United Nations Daily Highlights, 05-03-31

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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

Thursday, March 31, 2005

ANNAN ENCOURAGED BY RWANDAN GROUPS RENUNCIATION OF FORCE

Secretary-General Kofi Annan is

encouraged by the statement issued today in Rome by the Forces démocratiques de libération du Rwanda (FDLR) by which the FDLR has renounced the use of force, condemned the 1994 Rwanda genocide, and has accepted to voluntarily disarm, return peacefully to Rwanda and to also cooperate with international justice mechanisms.

The Secretary-General calls on the Governments of the

Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) and Rwanda to take every action necessary to cooperate in order to ensure the voluntary disarmament and peaceful return to Rwanda of FDLR combatants in the DRC. He has directed the

UN Organization Mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (MONUC) to do everything possible within its means to facilitate this process.

It is believed there are between 13,000 and 15,000 such fighters in the DRC.

MONUC has designated six temporary gathering points to help process those fighters seeking repatriation to Rwanda for themselves and their families. The UN mission will also ensure their safe transportation to the border where Rwandan authorities will insert them into the national demobilization and reintegration programme.

The mission hopes that the repatriation will help improve relations between the governments of Rwanda and the DRC, as well lead to a significant improvement in humanitarian aid access in the areas these Rwandan fighters were based.

In addition, the mission says the repatriation will lead to an improvement in security ahead of the DRCs presidential elections later this year.

NO EXTENSION TO DISARMAMENT DEADLINE FOR MILITIA IN ITURI, D.R.C.

The

UN Organization Mission in the DRC says, meanwhile, there is no extension to the disarmament deadline for militiamen in the

Ituri district, in the countrys northeast.

The Mission say that reports which have appeared today in some newspapers in Kinshasa claiming an extension has been granted are wrong, and the deadline of 1 April for taking part in the Disarmament and Community Reinstatement Program for Ituri remains in place.

The Mission says the militiamen must disarm by tomorrow at the latest otherwise they expose themselves to the consequences of their refusal namely, that they will be considered outlaws and will be dealt with accordingly.

U.N. SPECIAL ENVOY LEAVES FOR MIDDLE EAST TONIGHT

The

Secretary-Generals Special Envoy for the implementation of Security Council

resolution 1559, Terje Roed-Larsen, will

depart this evening for Egypt, Jordan, Syria and Lebanon.

He will have discussions with senior officials of those governments and others related to the implementation of the resolution 1559 in preparation for the Secretary-General's report to the

Security Council in mid-April.

In Damascus and Beirut, Roed-Larsen will deliver personal messages of the Secretary-General to President Bashar Al-Assad of Syria and to President Emile Lahoud of Lebanon, respectively.

Yesterday, Roed-Larsen visited Washington, D.C. and met with U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and National Security Adviser Stephen Hadley. They discussed all relevant issues related to the full implementation of the resolution and decided to remain in close contact.

SECURITY COUNCIL TO CONSIDER DRAFT RESOLUTION ON SUDAN

The

Security Council has scheduled two formal meetings today at 5:00 p.m.

The first meeting is being held to adopt a Presidential statement in connection with the situation in Guinea-Bissau.

That will be followed by a formal meeting to consider a draft resolution on

Sudan.

Today is the last day of the Brazilian presidency of the Security Council.

China assumes the presidency for the month of April.

Asked about the

Secretary-Generals response to the Sudan resolution, the Spokesman said that the Secretary-General had been involved with various parties in the debate on that resolution, and may have a statement later this afternoon once the Security Council meets.

U.N. PEACEKEEPERS CURB ETHNIC CLASHES IN COTE DIVOIRE VILLAGE

The

UN Operation in Cote dIvoire reports that its peacekeepers yesterday moved in to curb an ethnic clash between two groups in a village located inside the zone of confidence.

It also issued a

press release deploring the grave violations of human rights in the country.

Meanwhile, a humanitarian assessment mission sent to an area near the border with Mali found a food shortage. A number of households had sold off their crops and produces at cheap prices to traders from Mali, Burkina Faso and Niger who last year suffered from poor harvest due to locust swarms.

