United Nations Daily Highlights, 98-06-01

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From: The United Nations Home Page at <http://www.un.org> - email: unnews@un.org

DAILY HIGHLIGHTS

Monday, 1 June, 1998

HEADLINES

• Security Council negotiates draft resolution on nuclear tests carried out by Pakistan and India.
• Secretary-General expresses profound dismay at latest nuclear test by Pakistan.
• Secretary-General pledges relief for earthquake victims in Afghanistan; UN agencies organize quick response.
• Secretary-General approves distribution plan for humanitarian aid to Iraq.
• Head of International Atomic Energy Agency says Iraq's nuclear file is still open.
• Secretary-General concerned about reports of clashes between Eritrea and Ethiopia over disputed border area.
• Secretary-General's Special Representative meets with UNITA leader to advance stalled Angola peace process.
• United Nations commission continues its inquiry into arms sales to former Rwandan government forces and militias.
• Up to 1,300 people flee fighting in Kosovo.
• United Nations drug summit to tackle growing problem of amphetamine-type stimulants.
• UN hosts meeting in Bangkok on ending sexual abuse and exploitation of Asian and Pacific youth.
• United Nations Children's Fund honours Pacific Regional Human Rights Education Resource Team.

Mr. Eckhard said on Monday that the draft resolution was introduced during urgent Council consultations on Saturday after Pakistan's announcement that it had carried out more nuclear tests.

In a press statement, the President of the Council, Njuguna M. Mahugu of Kenya, said that the Council was actively considering a draft resolution which could be adopted quickly. He said the Council "deeply deplored" the new tests coming so close after Friday's adoption of a Presidential Statement on the first set of nuclear tests by Pakistan.

Ambassador Mahugu said the Council expressed its increased concern at the risk of a nuclear arms race escalating in South Asia and urged India and Pakistan to accede to the Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban Treaty (CTBT) without conditions. The Council also called on the Government of Pakistan to issue a public declaration announcing a moratorium on future tests and experimentation on delivery systems. He said the Council strongly supported the Secretary-General's statement, expressing his profound dismay at this new series of tests.

His Spokesman, Fred Eckhard said on Monday that the Secretary- General was encouraged by their reactions and intended to continue to engage with them on the issues.

In a statement on Saturday, the Secretary-General said he learned with "profound dismay" that despite appeals by him, the Security Council and leaders of many Member States, Pakistan conducted a sixth underground nuclear weapon test on Saturday 30 May.

"This further dangerous and senseless escalation of tension could lead to a nuclear arms race with incalculable consequences." the Secretary-General said. The international community, he added, must move to prevent further deterioration of the situation.

The Secretary-General urgently reiterated his appeal to the Prime Ministers of India and Pakistan to demonstrate their leadership at this critical stage by exercising restraint and reducing the high tensions between them, the Spokesman said. Noting that India has already announced a moratorium on future tests, he called on Pakistan to make a parallel declaration. He also urged both countries to accede to the Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban Treaty (CTBT) without conditions.

The Secretary-General reiterated the offer made to the Prime Ministers of India and Pakistan on 29 May to assist them in initiating a constructive dialogue. The Under-Secretary-General on Disarmament Affairs, Jayantha Dhanapala, briefed the Security Council on the contents of the letter on Friday, the Spokesman added.

Secretary-General Kofi Annan learned with profound sadness of the earthquake that struck Badakshan and Takhar provinces in Afghanistan, a region still recovering from the severe effects of an earthquake less than four months ago, his Spokesman Fred Eckhard said on Monday.

According to the latest estimates, 2,000 to 3,000 people are reported dead and 45,000 people are homeless as a result of the earthquake which measured 7.1 on the Richter Scale.

In a statement, the Secretary-General said he wished to convey his deepest condolences to the families of the victims. He said he is committed to extending all efforts of the United Nations to relieve the suffering of the affected populations in as speedy a manner as possible.

The President of the United Nations General Assembly, Hennadiy Udovenko of Ukraine, was distressed to learn of the earthquake's devastating effects, according to his Spokesman, Alex Taukatch. Mr. Udovenko welcomed the Secretary-General's commitment to alleviating the suffering of the affected population, and conveyed his sincere condolences to the families of the victims.

At a press conference in New York on Monday, Martin Griffith, Deputy Emergency Relief Coordinator for the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), said aid agencies learned from last February's earthquake in the region. The key, he said, was to respond very quickly to get relief into the area where 60,000 to 70,000 people, mostly farmers live.

He said landslides have cut off road access to the "extremely inaccessible" region, which normally takes five days to reach by mule or 15 minutes by air from Faizabad. The greatest loss of life is around the district of Shahr-e-Bozurg, where 16 villages were destroyed. More than half of the 15 villages in Rostak and 20 villages in Chah-ab are destroyed and some 45,000 people are homeless.

