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.
12:07 is not bad for Steph time.
**Guests
In a short while, I will be joined by Luis Carrilho, who is here, the UN Police Adviser, and we are joined virtually by Issoufou Yacouba, the Police Commissioner for the UN Peacekeeping force in Mali (MINUSMA). And we will also be joined by the Senior Police Adviser for the UN Interim Security Force in Abyei (UNISFA), Mary Gahonzire. The three of them will brief you on Police Week. We will get to them as soon as we are done with the SG’s announcements.
**Myanmar
As you saw this morning, we issued a statement on Myanmar, in which the Secretary‑General said that he will follow the upcoming general elections on 8 November. He notes that the holding of peaceful, orderly and credible elections is an important opportunity to help advance inclusive sustainable development, humanitarian action, human rights and democratic reforms, including civilian control over the military. He hopes they will also help pave the way for refugee returns in dignity and safety.
The Secretary‑General renews his appeal for a ceasefire across the country to allow all to focus on combatting the COVID‑19 pandemic. He remains concerned about armed conflict in many areas of Myanmar, especially the intensifying clashes in Rakhine and Chin states, which continue to take a heavy toll on vulnerable civilians.
The Secretary‑General urges all parties to the armed conflict to respect their obligations under international humanitarian law and to protect civilians and civilian infrastructure. Unimpeded humanitarian access for the United Nations and its partners is crucial.
Also, at this critical juncture for the people of Myanmar, the Secretary‑General reaffirms the support of the United Nations in their pursuit of lives in dignity and peace.
**Chief Executives Board
And the Secretary‑General this morning began a virtual meeting of the Chief Executives Board of the UN system, the body that brings together the heads of the UN agencies and organizations across the system.
The purpose of this session is to reflect on the main characteristics of a post‑pandemic world and brainstorm on possible key elements of a Common Agenda report that the Secretary‑General has been asked to submit to the General Assembly.
The Secretary‑General [will] also discuss the pandemic, with a focus on the risks for human rights, global economic prospects, deepening inequalities and climate action. And among other topics, he will also discuss the key priority of combatting sexual exploitation and abuse within the UN and across the system.
**Ethiopia
And turning to Ethiopia, I just want to flag, that you may have seen, that the High Commissioner for Human Rights, Michelle Bachelet, today called on all relevant actors to de‑escalate the volatile situation in the Tigray region and to engage in an inclusive dialogue to resolve grievances without resorting to violence.
She urged all sides to halt the violence, to avoid additional loss of life, mass displacement and further destabilization.
Ms. Bachelet expressed concern about the restrictions imposed on the people of Tigray, including on the rights to freedom of movement and freedom of expression, and added that she is concerned at reports of armed assailants assaulting members of the Amhara ethnic group in the Oromia region on Sunday.
Her full statement is online.
For his part, the Secretary‑General has been telling you, has been working on the phones. He spoke with the chairperson of the African Union, Moussa Faki [Mahamat], the Prime Minister of Sudan, Mr. [Abdalla] Hamdok, in his capacity as the head of IGAD (Intergovernmental Authority on Development). He has also spoken to his envoys, Mr. Parfait [Onanga]‑Anyanga, who is the envoy for the Horn of Africa, as well as Hanna [Serwaa] Tetteh, his representative at the African Union.
**Kosovo
I’ve been asked about Kosovo and the indictments, and I can say that we have noted the reports of the confirmation by the Kosovo Specialist Chambers of indictments against President Hashim Thaçi and other individuals in Kosovo on charges filed by the Specialist Prosecutor’s Office, and the President’s subsequent resignation.
Continued respect for due process and full cooperation with the [Specialist] Prosecutor’s Office and the Kosovo Specialist Chambers is essential. The Kosovo Specialist Chambers are an important demonstration of Kosovo's commitment to the fundamental principles of justice and accountability and addressing the difficult legacy of the past.
**Measles/Polio
A couple is quick reports to flag. The UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF) and the WHO [World Health Organization] today issued an urgent call to action to avert major measles and polio epidemics as COVID‑19 continues to disrupt immunization services worldwide. The UN agencies warn that that this is leaving millions of vulnerable children at heightened risk of preventable childhood diseases.
The two agencies estimate that $655 million is needed to address the immunity gaps in non‑Gavi (vaccine initiative) eligible countries and target groups. The polio transmission, both agencies noticed, is expected to increase in Pakistan and Afghanistan and in many under-immunized areas of Africa. Failure to eradicate polio now would lead to global resurgence of the disease, resulting in as many as 200,000 new cases annually, within 10 years.
