DR CONGO: UN ENVOY SAYS COUNTRY SHOULD BE READY TO HOLD SUCCESSFUL POLLS
NEXT MONTH
The Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) should have all the necessary
financial, logistical and security elements in place to successfully stage
the run-off round of landmark presidential elections next month, the senior
United Nations envoy to the country said today.
Speaking to reporters after briefing the Security Council at UN
Headquarters in New York, the Secretary-General's Special Representative
William Lacy Swing said the UN Organization in the DRC, known as MONUC, is
in the midst of "a very complex operation" to prepare the vast African
country for the polls.
About 1200 tons of electoral kits have already been transported and 25-28
million ballot papers have also been distributed to regional bases, he
said.
Using more than 60 helicopters, or travelling by bicycle, foot or canoe,
MONUC staff will then help election officials deliver the ballot papers and
electoral kits to some 50,000 polling stations around the country.
On 29 October the Congolese will go to the polls to elect either current
President Joseph Kabila or Vice-President Jean-Pierre Bemba as their next
President after the two scored highest in the first round on 30 July.
Elections will also be held for members of the DRC's provincial assemblies,
who will then have the task of appointing senators to the national
parliament, as well as all the regional governors.
The polls on 30 July were the first free and fair elections staged in the
DRC in more than 40 years and represent the most complex
electoral-assistance programme ever undertaken by the UN.
Mr. Swing was briefing Council members today on the contents of
Secretary-General Kofi Annan's latest report on MONUC, in which he called
for the Mission's mandate to be extended until February.
* * *
LEBANON: UN FORCE TENDS TO HUMANITARIAN NEEDS FOLLOWING ISRAELI-HIZBOLLAH
CONFLICT
The newly reinforced United Nations peacekeeping force in southern Lebanon
has taken on a humanitarian dimension, clearing roads, treating the sick
and distributing water although this in not its primary function, with
individual contributing battalions often bearing the additional cost
themselves.
Since it received its expanded mandate in Security Council Resolution 1701
on 14 August to supervise the end to 34 days of fighting between Israel and
Hizbollah, the UN Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) has cleared thousands
of metres of roads, collected and destroyed some 3,500 unexploded devices,
distributed more than 1.7 million litres of water and provided medical and
dental treatment to over 3,000 civilians.
"Humanitarian assistance is not the primary function of UNIFIL and we do
not have the financial recourses for these activities; most of the work is
funded by the battalions themselves," Force Commander Maj.-General Alain
Pellegrini said today. "However, the people of South Lebanon have been
relying to a large extent on us for this kind of help. Therefore, UNIFIL is
doing everything it can to meet the needs of the people."
Maj. Acharya Mamta is working for the Indian Battalion as a Medical Officer
providing support to 20 local clinics in the north-eastern part of South
Lebanon. "We are treating all kinds of diseases," he said. "Medical
treatment is very expensive for many people here and they often rely on the
assistance of UNIFIL."
UNIFIL also provides veterinary care. "Many farmers had to leave their
cattle during the war," veterinary doctor Lt. Col. Parasanali Bapu said.
"Animals that survived are suffering from different diseases and wounds.
Peoples' livelihood depends on these animals and UNIFIL is here to provide
help free of charge," he added.
"We will continue our humanitarian work and I am personally involved in
relaying to the new contingents on how important our assistance is to this
long-suffering area," Maj.-General Pellegrini stressed.
A Lebanese Armed Forces (LAF) helicopter landed at UNIFIL's base at Naqoura
yesterday for the first time since the establishment of the force, carrying
the Lebanese delegation for a meeting with Force Commander Major-General
Alain Pellegrini.
* * *
STRESSING USE OF TECHNOLOGY FOR DEVELOPMENT, ANNAN CALLS FOR A 'NETWORK OF
NETWORKS'
United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan today called for the vision of
a global information society to be transformed into reality, stressing the
need to use technology for development and urging a new international
alliance to build a "network of networks" to harness high-tech innovations
for the benefit of everyone.
Mr. Annan made his remarks in a speech to the recently formed Global
Alliance for Information and Communication Technologies and Development
(GAID), which was launched in Malaysia in June as a means of utilizing new
technologies to fight poverty and promote development.
