POINT DE PRESSE DU SERVICE DE L'INFORMATION (en anglais)
Marie Heuzé, the Director of the United Nations Information Service in Geneva, chaired the briefing which also heard from the Spokespersons for the World Health Organisation, the World Meteorological Organization, the United Nations Environment Program, the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe, the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development, the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, the World Food Program, the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, the International Organization for Migration, and the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights.
Commission on Human Rights
The Commission on Human Rights has suspended its work for a second week, and will reconvene on Monday 27 March at 3 p.m., Ms. Heuzé said. The Commission suspended its work by consensus in expectation of a resolution from ECOSOC on how to close the session, as, on 15 March, the General Assembly adopted a resolution on the creation of the new Human Rights Council. The Chairperson of the Commission gave a press conference yesterday, and a transcript was available both in French and in English.
International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination
Today, in an important event for Geneva, was the Commemoration of the International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination. Forty-six years ago, on 21 March, police opened fire and killed 69 people at a peaceful demonstration in Sharpeville, South Africa, against the apartheid "pass laws". The General Assembly created this International Day to commemorate this event and also to act as a warning on every-day discrimination. This year’s theme is “Fighting Everyday Discrimination”, and in the context of the Day, in collaboration with the Office of the High Commissioner on Human Rights, a program including exhibitions, debates, and a number of round tables had been organised over the course of the week between 1 and 3 p.m. Today, in Room 21, a Round Table would be held. Sergei Ordzhonikidze, the Director-General of the United Nations Office at Geneva, would read out the message of UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan. Louise Arbour, the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, and the Chairperson of the sixty-second session of the Commission on Human Rights, Ambassador Manuel Rodriguez Cuadros of Peru, would address the Round Table. It would be moderated by the Chairperson of the Inter-Governmental Working Group on the Effective Implementation of the Durban Declaration and Program of Action, Ambassador Juan Martabit of Chile.
The Round Table would be an opportunity to examine everyday discrimination, in particular among the young and in schools, as, in collaboration with the Government of Geneva, a competition had been held on the theme “The Difference, what is that? Racism, exclusion, prejudice”, and Ms. Arbour would present a prize to the winners.
Conference on Disarmament
The next meeting of the Conference on Disarmament will take place on Thursday 23 March. On 30 March, the Iranian Minister of Foreign Affairs would address the Conference, and a Press Conference was planned at 11 a.m. and would take place in Room III, Ms. Heuzé said.
Secretary-General
Ms. Heuzé said Secretary-General Kofi Annan yesterday said he was pleased that Akbar Ganji, an Iranian journalist, is now free after having served a six-year prison sentence. The Secretary-General wished him good health. In August 2005, the Secretary-General appealed to the Iranian authorities to grant Mr. Ganji’s release on humanitarian grounds following a prolonged hunger strike.
Jose Luis Diaz, Spokesman for the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights said the High Commissioner joined the Secretary-General in welcoming the release of Iranian journalist Akhbar Ganji after having served a 6-year prison sentence. The High Commissioner had also asked the Iranian authorities to release Mr. Ganji last year during his prolonged hunger strike.
Today, the Secretary-General was in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Yesterday, he met Congolese President Denis Sassou-Nguesso, who currently heads the African Union. That meeting was tête-à-tête; they discussed UN reform, the work of the Security Council, and developments in Darfur, Liberia, and Iran, Ms. Heuzé said.
International Days
World Water Day was 22 March, and a number of documents were available on other International Days that were taking place this week, Ms. Heuzé said. The WHO had made available a document on World TB Day, on 24 March, and the message of the Secretary-General on the subject was available. Also, 25 March was the International Day of Solidarity with Imprisoned or Disappeared United Nations Staff Members. On 23 March, the “Journée Internationale de la Francophonie” would be celebrated in Geneva, and WMO would be celebrating World Meteorological Day.
World Health Organization
Fadela Chaib, speaking for the WHO, said the Annual Report on the situation of tuberculosis in the world had been made available to journalists last Friday afternoon. Tomorrow, a press conference would be held in Room 3 at 10:30, at which would be present Dr LEE Jong-wook, WHO Secretary-General, who would summarise the outcomes of the report. He will be accompanied by the Kenyan Minister for Health, Ms. Charity Ngilu, and possibly the Canadian Minister for International Cooperation. Mr. Case Gordon, a tuberculosis activist, and President of the World Care Council, will speak of the situation from the point of view of tuberculosis sufferers. A press release would be available. World TB Day was celebrated every year on 24 March.
