BACKGROUND RELEASE

COMMITTEE ON RIGHTS OF CHILD TO HOLD TWENTY-SIXTH SESSION

AT GENEVA 8 - 26 JANUARY

Experts to Examine Reports from Latvia, Liechtenstein, Ethiopia,

Egypt, Lithuania, Lesotho, Saudi Arabia, Palau and Dominican Republic

Background Release

PREPARATORY COMMITTEE FOR CONFERENCE ON ILLICIT TRADE IN SMALL ARMS

TO TAKE PLACE AT HEADQUARTERS 8 – 19 JANUARY

NEW CHAIRMEN OF UNITED NATIONS SECURITY BODIES IN JANUARY

In accordance with the principle of alphabetical rotation, the following are the new Chairmen of the United Nations security bodies for January:

Security Council

Kishore Mahbubani (Singapore) succeeds Sergey V. Lavrov (Russian Federation) as President of the Security Council.

Military Staff Committee

WOMEN’S ANTI-DISCRIMINATION COMMITTEE TO HOLD 24TH SESSION AT HEADQUARTERS

15 JANUARY - 2 FEBRUARY

Reports of Eight States Parties Will Be Reviewed

NEW YORK, 2 January (Division for Advancement of Women) –- The twenty-fourth session of the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW) will take place at United Nations Headquarters in New York from

15 January to 2 February.

NUMBER OF SIGNATORIES TO INTERNATIONAL CRIMINAL COURT

STATUTE ENCOURAGING, SECRETARY-GENERAL SAYS

Following is the text of a statement issued today by the Office of the Spokesman for Secretary-General Kofi Annan:

TENTATIVE SCHEDULE OF MEETINGS OF UNITED NATIONS BODIES IN JANUARY 2001

The following is a tentative list of United Nations meetings scheduled to be held in January, including major meetings of intergovernmental organizations related to the United Nations:

Meetings beginning in January:

                                                            SG/SM/7674

                                                            SG/A/763

                                                            ENV/DEV/558

                                                                  ECO/19