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, everyone.
**Secretary-General’s Travels
The Secretary-General arrived in Davos earlier this morning to deliver a keynote address to the World Economic Forum. In outlining his approach as Secretary-General, he said that he would focus the work of the United Nations on prevention. He called for a massive effort in preventive diplomacy but added that the best prevention for conflict is sustainable and inclusive development.
Governments, civil society and business must work together to make the Sustainable Development Goals and the Paris Agreement a reality.
Turning to the business leaders, he said that it was time for a new partnership with the business community. He said that there is a need to align business priorities with the core goals of the international community, such as the Sustainable Development Goals.
In addition to the main address, the Secretary-General also held a number of bilateral meetings. He had separate meetings with the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, Theresa May; the Prime Minister of Pakistan, Nawaz Sharif; and President Petro Poroshenko of Ukraine. He may hold other bilateral meetings later today.
**Syria
The Secretary-General has taken note of the invitation extended to his Special Envoy for Syria, Staffan de Mistura, to participate in the meeting about the situation in Syria to be convened in Astana, Kazakhstan, by the Islamic Republic of Iran, the Russian Federation and Turkey.
In light of the complexity and importance of the issues likely to be raised in Astana, and of the senior level at which the conveners of the meeting will be represented, the Secretary-General has asked Mr. de Mistura to lead the UN team at the talks. The Secretary-General is looking forward to the Astana meeting being a positive step, ahead of the resumption of intra-Syria negotiations in Geneva.
Meanwhile, speaking to reporters in Geneva today, the Humanitarian Adviser to the Special Envoy, Jan Egeland, highlighted our concerns in Deir Ezzour and Wadi Barada.
In Deir Ezzour, he said, some 93,000 civilians have been cut off from aid as Da’esh has captured key areas, including the drop zone for humanitarian supplies. It has not been possible since Sunday to drop new humanitarian relief to people in Deir Ezzour.
Meanwhile, repair engineers have not been able to return to Wadi Barada, but we continue to wait for access to enable the repair of the water supply to Damascus.
The UN Resident Coordinator and Humanitarian Coordinator for Syria, Ali Al-Za’tari, approved $19 million from the Syria Humanitarian Fund to sustain immediate life-saving and early recovery assistance for tens of thousands of people in Aleppo.
The UN and its implementing partners have significantly scaled up operations to address the most urgent needs and pave the way to recovery efforts. This Syria Humanitarian Fund allocation is part of these efforts, and will finance immediate assistance in all affected neighbourhoods of eastern Aleppo, as well as to collective shelters and other priority areas in Aleppo city where internally displaced people are staying.
The funds will also provide residents of eastern Aleppo and displaced people with early recovery and livelihood interventions, and support the rehabilitation of basic services and rubble removal to create the conditions for people to return to their homes.
**Iraq
Our humanitarian colleagues inform us that territorial gains by the Iraqi Security Forces on the eastern bank of the Tigris have significantly improved security in these areas, and greatly enhanced humanitarian access to the people residing in eastern Mosul city.
Between 9 and 16 January, more than 89,000 people in eastern Mosul city received aid packages from the UN and its partners, which include ready-to-eat food rations, water supplies and hygiene materials. Nearly 200,000 people in these neighbourhoods have received such rations since the start of distributions in eastern Mosul city on 8 December.
There remains no humanitarian access to west Mosul neighbourhoods and the corridor to Tal Afar. Some 750,000 people are estimated to remain in western Mosul, and concern is mounting for their well-being.
**Mali
In a statement we issued last night, the Secretary-General condemned in the strongest terms the suicide-vehicle attack perpetrated against the camp of the Operational Coordination Mechanism yesterday morning in Gao. The camp housed over 600 individuals designated by the three signatory parties to the peace agreement to start mixed patrols in the Gao region. While the exact number of casualties remains to be confirmed, preliminary reports point to dozens of dead and injured.
This despicable act reinforces the United Nations’ determination to support the people of Mali, the Government and the signatory armed groups in their quest for peace, their fight against terrorism and their efforts to uphold the peace agreement.
The Security Council also issued a press statement last night, condemning the attack.
