United Nations Daily Highlights, 04-07-29

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

HIGHLIGHTS OF THE NOON BRIEFING

BY MARIE OKABE

ASSOCIATE SPOKESWOMAN FOR THE

SECRETARY-GENERAL

OF THE UNITED NATIONS

UN HEADQUARTERS, NEW YORK

Thursday, July 29, 2004

ANNAN IS GRAVELY CONCERNED ABOUT REPORTS OF

HARASSMENT OF DISPLACED VILLAGERS IN DARFUR

Secretary-General Kofi Annan is gravely

concerned about reports of continuing intimidation, threats and attacks against internally displaced persons in

Darfur, Sudan.

He is particularly disturbed by reports of rape by Janjaweed militias in West Darfur and severe harassment of displaced persons by Government security personnel in several camps in North Darfur, including Zam Zam camp which the Secretary-General himself visited on 30 June.

Government security personnel have been threatening internally displaced persons who have spoken to foreign visitors and have arrested and beaten several community leaders.

The Secretary-General appeals to the Government to abide immediately by its commitments to ensure the protection and security of all internally displaced persons in Darfur.

Asked whether the Secretary-Generals discussions in Accra, Ghana, touched on the issue of an African Union force in Darfur, the Spokeswoman underscored that the Secretary-Generals primary focus in Ghana is on the peace process for Cote dIvoire. On the margins of those talks, he has been discussing support for the African Unions efforts in Darfur.

SECURITY COUNCIL TO VOTE ON SUDAN RESOLUTION TOMORROW

The

Security Council Presidency has scheduled a vote on a resolution on

Sudan at a 10 a.m. meeting Friday.

The Spokeswoman said, in response to questions about the resolution before the Security Council on Sudan, that the Secretary-General would only comment on it after a resolution was adopted. She noted, concerning the Secretary-Generals position on the use of sanctions, that he had

commented on that topic earlier.

Asked about the proposal that the Secretary-General report to the Council on Sudan after 30 days, the Spokeswoman said that the Joint Implementation Mechanism set up by the UN-Sudanese Government communiqué would soon receive a report from a verification team that had been to Darfur.

That verification team, comprising United Nations, Sudanese Government and other representatives, just completed a three-day mission to Darfur, and would report back to the Joint Implementation Mechanism, co-chaired by Special Representative Jan Pronk, at its next meeting in Khartoum, Sudan, on August 2.

That report, Okabe said, would be made available to the Security Council.

ANNAN APPEALED TO IVOIRIAN PARTIES TO WORK TOGETHER

The

Secretary-General today

spoke at a summit of 12 African Heads of State and Government on Cote dIvoire, and he appealed to the Ivoirian parties to put aside partisan and personal interests and work together in a spirit of commitment and compromise. Todays meeting, he said, is a unique opportunity to put the peace process in Cote dIvoire back on track.

He reaffirmed that the Linas-Marcoussis Agreement, signed in Paris in January 2003, remained the road map to peace. He outlined specific issues on which consensus was to be reached in Accra and called for a timetable to implement them.

He told the parties, I trust that in your deliberations here today, the higher interest will be placed above all else. The principals then went into closed session.

Before the summit began, the Secretary-General held two meetings. The first was with former Malian President, Alpha Oumar Konare, who is currently Chair of the African Union Commission. They discussed the summit and also touched on the African Union's observer mission in Darfur, Sudan.

The second meeting was with the President of Cote d'Ivoire, Laurent Gbagbo, who reviewed the steps he had taken to carry out the commitments he had made in Addis Ababa.

Late yesterday, the Secretary-General met with the President of Ghana, John Kufuor, with whom he is hosting today's Summit on Cote d'Ivoire.

In comments to the press before the meeting, the Secretary-General said that he hoped the Ivoirian parties would come to Accra "with an open mind, determined to resolve this issue."

Later that evening, he met South African President Thabo Mbeki in his capacity as this month's Chair of the African Union's Peace and Security Council.

They reviewed the current situation in Cote d'Ivoire and the Secretary-General briefed the President on current developments on the eastern part of the

Democratic Republic of the Congo.

SECURITY COUNCIL EXTENDS MANDATES OF PEACEKEEPING MISSIONS

IN LEBANON, GEORGIA, DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF CONGO

The

Security Council today held three back-to-back formal meetings, in which it unanimously extended the mandates of three UN peacekeeping missions.

