United Nations Daily Highlights, 03-10-21

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

OF THE NOON BRIEFING

BY

HUA JIANG

DEPUTY SPOKESMAN

FOR THE SECRETARY-GENERAL OF THE UNITED NATIONS

UN HEADQUARTERS, NEW YORK

Tuesday, October 21, 2003

ANNAN TO ATTEND IRAQ RECONSTRUCTION CONFERENCE IN MADRID

Following his speaking engagement in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, this afternoon, Secretary-General Kofi Annan plans to travel directly to Madrid, Spain.

On Thursday morning, October 23, he is scheduled to deliver a speech at the opening session of the International Donors Conference for the Reconstruction of Iraq, hosted by the government of Spain.

The Secretary-General will be back in New York Thursday evening.

Asked why the Secretary-General was now going to the conference, the Deputy Spokewoman said that following the unanimous adoption of Security Council Resolution of 1511, the Secretary-General felt it was important to show his support for the international efforts aimed at restoring peace and stability to a sovereign, democratic and independent Iraq.

Asked what the Secretary-General expected in terms of financial commitments from donor nations, the Deputy Spokeswoman said she would not want to prejudge the results of the conference before it even started.

ANNAN TO UNDERSCORE UNIQUE U.S. ROLE AT UNITED NATIONS

The Secretary-General arrived in Pittsburgh, where he received a check for $10,000, presented by a group of children on behalf of Heinz employees, for the UN Childrens Fund to support its work to provide children with safe and balanced nutrition.

After that, he is to attend a luncheon with the citys political, academic, business and community leaders. Pittsburgh Mayor Tom Murphy is expected to present him with the keys to the city.

Then, this afternoon, the Secretary-General will deliver the Ninth Heinz Distinguished Lecture at the University of Pittsburgh and will receive an honorary degree from the University.

In his speech, the Secretary-General will note the United States unique role at the United Nations, from the efforts by Franklin D. Roosevelt to establish the world body up to the current UN efforts to help the Afghan people rebuild their state and, if circumstances permit, to bring similar help to the Iraqi people. He will also emphasize his belief that we can find collective answers to the problems the world confronts today, even if it requires a hard look at international rules, starting from first principles.

ANNAN WELCOMES E.U.-IRAN AGREEMENT ON NUCLEAR COOPERATION

The Secretary-General, in a statement released through his Spokesman, welcomes the declaration agreed in Tehran today by the Iranian Government and visiting European Union Foreign Ministers regarding the nuclear program of the Islamic Republic of Iran. He encourages the Iranian authorities to further cooperate with the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) to resolve all outstanding issues with the Agency.

The Secretary-General appreciates the efforts of the Government of Iran and the Foreign Ministers of France, Germany and the United Kingdom in working towards resolving outstanding issues regarding Irans nuclear program.

Last week during a visit to Tehran, IAEA Director General Mohamed ElBaradei received assurances that Iran would provide the IAEA with a full disclosure of all its past nuclear activities, and the Iranian Government also expressed its readiness to conclude an Additional Protocol.

The Agency said that today's news from Tehran is an encouraging sign toward clarifying all aspects of Iran's past nuclear program and regulating its future activities through verification.

ElBaradei hopes and expects that in the next few days Iran will deliver to the IAEA a complete declaration of all its past nuclear activities and an official notification of its readiness to conclude an Additional Protocol.

SECURITY COUNCIL TOLD MIDDLE EAST PEACE AT "LOW POINT"

The Security Council discussed the Middle East, including the question of Palestine, in two sessions that began with an open meeting in which Under-Secretary-General for Political Affairs Kieran Prendergast briefed members, saying that todays meeting takes place at a low point for peace efforts.

Instead of moving forward, Prendergast said, we are seeing backward movement, away from a peaceful settlement, away from the negotiating table.

Prendergast cited the impact of suicide bombings, rejectionist language, extrajudicial killings, walls that extend deep into the occupied Palestinian territory, the destruction of homes, expropriation and continued settlement activity, which lead both Israelis and Palestinians to feelings of hopelessness, despair, hatred, rage and revenge.

Since the last briefing to the Council, he said, 80 people have lost their lives, including 27 Israelis, 47 Palestinians, and three American diplomatic security officers. Just yesterday, he noted, at least 11 Palestinians were killed in a series of Israeli air strikes on Gaza, and he said the United Nations once more calls on Israel to cease the use of disproportionate and indiscriminate force in civilian areas.

He noted the Palestinian Authoritys efforts to appoint a new prime minister, saying that, as called for in the Road Map, that prime minister should be empowered and credible, and should be the person, along with the Interior Minister, to whom the consolidated Palestinian security forces would report. Israel, he added, must also abide by its obligations under the Road Map.

Meanwhile, recent incidents along the Blue Line and in the region have highlighted the fragility of the situation. The region, Prendergast said, is faced with a potential broadening and deepening of interlinked conflicts, adding, There has to be a better way. We cannot continue to lurch from crisis to crisis.

Following the open meeting, the Security Council held closed consultations on the Middle East.

ANNAN ON MIDDLE EAST: PARTIES MUST BE PRESSURED TO AVOID ESCALATION

In a message

to the opening session of the Media Seminar on Peace in the Middle East, the Secretary-General said the international community must continue to pressure the parties to exercise self-restraint and avoid further escalation. We must work urgently, he said, to contain the spread of conflict and violations of international humanitarian law.

