United Nations Daily Highlights, 05-02-14

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

HIGHLIGHTS OF THE SPOKESMAN'S NOON BRIEFING

BY FRED ECKHARD

SPOKESMAN FOR THE SECRETARY-GENERAL

UN HEADQUARTERS, NEW YORK

Monday, February 14, 2005

UNITED NATIONS CONDEMNS ASSASSINATION

OF FORMER LEBANESE PRIME MINISTER

Secretary-General Kofi Annan has

learned with great sadness and shock of the brutal murder in the heart of Beirut today of former Prime Minister Rafik Hariri of Lebanon and a number of others.

Mr. Hariris death is an immense loss to Lebanon, the region and the international community. He will always be remembered for his dedication to the people of Lebanon, for his success as a statesman and a businessman, for his great achievements in the reconstruction of Lebanon after a long and ugly conflict, and for his courage and directness in public and in private.

The Secretary-General sends his deepest condolences to Mr. Hariris wife and family, as well as to all the other bereaved families.

The Secretary-General condemns in the strongest terms those who instigated, planned and executed this callous political assassination. Such acts are a reversion to a chapter in Lebanons history that he had hoped was long past. It is imperative that the already fragile situation in the region should not be further destabilized.

Meanwhile, the Secretary-General urges all Lebanese to exercise utmost restraint, and to use peaceful means in support of their national aspiration to full sovereignty, independence and territorial integrity.

Asked what the statements reference to a reversion to Lebanons past meant, the Spokesman said that the Secretary-General hopes that there will be no return to the violence, destruction and death that took place during the Lebanese civil war. The Spokesman added that this is a warning signal, and the Secretary-General urges the Lebanese to pull back, think hard and not return to the days of the civil war.

Following Security Council consultations, the Security Council President spoke to the press, saying that Council members also condemned the assassination in Lebanon.

ANNAN WELCOMES IRAQI ELECTION RESULTS

AND PLEDGES U.N. COMMITMENT IN NEXT STAGE OF TRANSITION

In a statement issued after the noon briefing, the Secretary-General welcomes the announcement yesterday by the Independent Electoral Commission of Iraq (IECI) of the results of the elections of 30 January 2005. They reflect not only the courage and determination of the Iraqi people, but also their commitment to the political transition process that their country is undergoing. On this auspicious day, the Secretary-General congratulates the people of Iraq.

With the successful completion of this important stage in the transition, the Secretary-General calls upon all Iraqis to come together in a spirit of national reconciliation to move their country forward towards a peaceful, prosperous and democratic future.

The Secretary-General hopes that every effort will be made to ensure that all Iraqis, including those mainly Sunni Arabs - who did not or could not take part in the elections, have the opportunity, and are encouraged, to participate fully in an inclusive, participatory and transparent political process, leading to the adoption of a national constitution with the broadest possible support.

The United Nations is deeply committed to playing a full part in the next stage in the transition, as well as to helping with the subsequent referendum and general election. The United Nations will spare no efforts to meet the expectations of the Iraqi people through this critical period of their countrys history.

ANNAN CALLS ON EUROPE AND THE UNITED STATES TO HELP USHER IN

LONG-TERM GLOBAL COLLECTIVE SECURITY

The Secretary-General yesterday

addressed the 41st Munich Conference on Security Policy, in which he called on Europe and America to think ahead and to help plant the seeds of long-term global collective security.

The message is simple, he went on: Our global security environment has been transformed, and our global collective security system, including the United Nations, must be transformed too.

He laid out a four-part formula to realize this vision: 1) strengthen our collective defences; 2) when prevention fails, consider the use of force; 3) equip ourselves to build lasting peace in war-torn lands and 4) take democratization, development and human rights seriously.

The Secretary-General turned to Sudan, and said, People are dying every single day while we fail to protect them. He said that organizations with real capacity, including NATO and the European Union, must give serious consideration to what, in practical terms, they can do to help end this tragedy.

In the margins of the conference, the Secretary-General met with the German Foreign Minister, Joschka Fischer, who had just returned from visiting the tsunami-devastated province of Aceh in Indonesia. They also discussed Israeli-Palestinian issues, post-election Iraq, the Iranian nuclear issue and Afghanistan.

On Saturday, the Secretary-General had met with German President Horst Kohler, Defense Minister Peter Struck, and two opposition leaders, Angela Merkel and Edmund Stoiber, as well as with NATO Secretary-General Jaap de Hoop Scheffer and Javier Solana, the European Union High Representative for Common Foreign and Security Policy.

On Saturday evening, the Secretary-General was presented the first Peace through Dialogue award at a dinner ceremony.

U.N. MISSION WELCOMES ARREST OF MOROCCAN PEACEKEEPERS

ACCUSED OF SEX ABUSE IN DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF CONGO

The

Moroccan Mission to the United Nations, in a press release over the weekend, announced that it has arrested six of its soldiers serving as peacekeepers with the

UN Organization Mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (MONUC), following allegations of sexual violence against Congolese civilians.

MONUC has welcomed the decision by the Moroccan Government to make public its decision.

The UN mission also said it considers that the jailing of the suspects pending their prosecution by a Court Martial shows that the Moroccan authorities attach as much importance to eradicating sexual abuse within UN peacekeeping missions as does the United Nations.

MONUC hopes that the vigorous and public reaction of Morocco will serve as an example and that other troop-contributing countries will follow.

