United Nations Daily Highlights, 06-12-18

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

HIGHLIGHTS OF THE NOON BRIEFING

BY STEPHANE DUJARRIC

SPOKESMAN FOR THE SECRETARY-GENERAL

U.N. HEADQUARTERS, NEW YORK

Monday, December 18, 2006

ANNANS FINAL PRESS CONFERENCE TO BE HELD TOMORROW

Secretary-General Kofi Annans farewell press conference is scheduled for 10:30 a.m. tomorrow.

There will be no noon briefing tomorrow.

The last scheduled noon briefing for the year is scheduled for Friday, 22 December.

ANNAN SENDS SENIOR ENVOY TO MEET WITH SUDANESE LEADER

The Secretary-General has decided to send to Khartoum,

Sudan, Ahmedou Ould-Abdallah, a senior UN official, to deliver a message to the Sudanese President following up on a weekend telephone conversation between the two leaders.

Ould-Abdallah will begin on Wednesday a diplomatic mission to clarify details of the agreements reached last month at the High-Level meeting on Darfur, co-chaired by the Secretary-General and African Union (AU) Commission Chairman Alpha Oumar Konare in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, and the subsequent AU Peace and Security Council meeting in Abuja, Nigeria.

He will also seek to clarify the proposed joint hybrid operation of the African Union and United Nations in Darfur.

Meanwhile, at UN Headquarters, the Secretary-General will meet this afternoon on Darfur with all 15 members of the current Security Council, plus the five incoming members for 2007. Secretary-General designate Ban Ki-moon is also expected to attend that meeting.

Asked why the Secretary-General-designate was invited, the Spokesman said that the Secretary-General had wanted to reach out to him and bring him up to speed on the Darfur issue, which is one of the issues that remain as a priority at the United Nations.

Asked whether the envoy would attend a meeting that was to take place in Khartoum, the Spokesman said that Ould-Abdallahs mission is a one-time effort to obtain as much clarity as possible about the Sudanese Governments position on a hybrid force, among other matters.

Ould-Abdallah, Dujarric said, is currently the Secretary-Generals Special Representative for West Africa, but he is going as an envoy to Khartoum in his capacity as a senior adviser of the Secretary-General. He is fully briefed on Darfur and will be carrying a message from the Secretary-General.

Asked about the work done by a UN team that visited Chad and the Central African Republic, the Spokesman said that they will come out with a report on their activities.

ALLIANCE OF CIVILIZATIONS SHOWS THE WAY FORWARD

The Secretary-General, along with the Prime Ministers of Spain and Turkey, will present the report of the High-Level Group of the Alliance of Civilizations to an informal plenary meeting of the General Assembly, this afternoon at UN Headquarters.

In his remarks, the Secretary-General is expected to say that the report, launched last month in Istanbul, shows us a way forward. It emphasizes the problem is not the faith but rather the conflicts, terrorism and other events of the past several years that have exacerbated tensions amongst people. He is also expected to say that the UN at its best epitomizes the work of the Alliance.

Asked whether the Secretary-General has been offered a position in the Alliance for Civilizations once he leaves office, the Spokesman said that the Secretary-General has been offered a number of posts but has not made any decisions on accepting any of them. He will first take some months off, and will then decide on his priorities.

He added, in response to a question, that he was not aware of any Iranian funding for the Alliance.

LEBANON BOMB PROBE APPROACHING SENSITIVE & COMPLICATED PHASE

This afternoon, the Security Council is hearing an open briefing from Serge Brammertz, the head of the International Independent Investigation

Commission that has been looking into the assassination of former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafik Hariri.

Following that briefing, Council members will go into closed consultations to discuss Brammertzs most recent report on the Hariri investigation further with him.

That latest report is available today, and in it, Brammertz says that the investigation into the Hariri killing is approaching a sensitive and complicated phase, and the Commissions work can only be undertaken with confidentiality in order to create a secure environment for its witnesses and staff. Meanwhile, the Commissions work on 14 other cases continues to bring to light significant links between each case and with the Hariri case.

Asked whether the Secretary-General met Brammertz during the latters recent trip to New York, the Spokesman said that they had not met this time.

IRAQ: U.N. ENVOY CONDEMNS RECENT ACTS OF VIOLENCE & TERROR

Ashraf Qazi, the Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Iraq, today

condemned the recent acts of violence and terror that have further deteriorated the fragile security condition in Baghdad and other parts of the country.

The most recent incidents were the car-bombs at the Tayaran square on 12 December, in which scores of innocent people were killed or injured, and the kidnapping of dozens of people from an Iraqi Red Crescent office in the Karrada district of Baghdad yesterday.

Qazi appealed to all Iraqis to join hands in combating such violence that threatens the nation. He specifically noted the Prime Ministers convening of a recent reconciliation conference and said that such initiatives needed to be built upon. In this regard, he urged the regional and international community to assist the Prime Minister in his efforts.