In his message, which was delivered by Under Secretary-General for Communications and Public Information Shashi Tharoor, the Secretary-General went on to say that the net result of the recent increase in violence is that Israelis and Palestinians are pushed farther and farther from the negotiating table, each doubts whether it has a partner for peace.

In conclusion, he told the participants of the two-day seminar organized by the United Nations, that it is essential that people of good will everywhere, in both official and unofficial positions, devote their political energies and creative efforts to realizing the vision of peaceful co-existence between Israel and the future state of Palestine.

U.N., SIERRA LEONE FORCES MOUNT JOINT OPERATION ON BORDER WITH LIBERIA

The UN Mission in Sierra Leone (UNAMSIL) has started the first phase of a military exercise named Operation Blue Vigilance.

In collaboration with the Sierra Leone Police and the Sierra Leone Armed Forces, the operation will increase UNAMSIL forces and the national security agencies presence along the border with Liberia, thereby preventing potential infiltrations of Liberian combatants into Sierra Leone.

Inside Liberia, the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) and other organizations are drawing up plans to provide emergency aid to thousands of displaced people who have returned to their homes in the northwestern part of the country.

Meanwhile, a UN humanitarian mission that assessed conditions in camps for internally displaced persons, in two towns about 80 kilometers northeast of Monrovia, said that displaced persons continue to stream into the camps. The camps need to be expanded to meet growing numbers of persons seeking shelter. They lack clean water and adequate sanitation.

TWO MORE AID WORKERS KILLED IN SOMALIA;

IMMEDIATE ACTION URGED TO FIND AND PROSECUTE THOSE RESPONSIBLE

UN Emergency Relief Coordinator Jan Egeland, in a statement, expressed his profound sorrow over the killing by unknown gunmen of two aid workers in the town of Sheikh, in northern Somalia. Egeland also extended his sincere condolences to the bereaved families of the deceased.

The workers, who where British nationals, were engaged in programs benefiting children on behalf of the non-governmental organization, SOS Children's Villages in a northern region of Somalia , known as Somaliland.

These murders follow closely on the killing of an Italian aid worker in the same region on October 5, 2003. A total of four international aid workers have been killed in Somalia since mid-September.

As a result of these incidents, no additional workers will be allowed to travel to the region until the situation has stabilized.

Egeland called on the local authorities to take immediate action to find and prosecute those responsible for the killings and to ensure the safety and security of all aid workers in the area.

AIDS EPIDEMIC UNDERMINING MILLENNIUM DEVELOPMENT GOALS

According to a report released today by the UNs Department of Economic and Social Affairs, the AIDS epidemic will continue to have devastating consequences for decades to come for virtually every sector of society. In many countries, the epidemic is undermining the achievement of the Millennium Development Goals adopted by the General Assembly in 2000.

The report, The Impact of AIDS, documents the sweeping impacts of HIV/AIDS on families and households, agricultural sustainability, business, the health sector, education, and economic growth.

HIV/AIDS is the deadliest epidemic of our time. More than 22 million people have already lost their lives and more than 42 million are currently living with HIV/AIDS. In many countries, especially in Africa, the AIDS epidemic has spread rapidly, leaving illness, death, poverty and misery in its wake. In other countries, the disease is still in its early stages and its destructive effects are now beginning to be felt.

MEMORIAL FOR UN STAFF KILLED IN LINE OF DUTY TO BE UNVEILED FRIDAY

Friday is United Nations Day, and, at 12:30 p.m. that day at the North Garden, a Memorial funded by the money for the 1988 Nobel Peace Prize given to UN peacekeeping forces will be unveiled.

That Memorial is dedicated to honor all UN staff, whether civilian, military or police, who gave their lives in the service of peace in the line of duty.

The memorial was designed by the architectural firm, Arquitectonica. In selecting the design, the Secretary-General was assisted by an ad hoc group of advisers including Agnes Gund and Kynaston McShine of the Museum of Modern Art and Sir Brian Urquhart.

In Geneva, a memorial dedicated to UN staff who have given their lives in the service of peace will be unveiled in the Ariana Park of the Palais des Nations (Library Building) also on Friday.

Also that day, the UN Postal Administration will issue a new stamp, dedicated to the memory of the 22 people killed in the explosion at UN Headquarters in Baghdad on August 19. The stamp shows the UN flag at half mast, and the words In Memoriam, in several UN languages.

OTHER ANNOUNCEMENTS

SERBIAN OFFICIALS INDICTED FOR ALLEGED KOSOVO WAR CRIMES: The International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia on Monday unsealed an indictment against four former senior Serbian officials for crimes against humanity and war crimes allegedly committed in Kosovo in 1999. The charges against the four include counts of deportation, forced transfer, murder and persecution. The accused include the former Chief of General Staff of the Yugoslav Army and the current Chief of the Public Security Department in Serbia and Montenegro. None of the four has so far been transferred to the custody of the Tribunal.

EXPERT ON HUMAN RIGHTS TO TRAVEL TO HAITI: Louis Joinet, the independent expert on the human rights situation in Haiti, will visit that country from October 23 to November 5, at the Haitian Governments invitation. During his visit, he will meet with Government and civil society representatives and will also receive information on initiatives taken in the fight against AIDS.

U.N. BUDGET: Micronesia paid more than $13,000 to become the 114th Member State to pay its UN regular budget dues in full for this year. Meanwhile, the United States paid nearly $252 million to the UN peacekeeping budget and more than $4 million to the International Tribunals today.