Asked about the UN response to the ABC report about sexual allegations against peacekeepers in the DRC, the Spokesman said that the United Nations has taken a number of steps to deal with such problems, including the Secretary-Generals announcement last week of a non-fraternization policy.

Among other measures, the Spokesman said, the United Nations has cleared brush around UN military camps to make surveillance easier; established a curfew from 6:00 p.m. to 6:00 a.m.; shut down marketing stalls near the UN camps to reduce peacekeepers contact with the local population; increased patrols; and asked for more police.

He added that the United Nations cannot do this alone, with the troop contributing countries responsible for discipline and judicial activity against soldiers.

Asked what the United Nations is doing to help the children of UN peacekeepers, the Spokesman later said that current UN policy in this area focuses on civilian staff. Those believed to have fathered a child can voluntarily undergo a paternity test, and if they are reluctant to do so, then a court order would need to be obtained. There is a mechanism to deduct child support payments from the salary of UN staff. As for military staff, the matter would be left to the national laws of their country of origin. These policies are currently under review so as to improve them, the Spokesman later added.

TOGO: ANNAN CONCERNED BY GROWING INSECURITY

The Secretary-General is

concerned over the deteriorating security situation in Togo.

In a statement issued over the weekend, he expressed his sadness over deaths and injuries that have resulted from the violent incident in Lomé on 12 February. He calls on all sides to exercise maximum restraint while efforts continue to find an early and peaceful solution to the country's current crisis.

SECURITY COUNCIL TO ELECT JUDGE FOR INTERNATIONAL COURT

The Security Council held consultations today on the election of a member of the

International Court of Justice.

Tomorrow, the Security Council has scheduled a formal meeting to elect a judge to the Court to replace Judge Gilbert Guillaume of France, who is retiring.

SECURITY COUNCIL TO HEAR BRIEFING ON DARFUR INQUIRY REPORT

At 4:00 p.m. on Wednesday, the Security Council has scheduled a briefing by the High Commissioner for Human Rights, Louise Arbour, on the

Report of the International Commission of Inquiry on Darfur.

The UN Childrens Fund (UNICEF) has drawn attention to dozens of babies being born in Darfur to mothers raped during the ongoing conflict in western

Sudan.

In an effort to minimise women and girls exposure to attack, UNICEF says it is working to develop locally produced, fuel-effective stoves which use much less firewood. These would cut down on time spent outside the relative safety of the camps.

Meanwhile, for those who have already been attacked, UNICEF says it is working to ensure that both the mothers and the children are not discriminated against, have opportunities for education and have an opportunity to receive health care.

The UN Advance Mission in Sudan, meanwhile, continues to report on attacks in Darfur, including incidents over the weekend in South Darfur.

U.N. ENVOY RECEIVES SERBIAN PRESIDENT IN KOSOVO

The Secretary-Generals Special Representative for Kosovo, Søren Jessen-Petersen, yesterday

received Serbian President Boris Tadic at the headquarters of the

UN Interim Administration Mission in Kosovo (UNMIK).

Jessen-Petersen noted progress in implementing Kosovos standards, but acknowledged that more could be done to facilitate freedom of movement and the return of displaced persons. He also called for the full participation of Kosovo Serbs in the political and democratic process.

Tadic's visit is the first of a Serbian President to Kosovo since 1999.

AFGHANISTAN: DISARMED MILITARY PERSONNEL TOPS 39,000

The

UN Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA)

says that Jalalabad has become the second region in Afghanistan to be completely disarmed.

The Mission said yesterday that the First Corps in Jalalabad has now finished its disarmament, with that region and Mazar-e-Sharif now fully decommissioned.

The Mission says that the total number of military personnel who have been disarmed throughout the country is more than 39,000.

PAKISTAN: UNITED NATIONS RUSHES SUPPLIES TO AREAS HIT BY SNOW & RAIN

The UN Disaster Management Team in Pakistan is helping that countrys government to cope with heavy snowfall and rains that have killed more than 300 people.

As an immediate step, UNICEF is rushing a truckload of relief items including emergency food rations and water purification tablets to Pakistans western region of Baluchistan.

For their part, the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) is contributing tents to survivors, and the World Health Organization (WHO) is donating emergency medical supplies.

OTHER ANNOUNCEMENTS

U.N. PEACEKEEPING CHIEF VISITS GEORGIA: The UN Under-Secretary-General for Peacekeeping Operations, Jean-Marie Guehenno, arrived in Tbilisi today, to discuss the peace process between

Georgia and Abkhazia with Georgian officials. He will also meet with Abkhaz de facto officials in Sukhumi.

TSUNAMI SHOULD NOT DIVERT FUNDS AWAY FROM AFRICA: We must ensure that the tsunami does not draw funds away from hungry Africans, James Morris, head of the World Food Programme (WFP), said today. Currently, donations to WFPs operations in Africa for 2005 amount to just 5% of the nearly $2 billion needed. Last January, those donations dropped by 21%.

NEW EMPLOYMENT REPORT SEES WEAK GLOBAL JOB GROWTH IN 2004:

Despite robust economic growth, the global employment situation improved only slightly in 2004, the International Labor Organization (ILO)

said in its annual Global Employment Trends

report, released today. While unemployment worldwide declined from 6.3 per cent in 2003 to 6.1 per cent in 2004, unemployment in Europe and Central Asiaremained unchanged.