And the UN Peacekeeping Mission in Mali, MINUSMA, reports that the situation in Gao remains tense but calm. The Mission is working closely with the Malian authorities and the French Operation Barkhane to secure the town, including critical facilities such as the hospital and the airport.
The acting Force Commander is in Gao since yesterday to lead MINUSMA’s operations there. The Mission assisted in securing and protecting the area and continues to mobilize its medical facilities and aerial assets to assist with medical care and evacuation of the wounded.
Meanwhile, all parties concerned have been discussing how to secure the Operational Coordination Mechanism and its future operations. The parties to the Peace Agreement have reaffirmed their commitment to the peace process.
**Nigeria
Our colleagues from the World Food Programme (WFP) say they are extremely concerned about the critical food insecurity situation in north-eastern Nigeria. In areas affected by Boko Haram, 4.4 million people are facing hunger, of whom nearly 2 million people are in need of emergency food assistance.
In November, with support from UNICEF (United Nations Children’s Fund), WFP launched a joint Rapid Response Mechanism to supply food, nutrition and health support to people in difficult-to-reach areas in Borno and Yobe states. The mechanism includes extensive use of helicopters and the pooling of logistics and telecommunications resources across the humanitarian community. By the end of December 2016, WFP had assisted more than a million people, including more than 796,000 with life-saving food, 171,000 with cash-based transfer and 192,000 children with specialized food to combat malnutrition.
**Haiti
Three months after Hurricane Matthew made landfall in Haiti, our colleagues at the World Food Programme say that the number of people facing hunger and food insecurity in the most affected areas has declined steadily — from approximately 1 million to 400,000.
The latest Emergency Food Security Assessment (EFSA) confirms improvements in people’s capacity to feed themselves and their families, as well as the need to continue providing assistance.
It also highlights the need to extend this assistance beyond these areas in departments where levels of food insecurity have been found to be high, including in the northern provinces of the country.
The humanitarian community in Haiti urgently needs $113 million to support food security and agriculture in 2017.
**Obesity
I also want to flag today a new report by the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) and the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) which finds obesity and overweight are on the rise throughout Latin America and the Caribbean, particularly among women and children.
Close to 360 million people — around 58 per cent of the inhabitants of the region — are overweight, with the highest rates observed in the Bahamas, Mexico and Chile.
As for obesity, it affects 140 million people with the highest rates in the Caribbean countries of Barbados, Trinidad and Tobago, and Antigua and Barbuda. You can find the full report online.
**Refugees
The UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR), the International Organization for Migration (IOM) and 72 other partners have launched a new strategy and appeal to help respond to the situation of refugees and migrants in Europe in 2017.
The Regional Refugee and Migrant Response Plan aims at complementing and reinforcing Governments’ efforts to ensure safe access to asylum and the protection of refugees and migrants.
UNHCR says the Plan is an operational tool that will play a key role in ensuring more efficient operations and coordinated response over the next year. Particular emphasis is placed on addressing the specific needs of children and women, including identifying and supporting survivors of sexual and gender-based violence.
**Questions and Answers
That is it for me. Do you have any questions? Yeah?
Question: Sure. I want to ask about Gambia. Obviously, there’s now the… the… the… Mr [Adama] Barrow has been inaugurated in Senegal, but I just… I was looking at the… the… that UN.int website of the Gambian mission that seems to be hosted on a UN server. And it still has Mr [Yahya] Jammeh. So I’m wondering, can you explain to me how are those websites administered? And also, what are the steps if it’s the case that in Barrow is now the President that should… should be or will be taken to change the representation and also that website?
Deputy Spokesman: Well, of course, the website is a secondary issue. Right now, what we’re trying to change is what’s happening on the ground itself. We’re aware that Mr Jammeh continues to reject all efforts to ensure a peaceful transfer of power, and we’re aware of the efforts, including by the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), the African Union, as well as our own efforts, to have a… such a peaceful transfer to President‑elect Barrow. As you’re aware, Jeffrey Feltman, the Under‑Secretary‑General for Political Affairs, briefed the Security Council on the situation yesterday afternoon. At 1 today, there is going to be a further meeting of the Security Council, and we can see what happens at that particular meeting. At this stage, the UN supports regional efforts aimed at resolving the crisis peacefully, and let’s see where we go from there.
