United Nations Daily Highlights, 03-04-28

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

OF THE NOON BRIEFING

BY FRED ECKHARD

SPOKESMAN FOR THE SECRETARY-GENERAL

OF THE UNITED NATIONS

UN

HEADQUARTERS, NEW YORK

Monday, April 28, 2003

UN HUMANITARIAN TEAM SAYS WATER SUPPLY IN BASRA INADEQUATE

UN international staff continue to return to various parts of Iraq. The UN humanitarian spokesman in Amman, Jordan, said today that a team arrived in Basrah on Sunday. They report that water supply remains inadequate in many areas but that all hospitals are functional and protected by military, with about 50 percent of staff reporting to work.

UN international staff last week returned to northern Iraq, where they continue to re-establish contact with local authorities and national staff.

The UN Childrens Fund (UNICEF) said it is sending more supply trucks from Iran into Iraq. In addition to water trucks, UNICEF is also bringing in 40 tons of high protein biscuits and medical supplies bound for Baghdad.

The World Food Programme (WFP) continues to oversee the delivery of food into the countrywith a number of ships docking at ports in Turkey and Jordan. WFP staff are also trying to re-activate the network of food agents so that some 27 million Iraqis can receive their monthly ration. As of April 26, WFP food deliveries have reached 55,273 metric tons, which is enough food to meet the needs of nearly four million Iraqis for one month.

The Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) in Rome today conducted its first preliminary assessment on crop production in Iraq. At least one-third of Iraq's critical spring grain crop appears to have emerged unscathed from the conflict. FAO warned that the fate of the bulk of the winter crop of cereals, some 1.2 million tons of sorely needed wheat and barley, still remains in doubt.

Asked about Secretary-General Kofi Annans views of a UN role in Iraq, the Spokesman said that the Secretary-General has no preconceived view of what that role should be, but wants Security Council members to agree on it among themselves, and he would like the United Nations to be prepared to do whatever the Council calls upon it to do.

The Secretary-General, he added, has been in touch with Council members, urging them toward a consensus position, and he senses a gradual coming together among the Council members.

Asked about the difference between a vital and a central UN role, the Spokesman said the adjectives were not important; what was important was the definition of the job.

Asked about Special Adviser Rafeeuddin Ahmed, the Spokesman said he was at work, and had already met with quite a few Security Council members.

In response to a question on the future of UN inspections in Iraq, the Spokesman said that was a matter for the Security Council, but the Secretary-General has already made clear his view that, for weapons inspections to be credible, UN inspectors must verify anything that is found. Eckhard added that chief UN inspector Hans Blix said that he felt UN inspectors need to be on the ground.

SECURITY COUNCIL DISCUSSES LIBERIA, WILL MEET ON TIMOR-LESTE

The Security Council held consultations this morning to discuss Liberia. Assistant Secretary-General for Political Affairs Tuliameni Kalomoh briefed Council members on the Secretary-Generals recent report on Liberia.

Then, at 3:30 p.m., the Council it will hold a public meeting on Timor-Leste. The Secretary-Generals Special Representative, Kamalesh Sharma, is expected to brief on the Secretary-Generals latest report, which recommends a one-year extension of the UN Mission.

SARS SITUATION IN VIETNAM HAS REMAINED STABLE

The World Health Organization (WHO) announced that the outbreak of Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome, or SARS, in Vietnam has remained stable for 18 consecutive days. If the trend continues, the country will be removed from the list of affected areas, making it the first country to contain its SARS outbreak.

The WHO team in Vietnam cautioned against a lapse in the current high state of alert, adding that the risk of a single imported case could start another outbreak.

The WHO expert team in Shanghai has released a preliminary report of their findings on SARS. The team was given free access to all requested data, patient registries and facilities, which were visited on very short notice. There was no evidence found of a systematic underreporting of cases, and it was concluded that the level of preparedness and response was good. The team also found a very high level of Government commitment to tackle the SARS problem.

The latest statistics indicate a total of 4,836 cases with 293 deaths in 26 countries.

UN MISSION WELCOMES COMMISSION ON AFGHAN CONSTITUTION

The UN Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA) welcomed the inauguration of the Constitutional Review Commission on Saturday. The Commission's mandate is to conduct public consultations throughout the country and abroad in order to ascertain the aspirations of Afghans regarding their future constitution.

Based on the results of this effort, the 35-member body will review the work of the Drafting Commission and prepare the Draft Constitution to be submitted to the Constitutional Loya Jirga tribal council in October.

In a statement, UNAMA acknowledges the efforts of the Afghan Administration to ensure that the Commission represents the regional, ethnic, professional and religious diversity of the Afghan nation and the full participation of women in the constitution-making process.

UNAMA and the Afghan Independent Human Rights Commission issued a joint statement condemning "in the strongest possible terms" those who perpetrated human rights abuses during violent clashes in Badghis province, in which 38 civilians died, while 761 homes and 21 shops were looted.