MARBURG VIRUS HAS KILLED 127 PEOPLE IN ANGOLA

Regarding an outbreak of the rare

Marburg virus in Angola, the

World Health Organization

reports today that, as of yesterday, 132 cases including 12 health care workers have been reported. Of these, 127 have been fatal.

This is the largest number of fatalities ever recorded during an outbreak of this rare, but extremely severe disease, which is related to the Ebola virus.

FLOODING AFFECTED AFGHAN CITY OF GHAZNI

The

UN Assistance Mission in Afghanistan

says that flooding has affected the city of Ghazni and other villages in the province after a dam gave way on Monday evening.

The UN mission, coalition forces and the Afghan Government have set up five working groups to respond to the flooding, including by assisting 70 families whose houses were destroyed. The water has now decreased significantly, and the situation is described to be under control.

EVENT ON MONDAY TO MARK ANNIVERSARY OF DAG HAMMARSKJOLDS BIRTH

Monday, the

Dag Hammarskjold Library will hold the first in a series of lectures and conversations to mark the 100th anniversary of the birth of former

UN Secretary-General Dag Hammarskjöld.

Titled Dag Hammarskjölds legacy and its relevance to the UN today, the event will feature a conversation with Sir Brian Urquhart, former Under-Secretary-General and a close colleague of Dag Hammarskjöld, and Jan Eliasson, Swedens Ambassador to the United States and the endorsed candidate for the Presidency of the 60th

General Assembly.

The conversation will be moderated by Under-Secretary-General for Communications and Public Information, Shashi Tharoor, and the

Secretary-General is expected to launch the event.

ALLEGATIONS AGAINST DILEEP NAIR TO BE REVIEWED BY THIRD-PARTY

A so-called charge letter was

issued yesterday against

Dileep Nair, Under-Secretary-General for Internal Oversight Services, based on the adverse finding made against him in the report of the

Independent Inquiry Committee.

Separately, we are initiating an independent, third-party review of allegations made against him by the Staff Council to determine whether a full, external investigation is warranted.

We are also today announcing the shortlist of candidates of

Office of Internal Oversight Services to replace Nair at the conclusion of his non-renewable five-year term, which concludes on 23 April 2005.

Asked about the charge letter, the Spokesman said the letter refers to the adverse finding made against Nair in the Volcker report. The United Nations has asked Nair to provide a defense within a week, which would end next Thursday. On issues raised by the Staff Council, the United Nations is giving the matter to a third party to see whether it should be investigated.

He noted that Nair has little time left on his five-year term, but added that the United Nations is committed to the investigation. If the third party feels that a full investigation is required, the United Nations will pursue it whether Nair is still on staff or not.

Asked why it took so long to investigate Nair, the Spokesman reviewed the sequence of events, noting that an earlier review into his management practices had found that Nair had followed the appropriate procedures. Following a request by the Staff Council to reopen the investigation, the United Nations asked the Staff Council to submit any further information, which it reviewed, and also gave Nair time to respond.

Eckhard also noted the constitutional issue of whether Nair could be investigated by the Secretariat, given that he reports to the General Assembly.

In response to questions about the Staff Councils complaints, the Spokesman noted that their charges about Nairs hiring practices had been about the hiring of certain nationalities. The United Nations had looked into every hiring practice in the department and found that Nair had followed appropriate procedures.

In the Volcker report, Eckhard said, Nair was accused of using oil-for-food money for one person to work under him, who, the report said, did not work on oil-for-food issues.

SHORTLIST ANNOUNCED FOR NEXT HEAD OF INTERNAL OVERSIGHT OFFICE

Under the new senior recruitment procedures, the

Secretary-General has today decided on the shortlist for the incoming Under-Secretary-General for Internal Oversight.

