REGULAR PRESS BRIEFING BY THE INFORMATION SERVICE

Marie Heuzé, Director of the United Nations Information Service in Geneva, chaired the briefing which was also attended by spokespersons for the United Nations Development Programme, the International Atomic Energy Agency, the World Health Organization, the International Organization for Migration, the UN Refugee Agency, the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs and the United Nations Children’s Fund.

Secretary-General and Iran

Ms. Heuzé said available in the press room was the statement issued by Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon yesterday on Iran in which he said that he was dismayed by the post-election violence, particularly the use of force against civilians, which had led to the loss of life and injuries.

Conference on World Financial and Economic Crisis

Ms. Heuzé said the United Nations Conference on the World Financial and Economic Crisis and Its Impact on Development would be held from 24 to 26 June at Headquarters. A Spokesperson said yesterday that 126 States would be participating in the conference, including 21 Heads of State and Government, 32 Ministers, 27 Vice Ministers and 36 heads of delegation. The complete list of participants was not available yet, nor was the draft outcome document, which would hopefully be adopted by consensus at the end of the conference.

Conference on Disarmament

Ms. Heuzé said the Foreign Minister of France Bernard Kouchner had been scheduled to address the Conference on Disarmament this afternoon at 3 p.m. However, there had been a change of plans and he was no longer coming. The secretariat was discussing with the President of the Conference whether or not to hold a public plenary this afternoon. She would inform journalists as soon as she had confirmation. [It was later announced that there would be no public plenary today, and the next public plenary would be held at 10 a.m. on Thursday, 25 June.]

Charles Aznavour, new Permanent Representative of Armenia

Charles Aznavour would present his letter of credential to the Director-General of UNOG on Friday as Armenia’s Permanent Representative to UNOG and other international organizations in Geneva. Ms. Heuzé said there would be a photo opportunity around 4 p.m. The new Permanent Representative of Italy to UNOG would also be presenting her credentials the same day.

UNAIDS Governing Body

Ms. Heuzé said the Governing Body of UNAIDS was meeting this week at UNAIDS Headquarters in Geneva. The UNAIDS spokesperson would probably come to the Friday briefing.

Panel Discussion on Using Nuclear Technology to Help Solve the World Food Crisis

Adam Rogers of the United Nations Development Programme said that UNDP, in partnership with the Food and Agriculture Organization and the International Atomic Energy Agency, would hold a panel discussion on 2 July on science and food security. In an effort to draw attention to the main ways nuclear technology could help solve the world food crisis, the Geneva liaison offices of the three organizations would hold a discussion and interactive dialogue on science and food security, which would focus on such critical topics as improved crop productivity and preventing live stock diseases. There was some background information at the end of the room which showed how nuclear science and technology was being used to solve some of the world’s challenges. The panel discussion would be held from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. I Room IX of the Palais.

Rita Mazzanti of the International Atomic Energy Agency said the application of nuclear techniques was extremely important in the agricultural and livestock productivity. They were widely used and they were safe. They were usually applied for food radiation and vector control. It was important to inform the world more about these new techniques because they may have a great impact on food security, especially for poor countries and African nations.

Asked if IAEA was providing technical know how to the ongoing field investigation by UNEP in the Gaza strip on possible use of depleted uranium bunker busters, Ms. Mazzanti said she would need to check on this with her colleagues in Vienna.

Ms. Heuzé said she had already contacted UNEP, and they said they were not prepared to answer direct questions, but they would come to speak to journalists.

Mr. Rogers said that at the other end of the nuclear discussion, in some of the eastern States of the former Soviet Union, there were enormous stockpiles of nuclear waste tailings, in particular uranium tailings, including millions and millions of tons of it in holding ponds and in very precarious conditions. To address this issue, a global high-level forum would take place in Room XXV on Monday, 29 June, with high-level delegations coming from these States. The Director-General of the United Nations Office at Geneva, Sergei Ordzhonikidze, would open the forum. A media advisory would be sent out tomorrow.

WHO and Data on Influenza A H1N1

Fadela Chaib of the World Health Organization, in response to a question on the resumption of the Tuesday afternoon briefings on Influenza A H1N1, said there was no briefing today. She would inform journalists when the next briefing would be.

Another journalist said that he had difficulty accessing the WHO website for the latest data and figures on victims of Influenza A H1N1, and Ms. Chaib said that the figures were updated three times a week and she could inform journalists once they were put up.