The main needs were shelter and medical supplies, he continued. The UN was organizing five flights from Islamabad to Faizabad, the main logistics base for operations and a helicopter, on loan from the United Nations Mission of Observers in Tajikistan (UNMOT), was shuttling relief into the stricken area. The International Committee for the Red Cross (ICRC) has two helicopters. The UN World Food Programme reports it has enough food in the area, but many non-governmental organizations are worried about malaria outbreaks.

In February, the Security Council expanded the oil-for-food programme, raising the ceiling for Iraqi oil sales from $2 billion every six months to $5.2 billion for the same period. However, the Council stipulated that the new arrangements would only begin after the Secretary-General had approved a new distribution plan presented by Baghdad.

According to Benon Sevan, the Executive Director of the Office of the Iraq Programme, the Secretary-General has come to the conclusion that the new plan, if properly implemented, should meet the requirements of equitable distribution of humanitarian goods to the Iraqi population throughout the country.

Mr. Sevan, in a letter to the Government of Iraq, also addresses the issue of telecommunications, which had been a point of some contention during talks on the oil-for-food programme. He states that a decision on telecommunications improvements needed to facilitate the distribution of humanitarian supplies will be taken only after a joint technical review by United Nations experts and Iraqi officials.

Under the new distribution plan, Iraqis will receive more food, including animal protein, which had not been included in the rations under the previous plan. Infants will receive 59 per cent more calories and over 68 per cent more protein under the new plan. This is particularly important in the light of recent surveys by the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) and others which show a malnutrition rate of 25 per cent among Iraqi children. The new plan also provides therapeutic milk for malnourished children, who will also benefit from a larger allocation to medical care -- $308 million.

"The condition of potable water and sanitation systems remains critical throughout Iraq," the plan notes. It allocates $210 million to address this problem, but cautions that over half a billion dollars is actually needed to rehabilitate the country's water and sanitation infrastructure. Some $411 million will be allocated to repair Iraq's damaged electricity sector. The "enormous" needs of the agricultural sector will be met with funds totalling $250 million, including $80 million for irrigation.

According to the plan, Iraq's education sector is also in severe need of rehabilitation. Students are forced to share desks, and the Ministry of Education has been unable to print new materials due to a lack of supplies. "All schools suffer from a severe shortage of laboratories, aid and training materials." One hundred million dollars will be allocated to this sector under the new plan.

All allocations in the new plan are based on the assumption that Iraq will be able to pump enough oil to sell the allowed amount. However, the country's oil infrastructure is itself in a state of disrepair. The distribution plan states that some $300 million will be required for spare parts, material and equipment to support crude oil production and export.

"The discussion about the agency issuing to Iraq a clean bill of health in preparation for the closure of the nuclear file runs counter to the nature of our verification and generates misunderstanding about its continuing character," Mr. ElBaradei writes in an opinion piece published by The Washington Post on Monday. "Progress in neutralizing the clandestine program does not mean an end to inspection," he points out. "It simply means shifting gears to ensure not only that the past program has been neutralized but also that it is not being revived."

The IAEA Director-General says that his agency has introduced, with the approval of the Security Council, an equally comprehensive and vigorous monitoring and verification regime that aims to detect any indication of Iraq continuing or rebuilding its nuclear-weapons program. He notes that a future determination by the Council that Iraq has satisfied the requirements for lifting the oil embargo would not bring the regime to an end. The monitoring and verification regime would continue to operate unabated until the Security Council determines otherwise.

"He recalls that he and others who have offered assistance in resolving the dispute between the two countries, have stressed the need for maximum restraint so as to ensure that the situation does not deteriorate," Spokesman Fred Eckhard said.

The Secretary-General on Friday sent letters to the Prime Ministers of Eritrea and Ethiopia, calling for full cooperation with the regional and international diplomatic efforts now under way. He also wrote to President Hassan Gouled Aptidon of Djibouti, thanking him for his mediation efforts, which were assisted by Salim Ahmed Salim, the Secretary-General of the Organization of African Unity.

According to United Nations Spokesman Fred Eckhard, the meeting, held in Andulo, was also attended by the ambassadors of the three observer States -- Portugal, the Russian Federation and the United States.

Dr. Savimbi expressed his support for the crisis resolution plan that the Special Representative has put forward to bring the Lusaka Protocol to a conclusion. The completion of the peace process in Angola has been stalled mainly by delays in the extension of Government authority to towns held by UNITA.

On Sunday UNITA Vice-President Antonio Dembo arrived in Luanda with new dates for UNITA's transfer of control of the towns of Andulo, Bailundo, Mungo, and N'harea. According to United Nations Spokesman Fred Eckhard, Mr. Dembo proposed that the technical preparations for the extension of State administration be finalized from 17 to 21 June and that the handover take place on 25 June. This proposal will now be discussed by the Joint Commission, the Spokesman said.

According to a letter from the Secretary-General to the President of the Security Council released on Monday, the Commission, which was reactivated by the Council in April, held meetings in New York in early May. It then re- established its base at the Untied Nations Office at Nairobi on 13 May, and began to resume its contacts in the region.

