United Nations Daily Highlights, 05-10-06

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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

SPOKESMAN FOR THE SECRETARY-GENERAL

UN HEADQUARTERS, NEW YORK

Thursday, October 6, 2005

ANNAN SADDENED BY DEATH AND DAMAGE CAUSED BY FLOODING IN CENTRAL AMERICA FLOODING

Secretary-General Kofi Annan is

saddened by the loss of life and damage caused by the severe flooding and mudslides that have affected hundreds of thousands of people across Mexico and Central America.

He extends his condolences to all those who have been affected by this natural disaster, and particularly to the families who have lost their loved ones.

The United Nations is currently assessing the extent of the needs created by the flooding and mudslides in the affected countries. The Regional Disaster Response Adviser for Latin America and the Caribbean is en route to El Salvador and a team of disaster assessment and coordination experts is being deployed in the region.

United Nations officials remain in close contact with local authorities and stand ready to mobilize international support for emergency relief and recovery efforts.

EMERGENCY CASH GRANTS APPROVED FOR EL SALVADOR AND COSTA RICA

The

Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs says it has approved emergency cash grants for El Salvador and Costa Rica.

In addition, the UN Country Team in El Salvador has issued a joint UN inter-agency appeal for approximately $6.5 million to meet the immediate needs of those displaced by the flooding and volcanic eruptions there.

ANNAN MEETS SENIOR UN OFFICIALS IN GENEVA

The

Secretary-General, after arriving in Geneva this morning,

addressed the

Executive Committee of the

UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), the first such meeting since

Antonio Guterres took up his duties.

The Secretary-General discussed the outcome of the World Summit in New York and what it means for the humanitarian community, and UNHCR in particular. He also applauded the commitment by UNHCR to strengthen its efforts to protect internally displaced people, and to take a lead role in assuring emergency shelter and coordination in the camps.

The Secretary-General also met today with

Detlev Mehlis, head of the UN International Independent Investigation into the assassination of former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafik Hariri.

Afterwards, the Secretary-General visited the

World Health Organization. There, he met with Director General Lee Jong-wook, and also received a briefing at the Strategic Health Operations Center, which monitors and responds to public health emergencies such as avian flu. He said after that briefing that we are all in this together in the fight against that pandemic.

Asked about the Secretary-Generals meeting with Mehlis, the Spokesman said the meeting was intended for the Secretary-General to receive an update from Mehlis on how his report is going. Mehlis went to Geneva to meet the Secretary-General, he added in response to another question on why Mehlis was there.

Asked about the Lebanese Prime Ministers request for an extension in the Mehlis teams work, the Spokesman said that Mehlis was still expected to deliver his report by the end of October.

However, he acknowledged that the Secretary-General had received a phone call earlier this week from Lebanese Prime Minister Fuad Siniora, who asked the Secretary-General to extend the Mehlis teams mandate until the middle of December. That request is being studied by the Secretary-General.

Asked what that extension would achieve, Dujarric noted that part of the teams mandate concerns the strengthening of the Lebanese judiciary.

Asked whether the Mehlis teams work could also be expanded to handle other killings besides that of Rafik Hariri, the Spokesman noted that any such request would require a change in the Security Council mandate for that mission.

RENEWED CALLS FOR ERITREA TO LIFT BAN ON UN HELICOPTER FLIGHTS

The Secretary-Generals Special Representative for Ethiopia and Eritrea,

Legwaila Joseph Legwaila, today stressed the need for Eritrea to rescind its decision to restrict all types of helicopter flights by the UN Mission there within Eritrean air space.

Earlier this week, the Secretary-General and the

Security Council

called on the Government of Eritrea to immediately reverse its decision.

Speaking at a press briefing today, Legwaila said the matter was urgent, and that if the decision was not rescinded, it would reduce by half the usefulness of the

UN Mission to Ethiopia and Eritrea (UNMEE) to the parties to the peace process there.

Also speaking at the briefing, the UN Missions Force Commander,

Major-General Rajender Singh, said the decision has seriously impaired the peacekeepers ability to do carry out their monitoring activities.

He added that the lives of peacekeepers especially those in remote areas will be at greater risk in the case of a medical emergency which requires an evacuation. As a result of the ban, he said, foot patrols by the peacekeepers have increased.

Asked about the Secretary-Generals personal involvement in resolving the dispute, the Spokesman said that the extent of his involvement could be seen by his appearance at the Security Council on Tuesday, where the helicopter ban was discussed.

The United Nations, he added, has been in close contact with the Eritrean authorities, but still has not received an explanation for the ban. The United Nations hopes the matter will be resolved quickly.

Asked about UNMEEs helicopter assets, the Spokesman said that the Mission has a fleet of 8 helicopters -- 6 MI 8s and 2 Bell helicopters -- that are used for activities such as monitoring and the delivery of supplies as well as medical evacuation. It usually has about five or six reconnaissance flights a day, and 20 flights daily overall.

He added that three camps are dependent on UNMEE supply flights, because they are remote, although reachable by road.