Irregular Migration of Men from Horn and East Africa to South Africa

Jean-Philippe Chauzy of the International Organization for Migration said a new IOM report on the irregular migration of men from the Horn and East Africa to South Africa had found that increasing numbers of smuggled migrants, particularly from Ethiopia and Somalia, were routinely deceived, abused, exploited and stigmatized by various parties from the moment they left their homes until they reached South Africa, where they might settle or travel further afield to Europe, the United States or Australia. The report, entitled "In Pursuit of the Southern Dream: Victims of Necessity", was based on in-depth interviews carried out by IOM with some 800 individuals, including migrants, community representatives, state officials, members of the civil society and the private sector in seven source, transit and destination countries (Ethiopia, Kenya, Malawi, Mozambique, Republic of South Africa, Tanzania and Zambia). It showed that male migrants regularly suffered from human rights violations at the hands of their smugglers, local criminals, and allegedly, of officials who should be protecting them. These included harassment, beatings, robberies, and in some cases rape. Copies of the report were available at the back of the room, and it would available online at www.iom.int as of noon today.

First Group of African Refugees Depart from Chad for Resettlement in the United States

William Spindler of the UN Refugee Agency said a first group of 11 refugees left the Chadian capital by air on 21 June to be resettled in the United States. The group comprised seven urban refugees from the Democratic Republic of the Congo, three urban Sudanese refugees and one person from the Central African Republic, who had been living in a refugee camp in southern Chad. Throughout this year UNCHR planned to identify a total of 1,800 cases for resettlement, most of them Sudanese refugees from Darfur living in refugee camps in eastern Chad. Chad presently hosted a total of 250,000 Sudanese refugees from Darfur in 12 UNHCR-run camps in the east of the country. In addition, there were 70,000 refugees from the Central African Republic living in five camps in the south of the Country. The United States had so far been the first country to promote resettlement from Chad. The next group was expected to depart from N’Djamena in early July and would mainly consist of Darfur refugees.

Pakistan

Mr. Spindler, responding to a question on UNHCR’s estimate of the number of displaced persons in Pakistan after cross checking figures since the new hostilities in May, said they were now using the figure of 2 million.

Elizabeth Byrs of the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs said the latest information she had from Pakistan was that the Secretary-General’s Special Envoy had visited Pakistan and had called on the international community to finance the UN Appeal for Pakistan which was only covered by 35.5 per cent.

Central African Republic

Ms. Byrs said the United Nations humanitarian mission in the Central African Republic had expressed its deep concern about the spiraling violence in Vakaga, a region in the north east of the country where 60,000 people were in need of help. Dawn attacks on 21 June on the town of Birao had emptied the town of most of its population. Humanitarian personnel had been evacuated after this second major attack on Birao. The first one on 6 June had resulted in 1,500 fleeing their homes due to violence. As of 23 June, the $ 116 million Appeal for the Central African Republic was covered by 41 per cent. On 21 July, there would be a mid-year review of this and other appeals.

Ms. Heuzé said the UN Under-Secretary-General for Political Affairs, Lynn Pasco, told a meeting of the Security Council yesterday that he was convinced that the various challenges facing the peace process in the Central African Republic could be overcome with the continued help of the world body and the country’s international partners.

UNHCR Issues Recommendations to the Swedish EU Presidency

Mr. Spindler said UNHCR has published its recommendations to Sweden for its upcoming European Union Presidency (July to December 2009). UNHCR called on Sweden to use its Presidency to reassert the importance of a rights-based approach to border management and migration control. Recent events, including Italy’s push-backs of boat people, and elections in which anti-immigrant parties scored big gains in a number of European Union countries, gave rise to concern about Europe’s commitment to ensuring access to protection. There was more information in the media notes.



G-8 Summit and Junior-8 Summit – Ombudsmen for Children in Africa

Veronique Taveau of the United Nations Children’s Agency said available was a media advisory concerning the G-8 summit, which would be held in Rome from 5 to 12 July. As in previous years, UNICEF would participate on the sidelines and would organize a J-8, or a junior/8 summit. The focus of this year’s J-8 would be climate change, the financial crisis and poverty in Africa, as they impacted on the lives of children and young people.

Ms. Taveau said a meeting in Bamako was being held on 22 and 23 June to encourage the development of Ombudsmen for children in West Africa. The meeting, which was being jointly organized by UNICEF and the organization internationale de la francophonie, was being held to discuss and identify the most appropriate strategies to develop independent human rights institutions in Francophone Africa at national and sub-regional level.

Geneva Press Conferences

Ms. Heuzé reminded journalists that there would be a press conference by UNCTAD at 11:30 a.m. today, on the presentation of UNCTAD’s Economic Development in Africa Report 2009, in Room III. There would also be a press conference on Wednesday, 24 June at 11 a.m. by the newly elected President of the Human Rights Council, Ambassador Alex Van Meeuwen of Belgium.