United Nations Daily Highlights, 04-01-15

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

BY FRED ECKHARD

SPOKESMAN FOR THE SECRETARY-GENERAL OF THE UNITED NATIONS

UN

HEADQUARTERS, NEW YORK

Thursday, January 15, 2004

ANNAN NAMES BRAHIMI AS HIS SPECIAL ADVISOR, BASED IN NEW YORK

Secretary-General Kofi Annan met on Tuesday afternoon with his former Special Representative for Afghanistan, Lakhdar Brahimi, who has just completed an arduous assignment and needs some rest.

The Secretary-General discussed with Brahimi a new assignment as Special Adviser with the rank of Under-Secretary-General, which Brahimi accepted. The scope of his responsibilities is still to be worked out.

Meanwhile, we can anticipate that, as a member of the Secretary-Generals senior staff, Brahimi will advise the Secretary-General on a wide range of issues, including situations in the areas of conflict prevention and conflict resolution.

Asked for further details on Brahimis job responsibilities, the Spokesman said he had nothing to add. [Brahimi told reporters after the briefing that he would not be in charge of the UN role in Iraq, although he did not exclude playing a role in handling it. His position, he said, was as an adviser to the Secretary-General on peace and security, with specifics still to be discussed.]

Asked if the Secretary-General had offered Brahimi the job of Special Representative in Iraq, the Spokesman said he had not.

Asked if for confirmation that the head of the Coalition Provisional Authority would attend Mondays meetings, the Spokesman said he had only seen press reports to that effect but if Bremer did attend on Monday, the Spokesman said, the Secretary-General would very pleased as it would represent a maximal American presence at the meeting.

SECRETARY-GENERAL ADDRESSES SECURITY COUNCIL AFGHAN MEETING

Afghanistans Constitution provides a permanent foundation for re-establishing the rule of law in that country, the Secretary-General told the Security Council in the open briefing on Afghanistan this morning.

He congratulated the people and Government of Afghanistan on the Constitutions adoption earlier this month, saying that the wisdom and flexibility shown in the process of finalizing it bodes well for the hard work ahead.

Yet the Secretary-General added that other challenges remain, including tackling the deeply troubling security situation; ensuring an inclusive, broadly representative Government; and quickening the pace of reconstruction.

Lakhdar Brahimi, who has wrapped up his work as the Secretary-Generals Special Representative for Afghanistan, also briefed the Council. He said that, although there were some worrying signs of polarization among ethnic lines at the Constitutional Loya Jirga, the delegates ultimately proved willing to reach compromises and arrive at a text acceptable to all.

Brahimi warned of continuing problems in Afghanistan, including a lack of sufficient progress in the disarmament program, the use of terrorist tactics by extremists, and the drug trade.

Until Afghan security institutions are further built up, he said, there will be a need in other parts of the country for the sort of international assistance that has been ably provided in Kabul.

The Secretary-General paid tribute to Brahimi today, saying that he has richly earned his honorary Afghan citizenship. Chilean Ambassador Heraldo Muņoz, the Security Council President, also praised Brahimi and said all Council members wish him success in his future endeavours.

The Council has followed the formal meeting with consultations on Afghanistan.

In a press statement, the Council President, Chilean Ambassador Heraldo Munoz said Council members expressed their deep gratitude to Brahimi for his exceptional leadership and commended his tireless efforts. Council members also said that credible countrywide elections in 2004 as well as the reconstruction and development in all parts of Afghanistan will be essential for the lasting stabilization of Afghanistan.

CANTONMENT OF WEAPONS GETS UNDERWAY IN KABUL

The UN Mission in Afghanistan today noted that the cantonment of heavy weapons is starting today in Kabul.

That cantonment is a long-standing commitment, enshrined in the Bonn Agreement, that needs to be fulfilled. The UN Spokesman in Kabul called the start of cantonment today a very welcome development.