Question: I guess my question… and I understand, obviously, that the website is secondary, but it is something that’s actually under the UN’s control, unlike events in Banjul. So I’m just wondering, can you… can you either… do you know… how does it… how does it actually work to have that change made? Is it… is it… what is the UN’s role even… in all the… some missions can house, host their websites on that. Others don’t. What is the UN’s role? Are you, in fact, endorsing the… the… presentation of who’s the President on those sites?
Deputy Spokesman: No, the statement of fact by the website doesn’t imply an endorsement. We have made very clear that, under the Constitution of the Gambia, the electoral results need to be respected, and we continue to push for a peaceful transfer of power. Yes, Abdelhamid?
Question: Thank you, Farhan. In the southern part of Israel in the Negev deserts, there is a town called Umm al‑Hiran. Israel has been engaged in the last few days in destruction of the whole village. One Palestinian was killed. Five were injured, including the head of the joint Arab Left in the Knesset, Ayman Odeh. And yet these things pass unnoticed by the UN. Why? Can you tell… explain it?
Deputy Spokesman: It’s not unnoticed. We’ve noticed recent unrest, and in fact, I would refer you just to the recent briefing that Nickolay Mladenov gave to the Security Council on the situation, which includes our concerns in many of these areas. And so we continue to monitor the situation on the ground and make clear our concerns as they arise. Yes?
Question: Staying on that subject, I mean, the 17‑year‑old lad who was killed by the Israelis, he was shot three bullets, and then he was still alive when he was drag… carried and his head bashed to the ground three times, three or four times, according to the videos. Mr. Mladenov did not condemn that, like he did to other accidents, which happened in Jerusalem, for example. Why… why is this double standard in condemnations?
Deputy Spokesman: It’s not a double standard. We are concerned about all of the violence in the area and we have made clear our concerns about the excessive use of force in specific circumstances. For some cases, of course, what we need to do is make sure that any such incidents are appropriately investigated and thoroughly investigated, and we’re hopeful that that will be the case.
Question: The lad was shot dead, three bullets, and… and this is very evident. Even the Israelis are upset… some of the Israelis are upset about that. And this does not necessitate any condemnation from the United Nations?
Deputy Spokesman: Like I said, this is an incident that deserves to be thoroughly investigated, and we’ll see what is the result of that investigation. Yes, in the back?
Question: Thanks, Farhan. The date of the meeting to start the Syria talks in Geneva announced by Mr. de Mistura remains unchanged, or it depends on how… on the outcomes of Astana?
Deputy Spokesman: No, the date remains 8 February. Yes, please?
Question: Yesterday, China’s President Xi Jinping delivered a speech in the United Nations Office in Geneva and had a meeting with Secretary‑General [António] Guterres. Do you have any comments on that?
Deputy Spokesman: Yes. I mentioned the meeting briefly yesterday. I can say that they had a very good discussion. The Secretary‑General and the President discussed the cooperation between the United Nations and China. They also discussed China’s support for multilateralism and its support to the Sustainable Development Goals. Yes, Evelyn?
Question: In Astana, are any of the horrific details that Jan Egeland proposed… I mean recited today, are they going to be taken up at all in Astana, or is it just the ceasefire and political direction? Because people are still dying, and they’re still being bombed from the air and so forth.
Deputy Spokesman: Well, of course, it’s premature for me to say what will be discussed. Let’s wait and see what happens when the Astana talks begin. But we will be present, and we’ll raise up the concerns that we’ve had as they come up. Yes, Dulcie?
Question: Hi. So could you go over the sequence of events in the Gambia? The ECOWAS‑led troops are at the border. Correct? And then there’s a deadline of midnight for Jammeh to leave the Presidential Palace? And who’s leading that actual one‑to‑one or face‑to‑face negotiation with him?