The following candidates will be called for interview in the next few weeks:

Claus Andreasen (Denmark), Director of Audit, UNICEF

Inga-Britt Ahlenius (Sweden), Auditor-General of Kosovo; former Auditor-General of Sweden

Franz-Hermann Bruener (Germany), Director-General of the European Anti Fraud Office

David McDonald (New Zealand), Former Auditor-General of New Zealand

Rafael Muñoz (Spain), Former Director of the Office of Internal Audit and Inspection, IMF

The criteria that these candidates will be evaluated against at interview will include:

Exceptional integrity, recognized stature and proven independence, with a record of substantial achievement (i.e. as his/her countrys Auditor-General or as a leading Auditor or Investigator at international level;

Expertise in accounting, auditing, financial analysis and investigations, management, law or public administration;

Proven skills in the management of complex organizations and good knowledge of UN system and a commitment to pursuit of reform;

A leader who will unstintingly champion fight against corruption, cause of transparency and good governance;

English required; French highly desirable; other UN languages an asset.

The candidates will then be interviewed by a panel of senior management officials, who will refer the finalists to the Secretary-General and the Deputy Secretary-General for final interview. The Secretary-General will then forward his nominee to the General Assembly.

The Secretary-General feels that this is a very strong shortlist of candidates and looks forward to selecting the right person for the position.

IQBAL RIZA HAD WRITTEN TO U.N. AGENCIES ON DOCUMENT PRESERVATION

Yesterday I said that Iqbal Riza had approved his secretarys request to shred his "chron" files two months before the documents preservation order was issued. I was referring at the time to the

Secretary-Generals documents preservation order, which was indeed issued on June first 2004, two months after Riza had approved the secretarys request on the 22nd of April that year.

I should have noted that Riza had, on April 12th, written to UN agencies, funds and programmes to request that they preserve all related documents. This is, of course, all laid out in the report of the

Independent Inquiry Committee.

Asked about the Volcker reports findings concerning former Chef de Cabinet Iqbal Riza, the Spokesman said the United Nations was looking into those findings, but he had nothing to announce yet.

The Spokesman, responding to questions about the reports findings that chron file documents had been shredded, said that UN offices, including his own, shred documents daily.

Eckhard explained that the classic sense of a chron file is that it contains a copy of everything that goes out of an office on a given day. The UN administrative instruction is that chron files should not be kept for more than a year.

Asked about what could have been in the shredded chron files, the Spokesman said that the chron files for the years from 2000 onward, which were not shredded, were provided to Volckers team, so they should have a good idea of the type of documents contained in those files.

Chron files, the Spokesman added, should not have anything original in them, but are duplicates of other documents, which could also be found in the hard drives of computers. The UN hard drives were made available to the Volcker panel, the Spokesman said, adding that he did not think Riza believed there was anything in the chron files that could not be found elsewhere.

Asked whether Riza could collect retirement, given that he also has a dollar-a-year contract, the Spokesman said that retirees can work for the United Nations, but there was a limit to what they could earn per year and still collect their pensions.

In response to questions about the dollar-a-year status, the Spokesman said that, if people have UN contracts under that status, they would have the right to have a visa in the country where their duty station was located. The dollar-a-year status did not have tax implications. If people with that status were required to travel, they would receive travel costs and a daily subsistence allowance for that period.

HEAD OF POLITICAL AFFAIRS TO REVIEW CASE FOR ELECTORAL CHIEF

Asked why action had not been taken on an internal management study concerning the

Electoral Assistance Division and its Director, Carina Perelli, the Spokesman said that the matter had begun as a routine management exercise, but an outside management consultant had turned up serious issues. The report by that consultant had been given to Perelli, and the United Nations was awaiting a response. She was given a specific deadline, which would end soon.

Kieran Prendergast, the head of the

Department of Political Affairs, would review the management study and Perellis response and decide whether to refer the matter on to other UN departments for further action.

Asked why Perelli was recently named a UN manager of the year, the Spokesman noted that she has had a strong reputation for her electoral work.

SECRETARY-GENERAL TO SPEAK TO STAFF NEXT WEEK

In response to a question, the Spokesman confirmed that the

Secretary-General intends to meet with UN staff next week, probably on Tuesday, in an event that the Spokesman believed would also be open to the press.

Asked why he was talking to staff, the Spokesman said that Kofi Annan has in the past paid courtesy calls to different departments. The second term has been more difficult than the first, but even in the first, the Secretary-General made such staff visits. He would welcome questions from staff.

The Secretary-General, he said, would give staff encouragement as they focus on the work ahead.

