United Nations Daily Highlights, 99-01-15

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

DAILY HIGHLIGHTS

Friday, 15 January, 1999

HEADLINES

• Security Council authorizes UN military observers to continue monitoring Prevlaka peninsula until 15 July.
• Security Council members reaffirm sovereignty, territorial integrity and independence of Kuwait and Iraq and their borders.
• UN food agency appeals for ceasefire to allow aid to reach thousands trapped in Freetown, Sierra Leone.
• Humanitarian ceasefire in southern Sudan extended for three months.
• UN learns whereabouts of second UN plane crash site in Angola.
• Winners of 1998 UN public service advertising awards honoured in New York.
• UN mission plans Afghanistan trip to check on Taliban investigations into UN staff murdered last year.

The United Nations has been monitoring the demilitarization regimes in the Prevlaka peninsula and in neighbouring areas of Croatia and the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia since 1992.

In unanimously adopting resolution 1222 (1999), the Council welcomed the improved cooperation between the Republic of Croatia, the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia and the UN military observers and the decreased number of serious incidents.

In the light of the improved cooperation and reduction in tensions in Prevlaka, the Council requested Secretary-General Kofi Annan to consider a possible reduction in the number of military observers from the current strength of 28 to as few as 22. It also asked him to submit a report by 15 April on the progress of bilateral negotiations between the parties, and ways to facilitate a negotiated settlement -- should the parties require such assistance. The parties were asked to report at least bi-monthly to the Secretary-General on the status of the negotiations.

The Council reiterated its call for the two parties to cease violations of the demilitarization regime in UN-designated zones, further reduce tension and improve safety and security in the area, and to cooperate fully with the UN observers and ensure their safety and unrestricted freedom of movement.

The Council again urged the parties to abide by their mutual commitments and implement fully the Agreement on Normalization of Relations. It stressed the urgent need for them to fulfil their commitment to negotiate a resolution of the disputed issue of Prevlaka.

According to Security Council President Ambassador Celso Amorim of Brazil, Council members were responding to a letter of 14 January from the Charge d' Affaires of the Permanent Mission of Kuwait to the United Nations. He said the letter concerned the statement appearing in an article attributed to the Iraqi Deputy Prime Minister regarding Iraq's recognition of Kuwait.

Responding to questions from the press regarding the future of the United Nations Special Commission (UNSCOM), Ambassador Amorim said that there was a discussion on various proposals. There were areas of concern that many countries shared, such as devising a long-term ongoing monitoring and verification system that could work.

He said that there had been a positive engagement of all delegations in discussing proposals by the Russian Federation and France, as well as other proposals made verbally that dealt with shorter-term aspects. "It would be incumbent upon us to try to find a common denominator between these different positions because that was the only way that we will be able to ensure a presence of the UN in the disarmament area in Iraq, in the disarmament file, and I think everyone agrees it is essential for the objectives of all our resolutions," said Ambassador Amorim.

The humanitarian situation in Freetown was extremely serious, said the WFP Regional Manager for coastal West Africa. The international community, and the parties involved in trying to find a political solution to the conflict, must act quickly to prevent a "catastrophe of great proportions," he added.

Since fighting began in Freetown 10 days ago, most residents have been confined to their homes unable to stock up because of gunfire and a de facto 24 hour curfew, WFP says. Food prices have soared since the outbreak of fighting and the effective closure of the highway linking Freetown to the rest of the country. Markets and shops are closed.

The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), Sadako Ogata, has also expressed grave concern about the fate of civilians trapped in Freetown. In a letter to President Kabbah as well as the heads of States and organizations attempting to mediate the crisis, Ms. Ogata warned of a repeat of last year's situation, when 250,000 refugees from Sierra Leone fled to neighbouring countries.

Meanwhile, UN spokesman Fred Eckhard said United Nations humanitarian workers travelled by road on Friday from Conakry in Guinea to Kambia in Sierra Leone with medicine and other relief items.

The UN agencies will undertake an assessment of the current humanitarian situation in Kambia where there is a growing number of displaced people from Freetown and other areas. Humanitarian organizations were also planning to fly in relief items to other locations next week, Mr. Eckhard said.

The Secretary-General's Special Envoy for Humanitarian Affairs for the Sudan, Ambassador Tom Vraalsen, announced the ceasefire extension on Friday in Nairobi, after concluding a week-long mission to the Sudan and Kenya. The ceasefire was due to expire on Friday.

Ambassador Vraalsen said the humanitarian ceasefire was critically important to relief efforts by the United Nations and the international non- governmental organizations working with Operation Lifeline Sudan. The agreement by the Sudanese Government and the Sudan People's Liberation Movement, he said, would allow Operation Lifeline Sudan to continue bringing assistance to hundreds of thousands of civilians in the region.

Mr. Sevan, who is also the Secretary-General's Special Emissary to Angola, was told by his contact on Thursday that there were no survivors from the aircraft, which was downed on 2 January over territory controlled by the Union for the total Independence of Angola (UNITA).

Mr. Sevan's contact said the UN should send a search team to Bailundo so that UNITA could escort it to the crash site, Mr. Eckhard said. On the basis of this information the UN was trying to deploy a team to the site, he added.

The United Nations Awards were established in 1990 to honour public service advertising that best exemplifies the Organization's ideals and goals. This year's panel of judges reviewed work on human rights, the status of women, the environment, health, the disabled, poverty and the fight against drugs.

Ogilvy and Mather France received the Gold United Nations Award for a television advertisement on human rights, entitled "The Candle" which was produced for Amnesty International. The Silver Award went to NKH&W, Inc. of Kansas city, Missouri, for "What it Cost", a commercial on the drug abuse. ALMAP/BBDO of Sao Paulo, Brazil, received the Bronze Award for a print advertisement on deforestation.

The United Nations Awards are sponsored jointly by the UN Department of Public Information (DPI) and the New York Festivals.

UN spokesman Fred Eckhard said that the two-day mission, which will arrive on 25 January, will be led by the UN Humanitarian Coordinator for Afghanistan, Erick De Mul. The purpose of the mission was to signal the UN's continuing interest in obtaining satisfactory reports on the murders, as well as the UN's commitment to returning international staff to Afghanistan when conditions permit, Mr. Eckhard added.

United Nations programmes in Afghanistan have been run by the national staff of agencies and implementing partners since international workers were pulled out of the country after the murders.

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

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