On avian flu, there was not much official news. WHO was waiting for Azerbaijani authorities to officially inform it of the results of tests carried out in the United Kingdom, and these were expected either this afternoon, or tomorrow. With regards to Egypt, an update had been made yesterday, and the Minister of Health of Egypt had confirmed the first case of human infection in a woman living near Cairo. Those who had come into contact with the woman did not appear to be infected. There were rumours of other cases, and should they be confirmed, journalists would be informed.
World Meteorological Day
Mark Oliver, speaking for the World Meteorological Organization, said 23 March was World Meteorological Day. The theme this year was Preventing and Mitigating Natural Disasters. The celebration and ceremony related to the event would be at WMO headquarters, beginning at 3 p.m. Sir David King, the Chief Scientific Advisor to the United Kingdom Government, would be the keynote speaker. The WMO Secretary-General Michel Jarraud would also be giving out a message, and there would be an art exhibition by Swiss artist Hans Erni, entitled Forces of Nature. A film called Preparing for a Safer World would be released, and a 2-minute video message was available from UN TV, Yvette Morris and the EBU for journalists to broadcast. Sir David would not be giving any interviews, but Mr. Jarraud would be giving interviews, and the Chief of the Office on Natural Disasters Prevention and Mitigation would also be available.
A press release was coming out later today on the outcome of the First International Flash Floods Workshop in Costa Rica, Mr. Oliver said. Tropical cyclone Larry had been downgraded by the Bureau of Meteorology in Australia, and there had been no fatalities thanks to early warnings and evacuations. Mr. Koji Curiowa was the new Chief of the Tropical Cyclone Division, and could be contacted for questions. Mr. Jarraud was giving a talk at the Press Club on Friday 24 March at midday on climate change and risk management, and would be prepared to answer questions there.
Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs
Elizabeth Byrs, speaking for OCHA, said a revised Humanitarian Appeal had been launched today to seek additional funding to respond to the critical needs of 2.1 million people in Somalia whose already chronically food-insecure and dire humanitarian situation had been further aggravated by the worst drought in a decade. The original appeal, made in November, had been for 174 million USD, it was now for 327 million USD, as the number of people involved had more than doubled. The United Nations had currently 80 million USD to cover the appeal, and had appealed to donor countries to respond as quickly as possible. Around 83% of the increase was for food aid.
Heavy snowfalls and avalanches had affected Kyrgyzstan, and the Government had requested international assistance through NATO’s Euro-Atlantic Disaster Response Coordination Centre, as well as OCHA to meet immediate needs for food and relief items. The Governments of Spain and Slovakia had sent food and non-food items. The Austrian Red Cross and the Baptist Church of Hungary had also sent food. OCHA had provided emergency grants to cover transportation costs for the food.
Tomorrow, at the International Conference Center, Jan Egeland, the Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs, would participate in the launch of the Norwegian Refugee Council’s report on internally displaced persons. A press conference would be held at 10 a.m. in room E at the Conference Center.
A further press release was available on the launch on 23 March of the first manual on how to run negotiations with non-State armed groups.
World Food Program
Christiane Berthiaume for the WFP said in the Palestinian Occupied Territories, the situation was very grave, in particular in the Gaza Strip. Food stocks for the 160 thousand people who depended on WFP food aid to survive were almost exhausted. Worse, the food stocks for the population of Gaza as a whole were exhausted. Some 80% of the population’s food was wheat flour, and there was no flour left. People were relying on their own stocks to survive, but these reserves would only last a few more days. Carni checkpoint had been opened for a brief period on Monday, but had rapidly closed for security reasons, and therefore WFP had not been able to move aid into the region. The total needs for the Gaza Strip, not just humanitarian but also commercial, were for 450 tons of wheat per day. There was an urgent need to regularise the commercial situation of the area in order to provide for the needs of the population, and even a full-time opening of Carni checkpoint would not suffice in this regard.
On Pakistan, at the height of the relief operations, the FAO had operated 28 helicopters, thanks to which the FAO had saved many lives and contributed greatly to the operations. Today, however, it only had 13 helicopters, with a significant reduction in capacity, but these helicopters were needed for many more months, although the FAO was lacking funding to retain them. Some 24 million USD were needed to keep operations moving in the region.