The Council extended the mandates of two of the missions the

UN Interim Force in Lebanon and the

UN Observer Mission in Georgia by six months, until the end of January 2005.

It also decided to extend the mandate of the

UN Mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo until 1 October.

TENSION REPORTED IN DR CONGOS NORTH AND SOUTH KIVU PROVINCES

Following the

Security Councils two-month extension of the mandate of the

UN Mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (MONUC), the

Secretary-General will be reporting to the Council during the month of August on the upcoming needs, resources and the mandate of the Mission in light of the current situation in Congo and the elections due to take place in 2005.

Speaking yesterday in Kinshasa, the UN missions military spokesman noted persistent tension in North and South Kivu provinces and minor clashes between the Armed Forces of the DR Congo and troops allegedly commanded by renegade officer Laurent Nkunda. Quoting humanitarian sources, he added that over 30,000 people have been displaced in the area of Kahele due to this situation.

The UN Mission is conducting patrols in this area and talking with the parties in order to stop the situation from deteriorating further.

In another development, it was announced yesterday that a Disarmament and Community Reintegration programme is due to launched in the troubled north-eastern region of Ituri on 1 September.

INTERNATIONAL COURT TO INVESTIGATE CRIMES IN NORTHERN UGANDA

Today it was announced in The Hague that the Chief Prosecutor of the

International Criminal Court, Luis Moreno-Ocampo, has determined that there is a reasonable basis to open an investigation into the situation concerning Northern Uganda, following the referral of the situation by Uganda in December 2003.

The investigation will look into grave universal crimes, as defined by

Rome Statute.

MILLIONS OF CHILDREN IN DHAKA FACE RISK OF FATAL DISEASES

UNICEF

warns that millions of children in the Bangladeshi capital of Dhaka are facing an increasing risk of potentially fatal diseases in the wake of devastating floods.

More than one-third of Dhaka is inundated, and fetid sewers are mixing with floodwaters, which has led to sludge gushing out of manholes in many areas.

Diseases being reported include respiratory infections a key killer of Bangladeshi children as well as diarrhoea, and dysentery.

UNICEF has responded with relief and rescue operations, and its activities have included distributing two million water purifying tablets and more than 1,000 sanitary latrines.

OTHER ANNOUNCEMENTS

FARM PROJECTS UNDERWAY IN WEST BANK/GAZA: The

Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO)

says around 1,500 farming households in the

West Bank and Gaza Strip will benefit from an agricultural pilot project over the next two years. The project will include activities such as replanting orchards with improved varieties, and training the private and public sector in the proper management of natural resources. The project will be implemented by FAO and funded by Italy with around $1.5 million. FAO says that despite prevailing constraints, agriculture still plays a major economic and social role in the West Bank and Gaza Strip. It provides not only income and employment opportunities for a large share of the population in rural areas but also contributing significantly to food security.

NO WORD YET ON FIRM COMMITMENT OF FOREIGN MUSLIM TROOPS IN IRAQ: Asked about the importance of having UN personnel protected by Muslim forces in

Iraq, the Spokeswoman said that, so far, there have been no reports of firm commitments for such a force.

U.N. AGENCIES HELP FIGHT MENINGITIS OUTBREAK IN BURUNDI: The

UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs reports that a meningitis epidemic has been declared in northern Burundi. Twenty-four cases were confirmed last week.

UNICEF and the

World health Organization have been helping the Government there to treat patients and conduct a vaccination campaign. Last week, almost 77,000 people were vaccinated; this week, almost 400,000 people are targeted for vaccination.

INTERNATIONAL TRIBUNAL ORDERS EARLY RELEASE OF BOSNIAN CROAT DETAINEE: The

International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia has

ordered the early release of a Bosnian Croat detainee, Tihomir Blaskic, after allowing several of his grounds for appeal earlier in the day. Blaskic will be released next Monday. In a ruling, the Tribunals appeals chamber vacated the 45-year prison sentence that had previously been handed down to Blaskic, replacing it with a nine-year sentence, including time already served.

Office of the Spokesman for the Secretary-General

United Nations, S-378

New York, NY 10017

Tel. 212-963-7162 -

press/media only

Fax. 212-963-7055

All other inquiries to be addressed to (212)

963-4475 or by e-mail to: inquiries@un.org

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