Deputy Spokesman: Well, different leaders in the region have been in touch with Mr Jammeh, and we appreciate the efforts that they’ve made. And, of course, you’ve heard from our envoy, Mohammed Ibn Chambas, the Head of the UN Office in West Africa (UNOWA), who has been in touch with leaders and has also briefed the Security Council about the developments in the region. At this stage, what we’re looking towards is the meeting that will begin in just a little bit less than an hour from now in the Security Council to see what guidance the Security Council wants to provide on this matter. Yes?
Question: Yeah, the situation in Bahrain is getting worse and worse. There’s a crackdown against the Shia community there. Many people have been arrested, and there are riots all over many towns and villages. Of course, the leaders are still in jail without any due process. What does the United Nations have on that?
Deputy Spokesman: Well, we made our concerns known about the cases of many of the detained leaders. We continue to call for due process in the proceedings involving, in particular, different members of the opposition in Bahrain.
Question: Regarding Aleppo, today there was a letter which is circulated by the Security Council and the Secretary‑General regarding dozens of people who have been slaughtered in Eastern Aleppo by some moderate groups, as they are called. Has the United Nations investigated these allegations? Did they see these people… some of them are soldiers. Some of them are civilians. They were prisoners of [inaudible].
Deputy Spokesman: We don’t have the first-hand capacity to mount investigations. We have been providing details. And as you know, our humanitarian colleagues on the ground, when they first were able to brief from Aleppo, talked about the massive destruction. And we have made clear our concerns about any sorts of reprisals or killings by any of the parties.
Question: But these… I mean, the Security Council and the Secretary‑General have been informed. Why the observers did not go and view for themselves the… these evidences?
Deputy Spokesman: In this case, I mean, in terms of what our observers had done, they were there to make sure that people could be evacuated safely from different areas. You’ll remember the mandate that they had a few weeks ago. This is a separate sort of matter, but we are providing as much detail as we can about our concerns regarding atrocities there.
Question: The agreement, they were supposed to release the prisoners, and these prisoners were slaughtered before they left. So it is like safeguarding the… those who evacuated; however, the prisoners were allowed to be killed, obviously.
Deputy Spokesman: Of course, we would have any concerns about the killings of prisoners of war. Yes, Abdelhamid?
Question: Farhan, is the Secretary‑General invited to the inaugural procession in Washington on the 20th? And if he’s not going, who will represent the UN at this… at the inauguration?
Deputy Spokesman: No, this is not something that Secretaries‑General have attended in the past, and that’s not the case this time, either. We do not have an invitation to attend, and it’s not an event for which we expect to be represented. Yes?
Question: The other question, Farhan, if I may, would there be any time soon that the new Secretary‑General will meet with the press?
Deputy Spokesman: Yeah, we’re in touch with him. We’re trying to see when that will be. Yes?
Question: Sure. About Myanmar, two things, one very specific and then one more general. There’s the case… there’s the journalist, Mr. Soe Moe Tun, that was killed in December. He was an investigative journalist. And the respected group World Organisation against Torture has issued an alert that those who are suspected of his murder have been released, and basically there seems to be impunity arising. So given the talk here in the UN about protection of journalism, in this case the death of a journalist, is there any response by… I know I’d asked you a few days ago, and you said you’d ask DPA (Department of Political Affairs) about the two people who have gone missing. Is there any response to this, both the killing of the journalist and now the release of the suspects in his death?
Deputy Spokesman: Regarding that, we would, of course, hope that there is no climate of impunity regarding threats or attacks against the press. So anything that indicates otherwise would be a matter of concern.
Question: And I wanted to ask, the OIC’s (Organization of the Islamic Conference) been meeting in Kuala Lumpur about the plight of the Rohingya. And they’ve said pretty clearly they believe that citizenship should be restored by Myanmar to… to… to the Rohingya, that that’s the root of the problem. And I wanted to know, now that there’s a new Secretary‑General and obviously his… refugee flows are his main thing, can you get… I mean, what is his position on whether the… the Rohingya are, in fact, people that are from Myanmar that should have citizenship and should not have to be fleeing across borders that are now sealed?
