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MICHELE
MONTAS is the Spokesperson for
U.N. Secretary General Ban Ki-moon.
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The
Office of the Spokesperson for the
Secretary-General and the Spokesperson
for the President of the General
Assembly.
TV: UN
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UN:
UNITED NATIONS BRIEFING AND TV:
THURSDAY, 10/01/2008
(MaximsNews Network)
UNITED
NATIONS - / MaximsNews
Network / - 10
January 2008 -- Daily Press
Briefing: By the Office of the
Spokesperson for the Secretary-General
BY
MICHELE MONTAS
SPOKESPERSON FOR SECRETARY-GENERAL BAN
KI-MOON
Thursday,
January 10, 2008
W.H.O.
REPORTS MORE THAN 150,000 VIOLENT IRAQI
DEATHS
-
According
to a new
survey by the Iraqi Government
and the World Health Organization,
151,000 Iraqis died as a result of
violence between March 2003 and June
2006.
-
The
results showed that violence became
a leading cause of death for Iraqi
adults after March 2003 and the main
cause for men between the ages of 15
and 59.
-
The
survey also found that, on average,
128 Iraqis died of violent causes
per day in the first year following
the invasion.
-
That
number sank to 115 per day in the
second year but rose back to 126 in
the third year. More than half of
the violent deaths occurred in
Baghdad.
-
Another
worrying finding of the study was
that only 57% of the women surveyed
said they had heard of AIDS. That
compares with 84% of women in Turkey
and Egypt, 91% in Morocco and 97% in
Jordan.
-
Meanwhile,
the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR) is set
to take
part in tomorrow’s launch of a
major fund-raising and public
awareness campaign aimed at helping
displaced Iraqis who have sought
refuge in neighboring countries. Called
“Arabs Hand-in-Hand with
Iraqis”, the campaign is being
launched by the League of Arab
States, in partnership with UNHCR
and other international
organizations.
-
UNHCR
has been providing education, health
care, food and direct financial
support to the most vulnerable
Iraqis families, but it says that
more needs to be done.
NUCLEAR
AGENCY CHIEF TO VISIT IRAN FOR
HIGH-LEVEL TALKS
-
International
Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Director
General Dr. Mohamed ElBaradei will
begin a two-day
visit to Iran tomorrow for talks
with high-level Iranian officials.
-
During
the trip, Dr. ElBaradei hopes to
develop ways to accelerate
implementation of safeguards in
Iran, with an aim of resolving
remaining outstanding issues. He
also welcomes the visit as a chance
to enable the IAEA to provide
assurance about Iran’s past and
present nuclear activities.
DISTRIBUTION
OF FOOD AID BEGINS IN NAIROBI SLUMS
-
According
to the UN Country Team in Kenya, the
security situation in that country
is calm
but remains tense and
unpredictable. On the humanitarian
front, the UN’s Central Emergency
Response Fund has allocated $7
million for relief work in Kenya.
-
Meanwhile,
the distribution of World Food
Programme (WFP) aid started today
for tens of thousands of people in
the Nairobi slums.
-
Also
today, a WFP-chartered helicopter
flew from Nairobi to the northern Rift
Valley town of Eldoret, helping
WFP assessment teams to locate
scattered pockets of displaced
people in need of humanitarian
assistance. The helicopter, which
flew into Kenya from Sudan, will
also fly UN aid to people cut off by
violence in the coming days.
BAN
KI-MOON EXPRESSES STRONG SUPPORT FOR
ANNAN MISSION IN KENYA
-
Asked
about the role of former
Secretary-General Kofi Annan in
mediating between the Kenyan
leaders, the Spokeswoman added later
that Secretary General Ban Ki-moon
sees this as a positive development.
-
He
spoke to Mr. Annan earlier today and
expressed his strong support to his
mission as announced earlier by
President John Kufuor of Ghana, as
head of a panel of eminent Africans
to mediate the crisis in Kenya.
SPOKESPERSON
CLARIFIES U.N. ROLE IN KENYAN ELECTIONS
-
The
Spokesperson, in response to
questions and news reports about the
UN’s role in the disputed Kenya
parliamentary and presidential
elections read the following
clarification:
-
“The
UN did not observe the recent Kenyan
elections or the tallying of the
votes. Thus, the UN could not have
pronounced itself on a matter of
which it was not involved and has no
facts.
-
UNDP
only provided nonpartisan technical
assistance to the electoral process.
We assisted with voter registration
and education; facilitated the
capacity of the Kenya Domestic
Observation Team to observe the
elections; supported the Kenya Human
Rights Commission to ensure there
were no violations occurring during
the campaign; and supported the
local media in order to promote
balanced reporting and educate their
readers or viewers on the electoral
process.
-
This
was managed with funds (US$ 12
million) provided by U.S. Agency for
International Development; the
Canadian International Development
Agency, the Swedish International
Development Agency , the European
Union and the Governments of Norway,
Finland and the Netherlands.
-
The
UNDP programme was never intended to
and it therefore did not support the
results transmission, tallying or
counting processes. The UN did not
participate in election monitoring,
and no UN staff observed the
elections.”
-
Asked
why the United Nations did not
monitor the elections despite the
possibility of election-related
violence, the Spokeswoman said that
the United Nations had not been
invited to monitor the elections.
She noted that decisions on
monitoring must be made well in
advance of voting.
WESTERN
SAHARA TALKS CONCLUDE, TO RESUME IN
MARCH
-
The
third round of discussions on
Western Sahara wrapped up yesterday
afternoon in Manhasset, New York.