FRECHETTE: WORLD NEEDS TO RECOGNIZE CONTRIBUTIONS OF YOUTH

The

Deputy Secretary-General, Louise Fréchette, today addressed the

General Assembly meeting marking the tenth anniversary of the World Programme of Action for

Youth.

Noting that almost half the global population is less than 25 years old, she said: that the world should recognize that young people form an enormous resource for the benefit of society; that they are crucial partners in the UNs work to reach the

Millennium Development Goals; and that their energy is our most valuable asset in our efforts to build a more peaceful, democratic, and prosperous world.

ANANN SADDENED BY KILLING OF UN SECURITY OFFICER IN SOMALIA

The

Secretary-General was

saddened to learn that a UN security officer, Mohamuud Musse Gurage, was killed by gunmen on Monday night in the Lower Juba region of Somalia.

He offers his sincere condolences to Mr. Gurages friends and family.

The brutal murder of Mr. Gurage underscores the difficult security situation the United Nations faces as it attempts to assist the people of Somalia. The Secretary-General calls on the relevant Somali authorities to do their utmost to bring to justice the perpetrators of this terrible crime. He also calls on all Somali parties to work towards establishing a society that will be peaceful for all Somalis.

DISTRIBUTION OF IRAQI CONSTITUTION BEGINS IN SOUTHERN IRAQ

Regarding the United Nations distribution of five million copies of the Iraqi Constitution throughout that country, food distribution centers in some parts of southern

Iraq have already started to deliver copies of the Constitution. In some major southern cities, including Basrah, Najaf and Karbala, food distribution centers are receiving their copies today and will send them out to people in those areas on Saturday.

In Baghdad, 395,000 copies have gone to the food centers, and the agents there started to distribute the Constitution three days ago.

In Kurdistan, 400,000 copies were sent to Erbil today, to be distributed on Saturday. Another 600,000 copies will go to Sulaymania between now and Tuesday.

In Western Iraq, the Council of Ministers received 305,000 copies on Monday and has begun to transport them. Yesterday, 200,000 copies went to Mosul and another 175,000 to Kirkuk, with distribution in those cities to begin on Saturday. Local Sunni leaders are also helping to deliver copies in Western Iraq.

Asked about the work the UN has done on the constitutional process, the Spokesman said that the United Nations currently has around 80 international substantive and support staff in the country, whose main task at present is to help the Iraqis with the constitutional referendum.

ANNAN TO SET UP OVERSIGHT COMMITTEE FOR THE UNITED NATIONS

The

Secretary-General has decided to establish an Oversight Committee for the UN, according to a bulletin issued today.

The Oversight Committee shall provide independent advice to the Secretary-General on all Secretariat activities relating to internal and external oversight and investigations. It shall advise him on managements response to the recommendations made by oversight bodies, and on how they can be implemented to have the greatest impact.

The Secretary-General will appoint a Chairperson and three additional members to the Oversight Committee, while the Under-Secretary-General for Management will be an ex officio member of that body.

Also issued today was a bulletin from the Secretary-General announcing the introduction of the Integrity Awareness Initiative, a self-administered, online learning program.

Asked what the Oversight Committee would do, the Spokesman said its establishment was the outgrowth of an issue raised by Paul Volckers

Independent Inquiry Committee, which said that there was not enough follow-through on recommendations by UN oversight bodies. The Committee would help ensure that such recommendations are implemented.

OTHER ANNOUNCEMENTS

KOSOVO REPORT EXPECTED TO GO TO SECURITY COUNCIL SOON: Asked about Special Envoy

Kai Eides report on Kosovo, the Spokesman said he expected it to go to the

Security Council fairly soon, before its scheduled 24 October meeting.

CAPITAL MASTER PLAN CHIEF TO BRIEF THE PRESS ON 12 OCTOBER: In response to a question, the Spokesman said that the head of the Capital Master Plan,

Fritz Reuter, would brief the press on 12 October.

U.N. SAYS FARM WORKERS GOING HUNGRY: The

Food and Agriculture Organization says in a

report out today that the worlds food supply is not sustainable while farm workers continue to be forced to live in poverty. The report, written in collaboration with the

International Labour Organization and an agriculture union, says that millions of the workers who produce the worlds food suffer the most poverty and hunger on the planet.

NEW U.N. PROGRAM AIMED AT ADULT ILLITERACY: The

UN Educational Scientific and Cultural Organization has

announced a new program aimed at reducing world adult illiteracy by half in ten years. The plan envisions participation by governments and NGOs and will emphasize south-south cooperation, the agency said. It will concentrate on countries where the rate of illiteracy is higher than 50%.

UNICEF TO SCREEN FILM ON CHILD SOLDIERS: At 6:00 p.m. there will be a screening in the Dag Hammarskjöld Auditorium, at UN Headquarters in New York, of a film entitled "Innocent Voices, Voces Inocentes", based on a true story of child soldiers in El Salvador, organized by the

UNs Children's Fund and Amnesty International USA, in connection with the UN Programme on Youth. The screening will be hosted by Queen Noor of Jordan and Academy Award Winner Jennifer Connelly, an Amnesty International USA Goodwill Ambassador.