United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees
Jennifer Pagonis for UNHCR said following recent armed attacks in south Sudan, UNHCR had decided to suspend the repatriation of Sudanese refugees from the Central African Republic, Uganda, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo to the Yei, Yambio, Kajo Keji areas of South Sudan and from Tambura. International staff working in these locations in Central and Western Equatoria had been moved out to other areas in South Sudan whilst the situation was reviewed and measures evaluated to ensure the security and safety of staff.
In southern Chad, working with the Chadian authorities, UNHCR had started to screen and register an estimated 2,600 Central African refugees, who had been fleeing their villages following fighting in the Papoua area at the end of January.
There was concern for a group of 89 Palestinians, including 42 children, two elderly and three people with medical problems, who over the weekend had decided to move to the Iraqi-Jordanian border from Baghdad, where they had found their situation becoming increasingly difficult. The group had now been stuck in the harsh desert environment of No Man’s Land between Iraq and Jordan since Sunday 19 March, with little shelter and very few food supplies. UNHCR’s ability to protect and assist these refugees was extremely difficult, due to limited access to the border area.
In Pakistan, over 18,000 people had returned home from earthquake relief camps since these had begun to close on March 10. UNHCR, as lead agency for managing the camps, maintained that returns should be informed and voluntary. The main concerns for returnees was the availability of land, repairing damaged roads, shelter, drinking water, and food in the villages.
The UNHCR Office in Bogota was warning Colombians that people pretending to work for or be associated with UNHCR were running an illegal migration scheme for Colombians wishing to leave the country. Their promises were a scam, and UNHCR was very worried that its name was being used in connection with this. A warning had been issued in the press and on the radio to stress that these people were not connected to the Organization.
Other
Michael Williams, for the United Nations Environment Program, said that the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) had published the quotas for caviar for the Black Sea and lower Danube, but the quotas for the main caviar-producing region, namely the Caspian Sea, had not yet been published. No progress had been made in this area. The CITES Secretariat was going to give a certificate of commendation to the Government of Nepal on Thursday, recognising its efforts to arrest poachers and to stop illegal trade which was a major issue in the Asian region. A phone interview could be organised.
On the Basel Convention on Trade and Hazardous Waste, the next negotiations session would be at the International Conference Center in Geneva from 3 to 7 April, and subjects on the agenda included illegal trade, obsolete ships and pesticides waste, Mr. Williams said.
UNEP would soon have a new Executive Director, Mr. Achim Steiner, who was currently Secretary-General of the World Conservation Union. He would start on 15 June 2006, Mr. Williams said.
Jean-Michel Jakobowicz of the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe said on Thursday in Room 19 the First Global Road Safety Film Festival would take place. A number of films from all parts of the world would be shown on various issues. Prizes would be given for various categories of film.
Catherine Sibut-Pinote for the United Nations Commission for Trade and Development said today a meeting on Trade for Aid was opening, organised by UNCTAD and the Commonwealth Secretariat. Documentation was available, including a document by Nobel Laureate Joseph Stiglitz, who would be attending the meeting, and would be presenting a report in room 16. No press conference would be possible with Mr. Stiglitz.
The Secretary-General of UNCTAD would participate from Sunday and until Wednesday 28 in the Eighth Conference of Signatories to the Convention on Bio-Diversity, which would be held in Brazil. He would be accompanied by the Bio-Trade team.
Jemini Pandya for the International Organization for Migration said on Thursday, IOM was hosting a 2-day seminar on the migration of health workers and the challenges that was posing for both developed and developing countries. This brought together 160 officials from Government and other relevant stakeholders, with the aim of coming up with innovative policies on how to manage this particular aspect of population mobility. This issue of the shortage of health-care workers had been identified as the most critical public health constraint in achieving the Millennium Development Goals, and was also the theme of the WHO’s World Health Day this year on April 7. A briefing would be held on Thursday at 12:30 at which participants in the seminar would speak.
As of today, the IOM had helped 110 families to return to their home villages in Pakistan. It was hoped that once the weather improved that more people would be helped. The focus was on helping the most vulnerable groups, but estimates were that initially 40,000 people would be helped to return between April and October. In Zimbabwe, IOM had launched a travelling roadshow as part of its “Safe Journey multi-media information campaign, aimed at reducing risks for potential migrants and informing citizens on HIV/AIDS prevention and the dangers of irregular migration. In Zambia, a second group of 50 Congolese refugees would leave Lusaka for Britain under the United Kingdom’s pilot Gateway Programme.