"We must translate the vision of a truly global information society into
reality… The Alliance's Strategy Council has identified four priority
areas: health, education, poverty reduction through enterprise creation,
and citizens' participation in governance," he told the group's high-level
Steering Committee at today's meeting in New York.
"The Alliance will… have the flexibility to encourage additional
organizations and individuals to participate. The idea is to develop a
decentralized 'network of networks' on a global scale, so that the Alliance
can draw in the relevant stakeholders, particularly as new issues emerge."
He said the group's success will hinge on several factors, including its
ability to formulate clear and attainable objectives, to operate with
transparency and accountability and to work with a broad group of
participants, and he commended its initial efforts, particularly
recognition of the special challenges facing women, youth and marginalized
groups.
The Alliance's Steering Committee brings together senior figures from
government, as well as people from the fields of business, media and civil
society. It includes Jamaludin Jarjis, Malaysia's Minister of Science,
Technology and Innovation, while the chairman is Craig Barrett, who also
holds the same position for semiconductor giant Intel.
"The challenge for the Alliance is relatively straightforward but certainly
not simple - it's really to bring the information and communication
technologies and resultant development associated with the introduction of
those technologies to the emerging worlds, the emerging marketplaces," Dr.
Barrett told reporters before the meeting.
* * *
INDEPENDENT UN HUMAN RIGHTS EXPERT HIGHLIGHTS SERIOUS TRANSGRESSIONS IN DPR
KOREA
Painting a grim picture of the human rights situation in the Democratic
People's Republic of Korea (DPRK), an independent United Nations expert
today highlighted egregious transgressions involving the rights to food and
life, humane treatment and a host of other freedoms in a report given to
the Human Rights Council.
Vitit Muntarbhorn, the Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights
in the DPRK, said that the State had declined to cooperate with him and had
not invited him to the country, while the North Korean representative who
also spoke during today's debate flatly denied all findings in the report.
The situation in the country provides a continuing cause for concern -
there are still many transgressions and discrepancies of an egregious
nature, which require effective redress, Mr. Muntarbhorn said, according to
a press release from the Council.
Specific concerns raised in this report include women's rights,
particularly violence against women; children's rights, particularly to
protection and participation; the rights of older persons/the elderly; the
rights of those with disabilities; and ethnic issues, he continued.
In response, Choe Myong Nam said the DPRK resolutely rejected the report,
adding that the country was a target of a "human rights offensive" by the
United States, which wanted to dominate the whole Korean peninsula. He said
Japan had also been fanatical in its clamour against the country.
Representatives from 10 other countries also made statements during the
debate, before the 47-member Council went on to discuss reports on Burundi,
the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), and Myanmar.
Akich Okola, Independent Expert on the human rights situation in Burundi,
said the new Government had made commendable strides in the area of social
and economic rights and had also satisfactorily resolved the issue of
political prisoners. However, the overall human rights situation remained
of deep concern, he said.
Human rights violations still continued on a daily basis due to the culture
of impunity, widespread poverty, and the weakness of the culture of human
rights in general, Mr. Okola said, adding that the most violated rights
were those to life, physical integrity, safety and inviolability of the
person, opinion and expression, and property.
In response, Francoise Ngendahayo of Burundi said elected democratic
institutions had only been operating for a year and the period was
relatively short to make an objective evaluation of the actions of the
Government and in particular of the human rights situation.
The socio-economic situation of the country should also be considered as 12
years of civil war had destroyed the infrastructure, devalued the currency
by diminishing the purchasing power of the population, and also destroyed
social, moral and human values, the representative added. Six other
countries also made related statements.
Turning to the DRC, the report of the Independent Expert on the situation
of human rights, Titinga Frederic Pacere, was considered in his absence.
The report highlighted that the human rights situation continues to be a
matter of concern throughout the country, but especially in the eastern
regions and in northern Katanga, where militias and other armed groups are
committing atrocities.
In response, Marie Madeleine Kalala requested that the Independent Expert
visit the DRC in the next few days to see the changes on the ground in a
number of key areas.
Paulo Sergio Pinheiro, Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights
in Myanmar, said that he had not been permitted to conduct a fact-finding
mission to the country since November 2003. He said grave human rights
violations were taking place not only with impunity but authorized by the
sanction of law, adding that the criminalization of the exercise of
fundamental freedoms by political opponents, human rights defenders and
victims of human rights abuses was a matter of grave concern.