The UN Childrens Fund announced today that a salt iodization plant is to be opened in the northern town of Shebergan on Monday - a simple but very effective step towards preventing Iodine Deficiency Disorders such as still births, low birth-weight, goitre, and hearing impairments.

ANNAN TO TRAVEL TO SEVEN EUROPEAN CITIES

The Secretary-General will be leaving for a 12-day, 7-city, European trip on Monday evening.

His first stop will be Baden-Baden in Germany, where he will be receiving the German Media Prize on Wednesday and seeing the German Foreign Minister, Joshka Fischer.

The following day, hes off to Davos for three days to attend the World Economic Forums annual meeting at which he will be delivering the keynote address on The Challenges of Globalization and Governance on Friday.

In Stockholm on Sunday, the 25th, the Secretary-General will meet the Prime Minister, and, on the 26th, he will address the opening of the Stockholm International Forum 2004 Preventing Genocide: Threats and Responsibilities.

Then hell be in Paris the next day, where he is scheduled to attend a working luncheon hosted by the French President, and address a Global Compact meeting.

The Secretary-General continues on to Brussels on Wednesday the 28th for meetings with the NATO Secretary-General, the European Union College of Commissioners, the European Commission President, and the Irish European Union Presidency.

On Thursday morning, the Secretary-General will receive the Sakharov Prize at a European Parliament ceremony, after which he is scheduled to have an audience with His Majesty King Albert II of Belgium and then have meetings with Belgian Government officials. Later in the day, together with the Belgian Prime Minister, the Secretary-General will be inaugurating the Regional UN Information Centre.

In Gent on Friday, the 30th, the Secretary-General will be receiving in person doctorate honoris causa from the University of Gent, which was awarded to him last year. He then returns to Brussels for a working lunch hosted by the Prime Minister of Belgium before proceeding to Geneva.

In Geneva that afternoon, he is expected to meet with President Luis Inacio Lula da Silva of Brazil and President Jacques Chirac of France on the Fight against Poverty and Hunger.

The Secretary-General will spend Saturday, the 31st, first meeting separately, and later jointly, with President Olusegun Obasanjo of Nigeria and President Paul Biya of Cameroon.

He is expected to return to New York on Sunday, the 1st of February.

SECURITY COUNCIL TO MEET ON DR CONGO, COTE DIVOIRE

Thursday afternoon, the Security Council will hold a formal meeting to consider a resolution on the Democratic Republic of the Congo.

Following that meeting, Council members will also hold consultations to consider the Secretary-Generals latest report on the UN Mission in Cote dIvoire.

That report recommends that the Security Council consider authorizing the deployment of a multi-dimensional UN peacekeeping operation to support the peace process, should the Ivorian parties make sufficient progress in carrying out important steps, outlined in the report, by February 4. The proposed operations troop strength would comprise more than six thousand military personnel.

UNITED NATIONS JOINS FORCES WITH MEDIA GROUPS TO COMBAT AIDS

The Secretary-General today launched a Global Media AIDS Initiative, calling on media organizations to reach the worlds people, especially youth, with information about how to prevent and treat HIV and to help combat discrimination related to AIDS.

In a meeting with the heads of some of the worlds leading media organizations, which is going on right now, the Secretary-General said that among the public at large, there is still a profound lack of knowledge and awareness about AIDS. Recent surveys from more than 40 countries, he said, show that more than half of all adolescents and young adults have serious misconceptions about AIDS and about how the virus is transmitted.

What needs to be done, he is telling the media leaders now, is to designate the fight against AIDS as a corporate priority; to dedicate airtime to public service messages; and to provide prominent news coverage to the epidemic to ensure that it remains high on the political agenda.

He told them that one lesson has been learned over the past two decades of fighting AIDS: Silence is death. We have copies of his speech upstairs.

The launch is going on right now, and will be followed by a luncheon hosted by the Secretary-General in honor of the media executives, in the Delegates Dining Room, which Bill Gates, co-founder of the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, is expected to address.

