REGULAR PRESS BRIEFING BY THE INFORMATION SERVICE

Marie Heuzé, the Director of the United Nations Information Service in Geneva, chaired the briefing which also heard from Spokespersons for and Representatives of the United Nations Children’s Fund, the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, the World Food Programme, the World Health Organization, the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights, and the International Organization for Migration. Representatives from the High Commissioner for Refugees and the ILO were present but had no announcements to make.

Iraq

Ms. Heuzé reminded journalists of the decision taken by the Security Council in New York on Friday in which it renewed and strengthened the mandate of the United Nations Assistance Mission for Iraq (UNAMI) in adopting resolution 1770. A fact sheet was made available. It provides information on recent developments, the mandate, the funding, the achievements, as well as relief aid and humanitarian response.

Responding to a question, the Director explained that there were seven clusters broken down by sectors under which United Nations agencies, Funds and Programmes operated in the country and that the deployment of additional staff would be gradual. In response to a follow up question, she added that the number of international staff in Iraq was expected to reach around 90 by the end of the year.

On a question concerning the United Nations Staff Council action against the deployment of United Nations personnel in Iraq, Ms. Heuzé said that the Secretary-General was very concerned for the security and safety of the staff and that he would take all the necessary measures to ensure their safety and security. He has asked for extra funding to reinforce the security measures for staff in the country.

Somalia

Ms. Heuzé drew attention to the killing of two prominent journalists in Somalia over the weekend and the assassination attempt on a third bringing to six the number of journalists killed this year in the country. In a statement, the United Nations Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator in Somalia, Eric Laroche, strongly condemned the murders and called on all authorities to end impunity for attacks on journalists.

Afghanistan

Ms. Heuzé informed journalists of the statement issued by Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon in which he welcomed the release of two South Korean hostages in Afghanistan yesterday.

CERD

Ms. Heuzé said the Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination was continuing its work this week and would conclude on Friday, 17 August by which time it will have issued concluding observations on the reports examined during this session; namely, Costa Rica, New Zealand, Kyrgyzstan, Mozambique, the Democratic People’s Republic of the Congo, Indonesia, and the Republic of Korea.


Floods in South Asia

Veronique Taveau of the United Nations Children’s Fund said, with regard to Bangladesh, although the rains had stopped, it will take two or three weeks until families will be able to return to their homes. Some 48,000 cases of diarrhea have been detected and so far, given the distribution of oral rehydration packs, there have been no deaths. However, this remained a major source of concern, particularly in the capital and in the region of Dhaka on which we focus. In collaboration with WFP, UNICEF had distributed 90 tons of high protein biscuits (BP5) and another 24 tons should be delivered later this week.

On Nepal, Ms. Taveau reported that temporary shelter, water and food remained essential needs. In the Bardiya region, situated in the western centre of the country, the Red Cross prepared 2,000 mosquito nets provided by UNICEF for immediate distribution. Additionally, UNICEF produced and broadcast information over 10 radio stations in the country’s four regional languages, regarding the necessity of water purification in order to avoid the risks of a water related disease epidemic. With schools resuming this week, UNICEF, WFP and Save the Children were conducting a joint mission in order to evaluate the impact of these floods on education.

With regard to India, the UNICEF Spokesperson reported that the floods have affected some 24 million people, of whom 3 million were children under the age of 5. With a total of 14 million people being affected by the floods, the Bihar region was hit the most severely. UNICEF’s priority was to avoid all risks of epidemic and help the population in the reconstruction of their lives as soon as possible. This also covered the return to school of those children affected by the floods. Over the course of the last two days, UNICEF distributed rehydration packs, water jerry cans and water purification packs to the afflicted population. Furthermore, a massive vaccination campaign against chicken pox, aimed at children under 10, has been conducted. UNICEF appointed medical teams in 10 districts, which have examined 21,000 people over the last three days. UNICEF estimates that for aid and reconstruction $5 million will be necessary until the end of the year. Of this sum, 3 million will be directed on those affected in Bihar. These sums were destined to cover health, nutrition, water, purification, education and children protection needs.