UN MISSION ESCORTS REBEL DELEGATION VISIT TO KINSHASA

The official Congolese Rally for Democracy-Goma (RCD-G) delegation to the Commission de Suivi arrived in Kinshasa, the capital of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) on Sunday, its first visit to the capital since the conflict broke out in 1998. Its arrival was escorted and monitored by the UN Mission in the DRC (MONUC), which greeted the event as an important step forward in the peace process.

The development was brought about after intensive negotiations by the Special Representative of the Secretary-General in the DRC, Amos Namanga Ngongi ,over the past few weeks in both Kinshasa and Goma.

Also in the DRC, a military observer of the UN Mission was killed on Saturday morning, and another was seriously injured, as their vehicle drove over a mine at Komanda, 60 km Southwest of Bunia. An investigation is underway with a view to establishing the circumstances surrounding the accident, the second of its kind since the deployment of MONUC observers in the DRC in November 1999.

UN ENCOURAGED BY CROSSINGS ACROSS GREEN LINE IN CYPRUS

Asked about the Secretary-Generals views on the crossings by Cypriots across the Green Line in Cyprus in recent days, the Spokesman said that it has been part of the mandate of the UN Mission in Cyprus to encourage contacts among the peoples in both sides. He noted the tragedy that whole generations of Cypriots had lost contact with each other.

The Spokesman said that the United Nations was encouraged by the developments and was working with the Cypriot authorities to facilitate them. We can only hope that these developments will have a positive bearing on the ultimate goal of the reunification of the island, he said.

Asked about the status of the Secretary-Generals team for Cyprus, the Spokesman said it was still intact. He noted that the Secretary-General said earlier this month in Athens that he continues to be prepared to play a role, but needs to see the will of both parties to move the issue forward.

UN PROVIDES ELECTORAL ASSISTANCE TO YEMEN BALLOTING

The UN Electoral Assistance Division, which is currently assisting close to 50 electoral processes worldwide, drew attention to the UN involvement in Yemen, where the countrys third parliamentary elections since unification in 1990 took place on Sunday.

The UN Development Programme, which co-chaired with the Netherlands a project to provide technical assistance to the elections, reports that among its achievements was an increase in women's voter registration, with an increase in registration by Yemeni women by 100 percent from the previous elections.

The Electoral Assistance Division took note of the fact that elections took place as scheduled, in spite of speculation that they might be postponed due to the uncertain security climate in Yemen stemming, in part, from the war in Iraq.

The process in Yemen attracted interest from electoral authorities in the region, including the Palestinian Central Election Commission.

OTHER ANNOUNCEMENTS SIERRA LEONE COURT BEGINS TRIAL: Last Friday, the Special Court for Sierra Leone held its first hearing in the trial of Augustine Gbao, who stands accused of crimes against humanity and violations of the Geneva Conventions, including murder and rape. Four of the 17 counts against him involve attacks against UN peacekeepers. Gbao pleaded not guilty to all the counts against him, and declared that he did not have the funds to pay for his defence. The Special Court will pay for his defence until an investigation into his financial standing has been completed.

EXTENSION REQUEST AT RWANDA TRIBUNAL: In a letter to the General Assembly and Security Council that is on the racks today, the Secretary-General notes that the terms of office of 11 of the permanent judges on the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda will expire this May 24, and the terms of four judges who are trying cases that are likely to last beyond that date were not elected to new terms of office. The President of the Tribunal, Judge Navanethem Pillay who will herself be leading the Tribunal to take up her duties on the International Criminal Court has asked for the terms of judges trying ongoing cases, including her own term, to be extended so that they can finish work on those cases.

MEETING ON IRAQI CULTURAL HERITAGE: On Tuesday, in London, the UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) and the British Museum will host the second meeting of international experts to try to save Iraqs museums and cultural property. Curators of the largest collections of Mesopotamian antiquities outside Iraq will try to work out the best ways to help their colleagues inside Iraq. The head of research at the Baghdad Museum, Donny George, will also attend the meeting.

DISARMAMENT CONFERENCES OPEN: Two conferences relating to the weapons of mass destructions opened today. The First Chemical Weapons Convention Review Conference convened in The Hague, with representatives of the 151 States Parties to the Chemical Weapons Convention attending. The Conference will review the operation of the Convention, now that it has been in force for almost six years. In particular, it will assess the current process of destruction of declared arsenals. "The importance of the global process of chemical disarmament cannot be overstated," the Secretary-General said in a message to the conference, and he hailed the Convention as representing "an effective and credible multilateral approach to the threats arising from the possession and proliferation of such weapons." He also called for the Convention's universality. Also today, the Preparatory Committee for the 2005 Review Conference of the parties to the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT) opened in Geneva.

SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT COMMISSION SESSION: The Commission on Sustainable Development begins its 11th session today in New York. The two-week session will focus on how to translate into reality the goals and targets agreed on at the World Summit on Sustainable Development in the Johannesburg last year. The high level segment will take up the first three days with ministers from more than 40 countries expected to speak.

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