Responding, U Nyunt Maung Shein said that although there were many
contentious chapters in the report that Myanmar could argue against, time
constraints would allow him to take up only a few cases to shed light on
the truth, especially regarding forced labour.
In particular, he contradicted the report's view that relations between
Myanmar and the International Labour Organization were deteriorating,
saying there had been positive developments and two persons mentioned in
the report in this connection - Su Su Nway and Aye Myint - had been
released from prison.
He also said the perception that there were vast violations of human rights
was not accurate and entirely based on information collected from a few
remaining insurgent groups confined to border areas and foreign-funded
expatriates with a hidden political agenda.
Representatives from 11 countries made statements before the Council
discussed a report from Arjun Sengupta, Independent Expert on the question
of human rights and extreme poverty, which highlighted that poverty existed
in most countries as a failure of social action.
This second session of the Council, set up earlier this year to replace the
much-criticized Commission on Human Rights, opened on 18 September and will
run until 6 October.
* * *
BOSNIAN SERB LEADER JAILED FOR 27 YEARS AFTER UN TRIBUNAL CONVICTS HIM OF
WAR CRIMES
The United Nations war crimes tribunal for the former Yugoslavia today
sentenced a former Bosnian Serb political leader to 27 years' jail after
convicting him of crimes against humanity for his role in the 1990s
conflict in the Balkans.
The International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY) found
Momcilo Krajišnik guilty of persecutions, extermination, murder,
deportation and the forced transfer of non-Serb civilians. But the court,
which is based in The Hague in the Netherlands, acquitted him of genocide,
complicity in genocide and one count of murder.
The Tribunal heard that Mr. Krajišnik was part of a joint criminal
enterprise between July 1991 and December 1992 that aimed to reduce the
population of Bosnian Muslims and Bosnian Croats within Bosnia and
Herzegovina.
The joint enterprise included the former Yugoslav President Slobodan
Miloševic, the notorious paramilitary leader Željko Ražnatovic (aka
'Arkan') and the former Bosnian Serb President Radovan Karadžic, who
remains at large today.
Mr. Krajišnik, 61, was a senior Bosnian Serb political figure during the
1990s, serving variously as President of the Bosnian Serb Assembly and a
member of the Expanded Presidency of the "Serbian Republic of Bosnia and
Herzegovina."
The three judges hearing the case found that he gave the go-ahead for the
programme of ethnic cleansing during a session of the Bosnian Serb
Assembly. Although the initial plan was confined to deportations and forced
transfers, the court said the evidence showed it soon extended to murder
and persecution.
"Immense suffering was inflicted upon the victims in this case, and the
consequences that the crimes have had on the Muslim and Croat ethnic groups
in Bosnia-Herzegovina are profound. The crimes were committed over a long
period of time, often through brutal methods, with hatred or appalling lack
of concern," according to a summary of the judgement.
The judges hearing the case were Alphons Orie (presiding) of the
Netherlands, Spain's Joaquín Martín Canivell and Claude Hanoteau of France.
In a separate ruling, the ICTY dismissed appeals by Ivica Marijacic and
Markica Rebic against an earlier judgement which found them guilty of
contempt of court.
In March the Tribunal ruled that Mr. Marijacic, a journalist with a weekly
Zagreb publication, and Mr. Rebic, the former head of Croatia's Security
Information Service, deliberately disclosed information about the testimony
of a witness during a closed session. The appeals chamber affirmed the
ruling and the fine of 15,000 euros each.
* * *
AT GENERAL ASSEMBLY DEBATE, SPEAKERS PRAISE UN REFORMS BUT URGE FURTHER
ACTION
As the General Assembly continued its annual debate today, speakers voiced
support for measures that have been taken to strengthen the United Nations
while calling for further reforms to enable the Organization to meet the
challenges ahead.
"Even sceptics cannot deny that the UN in 2006 is profoundly different from
the UN 10 years ago," said Alexandr Vondra, the Foreign Minister of the
Czech Republic, noting that many reform projects were carried out although
some, including the "long-overdue reform of the Security Council" were not.
