consent of the Government of South Sudan. So, how does DPKO [Department of Peacekeeping Operations] explain the change in position and also the logistical issues that might arise?
Spokesman: I really have nothing else to add to what I said to Ken.
Question: I want to ask you about the… there's a controversy in the SDG [Sustainable Development Goal] world that has to do with the trademarks of all the logos and stuff that was used during this last week. Some people are saying it's strange that the UN doesn't own the trademarks. And I'm looking at it and there's something called Project Everyone in the UK — Richard Curtis working in partnership with the UN — and they are the ones now licensing many of the Global Goals imagery. So, the question would be how can the UN, which is an international institution, why would they privatize and allow a private company of any kind to own these trademarks?
Spokesman: I don't know the details of the contract between ourselves and Mr. Curtis in Project Everyone. I know that we were very delighted with the work that Mr. Curtis and Project Everyone did in helping us socialize these Goals because, frankly, we're not always very good at translating what is UN language into language that everyone can understand and everyone can grasp, but I will look into the details of the relationship. Thank you. Oleg?
Question: Stéphane, as a follow-up to Matthew's question. One delegation of the Security Council in South Sudan, they said that basically the use of UAVs in South Sudan without the consent of the Government would consist… would be a breach of sovereignty of the State and basically other recommendations that the UN Secretariat has on this issue should not be considered as guidelines for the Member States or the Security Council. What do you say to that?
Spokesman: I think I will… I think these things are obviously under discussion. The relationship between a mission and the UN is governed by the SOFA, by the Status of Forces Agreement. Matthew, and then I'm sorry, my weekend.
Question: I have one serious question, one less than serious. Which one do you want first?
Spokesman: God help me. I'll take the serious one.
Question: Serious one first? No, I mean it is serious. In Burundi in the last few days, there's been an escalating number of people killed, some say up to 42 this week. And is this sort of, on the diplomatic front, Burundi has expelled the Ambassador of Rwanda… accusing Rwanda of training the coup leaders or others? What is… not just the status of the envoy but it seems like things are getting more regional in nature. What is the UN's response to this and what is the Great Lakes Envoy doing? What's happening?
Spokesman: I really have nothing to add to what the Great Lakes Envoy has already said and to say that the Secretary-General of the UN stands ready to assist the people of Burundi in finding a peaceful way out of the current political crisis. Second question?
Question: I don't want to say it's less than serious, but you might. There was a story, you may have seen, because it's in The Chosun Ilbo of [the Republic of] Korea, showing the Secretary-General climbing… the headline is "Ban Ki-Moon Climbs Auspicious Chinese Mountain" and they read into his climbing of the particular famous mountain in China, which people do before they enter political campaigns. They are saying… this is a major paper in South Korea, that this auspicious climb is a harbinger of a run by the Secretary-General for presidency in South Korea. What is your response?
Spokesman: I think people will read whatever they want, whether it is from tea leaves or pictures in newspapers. The Secretary-General has clearly spoken out on his position on this issue. Have a wonderful weekend.