**COVID-19/Kenya
And on another note on COVID‑19, and what our UN colleagues are doing in the field to help. Our… excuse me. This time from Kenya, where our UN team has been led by Resident Coordinator Siddharth Chatterjee, and they are working to help refugees and host communities in Turkana County in the country’s northwest, despite the COVID‑19 pandemic.
This area of the country has seen a 50 per cent increase in the number of refugees in the past seven years.
The UN team has helped to provide more than 50 medical facilities staffed by 300 trained workers to help nearly 200,000 refugees and 320,000 people from host communities to address the pandemic. More than 120 schools are also in place.
The Government and UN agencies have worked to provide cash for refugees to build their own permanent shelters and to have bank accounts.
**Famine
And a new report by the World Food Programme (WFP) and their sister agency, the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), warns that four countries have areas that could soon slip into famine if conditions continue to deteriorate. The countries are Burkina Faso, Nigeria — the north-eastern part of Nigeria — South Sudan and Yemen.
The Early Warning Analysis of Acute Food Insecurity Hotspots — that is the name of the report — says that in these countries, a toxic combination of conflict, economic decline, climate extremes and the pandemic, is driving people deeper into the emergency phase of food insecurity.
The full report is online.
**Environment
And today, for those of you who didn’t know, is the International Day for Preventing the Exploitation of the Environment in War and Armed Conflict. In his message for the Day, the Secretary‑General said that while climate disruption and environmental degradation are not the direct cause of conflict, they can worsen conflict risks. Degradation of natural resources and ecosystems adds to the challenges faced by communities who are already vulnerable in the short and long term he said, with women and girls being disproportionately affected.
That message has been shared with you.
**Climate
Also on climate, I want to flag that on Monday, the High‑Level Champions for Global Climate Action, namely Nigel Topping from the UK and Gonzalo Muñoz from Chile, are convening the Race to Zero Dialogues.
The Race to Zero Dialogues will serve as input to the Climate Dialogues of the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change, which will take place from 23 November to 4 December. Together, both Dialogues will set the stage for the Anniversary of the Paris Agreement on 12 December, which is also the day of the Climate Ambition Summit.
The events are being hosted across multiple time zones, allowing speakers from all over the world to reflect on progress made on mitigation and adaptation.
More information is on the UNFCCC (United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change) website.
**Climate/Kids
Staying on the topic of climate change, the Department of Global Communications (DGC) is launching a campaign to empower kids to take climate action and protect the planet.
The Climate Action Superheroes campaign, launching on UN social media platforms, will target kids under the age of twelve as agents of change. Eight superheroes — the Energy Expert, the Fashion Fixer, the Fume Fighter Green Guide, the Recycle Ranger, the Truth Talker — that is me — the Veggie Vindicator and the Water Wizard — will engage children, and parents, in fun missions on topics such as reducing single‑use plastic, saving energy and water, fixing and reusing clothes, eating more vegetables, and sharing scientific facts. Campaign materials include downloadable activity sheets, certificates of completion, animated social media cards and a lot of stickers, which is always fun.
**Press Briefing Monday
And on Monday, here at this room, well, rather not on this room, but there will be a virtual press briefing at 12:30 p.m. on the 15th Internet [Governance] Forum, under the theme, “Internet for Human Resilience and Solidarity.” Speakers will include Liu Zhenmin, Under‑Secretary‑General for Economic and Social Affairs, along with Wai Min Kwok, Senior Governance and Public Administration Officer and Chengetai Masango, Programme [Management] Officer in the Department of Economic and Social Affairs (DESA).
And before we go to our guests, I'm happy to entertain questions from all of youse.
**Questions and Answers
Iftikhar, please, and then Edie.
Question: Thank you, Steph. I was a bit late and heard part of the Secretary‑General's statement on the elections in Myanmar, but I want to ask you whether UN is involved in monitoring the elections?
Spokesman: No, we are not involved in monitoring the elections. We do not… we have no election monitors in the elections.
Correspondent: Okay.
Spokesman: Okay? Edie?
Question: I have a Myanmar question also, but a different one. Is the Secretary‑General concerned that hundreds of thousands of Rohingyas still living in Rakhine are not able to vote in this election because they do not have citizenship?
Spokesman: Yes, it's clear that the legal limbo of a large number of people in Rakhine State remains a concern. It is important that everyone have a voice and be able to participate in these elections in a… very much in an inclusive way, because the elections themselves, as the Secretary‑General said, are an important opportunity to help advance inclusive sustainable development, humanitarian action, human rights and democratic reforms. And we very much hope that these elections will pave the way for the return of refugees in safety and dignity.
Okay? Any other questions? Let me look at the chat. Otherwise, we will go to our guests.
All right.