-
In
a communiqué read out at the end of
the talks, the Secretary-General’s
Personal Envoy, Peter van Walsum,
noted that the parties had continued
to express strong differences.
At the same time, they reiterated
their commitment to negotiate in
good faith, and agreed on the need
to move into a more intensive and
substantive phase of discussions.
-
The
Parties have agreed to meet again in
Manhasset from March 11th
to 13th. The
Personal Envoy is also expected to
travel to the region shortly for
in-depth consultations.
BAN
KI-MOON RECOMMENDS MANDATE EXTENSION FOR
NEPAL MISSION
-
In
his
report to the Security Council
on Nepal’s request for the UN
assistance in support of its peace
process, the Secretary-General
recommended that the mandate of the
U.N. Mission in Nepal be extended
for a further six months.
-
The
Secretary-General recommended that
the extension maintain the currently
existing configuration and staffing
of the Mission, and reduce electoral
staffing as well as other minor
adjustments.
-
He
said it is encouraging that the
Seven-Party Alliance has moved in
the direction of a peace agreement
and that there is a common
recognition of the critical need to
maintain the cohesion of the
Seven-Party Alliance.
-
The
Secretary-General also said his
Special Representative has
reiterated to the Government and the
parties the readiness of UNMIN
to be of greater support to the
peace process within its existing
mandate, adding that it is up to
seven parties to decide how to
utilize the capacities of UNMIN in
the most effective way.
-
Meanwhile,
Assistant Secretary-General for
Political Affairs, Angela Kane
continues her visit to Nepal.
NEW
SPECIAL REPRESENTATIVE TAKES UP HIS
DUTIES IN DR CONGO
-
Alan
Doss, the new Special Representative
of the Secretary-General in the
Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC),
arrived in Kinshasa yesterday to
take up his functions. That’s
according to the UN
Mission in that country. Doss, a
UK national, was appointed to the
post by Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon
in October, to replace William Lacy
Swing of the United States.
-
Doss
was until now the
Secretary-General’s Special
Representative in Liberia, where he
served for 2 years. Doss has served
the UN in Thailand, China, Kenya and
Niger, among other postings.
-
The
Kivu Conference on Peace, Security
and Development continues in Goma,
in the northeastern DRC, with
thematic talks and seminars.
The closing plenary session is
expected to take place on January 17th.
LEBANON
FORCE CARRIES OUT FIRE TRAINING EXERCISE
-
The
Field Artillery Group, part of the
Quick Reaction Force of the United
Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL),
today carried out a live fire
training exercise near UNIFIL
Headquarters at Naqoura in southern
Lebanon.
-
Addressing
the media during the exercise,
UNIFIL Force Commander Major General
Claudio Graziano said: “The
exercise is the second of this
nature and is directed at honing the
skills and expertise of the battle
group.”
-
Asked
about a reported rocket incident in
northern Israel, the Spokeswoman
reiterated that on Tuesday, the
Israeli authorities informed the UN
Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL)
that two Katyusha rockets launched
from southern Lebanon hit the
northern Israeli town of Shelomi
early on the morning of 8 January,
causing minor damage to a house but
no injuries. However, the firing of
the rockets was not observed or
detected by UNIFIL.
-
Montas
said that a UNIFIL investigation
team, including forensics and
explosives experts, inspected the
impact site in Shelomi and UNIFIL
patrols combed locations for
potential launching sites. The
investigation continues. She added
that, if it is determined that there
was firing from within Lebanon, the
incident would be a serious
violation of resolution 1701.
OTHER
ANNOUNCEMENTS
SECRETARY-GENERAL
ATTENDS MONTHLY SECURITY COUNCIL
LUNCHEON: Although there are no
Security Council meetings or
consultations scheduled today, the
members of the Council had their monthly
luncheon with the Secretary-General this
afternoon.
U.N.
COMMITMENT TO MIDDLE EAST RESOLUTIONS IS
UNCHANGED: Asked
about comments attributed to U.S.
President George W. Bush regarding the
validity of UN resolutions on the Middle
East, the Spokeswoman said that the
United Nations stands by its resolutions
and its efforts on the Middle East peace
process continue.
MYANMAR
SPECIAL ADVISOR TO VISIT CHINA, INDIA: Asked
about the travels of the
Secretary-General’s Special Adviser,
Ibrahim Gambari, the Spokeswoman said
that he plans to travel this month to
China and India to continue his
discussions with major actors on
Myanmar. Gambari, she added, has a
standing invitation to return to
Myanmar, but there are no dates set for
such a visit.
BAN
KI-MOON TO RECEIVE INTERNAL REPORT ON
ALGIERS ATTACK FRIDAY: Asked
about the report on the Algiers attack,
the Spokeswoman confirmed that the
Secretary-General would receive the
report on Friday and would first study
its conclusions. She stressed that the
report was of the highest importance to
the Secretary General who considers the
security of UN staff as a major
priority.
BAN
KI-MOON RECEIVED NO FORMAL COMMUNICATION
FROM WOULD-BE SEPARATIST NEPALESE
REGION: Asked
whether the Secretary-General was aware
of a demand for independence from
Nepal’s Terai region, the Spokeswoman
said that he had not received any formal
communication on the matter.
U.N.
STAFF MUST ACCEPT NO PAYMENTS, SERVICES
FROM GOVERNMENTS:
Asked whether the Secretary-General is
opposed to UN officials receiving
payment or services from their national
governments, the Spokeswoman affirmed
that was the case.
Office
of the Spokesperson for the
Secretary-General
United Nations, S-378
New York, NY 10017
Tel. 212-963-7162
Fax. 212-963-7055 |