The Commission will have the same members now as it did when it began its investigations in 1995. They are Mahmoud Kassem of Egypt, the Chairman; Brigadier-General Mujahid Alam of Pakistan; Gilbert Barthe of Switzerland; and Mel Holt of the United States.

Commission members are charged with identifying parties aiding and abetting the illegal sale to or acquisition of arms by former Rwandan government forces and militias. They are also expected to make recommendations on the illegal flow of arms in the Great Lakes region. The Secretary-General is due to report their findings to the Security Council within three months, followed by a final report containing recommendations in November.

The work of the Commission is funded through voluntary contributions. So far, Belgium has contributed $100,000 and Japan $40,000, while further pledges have been made by Belgium, Germany, the United Kingdom, the United States, France and Sweden.

According to preliminary reports from the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), some 1,300 people fled into Tropoje, in northern Albania in the largest such exodus to date, Mr. Eckhard said. The UNHCR does not know how many people have been displaced in the latest fighting, but there are reports some are trapped and cannot cross the border.

There was heavy and indiscriminate shelling in two villages alongside the border with Albania, he continued. Workers in the hills could see 120 millimeter mortars being fired into the villages. The UNHCR and other UN agencies are rushing relief supplies into the area.

Meanwhile, at a press conference at United Nations Headquarters in New York on Monday, the President of the self-declared republic of Kosovo, Dr. Ibrahim Rugova, described the situation on the ground as very dangerous and said Serb police and military action had left many people dead.

Massive ethnic cleansing was quite possible in Kosovo, although Albanians made up 90 per cent of the population, he said. He urged the international community to do more to end the massacres. Independence for Kosovo was the best political solution and would bring stability to the whole region, including Albania and Macedonia and would also help the Serbs as well, he added.

Dr. Rugova said he had urged Secretary-General Kofi Annan to provide more support for Kosovo and to initiate preventive measures, including the establishment of a human rights monitoring office. He had also urged support for a United States initiative to start talks between Pristina and Belgrade. However, he stressed, police and military action must stop, for any talks to succeed. At a meeting with United States President Bill Clinton, Dr. Rugova said he also called for some kind of international civil administration as an interim measure.

The other core issues on the agenda of the special session of the General Assembly on the world drug problem, to be held from 8 to 10 June, are money laundering, precursor chemicals, reducing demand, reduction of illicit crops and alternative development, and enhanced judicial cooperation.

Easy to produce, cheap to buy and hard to control, synthetic drugs, which include methamphetamine and "Ecstasy", are abused by an estimated 30 million people around the world, according to the United Nations International Drug Control Programme (UNDCP).

"Through the 1990s, we have evidence that the growth rate in illicit manufacturing, trafficking and the spread of abuse has been greater for amphetamine-type stimulants than it has been for heroin and cocaine", says Pino Arlacchi, UNDCP Executive Director.

At the drug summit world leaders are expected to adopt an action plan to be implemented by 2003 to reduce supply and demand for these drugs within the following five years by 2008.

The meeting is being held against the backdrop of the region's current economic downturn. "We are already witnessing rising unemployment and unrest in some countries," said Adrianus Mooy, the Executive Director of the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and Pacific. "We need to respond rapidly and effectively to the needs of young people in the wake of the crisis."

The Director of Maiti Nepal, Ms Anuradha Koirala, made an impassioned plea on behalf of all abused women and children. "Society must change its attitude today," she said. Maiti Nepal, a social NGO, won the 1998 ESCAP/UNAIDS Award for its outstanding work to prevent sexual exploitation of children and youth.

In an opening address, Thailand's Deputy Prime Minister, Pancha Kesornthong, said the gathering would provide an Asia-Pacific input to the forthcoming World Conference of Ministers Responsible for Youth, scheduled to be held in Lisbon, Portugal in August of this year.

More than 200 representatives from over 35 member and associate member countries of ESCAP, other UN bodies, specialized agencies and related organizations, intergovernmental organizations as well as non-governmental organizations are attending the five-day meeting.

The Meeting is being convened by ESCAP in cooperation with the UN Department of Economic and Social Affairs in New York, the Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency, the Christian Conference of Asia and the United Nations Population Fund.

The Team received UNICEF's Maurice Pate award in recognition of its "exceptional work in improving the legal and social status of children and women in the Pacific region." The Award, named for the first UNICEF Executive Director, is presented annually to an individual, group or institution that displays outstanding leadership in fulfilling the Fund's ideals.

"As advocates and educators, as legal advisors and community workers, the Team has championed the cause of human rights and social progress throughout the Pacific region at the grassroots level, with special emphasis on child rights and women's rights," said UNICEF Executive Director Carol Bellamy, who was to present the award during the annual session of the UNICEF Executive Board on Monday.

Funded by the Government of the United Kingdom, the Team consists of two lawyers, a community development worker and four technical and administrative staff working in over 12 Pacific islands and islets. Among their accomplishments, they have raised awareness about Pacific Island Constitutions, law, human rights and the application of United Nations conventions among 4,000 women in the region.

From the United Nations home page at <http://www.un.org> - email: unnews@un.org

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