United Nations Daily Highlights, 03-09-04

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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

Thursday, September 4, 2003

SECRETARY-GENERAL WELCOMES PEACE TALKS ON SUDAN

Secretary-General Kofi Annan, in a statement, welcomed the talks being held in Kenya between the First Vice-President of Sudan, Ali Osman Mohamed Taha, and the Chairman of the Sudan Peoples Liberation Movement (SPLM), John Garang, under the auspices of the Inter-governmental Authority on Development (IGAD). He strongly hopes that these high-level talks will provide the necessary impetus for the two sides to conclude their negotiations with a comprehensive peace agreement.

The Secretary-General reiterated his appreciation for the efforts of the Government of Kenya in leading the IGAD peace initiative and those of other countries that are closely supporting and assisting the peace process.

The United Nations stands ready to contribute to the efforts of the international community to help implement a peace agreement concluded by the Sudanese parties.

SECURITY COUNCIL VOTES ON PROSECUTORS FOR TWO UN TRIBUNALS

The Security Council this morning voted unanimously to give Carla Del Ponte another four-year term as Prosecutor for the International Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia and to grant Hassan Jallow a four-year term as Prosecutor for the International Tribunal for Rwanda.

Council members then held consultations on the latest report of the UN weapons inspectors for Iraq. Demetrius Perricos, Acting Executive Chairman of the UN Monitoring, Verification and Inspection Commission (UNMOVIC), briefed on the 14th quarterly UNMOVIC report, which was released on Wednesday.

The Security Council presidency has also scheduled consultations on Iraq at 3:30 p.m. on Friday. Under-Secretary-General for Political Affairs Kieran Prendergast will provide an update since the last briefing by the Secretary-General, following the August 19 bombing of the UN headquarters in Baghdad.

ANNAN RECEIVES DRAFT IDEAS ON IRAQ FROM UNITED STATES

In response to questions, the Spokesman confirmed that the Secretary-General received on Wednesday from U.S. Ambassador John Negroponte the draft ideas on Iraq that are also being circulated to some Security Council members.

And in response to further questions, he added that this was the first time the Secretary-General had seen the elements for a possible resolution.

Security Council President Ambassador Emyr Jones Parry of the United Kingdom told a press briefing on Wednesday that discussions had been continuing on the content of a further resolution and that a working text was emerging. He went on to say that he envisaged the discussion would broaden in a matter of days.

Asked how much the Secretary-General had contributed to the U.S. draft, the Spokesman said that he had no direct involvement in the drafting of the ideas. The Spokesman declined to comment on the Secretary-Generals views on the draft, saying that he would not get in the middle of discussions that were just beginning.

The Spokesman added that the Secretary-General had indicated that he wanted to see a resolution emerge that would be more clear in the terms of the mandate given to the United Nations than the one provided in Resolution 1483, which he had said was ambiguous at best. Sergio Vieira de Mello, the Special Representative who died in last months explosion, had made that mandate work by the force of his personality, Eckhard added.

ANNAN EMPHASIZED IMPORTANCE OF ROAD MAP FOR MIDDLE EAST

In a message to a meeting organized by the Committee on the Exercise of the Inalienable Rights of the Palestinian People, the Secretary-General said that the Road Map, if fully and fairly implemented, remains the best way to reach an independent and viable Palestinian state.

In the message, which was delivered by Under-Secretary-General for Political Affairs, Kieran Prendergast, the Secretary-General went on to say that the renewed cycle of deadly violence must not be allowed to divert us from the Road Map. The whole international community must strengthen its efforts to help both parties stay the course, he added.

The Secretary-General highlighted the importance of the role of Palestinian and Israeli non-governmental organizations (NGOs) in building bridges of trust and understanding between ordinary Israelis and Palestinians, laying the ground work for mutual respect, peaceful coexistence and cooperation.

Asked whether the Secretary-General had been in contact with Palestinian Authority President Yasser Arafat, who had recently said the Road Map was dead, the Spokesman said he had not.

UN MISSION IN LEBANON REPORTS OVER-FLIGHTS, FIRING ACROSS BLUE LINE

On Wednesday afternoon, the UN Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) reported that Israeli jets crossed the Blue Line into south Lebanon, generating sonic booms. Hizbollah responded to the air incursions with anti-aircraft rounds fired across the line, igniting an agricultural field.

Some hours later there was additional anti-aircraft fire that did not cross the Blue Line, shortly after which two Israeli jets flew deep into UNIFIL's area of operation and dropped several bombs on a Hizbollah position adjacent to the village of Al Bayyadah, near a UN position. These bombs set fire to the position and damaged a number of buildings in the vicinity. There were no casualties reported on either side.

The UNIFIL Force Commander, Maj. Gen. Lalit Mohan Tewari, expressed his deep concern about the air raid. Today, the area is reported as quiet.

AFGHANISTAN MAY BE FREE OF MINE THREAT IN DECADE

Afghanistan, the most mine-affected country in the world, may be free from the threat of landmines in 10 years, according to a new report published today by the Mine Action Programme for Afghanistan, which is overseen by the UN Mine Action Service.