Asked whether the Secretary-General can focus on reform given the oil-for-food issues, the Spokesman said that the initial Volcker reports have focused on the Secretariat, which is a small part of the oil-for-food investigation. The next report, he said, would be one in which the oil-for-food issue could be looked at in the larger context, although he added that the

Independent Inquiry Committee has indicated it would still look into some questions concerning Benon Sevan and Kojo Annan.

Asked about opinions from members of the Volcker panel that the report did not vindicate the Secretary-General, the Spokesman said that the Secretary-General had conveyed his views about the panels findings. The Secretary-General, he said, feels the report vindicated him, and hes pressing on.

The Spokesman said that the Secretary-General was focusing on the summit of world leaders this September, which would be the ultimate test of whether his reform agenda is accepted or not.

Asked about support for the Secretary-General, the Spokesman said that he had support from the Member States, adding, He feels he has the confidence of his bosses. He has made an ambitious proposal, Eckhard said, and would now meet with regional groups to advance the reform agenda.

Asked whether he would meet with people, not just governments, on the reform agenda, the Spokesman said that the Secretary-General meets with citizens groups and university students, and has done more than anyone to bring the United Nations closer to non-governmental organizations.

SECRETARY-GENERALS SON HAD U.N. COURTESY PASS

Asked about access to the UN premises, the Spokesman said that someone with a courtesy pass, as is routinely issued to the children of Secretaries-General, would be allowed to go anywhere on the premises.

He noted that Paul Volcker had looked into Kojo Annans access to UN offices. He added that it was clearly not permissible for anyone to use that access to go into UN files.

Asked why a UN staff member, now in procurement, had babysat Kojo Annan, the Spokesman said that the person was a very close friend of Kojos mother, and not of the Secretary-General.

Asked about what job that person held in Iraq, the Spokesman noted that the Volcker report said she was a procurement officer in Iraq for several years.

Asked whether Kojo Annan had visited the UN office in Baghdad, the Spokesman said that, if it was not in the Volcker report, he would assume it had not happened.

OTHER ANNOUNCEMENTS

IRRESPONSIBLE ATTACK ON ANTIRETROVIRAL THERAPY ATTACKED: A recent advertising campaign is touting the benefits of vitamin therapy above antiretroviral therapy and claiming that antiretroviral therapy is toxic. These advertisements are wrong and misleading,

said the

World Health Organization, the

UN Childrens Fund and

UNAIDS, the Joint UN Programme on HIV/AIDS, yesterday. The three UN bodies have condemned the irresponsible linking of their names to claims that vitamins and nutrition therapy alone can prevent

AIDS deaths.

ANNAN HAS VISITED RWANDA TWICE: The Spokesman, in response to a question about complaints that the

Secretary-General had never visited Rwanda, noted that he had in fact done so twice.

DELEGATIONS VISIT HAD BEEN SCHEDULED A LONG TIME AGO: Asked about a visit today by a U.S. Republican delegation, the Spokesman said the visit had been scheduled a long time ago, as one of a series of visits to familiarize Congressional staff with UN work. Assistant Secretary-General Robert Orr had set up the meeting, he added.

ROOT CAUSES OF HUMAN TRAFFICKING IN SOUTH EASTERN EUROPE NOT BEING ADDRESSED: The root causes of human trafficking are not being adequately addressed in South Eastern Europe,

says a new report launched in Geneva today. The report, called Trafficking in Human Beings in South Eastern Europe 2004: Focus on Prevention, finds that anti-trafficking measures are still dominated by repressive measures to prevent migration, prostitution and organized crime. It was published by

UNICEF, the

Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights and the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe.

ANNAN SAYS SPREAD OF HIV/AIDS CAN BE TURNED BACK: The

Secretary-General today in a

message addressed the ministerial meeting in Moscow on Urgent Response to the HIV/AIDS Epidemics in the Commonwealth of Independent States. Commenting on the fact that 1.4 million people in Eastern Europe and Central Asia are living with

HIV/AIDS, the Secretary-General stated that the spread of the virus can be turned back, but that it requires a coordinated response from all sectors of society, and leadership at every level.

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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