ABUSE AGAINST MIGRANTS MUST STOP

Today is International Migrants Day. In a message to mark the occasion, the Secretary-General says that today, more people are affected by international migration than at any other time in history. He calls on the international community to work together to ensure that this global trend benefits all concerned, including the countries of origin and destination, as well as the migrants themselves.

In a separate message, High Commissioner for Human Rights Louise Arbour says that the reality for many migrants is one of exploitation, exclusion, discrimination, abuse and violence amounting to widespread human rights violations. This must change, she says.

SUSPICIOUS PACKAGE AT HEADQUARTERS DEEMED TO BE HARMLESS

On Friday afternoon, a letter that was in the process of being delivered to the fourth floor of UN Headquarters was found to be leaking a white powder, and UN Security was immediately informed about the suspicious package.

The New York Police Department and Department of Environmental Protection responded to the incident and preliminary tests discovered a harmless substance, namely flour. This morning, New Yorks Department of Health, after final test results came in, confirmed that the substance was harmless.

In accordance with host country protocol, during the first response, several persons had to undergo decontaminating procedures as a precautionary measure what is known as pre-contamination. No injuries or medical conditions were reported, and once the initial results came in, it was determined that there was no need for any further decontamination measures.

Asked how the letter had breached security, the Spokesman said that the UN security service continues to examine the matter. He said that a messenger had been delivering the mail, and found the suspicious letter in a mailbag, observing white powder coming from an envelope.

Asked to whom the letter had been sent, the Spokesman declined to identify the intended recipient specifically, but noted that it was a reporter at the United Nations. He added that, contrary to some reports, it was not sent to CNN.

ANNAN WILL REMAIN SECRETARY-GENERAL THROUGH THE END OF 2006

Asked how long the Secretary-General will be working, the Spokesman said that Kofi Annan continues in his job until the start of 1 January, and will be in New York until then.

His last planned workday, Dujarric said, is Friday, 22 December. However, he added, the Secretary-General will be in New York working from his home and will come into the office if he needs to do so.

Asked about Annans pension, the Spokesman said it was no more than the Secretary-General was entitled to get after working for more than 30 years as a UN staff member and another 10 years as Secretary-General. As a staff member the Secretary-General had contributed to the pension fund and, like any other staff member who spent a considerable amount of time within the organization, he is entitled to a pension. The Joint Pension Board has guidelines regarding pensions entitled to staff who serve 30 years, and the General Assembly mandated a pension that is due to Annan for his time as Secretary-General. Those two periods are separate, as Annan stopped being a staff member when he became Secretary-General.

Asked about a meeting the Secretary-General will have with staff at the staff cafeteria on Tuesday, the Spokesman said that was deemed to be a large enough venue for an informal get-together, at which give-and-take between the Secretary-General and staff is expected.

OTHER ANNOUNCEMENTS

ANNAN WELCOMES GREAT LAKES PACT: In response to a question, the Spokesman noted that the Secretary-General views the security and development pact that was reached in the Great Lakes as a welcome development. The Secretary-General has been supportive of the process of dialogue in the Great Lakes region and saw the regional pact as encouraging.

NEW U.N. POLICY HOPEFULLY TO BE ANNOUNCED SOON: Asked about a UN policy on the work done by departing UN officials, the Spokesman said it was hoped that it could be announced soon.

SPOKESMAN HIGHLIGHTS WORK DONE TOWARDS TWO-STATE SOLUTION IN MIDDLE EAST: Asked about British Prime Minister Tony Blairs efforts to deal with the Israeli-Palestinian peace process, the Spokesman said that a two-state solution is something that the Secretary-General and the Middle East Quartet have been working to achieve.

UNITED NATIONS LAUNCHES HAITI APPEAL: The UN today appealed for $98 million to help Haiti stabilize and develop itself. Launched in Geneva, the appeal aims to reinforce the Haitian Governments capacity during the critical post-electoral transition period, so that it can improve, among other things, its democratic institutions and its ability to respond to natural disasters.

TSUNAMI ACCOUNTABILITY REPORT RELEASED: The Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) has issued a

report on how funds deposited into the UN Tsunami Trust Fund were used. Under the supervision of the UN Controller, that Fund was established to manage contributions set aside for tsunami operations. The total amount received under the Fund amounts to nearly $75 million. Since the start of operations, more than $72 million of that amount has been allocated to 67 projects from 14 UN organisations in seven countries.

U.N. DEVELOPMENT CHIEF TO BRIEF PRESS: Asked when UNDP Administrator Kemal Dervis would brief the press, the Spokesman said it would be on 21 December.

Office of the Spokesman for the Secretary-General

United Nations, S-378

New York, NY 10017

Tel. 212-963-7162

Fax. 212-963-7055

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