If the UN could succeed in management reform, it will become "stronger,
leaner, less bureaucratic and more operational," he said. "Let us hope that
these changes will be backed by the adoption of a new and fair scale of
assessments, by adequate budget and payment discipline, and, last but not
least, by progress in implementing the Capital Master Plan" for overhauling
the UN's dilapidated Headquarters complex.
Anders Lidén, Sweden's Ambassador said the High-level Panel on UN
System-wide Coherence provides "a unique opportunity to revitalize the
support of the United Nations to the developing countries."
This, said, will ultimately serve those States where the Organization
operates. "If the UN can become more effective at the country level, it
will be able to mobilize more resources and ensure that they will reach the
countries in need."
Representing the Observer Mission of the Holy See, Archbishop Giovanni
Lajolo, President of the Governatorate of the Vatican City State, voiced
support for reforms that have already been carried out, such as the
creation of a new Peacebuilding Commission and Human Rights Council, while
stressing the need for further changes.
"The need to improve the system for effective humanitarian interventions in
catastrophes brought on by war, civil conflict and ethnic strife will be an
important test of the UN reform agenda," he said.
Also addressing the Assembly today, Gilles Noghčs, the head of Monaco's
delegation, said the Principality's Princess Stéphanie would soon be
designated as a Special Representative of the Joint UN Programme on
HIV/AIDS. This "will further reinforce her commitment to the battle against
this terrible pandemic affecting more and more women," he said.
* * *
ETHIOPIA SAYS ERITREA BREACHED SECURITY COUNCIL RESOLUTIONS ON BORDER
DISPUTE
Eritrea must withdraw its troops from the temporary security zone along its
border with Ethiopia and renounce the use of force to resolve the conflict
between the two nations before genuine dialogue to solve that dispute can
begin, Ethiopia's Ambassador Negash Kebret told the General Assembly today.
Mr. Kebret said that Eritrea has breached several Security Council
resolutions and the Algiers Peace Agreement between the two countries by
maintaining its armed forces in the zone, which was created by the UN
Mission in Eritrea and Ethiopia (UNMEE) as a demilitarized area.
He said Eritrea has also repeatedly engaged in "flagrant restrictions
against UNMEE," preventing the Mission from carrying out its mandate and
arresting or detaining several of its personnel.
"Eritrea should behave as a responsible State and resolve any dispute
through diplomatic means. Eritrea has to understand that this is its only
option. Its continued dangerous tactics of brinkmanship against many actors
in the international community should not be acceptable."
Mr. Kebret said Ethiopia has been willing to hold talks with Eritrea "and
has attended in good faith the meetings convened by the Boundary
Commission," and yet Eritrea has issued ultimatums and refused to
participate in Commission meetings.
"Eritrea's strategic goal is neither peace nor a peaceful common boundary.
What it wishes to have is [an] interminable boundary problem with
Ethiopia."
* * *
CAMEROON HAILS UN FOR HELPING IT SETTLE BORDER DISPUTE WITH NIGERIA
The Ambassador of Cameroon today credited the United Nations - and
especially Secretary-General Kofi Annan - for helping it to achieve a
peaceful settlement to the border dispute it had with Nigeria and renewed
his country's commitment to carrying it out.
The Greentree Agreement of 12 June resulted in the withdrawal of Nigerian
troops from areas deemed to be part of Cameroon by a 2002 ruling of the
International Court of Justice (ICJ). Thanking the UN, Mr. Annan and
supportive countries, Ambassador Martin Belinga Eboutou renewed Cameroon's
commitment to the pact.
"In particular, I would like to give the guarantee that those of the
Nigerian nationals currently living in Bakassi and who are wiling to remain
there will enjoy the same treatment as the 4.5 million Nigerians living in
Cameroon who carry out their activities in safe conditions, perfect harmony
and fraternity with Cameroonian Nationals," he said in an address to the
General Assembly's annual debate.
He added that the process had demonstrated that a final settlement cannot
be imposed. "A true and lasting peace is built up through patience and
moderation that can derive only from a real and shared political will."
Youssouf Bakayoko, the Foreign Minister of Côte d'Ivoire, which has been
divided between the Government-controlled south and the rebel-held north
since 2002, said the country is moving forward but requires continued
international support.
