United Nations Daily Highlights, 05-08-30

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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 MARIE OKABE

DEPUTY

SPOKESMAN FOR THE SECRETARY-GENERAL

UN HEADQUARTERS, NEW YORK

Tuesday, August 30, 2005

ANNAN INTERRUPTS VACATION TO RETURN TO FOCUS ON UN REFORM SUMMIT

The Secretary-General will be returning to New York today, Tuesday, 30 August. He has decided to interrupt his vacation to take stock of progress towards the 2005 World Summit, and to support the President of the General Assembly in his efforts to ensure a successful Summit.

Asked about the early return of the Secretary-General, the Spokeswoman said it will be the third time he has interrupted his current vacation. She reiterated that he wants to take stock of what has been done in the lead-up to the World Summit and to support the General Assembly President.

GENERAL ASSEMBLY CORE GROUP MEETS ON SUMMIT DRAFT

The

General Assembly Core Group on the draft outcome document for next months summit will continue to meet throughout the week.

Following a schedule set out by General Assembly President Jean Ping, the group will tackle seven priority issues identified by Ping: development, UN Secretariat reform, the establishment of a Human Rights Council, the creation of a Peace Building Commission, disarmament and non-proliferation, terrorism and the responsibility to protect. |

The Group took up terrorism and the Peace Building Commission yesterday, and appointed a smaller group for each of the two subjects to conduct negotiations and hammer out details on those sections. A similar approach will be followed for the other priority items as well.

REMOVAL OF MDGs FROM SUMMIT OUTCOME WOULD BE A SETBACK

Asked if the Secretary-General would urge Member States to resist calls to remove mention of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) from the World Summits outcome document, the Spokeswoman said the Secretary-General and the United Nations stand behind the MDGs which are internationally accepted and which have the broad support of member states an civil society.

The Spokeswoman added that any effort to eliminate the MDGs from the Summits outcome document would be a setback to the global fight against poverty.

SECURITY COUNCIL TO HEAR LATEST ON LEBANON INQUIRY

With regard to the latest developments in the investigation into the assassination of former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafik Hariri, the Under-Secretary-General for Political Affairs, Ibrahim Gambari, will be briefing the Security Council this afternoon in closed session at 3 p.m.

What we can confirm at this point, based on information received from the Commissioner

Detlev Mehlis, who heads the independent investigative commission, is that in the course of the ongoing investigation, the Commission identified three former heads of Lebanese intelligence and security agencies (Brig Gen Raymond Azar, Maj. Gen Jameel al-Sayeed and Ali al-Hajj), as well as former member of parliament Nasser Kandil, as suspects in the assassination of Hariri and 20 others.

This morning, on the orders of Commissioner Mehlis and with the full cooperation of the Lebanese police forces, the homes and premises of the suspects were searched for evidence. The suspects, with the exception of Mr. Kandil who is in Syria, are being interviewed. Gen. Mustafa Hamdan, who was previously declared a suspect, was summoned for a second interview. (The Spokeswoman later said that Kandil returned to Lebanon and was interviewed.)

Asked if Mehlis would be presenting the findings of the investigation to the Secretary-General in New York next week, the Spokeswoman noted that Mehlhi was due in New York for consultations and there has been no word on whether Mehlis is seeking an extension to the deadline for submission of the report. The Spokeswoman later said that no written report was expected at that time of his planned visit next week.

Asked if Gambari would present a written document to the Security Council Tuesday, the Spokeswoman said there was to be no written presentation and Gambari would not comment publicly.

SECURITY COUNCIL TAKES UP BURUNDI, SUDAN

The

Security Council held consultations on Burundi this morning and was briefed on

Sudan.

The

Secretary-Generals Principal Deputy Special for Burundi,

Nureldin Satti, briefed on activities in that country.

Regarding Sudan, the Assistant-Secretary-General for

Peacekeeping Operations, Hedi Annabi, briefed on the Abuja talks, the peace talks between the Sudanese government and rebel groups from the Darfur region.

The consultations were followed by a formal meeting during which a Presidential Statement on Burundi was read by Security Council President, Japanese Ambassador Kenzo Oshima. In the statement, the Council acknowledged the election of Pierre Nkurunziza as President and called on all parties to respect the will of the Burundian people the elected Government and the commitments agreed during the transitional process.

