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United Nations Daily Highlights, 96-12-16United Nations Daily Highlights Directory - Previous Article - Next ArticleFrom: The United Nations Home Page at <http://www.un.org> - email: unnews@un.orgDAILY HIGHLIGHTSMonday, 16 December 1996This document is prepared by the Central News Section of the Department of Public Information and is updated every week-day at approximately 6:00 PM. HEADLINES
The General Assembly will meet tomorrow 17 December to decide on the appointment of Mr. Kofi Annan for a term of office from 1 January to 31 December 2001 as the next Secretary-General of the United Nations. The action of the General Assembly will follow the recommendation of the Security Council on 13 December that Mr. Kofi Annan be appointed Secretary- General. General Assembly President Razali Ismail of Malaysia said in a statement that Mr. Annan was the correct choice. "His appointment augurs well for the joint efforts of governments and the Secretariat to reform the United Nations at this critical time," he said. "As President of the General Assembly, I promise to work closely with him in our common efforts." In regard to restoring confidence between the governments and the United Nations, rebuilding its sense of common purpose, and maintaining trust among the peoples of the world, Mr. Annan said: "If the General Assembly acts favourably on the recommendation of the Security Council, I shall dedicate myself to pursuing these objectives, to which I have devoted my life, with vigour and full commitment." UN Secretary-General Boutros Boutros-Ghali today had tete-a-tete with Mr. Annan, the Spokesman for the Secretary-General Sylvana Foa said. The General Assembly has called for an end to Israeli settlement activity in the occupied Palestinian territory, and for a step to ensure freedom of movement within the territory. The Assembly took these actions as it considered the reports of its Fourth Committee (Special Political and Decolonisation). The Assembly adopted a total of five resolutions on Israeli practices. The text demanding the cessation of Israeli settlements was approved by a vote of 152 in favour to 2 against (Israel and the United States) with six abstentions (Federal States of Micronesia, Guatemala, Marshall Islands, Palau, Swaziland, and Uruguay). Considering the reports of the Committee, the General Assembly acted on 28 draft resolutions and four draft decisions on the committee's work, covering - among others - issues related to decolonisation, peace- keeping, atomic radiation, United Nations information capacities, peaceful uses of outer space and the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA). The General Assembly has commended the efforts of the Organisation of African Unity (OAU) to resolve conflicts in Africa, as well as its work to strengthen its capacity in the fields of conflict resolution and prevention, by adopting, without a vote, a text on cooperation between the United Nations and the OAU. The Assembly invited the United Nations to support such OAU efforts as the development of an early-warning system and the coordination of information exchange between the United Nations and the OAU's respective early-warning systems. The Assembly also called for strengthening mechanisms for information exchange between the United Nations and the OAU such as preventive diplomacy, peacemaking and peace-keeping operations. A total of 103,370 Rwandan refugees today crossed the border from Tanzania into Rwanda, which is the largest number of refugees to return in one day, the Spokesman for the Secretary-General Sylvana Foa said. The total number of refugees who crossed the border in the past three days amounts to 133, 000, Ms. Foa stated adding that since the beginning of December the number amounted to about 140,000. Meanwhile, after a meeting of the Steering Committee of the Multinational Force, Canada sent a letter to the Secretary-General advising the Security Council to terminate the mission of the Multinational Force by 31 December, according to the Spokesman for the Secretary-General. The Secretary-General will pass this letter on to the Council. According to the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) in Tanzania, the refugees started flooding back into Rwanda over the weekend despite an earlier move orchestrated by extremist forces opposing their return, which led them to flee into the interior. Tanzania announced on 5 December that conditions in Rwanda were conducive for people to return in safety and that the 535,000 Rwandan refugees on its soil must go back to their country before the end of the year. It pointed out that massive numbers of refugees from Zaire had returned peacefully to Rwanda. Norbert Holl, Special Representative of the Secretary-General in Afghanistan, has obtained an agreement in principle with the Taliban, the Spokesman for the Secretary-General Sylvana Foa said today. According to the agreement, the Taliban will join UN-sponsored ceasefire talks with the opposing coalition. The proposed talks, which will be held at Islamabad or Ashkabad in January, are at the working level, with three representatives from the Taliban, and three from the opposing coalition, according to Ms. Foa. Dr. Hall will chair the talks. The United Nations today appealed for a $100.5 million to address humanitarian relief and rehabilitation needs in Somalia, a country plagued by the effects of six years of civil war. The UN Consolidated Inter-Agency Appeal for Somalia, covering the period from October 1996 through December 1997, is based upon extensive consultations among UN agencies and non- governmental organisations (NGO). The appeal contains two separate sections, one calling for &46.5 million for joint activities of the UN agencies and the other requesting $54 million for the individual requirements of the UN Development Programme (UNDP), the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), the UN Children's Fund (UNICEF), the United Nations Development Fund for Women (UNIFEM), the World Health Organisation (WHO), the Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) of the United Nations, the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO) and the International Organisation of Migration (IOM). A Dutch member of the UN International Police Task Force (IPTF) monitor in Bosnia was physically assaulted and threatened at gunpoint by a uniformed Republika Srpska police officer, when he tried to stop this officer from beating up a woman, the Spokesman for the Secretary-General said today. The incident took place 15 December in front of the Zvornik UN IPTF station, Ms. Foa added. The Zvornik police chief has informed the IPTF that the officer in question would be dismissed. The UN Institute for Disarmament Research would receive a $213,000 subvention for 1997 from the United Nations regular budget, should the General Assembly adopt a draft decision approved without a vote by the Fifth Committee (Administrative and Budgetary), as it discussed the Institute's funding, the proposed budget outline for 1998-1999 and the first performance report on the 1996-1997 budget. By the terms of the oral draft approved by the Committee, the Assembly would take note of the document by which the Secretary-General relayed the request by the Institute's Board of Trustees for a reduced subvention. The Institute usually receives $220,000 annually, but the Board sought a lower sum in the light of the $154 million in savings being sought from the regular budget. For information purposes only - - not an official record From the United Nations home page at <http://www.un.org> - email: unnews@un.orgUnited Nations Daily Highlights Directory - Previous Article - Next Article |
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