He welcomed the indispensable help of the UN, African Union, the Economic
Community of West African States (ECOWAS), the European Union and friendly
countries, adding: "My delegation invites all to continue their support for
the Ivorian Government and people in their quest to achieve a definitive
solution to this unprecedented crisis."
Also addressing the Assembly today, the Ambassador of Cape Verde, Maria De
Fatima Lima Da Veiga, said that with international help, her country had
seen improvements in its social and economic indicators in its 30 years
since independence. It had also agreed to the pilot creation of a framework
of common action for UN programmes, agencies and funds operating there in a
bid to improve efficiency.
Ambassador Phesheya Mbongeni Dlamini of Swaziland voiced appreciation for
the UN's support, in particular in advancing the constitutional process.
"This is a costly but worthwhile exercise and we are grateful to the United
Nations for the assistance and support that has been made available to us,"
he said.
At the same time, Mr. Dlamini pointed out that Swaziland still faces
numerous challenges and said its people are encouraged "to be in
partnerships with foreign direct investors in joint ventures to develop our
nation."
* * *
SMALL ISLAND STATES DISCUSS TRADE, ENVIRONMENT AND COLLECTIVE ACTION DURING
UN DEBATE
The lack of progress during recent global trade negotiations, the threat
posed by climate change and the value of countries finding multilateral
solutions to problems were among the key themes as ministers from six small
island States addressed the United Nations General Assembly today.
Speaking on the final day of the high-level debate, Trinidad and Tobago's
Ambassador Philip Sealy called for the resumption of the Doha Round of
trade talks, which collapsed earlier this year, while ensuring that
development is given appropriate attention during any fresh negotiations.
"It is crucial that global trade rules be enhanced in recognition of the
need for treatment to be accorded to small economies that would take
cognizance of their special circumstances, and allow them to participate in
world trade in a manner commensurate with their national capacity to do
so," he said.
Echoing that theme, Timothy Harris, Minister of Foreign Affairs,
International Trade, Industry and Commerce for Saint Kitts and Nevis, said
he was concerned that the needs of small island developing States were
being overlooked or downplayed in favour of other issues.
Citing the work of the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) in helping his country
adjust to changes in the international sugar industry, he called for more
partnerships for development within regional groups and between nations.
Justin Simon, Attorney-General of Antigua and Barbuda, voiced concern about
climate change and the impact of natural disasters, such has hurricanes and
tsunamis, on small island countries.
"My country's Government feels that a review of existing international
disaster relief funds and an increase in the amount of financial resources
made available are necessary for the elimination of this sad state of
economic vulnerability of so many nations," he said.
Tuvalu's Ambassador Enele Sosene Sopoaga said that in recent years there
has been unusual flooding of his country's main islands, perhaps because of
rising sea levels caused by climate change.
"We are frightened, and worried. And we cannot think of another Tuvalu to
move to - all by the actions of others - if nothing is done urgently and we
are forced out of our islands. There is still time to act," he said.
Ruben Zackhras, Vice Speaker of the Marshall Islands, raised the issue of
the United States' nuclear weapons testing programme, which took place in
his country before it became independent in 1986.
Calling on the UN and its Member States to examine this issue more closely,
Mr. Zackhras said "our people have paid a disproportionate sacrifice for
helping the world understand the power of the nuclear bomb. We have paid
with our own lives, our health, and the well-being of our land and waters
that are so sacred to us."
Turning to the subject of migration, Tonga's Chargé d'Affaires Mahe
'Uli'Uli Tupouniua quoted a World Bank study revealing the benefits that
migrants provide to sender countries when they remit some income to their
families.
Mr. Tupouniua said the study showed that for countries such as Tonga,
remittances help to improve income distribution and alleviate poverty in
sender States, as well as induce higher savings, stimulate business
activities and promote increased investment in education.
* * *
STATES ARE MORE WILLING TO WORK TOGETHER AGAINST TERRORISM, BUT LOOPHOLES
REMAIN: UN
Member States are now more willing than ever to "band together" to prevent
the movement of terrorists and their supporters across borders, but
unpoliced frontiers and forged documents still allow such travel, a United
Nations team said in a new report released today.
