In India today, the Secretary-General delivered the keynote address to the Indian Council for World Affairs, and spoke of the country’s role as a driver for peace in the region and the world, a champion of human rights and a leader on clean, sustainable development. He also called on India to renew its leadership on nuclear disarmament.
In progress at UNHQ
Noon Briefings
Dr. Marie-Paule Kieny, Assistant Director-General at the World Health Organization, announced that the two Ebola vaccines that had underwent the first testing phase have an acceptable safety profile. The third testing phase, which consists of vaccinating healthy volunteers in affected areas, is about to begin.
At a memorial for fallen United Nations staff, the Secretary-General paid tribute to the 102 staff members who had died in the devastating earthquake that hit Haiti five years ago this month, and to the 100 United Nations personnel who died between October 2013 and November 2014 in the course of their duties, including in Afghanistan, Somalia and Sierra Leone.
The Secretary-General, outraged by the attack today against the French magazine, Charlie Hebdo, called the horrendous, unjustifiable and cold-blooded crime a direct assault on democracy, the media and freedom of expression. He urged the international community to stand in solidarity for freedom of expression and tolerance.
The Secretary-General will travel to India later this week, where he plans to deliver a keynote speech at the Inaugural Session of the seventh Vibrant Gujarat Summit. He will stress to world leaders, policymakers, and business and academia representatives the need for inclusive and sustainable development in India and globally.
Ismail Ould Cheikh Ahmed, the new Head of the United Nations Mission for Ebola Emergency Response (UNMEER), arrived in Accra, Ghana, on Saturday. Along with the Secretary-General’s Special Envoy on Ebola, Dr. David Nabarro, Mr. Ahmed will visit Liberia and Sierra Leone this week, after which he will then travel to Guinea.
The United Nations Mission in Liberia (UNMIL) announced today that a staff member tested positive for Ebola. This is the fourth case in the Mission. Two UNMIL staff died of the disease three months ago, and another recovered. UNMIL Head Karin Landgren said this new case is a stark reminder of the need to remain vigilant.
The Secretary-General said that the Arms Trade Treaty being entered into force tomorrow was a new chapter in the world’s collective efforts to bring responsibility, accountability and transparency to the global arms trade, as well as a testimony to an international commitment to stop irresponsible arms transfers.
The World Food Programme (WFP), China Foundation for Poverty Alleviation, and Tencent, one of the world’s largest internet companies, have launched a fundraising campaign supporting WFP’s emergency operations to meet basic food needs of affected families and communities in Sierra Leone, Liberia and Guinea, which have been most impacted by Ebola.
The Secretary-General, following his meeting with Liberian President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, said there is reason to be cautiously optimistic that the Ebola outbreak can be defeated as the spread of the virus is slowing in Liberia. However, it is not the time to ease our efforts as just one case can trigger an epidemic.