Since the program started in 1989, it has cleared landmines and unexploded ordnance from 754 square kilometers of land, including former battle areas. An estimated 850 square kilometers remain affected.

UN REFUGEE AGENCY SENDS AID TO NEWLY DISPLACED IN CENTRAL LIBERIA

The Office of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) has dispatched trucks with plastic sheeting, water and high-protein biscuits provided by the UN Childrens Fund (UNICEF) and other non-governmental agencies for more than 50,000 people on the road near Totota town, who were uprooted by fears of fresh violence in central Liberia.

"It is not completely clear why the people decided to leave en masse, but it is clear that they are afraid," said Julien Vrancken, UNHCR's field security adviser. The news of a nearby attack by LURD (Liberians United for Reconciliation and Democracy) and the arrival of government militia in the camps, harassing and looting, were enough for more than 50,000 people to pack their bags and leave."

Before the mass exodus, Totota had hosted more than 80,000 people, many of whom lived in five camps for internally displaced people.

For hours on Wednesday, the road between Totota and neighboring Salala town was packed with a sea of anxious and tired people, dragging their feet under the enormous weight of their belongings.

UN ENVOY FOR LIBERIA HEARS CONCERNS FROM WOMENS GROUP

The Special Representative of the Secretary-General in Liberia, Jacques Paul Klein, received today in his office a delegation from the Women in Peace-building Network Liberia (WIPNET). The women expressed their concern over the suffering of the population in areas where incidents of fighting have been reported over the past few days.

The leader of the delegation presented Klein with a petition calling on the United Nations to use every means to ensure that the Parties engaged in hostilities adhered to the ceasefire.

In their presence, Klein telephoned ECOMIL Force Commander Brigadier-General Festus Okonkwo to relay the groups message and to ask ECOMIL to do what it could to ensure a secure environment in as wide an area as possible.

AID DELIVERY BEING HAMPERED IN WESTERN COTE DIVOIRE

The Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Assistance (OCHA) warns that the effective delivery of assistance in western Cote dIvoire is being hampered by a rise in inter-ethnic tensions and continuing insecurity. Vulnerable populations are further endangered by shortages of food and basic services, such as health care.

OCHA adds that security remains very poor outside the main towns and away from the main roads in the west. The nutritional situation, it says, is particularly alarming, with high rates of malnutrition reported in the area.

RIGHTS EXPERT FOR SOMALIA URGES AID FOR DISPLACED PERSONS

Ghanim Alnajjar, the independent expert on the situation of human rights in Somalia, on Wednesday wrapped up an 11-day mission to Somalia by calling for action to address the serious conditions in the camps for internally displaced persons in that country.

The camps are in the worst conditions you can imagine, Alnajjar said. They have absolutely no basic services, such as water, health facilities or schools.

There are some 370,000 internally displaced persons in Somalia, most of whom live in abject poverty in areas controlled by armed faction leaders.

FOREIGN DIRECT INVESTMENT FALLS BY 21 PERCENT LAST YEAR

Global foreign direct investment (FDI) flows fell last year by 21 percent, to some $651 billion, and are expected to remain at that depressed level this year, the UN Conference on Trade and Development says in the 2003 edition of its World Investment Report, launched today in Geneva.

Foreign direct investment to the developing world declined for the second year in a row, falling from $590 billion in 2001 to $460 billion last year, with the United States and United Kingdom accounting for about 54 percent of the drop in all countries that had reduced inflows.

Last years total volume for foreign direct investment was just half the record volume recorded in 2000 a figure which fell by more than 40 percent in 2001. But UNCTAD Secretary-General Rubens Ricupero, in launching the report today, said, A rebound is likely in 2004.

OTHER ANNOUNCEMENTS

PLEA AGREEMENT REACHED IN THE HAGUE: Today in The Hague, Dragan Nikolic, a Bosnian Serb charged by the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia with crimes against humanity, pleaded guilty to all four counts against him: those of persecutions on political, racial and religious grounds; murder; rape; and torture. His admissions of guilt were part of a plea agreement negotiated with prosecutors. The Prosecutors Office, in response, recommended that the Tribunal impose a sentence of 15 years against him.

DIGITAL DIASPORA NETWORK TO BE LAUNCHED FRIDAY: The Digital Diaspora Network for Latin America and the Caribbean will be launched at a conference Friday at UN Headquarters. The Network will provide expertise and funding to the regions entrepreneurs, using information and communication technology to help improve local economies. There will be a press conference Friday at 11:15 a.m.

UN COMMISSION URGES EFFORTS TO FIGHT AIDS: The 59th Session of the Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP) concluded today with firm commitments from members to urgently address profound social problems, especially poverty, unemployment, social exclusion and deadly infectious diseases. ESCAP adopted four resolutions, including one demanding commitment at the highest decision-making levels to fight HIV/AIDS, calling it a major development challenge of our times, which could unravel the many social and economic gains that the region has achieved.

UN BUDGET: Germany today completed payment on its nearly $132 million in regular budget dues, becoming the 100th Member State to pay its dues in full for this year.