Deputy Spokesman: Well, this is something on which we have called, under the previous Secretary‑General, as well as under this one — for the Myanmar authorities to deal with the situation in Rakhine State in a more positive manner. You’ll have seen the release that we put out on this a few weeks ago, and those sentiments still hold. And… but under the new Secretary‑General, we do expect to have further communications with the Government of Myanmar, and we’ll let you know when that transpires. Yeah, Linda?
Question: Thank you, Farhan. I’m sorry if I may have missed this, but I was wondering, assuming that Nikki Haley is confirmed, is there a UN protocol or a plan in terms of Secretary‑General’s meeting with her as host country representative? I mean, do you think there’ll be a luncheon or just a meeting?
Deputy Spokesman: It’s difficult to say just yet, but, normally, the Secretary‑General meets and receives credentials of all new Permanent Representatives coming into the building, and we have photo opportunities scheduled every time he greets someone upon their presentation of credentials.
Question: There’s no special… given that she’ll be representing the host country and that special relationship?
Deputy Spokesman: No, I mean, this is early days yet. As you pointed out, she hasn’t even been confirmed yet. So the basic point is that every time a Secretary‑General meets with a new Permanent Representative, there is a photo opportunity for that, so we expect to do the same in this case. Yes?
Question: About Wadi Barada, I understand the United Nations inspectors went into the Wadi today to help with the repair of the water. Can you shed some light about the mediation which is happening there to restore water supplies to Damascus?
Deputy Spokesman: As know, there have been agreements in, I believe, five of the areas in the Wadi Barada region. But there’s still a couple of areas in which we’re trying to get agreement. But, yes, we’re trying to get the work done to get the water repaired.
Question: Al‑Ghadban, who was mediating, was assassinated by one of the groups. Do you know which group that killed him?
Deputy Spokesman: I’m not aware. We did point out the problems that that caused for the mediation effort over the weekend. Yes?
Question: Sure. I wanted to ask, in Cambodia, Hun Sen has… has filed a million… multimillion‑dollar suit against Sam Rainsy, opposition figure. And I know that the UN previously, when he was in prison, when various things have happened, has monitored that. What is… I guess… I guess it’s a DPA question. But what is the… the… the UN think of this most recent move in Cambodia?
Deputy Spokesman: I’ll check with the Department of Political Affairs whether there’s anything more on that. Yes?
Question: Yes. Is… if there’s intervention… military intervention in Gambia, is this setting any kind of a precedent that West Africa’s not a region for old dictators or…?
Deputy Spokesman: Let’s not speculate on what might happen next. I guess, within the next hour, we’ll find out for ourselves what the next steps are. Yes?
Question: Sure. I saw this announcement by City College that they’re taking the papers… the papers of Ban Ki‑moon. I’m sure maybe… I certain… and so I guess it gave rise to two questions. One, the UN library itself seems to have either the capacity or it has what purport to be online digitizations of some former Secretary‑General’s papers. So they were… it was being presented as, like, the reason this is being done is so that they can be digitized. Is there some reason that it’s done that way? And, two, in terms of what constitutes official… [inaudible]
Deputy Spokesman: No, that is the reason.
Correspondent: Go ahead. All right. The library can’t do it? [inaudible]
Deputy Spokesman: By the way, it’s the same arrangement as under the previous Secretary‑General, which is Kofi Annan.
Question: Okay. And my question is this, whether… I’ve asked Stéphane [Dujarric] a couple of days ago about what records beyond the… the one‑paragraph readout were issued of the meeting of the Secretary‑General with Amir of Qatar on 24 September 2013. Can we expect… what… what do these papers consist of? And what happens to, I guess you can say, the paperwork? Presumably, there’s paperwork about such a meeting beyond the readout that was issued. What actually happens to those either electronic files? Where are they now? Are they in the building? Were they taken back to South Korea? Are they going to be in City College? What happened to them?
Deputy Spokesman: I believe they will be in City College, and there’s an archive as to… will deal with them.
Question: So they’re physically… they physically left the building and were taken to City College or how does this work?
Deputy Spokesman: I don’t believe they’ve left the building yet. I believe that’s an arrangement that will happen in the future. Have a good afternoon.