In a press statement on Sudan, the Security Council strongly urged the parties to return to the talks in Abuja, Nigeria, on September 15th as requested by the African Union and to negotiate constructively and urgently to secure an early agreement.

In Sudan itself, the Principle Deputy Special Representative of the Secretary-General Tayé Zerihoun met today with Salim Ahmed Salim, the African Union mediator for the inter-Sudanese talks on Darfur. Discussions focused on the ongoing preparations for the 6th round of Abuja talks scheduled to take place on September 15, which will tackle the issues of power-sharing, wealth sharing and security arrangements.

The Deputy Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Development Manuel Aranda Da Silva left yesterday to Juba for a two days visit during which he will attend the meeting of the Technical Committee between the Sudanese Peoples Liberation Movement (SPLM) and the Government of Sudan on humanitarian issues. He is also scheduled to meet with the UN Country Team to discuss their move from Rumbek to Juba, following the decision of the SPLM to have Juba as the capital of South Sudan.

U.N. LAUNCHES FLASH HUMANITARIAN APPEAL FOR MALAWI

The United Nations today launched a

flash appeal for nearly $88 million for Malawi, where at least 4.2 million people a third of the population -- are threatened by acute food insecurity.

In the short term, the requested funds will be used to provide emergency humanitarian aid for the most vulnerable. In the longer term, the appeal strengthens a national plan to provide much-needed maize seed and fertilizer.

Jan Egeland, the UNs Emergency Relief Coordinator, says the appeal is an investment in prevention, which will prove more cost effective than providing emergency assistance year after year.

LETTER ON JOURNALISTS KILLED IN IRAQ HAS BEEN RECEIVED

Asked if the Secretary-General has received a letter from the International Federation of Journalists requesting an investigation into the deaths journalists in Iraq, the Spokeswoman said the letter had been received at UN Headquarters yesterday.

She noted that the letter is being studied, and that the Secretary-General has repeatedly urged all actors in conflict situations around the world to protect the right of all citizens to reliable information and the right of journalists to provide it without fearing for their safety.

U.N. BLUE HELMETS TIGHTEN SECURITY IN KOSOVO

The

UN Mission in Kosovo (UNMIK) has tightened security in Kosovo, putting extra police patrols on the streets of Serb enclaves, following last weekends shooting incident, in which two Serbs were killed.

Kai Vittrup, UNMIKs Police Commissioner, said in a press conference yesterday that he considers the incident an isolated one that should not be seen as a first step in future terror attacks against minorities.

At this stage of the investigation, the ethnicity of the suspects was unknown, he added.

U.N. TSUNAMI CHIEF TO ASSESS RECOVERY EFFORT

Eric Schwartz, the UN Deputy Special Envoy for Tsunami Recovery, will travel to Sri Lanka and Indonesia tomorrow for a 10-day assessment mission.

The purpose of his visit is to see first-hand the impact the tsunami has had on peoples lives and to gauge the current status of the recovery effort.

Schwartz will consult with a wide range of partners, including government officials and representatives of UN agencies, civil society and the business community. And he will focus on the launch of the online financial tracking system, shelter, livelihoods and sustainable timber sourcing.

On a related note, the Secretary-Generals

report on the UNs International Strategy for Disaster Reduction is out on the racks today. Among other things, the Secretary-General encourages Governments to maintain their support for the development of a tsunami early warning system.

OTHER ANNOUNCEMENTS

U.N. SAYS DELIBERATE FOREST FIRES ARE A HEALTH HAZARD: The

Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) is

calling for a halt to the use of fire for land clearance. FAO

says large forest fires in South-East Asia, especially in Indonesia, have caused serious health and environmental problems. FAO says most of the fires in the region are intentional, and any clearance should be mechanized, which is more environmentally-friendly.

ROAD CRASH DEATHS CAN BE ALLEVIATED: The Secretary-General has sent to the General Assembly a

report from the

World Health Organization (WHO) outlining steps that can be taken worldwide to alleviate the problem of road accidents. The WHO report recommends, among other things, that all nations develop road safety education programs and join international organizations that standardize safety regulations and procedures. WHO says that traffic accidents kill some 1.2 million people a year.