United Nations Daily Highlights, 05-06-20

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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 STEPHANE DUJARRIC

ASSOCIATE

SPOKESMAN FOR THE SECRETARY-GENERAL

UN HEADQUARTERS, NEW YORK

Monday, June 20, 2005

SECRETARY-GENERAL CONGRATULATES LEBANESE ON ELECTIONS

Secretary-General Kofi Annan today

congratulated the people and Government of

Lebanon for their successful parliamentary elections, whose fourth and final round concluded yesterday.

Preliminary reports, including that of the UN electoral assistance team in Lebanon, indicate that the elections were technically well conducted and credible. It appears that they were carried out in a free and non-violent environment.

The holding of these elections on time and in a credible manner has been a key element in a transition in which the Lebanese people have been expressing their determination to shape their own future, strengthen political institutions and restore their full sovereignty.

The Secretary-General commended the outgoing Government on the excellent manner in which has handled its electoral responsibilities, and stands ready to extend support and assistance to the new government, as and if required.

Asked about whereabouts of the head of the UN Electoral Assistance Division, Carina Perelli, the Spokesman said that Perelli was still in Lebanon.

U.N. HABITAT CHIEF TO GO TO ZIMBABWE AS SPECIAL ENVOY

The Secretary-General has

appointed Anna Kajumulo Tibaijuka, the Executive Director of

UN-HABITAT as his Special Envoy for Human Settlement Issues in Zimbabwe.

President Robert Mugabe of Zimbabwe has agreed that the Special Envoy of the Secretary-General should visit the country as soon as possible to study the scope of the recent eviction of illegal dwellers, informal traders and squatters, and the humanitarian impact it has had on the affected population.

Tibaijuka will visit Zimbabwe shortly, and will prepare a thorough report on the situation.

ANNAN WELCOMES PEACEFUL GUINEA-BISSAU ELECTIONS

The Secretary-General

welcomed the peaceful conduct of presidential elections in Guinea-Bissau on Sunday. He commended the people of Guinea-Bissau for turning out in large numbers to choose their new leader.

He reiterated his call on all segments of society to refrain from any statement or action that could provoke any tensions and urges all candidates to accept the election results.

SECRETARY-GENERAL TO TRAVEL TO BRUSSELS FOR IRAQ CONFERENCE

The Secretary-General is traveling to Brussels this evening where, on Wednesday, he will attend the International Conference on

Iraq.

At the conference, which is being co-hosted by the European Union and the United States, the Secretary-General will deliver remarks at the opening and closing sessions.

Late on Wednesday, the Secretary-General will take part in a press conference, along with Iraqi Foreign Minister Hoshyer Zubari and the conferences co-hosts.

From Brussels, he will travel to London to attend on Thursday morning a meeting of the

Middle East Quartet, at the Principals Level.

U.N. EFFORTS HELP TO CLEAR MORE THAN 3,700 MINES IN IRAQ

Nearly half a million square meters of

Iraqs land have been cleared of landmines over the past year, thanks to UN-backed efforts to rid the country of such mines.

A UN-launched project has trained more than two dozen mine disposal teams in Iraq, which has led to the removal of more than 3,700 mines or other explosive ordnance. Still, the UN Mission in Iraq says, about one out of every five Iraqis lives within one kilometer of areas highly contaminated by such explosives.

Also, the Secretary-Generals Special Representative for Iraq, Ashraf Qazi, met the countrys foreign minister and planning minister, in advance of the International Conference in Brussels.

SECURITY COUNCIL SETS UP INVESTIGATIVE BODIES FOR BURUNDI

The Security Council held closed consultations on missing Kuwaiti property in

Iraq, the work of the

International Advisory and Monitoring Board dealing with Iraq and

Burundi.

After consultations ended, the Security Council unanimously adopted a resolution establishing a Truth Commission and a Special Chamber to investigate atrocities in Burundi.

Asked about the briefing on the IAMB, the Spokesman said it was a presentation by Jean-Pierre Halbwachs of information that the IAMB had already reported in recent weeks.

Asked about the Secretary-Generals position on the UN Monitoring, Verification and Inspection Commission (UNMOVIC) for Iraq, the Spokesman said that the Commissions fate was in the hands of the Security Council.

WORLD REFUGEE DAY OBSERVED BY NEW HIGH COMMISSIONER

The new

UN High Commissioner for Refugees, António Guterres, spent

World Refugee Day with refugees in northern Uganda, a country he praised as an extraordinary example of generosity and solidarity towards refugees.

He lamented a tendency in some parts of the world to confuse refugees and asylum seekers with terrorists or economic migrants.

What you have proven here in Uganda is that refugees are not terrorists, they are the first victims of terrorism, he said, making a reference to the repeated displacement of Sudanese refugees by attacks from the Lords Resistance Army within Uganda.

The Secretary-General also

paid tribute to the worlds refugees, people who must summon extraordinary courage to survive, and to rebuild their shattered lives.

U.N. OVERSIGHT OFFICE LOOKING AT PROCUREMENT OFFICIAL

In response to a question, the Spokesman said that information had come to the United Nations about an alleged conflict of interest involving a procurement official, Alexander Yakovlev. The Office of Internal Oversight Services (OIOS) began to investigate the case, he said, and that investigation is ongoing.