UN LAUNCHES DISARMAMENT AND DEMOBILIZATION INITIATIVE IN LIBERIA

The UN mission in Liberia announced today that on January 20th, the disarmament, demobilization, rehabilitation and reintegration (DDRR) programme will commence with a 15-day information and sensitization campaign for all combatants in locations around the country.

The announcement followed a meeting of the leadership of two rebel groups, the UN mission and the National Transitional Government of Liberia (NTGL) and the National Commission on Disarmament, Demobilization, Rehabilitation and Reintegration.

UN ENVOY CALLS FOR FUNDS FOR SUDANESE REFUGEES

Tom Eric Vraalsen, the Secretary-Generals Special Envoy for Humanitarian Affairs for Sudan, today urged a group of donors in Geneva to provide for more than $4 million to cover the needs of Sudanese Refugees on the Chadian border, over the next three months.

Vraalsen also briefed reporters on the humanitarian situation in Sudans Darfour region and along the Chad/Sudan border. Fighting has to stop, he said.

NEW POLIO ERADICATION EFFORT LAUNCHED

At a high-level meeting co-sponsored by UN Childrens Fund and the World Health Organization in Geneva today, health ministers from the six remaining polio-endemic countries have declared that polio should be relegated to the history books within the next twelve months.

To achieve this aim, the ministers unveiled a plan to immunize 250-million children multiple times during a series of massive polio immunization campaigns in 2004.

UNITED NATIONS CONCERNED AT SPREAD OF AVIAN FLU IN EAST ASIA

The Food and Agricultural Organization today expressed serious concern about the spread of avian flu, also referred to as bird flu or chicken flu, in East Asia.

Citing an apparent regional dimension to the spread, FAO called for an investigation into possible links between the outbreaks in South Korea, Vietnam and Japan.

There have been three confirmed cases of bird flu victims in Vietnam, and thousands of birds have been killed in an effort to stamp the virus out.

ANNAN TO BE HONORED BY WOMENS HEALTH COALITION

The Secretary-General, and his wife Nane, tonight will attend the annual gala event of the International Womens Health Coalition, which this year is being held in the Secretary-Generals honor.

In his keynote address at that event embargoed copies of which we have upstairs the Secretary-General will underline the importance of education for all and the empowerment of women.

OTHER ANNOUNCEMENTS:

NEW COMMANDER NAMED FOR UN FORCE IN GOLAN HEIGHTS: Major General Bala Nanda Sharma of Nepal has been named the new Commander of the UN Disengagement Observer Force, which operates in the Golan Heights. He succeeds Major General Franciszek Gagor of Poland who will relinquish his command this Friday.

THOUSANDS REPORTED FLEEING ETHIOPIA: Representatives of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees and other aid workers travelled today to the town of Pochalla in southern Sudan to investigate reports that thousands of people are fleeing across the border to escape violence in western Ethiopia.

EUROPEAN POPULATION FORUM UNDERWAY: At the end of a three-day European Population Forum held in Geneva, experts have concluded that in a region where rates of HIV/AIDS and other diseases are rising, young people must be empowered to have healthy sexual and reproductive lives. The matters discussed in the Forum reflected the diversity of Europe. They included persistent low fertility rates, an ageing population, declining workforces, human trafficking and gender-based violence. Special attention was paid to the social, economic and health challenges facing countries in transition in Europe, the Caucasus and Central Asia.

ANNAN PRAISES WORK OF CENTRAL ASIAN SECURITY GROUP: The establishment of a permanent secretariat for the Shanghai Cooperation Organization is the logical extension of the valuable experience in dialogue and cooperation gained by its six members in the past few years, the Secretary-General said in a message delivered today in Beijing by a senior UN official. In his message, the Secretary-General said the organization, which comprises of China, Russia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan, has evolved into an increasingly important regional security organization. He added that the UN looks forward to working with this new regional partner.