United Nations Daily Highlights, 01-06-06

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

FROM THE NOON BRIEFING

BY FRED ECKHARD

SPOKESMAN FOR THE SECRETARY-GENERAL OF THE UNITED NATIONS

UN HEADQUARTERS, NEW YORK

Wednesday, June 6, 2001

ANNAN ADDRESSES OPENING SESSION OF HABITAT CONFERENCE

Secretary-General Kofi Annan told the opening session of the Habitat conference that rich and poor nations need to get together to find solutions to the long list of common challenges faced by the worlds cities.

The world is in the midst of a historic and radical transformation, the Secretary-General said in his remarks, not only in how people live, but in where they live.

The Secretary-General explained that since the majority of the worlds population is now concentrated in urban areas, many of the societys inequities are also becoming more and more urban.He concluded by telling the delegates that the challenge of this conference is to create lasting momentum for action on housing issues.

This conference is a Special Session of the General Assembly on the Implementation of the Habitat Agenda, elaborated five years ago in Istanbul,Turkey, whose objective is to reduce poverty and promote sustainable development in the world's urban areas. From today until its close on June 8th, delegates representing Member States as well as local authorities will be reviewing and assessing progress since Istanbul.

SECURITY COUNCIL TAKES UP SIERRA LEONE, BURUNDI AND EAST TIMOR

Assistant Secretary-General for Peacekeeping Operations Hedi Annabi briefed Security Council members on recent developments in Sierra Leone and the region. He also introduced the Secretary-Generals report in the situation of refugees and internally displaced people, which was issued last week.

Council Members were also given a briefing on the incident which occurred at the East Timor border on 29 May in which five civilians were killed and up to 40 people were wounded.

Security Council also discussed the situation in Burundi.

In an effort to reach out to Member States not represented in the Security Council and to obtain their views on issues in the Councils agenda, the President of the Council met Tuesday evening with the Permanent Representative of Iraq and this morning with the Permanent Representative of the Democratic Republic of the Congo. The President of the Council also met this morning with the Permanent Representative of Djibouti on the question of Somalia, which is a possible agenda item in the Councils programme of work for this month.

UNAIDS AND WHO WELCOME PFIZER OFFER TO EXPAND DRUG DISTRIBUTION

Following the announcement this morning by Pfizer to offer the drug fluconazole free of charge in Least Developed Countries, Dr. Peter Piot, UNAIDS Executive Director, welcomed the pharmaceuticals offer to expand access to the drug.

In his statement, Piot said that we look forward to this new programme being implemented as swiftly and broadly as possible, and to its significant impact in the treatment of fungal brain infections and esophageal candidiasis, which are common among AIDS patients.

mso-list:l2 level1 lfo9;tab-stops:list .5in;mso-layout-grid-align:none; Dr. Gro Harlem Brundtland, Director-General of the World Health Organization ( WHO), said the private sector was showing willingness to work with governments and international organizations to strengthen health systems to provide needed care.

mso-list:l2 level1 lfo9;tab-stops:list .5in;mso-layout-grid-align:none; In response to a question on whether the Pfizer initiative was in direct response to the call of the Secretary-General, the Spokesman said that he did not think it was in response to a specific appeal. The Spokesman added that Pfizer was one of the companies that the Secretary-General has had repeated contact with in recent months, primarily urging them to take further steps to facilitate the distribution at reduced cost of key AIDS medication.

EX-AFGHAN KING APPEALS FOR MORE HUMANITARIAN AID

mso-list:l0 level1 lfo12;tab-stops:list .5in;mso-layout-grid-align:none; The Secretary-General has received a letter from the exiled former King of Afghanistan, Mohammad Zaher Shah in which he makes an urgent appeal for a further increase and expansion of the humanitarian aid program to meet the immediate needs of the Afghan people both inside the country and in refugee camps outside.

mso-list:l0 level1 lfo12;tab-stops:list .5in;mso-layout-grid-align:none; Starting Thursday, the Afghan Support Group, which brings together major donor nations, will meet for two days in Islamabad to assess the humanitarian needs in Afghanistan.

OTHER ANNOUNCEMENTS

Today in West Timor, the Indonesian authorities conducted a registration of East Timorese refugees. The UN Mission in East Timor (UNTAET) had one observer in this operation along with others from a number of countries and the International Organization for Migration (IOM).

In St. Petersburg, Russia, Pino Arlacchi, the Executive Director of the UN Office for Drug Control and Crime Prevention, (UNDCCP) addressed the closing session of the International Conference on Illegal Economy and Money Laundering. Arlacchi told the delegates, which included representatives for 140 countries, that laws against money laundering are not inconsistent with respect for Human Rights as they can go a long way in protecting personal freedoms and safeguarding potential victims from profit motivated crimes. He also saluted Russias efforts in combating money laundering, saying that Russia had taken its place among nations engaged in this fight.

mso-list:l3 level1 lfo15;tab-stops:list .5in;mso-layout-grid-align:none; The Office of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) reports today that a rebel offensive in Senegals Casamance province has forced more than 1,000 people to flee into Gambia this week, bringing to 3,500 the number of refugees since fresh fighting broke out in mid-May. The arrivals reported heavy fighting between Senegalese government forces and the separatist Movement of Democratic Forces of Casamance.

Algeria signed the two protocols to the United Nations Convention Against Transnational Organized Crime. Algeria became the 86th country to sign to the Protocol to Prevent, Suppress and Punish trafficking in Persons, Especially Women and Children and the 83rd to sign the Protocol Against the Smuggling of Migrants by Land, Sea and Air.

The United Nations Population Fund ( UNFPA) signed a Memorandum of Cooperation with Rotary International to work together on population and reproductive health issues and promote awareness of the implications of population growth and changes.

The Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific, (ESCAP), announced the publication of the report The State of the Environment in Asia and the Pacific, 2000. The overall environment in the region has deteriorated since the Rio Conference on the environment in 1992 and the report says that globalization and poverty have made a serious impact on the natural resources and environment.

In response to a question asking if the Secretary-General had any direct contact with the Iraqi authorities in order to try to convince them to reopen the oil pipelines, the Spokesman answered that to the best of his knowledge, the Secretary-General had not had any contact with them.

Office of the Spokesman for the Secretary-General

United Nations, S-378

New York, NY 10017

Tel. 212-963-7162

Fax. 212-963-7055

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