Sudan floods

Reporting on the Sudan floods, Elisabeth Byrs of the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, told journalists that estimates indicated that at least 365,000 people have been directly affected by the floods in form of a total or partial loss of their home, household goods or food stocks. Over 30,000 homes have been completely destroyed, leaving at least 150,000 homeless and another 40,000 homes, inhabited by 100,000 people, have been seriously damaged. Funding totalling $4.76 million had been secured from the Common Humanitarian Fund (CHF), and was now in the process of being disbursed to agencies. Funding had so far been allocated for 15 projects managed by four UN agencies and five NGOs. Preliminary estimates suggested that the number of people in need of food assistance may swiftly rise. As sanitation and clean water were chief priorities, the total number of reported cases of acute watery diarrhoea in Gedaref and Kassala alone had reached 691, leading to 48 known deaths, with a case fatality rate of nearly 7%.

Responding to a question on the response of the World Health Organization to the Sudan floods, Fadela Chaib of the WHO informed journalists that medical supplies had been pre-positioned in several locations throughout the country to address the needs of flood victims. While the WHO reported that cases of acute watery diarrhoea have stabilized in southern Sudan, throughout the country there were some 9,600 reported cases and 396 known deaths. Together with the Sudanese Ministry of Health, the WHO had prepared a plan to prevent further outbreaks of diarrhoea in the country.

Burundi

Simon Pluess of the World Food Programme announced that the WFP, together with the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, appealed to donors today to support an increased food assistance package to help the 149,000 Burundian refugees in camps in Tanzania to return home. Since April this year, WFP has provided a four-month food ration to Burundian refugees returning from Tanzania. WFP has warned that unless new contributions arrive now it will have to cut rations to everyone they assist or face a complete break in supplies in December putting the return rations and food assistance for some 815,000 people in Burundi in jeopardy. WFP urgently needed $20 million to continue its work in the country. The agency reported that the security situation in Burundi had improved significantly, and refugees say that with improved food security the prospects of returning refugees were much better. Since 2002, more than 340,000 refugees have returned voluntarily to Burundi. In addition to some 110,000 Congolese refugees, the 149,000 Burundian refugees live in camps in northwestern Tanzania where they receive assistance from UNHCR and WFP.

In response to a question on the moves by the Tanzanian Government for the refugees to return to Burundi, Jennifer Pagonis of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees said it was not a question of deportation but rather one where the host government felt the situation in Burundi was now peaceful and therefore encouraged the refugees to return home. Mr. Pluess recalled that Tanzania was currently hosting around 500,000 refugees in total.

Human Rights report on transitional justice in Northern Uganda

Yvon Edoumou of the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights announced that the High Commissioner had today released a new study on transitional justice in Northern Uganda. The report, entitled "Making Peace Our Own: Victims Perceptions of Accountability, Reconciliation and Transitional justice in Northern Uganda", detailed the perception of victims on these three critical human rights issues. The report highlighted the fact that the communities held both the Lords Resistance Army and the Government responsible for the harm, trauma, neglect and other rights violations endured during the conflict and believe they should be held accountable for their crimes. The 80-page study pointed to varying perceptions regarding which mechanism can best deliver truth and compensation for the victims, both of which were consistently identified as the principal transitional justices needs of the communities. Similarly, perceptions on the virtues of amnesty, domestic prosecution, views on the International Criminal Court and local or national practices were greatly mixed among the victims. The desire to prevent impunity was however consistently present amongst affected communities. OHCHR conducted the study from January to June 2007, with the participation of 1,725 victims of the conflict in various regions throughout Northern Uganda. Interviews were also conducted with 39 key informants to provide a degree of cultural interpretation of responses from the focus groups.

Indonesia

Jean-Philippe Chauzy of the International Organization for Migration reported on a new IOM survey which indicated that in Aceh Province small businesses, farms, and fisheries established by former combatants were thriving. Since July 2006, IOM, with funding from Japan, had helped almost 5,000 former combatants and amnestied political prisoners to set-up successful small businesses, through its ten Information, Counseling and Referral Services (ICRS) strung across Aceh. IOM's recent random survey of 100 ex-combatants found the average monthly income earned from these businesses was well above Aceh's mandated minimum monthly wage of IDR 850,000 ($90). In East Aceh ex-combatants assisted by IOM were earning an average of IDR 990,000 ($105) per month, while in South Aceh, respondents' average income was IDR 1,800,000 ($192) per month.