Asked about the basis for the investigation, the Spokesman said that OIOS was looking into reports that one of Yakovlevs children may have been employed by a company that did business with the United Nations.

He added, in response to further questions, that it would be a clear violation of rules for anyone to benefit financially from their work at the United Nations.

THIRD PARTY TO INVESTIGATE FORMER U.N. INSPECTIONS HEAD

In response to questions about former Under-Secretary-General for Internal Oversight Services Dileep Nair, the Spokesman said that, following a review by a third party of the allegations regarding OIOS management, the Secretary-General has decided to proceed with an investigation. The initial review was carried out by Jerome Ackerman, a former President of the UN Administrative Tribunal, and Ackerman has been asked to do the investigation.

Asked about the charges being studied, the Spokesman said it concerned mismanagement involving hiring and promotions. The initial charges, he noted, had been anonymous, and were not looked into; but later charges were based on information provided by the Staff Union.

Asked about the timeframe for the investigation, the Spokesman said it would be about 30 days.

Asked why Ackerman was allowed to do both the initial review and the investigation, Dujarric said that it was felt to be the most efficient way to proceed to have the person who was already familiar with the facts to do the investigation.

U.N. MISSION IN SUDAN TAKES OVER MONITORING IN NUBA MOUNTAINS

The

UN Mission in Sudan took over the task today of cease-fire monitoring and security arrangements under the comprehensive peace agreement in the transitional area of the Nuba Mountains.

The takeover of the operation from the ad hoc Joint Military Commission, which had been set up back in 2002, was attended by Jan Pronk, the Special Representative of the Secretary-General for

Sudan and UN Force Commander, Major General Fazle Elahi Akbar.

U.N. MEDIATION HELPS OBTAIN CEASE-FIRE IN AFGHANISTAN

The

UN Mission in Afghanistan says that its mediation between two tribes in the province of Khost has come to a successful conclusion, which will allow for an increase in reconstruction activities in that area. Before an agreement was reached by the two tribes last week, conflict in the area had resulted in 60 deaths in the last year alone, and had gone on for six decades.

The UN Mission today also provided details of the UN systems efforts to deal with flooding that took place after heavy rains last Thursday in the Badakhshan area.

The World Food Programme (WFP) is

providing emergency food aid to some 9,000 people in northeastern Afghanistan, following a hailstorm and heavy flooding that killed nearly 30 Afghans and destroyed over 1,000 homes. WFP is also working to clear and rebuild destroyed roads in the region.

CHIEF OF STAFF ANNOUNCES NEW U.N. SPOKESMAN, DEPUTY

UN Chef de Cabinet Mark Malloch Brown today announced that Stephane Dujarric, of France, would be the next Spokesman for the Secretary-General, while Marie Okabe would be the next Deputy Spokesman for the Secretary-General.

Malloch Brown noted that both had worked in the Spokesmans Office under Fred Eckhard, who retires as Spokesman at the end of June. In addition, both have worked in the media, with Dujarric having been a producer for ABC News and Okabe having written for the UPI newswire.

OTHER ANNOUNCEMENTS

ILO GOVERNING BODY WRAPS UP WORK:The Governing Body of the International Labour Organization (ILO) wrapped up its session on Friday in Geneva. Among other things, it

approved a report by its Committee on Freedom of Association, which drew attention to the harassment of trade union leaders in Cambodia, Colombia, Iran, Myanmar and Zimbabwe.In the cases of Cambodia and Colombia, the report called on those Governments to bring to justice those who had murdered trade union leaders.

SECRETARY-GENERAL COOPERATING WITH VOLCKER COMMITTEE: The Spokesman, in response to questions about a memo concerning the Secretary-Generals November 1998 visit to Paris, said that the Secretary-Generals focus was on cooperating with the

Independent Inquiry Committee headed by Paul Volcker so that they can get to the bottom of the matter. The United Nations, he added, is confident that the truth will be found to be on the Secretary-Generals side.

UNITED NATIONS LOOKS TO STRENGTHEN ETHICS RULES: Asked about proposals for an office on ethics, the Spokesman noted that the United Nations is always looking to strengthen its oversight and its rules on ethics.

MILLIONS OF WEST AFRICANS FACE RISK OF FOOD SHORTAGES: The consequences of last year's drought and locust invasion continue to threaten the livelihoods and access to food of millions of farmers and herders in West Africa, the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO)

said today. An increase in food prices is fuelling the food crisis, especially in Mali, Mauritania and Niger. Fortunately, the locust situation is expected to remain relatively calm this summer in West Africa and, unlike last year, swarms from Northwest Africa are not likely to invade the region this year.

MORE THAN 66,000 U.N. PEACEKEEPERS ARE DEPLOYED: The UN web sites updated

information shows that, as of 31 May, there were more than 66,000 UN military and civilian police personnel, almost 15,000 international and local civilian staff and some 1,800 UN Volunteers deployed in the 16 UN peacekeeping operations and 11 political missions.

CORRECTION: On Friday, the Department of Peacekeeping Operations informed us that a South African peacekeeper who had been wounded at a polling station in Burundi on 3 June had died of his wounds. That information was erroneous. The South African who had died in fact succumbed, on 13 June, to injuries received in a traffic accident on 8 June. The South African soldier shot in the head on 3 June has been medically evacuated and is reportedly in stable condition at a hospital in South Africa. We apologize for the error.

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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