The 51-page document is the fifth report by a team of experts set up to
monitor and support sanctions against Al-Qaida and the Taliban and
associated individuals and entities, and it covers a wide range of
measures, including travel bans, an arms embargo and financial restrictions
set up following various Security Council resolutions on the issue.
"The Team has seen an increasing willingness of States to band together to
prevent the movement of terrorists and their supporters across borders, and
these efforts have made a difference. But at the same time, there is no
doubt that listed persons continue to travel and the problems of unpoliced
borders, and widely available stolen, falsified or forged documents remain
persistent and difficult to address," the report states.
"The Team continues to believe that the arms embargo should take into
account the evolution in terrorists' tactics in order to address the threat
posed by listed individuals and entities. States need a clearer definition
of their obligations under the arms embargo in order to better implement
this sanction and to make it more effective."
Another widespread frustration among States, the report highlights, is a
lack of proper knowledge and understanding of the nature of the threat and
the best way to deal with it, citing in particular the "transnational
nature of Al-Qaida and the subversive appeal of its message leave many
States at a loss."
To counter this, the Team, which undertook various field visits for the
report, brought together groups of very senior intelligence and security
officials and also contacted many others to try to identify new measures
and actions that the Security Council Committee dedicated to this issue
could consider.
A list of individuals and entities that the Committee agrees are members of
or associated with Al-Qaida, Usama Bin Laden and the Taliban is at the
centre of the sanctions regime and its efficient distribution is vital to
successful implementation, the report stresses. As of the end of July, this
list - known as the Consolidated List - had 478 entries: 142 individuals
and one entity associated with the Taliban, and 213 individuals and 122
entities associated with Al-Qaida.
As well as focusing on the need to make the various sanctions more
effective and relevant to the threat, the Team's report also calls for
improving procedures for adding and removing names from the Consolidated
List, as well as the need to increase the involvement of as wide a range of
UN Member States as possible.
"Over the last six months Al-Qaida, Usama Bin Laden and the Taliban have
made some gains and suffered some losses. The violence in Afghanistan has
increased considerably, and there has been no let up in Iraq, with
Al-Qaida's contribution remaining disproportionate to its size."
"But there have also been deaths and arrests. Ahmad Fadil Nazal
Al-Khalayleh (also known as Abu Musab Al-Zarqawi), killed in Iraq in June,
and Shamil Basayev, killed in Ingushetia, Russian Federation, in July, both
on the Consolidated List, were key leaders… There have been many arrests
and disrupted plots, only some of which have been announced publicly.
Despite warnings by Al-Qaida of major imminent attacks against Western
countries, none has occurred, at least not yet."
* * *
THAILAND PROMISES SWIFT RETURN TO DEMOCRACY DURING ADDRESS TO UN DEBATE
Thailand will end martial law and return soon to democracy and, in the
meantime, its interim constitution will provide full protection of civil
liberties, the country's Permanent Representative to the United Nations
told the General Assembly today, a week after a coup took place in the
South-East Asian nation.
Khunying Laxanachantorn Laohaphan told the Assembly's annual high-level
debate that he was grateful that last week's events had been peaceful and
that "the situation has returned to normal within hours."
Promising that Thailand "will emerge as a stronger and more vibrant
democracy," Mrs. Laohaphan said the military leadership will ensure there
is "a swift return to democracy with a definite timeline.
"An interim constitution will be promulgated in the coming days, with the
military being placed under the constitution once more. This interim
constitution will provide full guarantees for civil liberties and rights
under the supervision of the National Human Rights Commission," she said.
Mrs. Laohaphan said a civilian government is likely to be installed within
days, followed by the end of martial law, the start of constitutional
reform and eventually general elections within the next 12 months.
"It is the hope of the Thai people that as a result of constitutional
reform, independent organizations to be re-established under the new
constitution will become more effective in carrying out their tasks in
checking and monitoring the work of the executive branch of government."
Former Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra had been scheduled to address the
high-level debate last week, but his appearance was cancelled following the
coup.
Meanwhile, Timor-Leste's Minister for Foreign Affairs, José Luis Guterres,
told the Assembly earlier today that his Government was making progress on
its programme to establish security, reform defence institutions, reconcile
conflicting groups and promote good governance and economic development
following the deadly violence that swept the country earlier this year.
"As political leaders of a young nation we acknowledge that not all
decisions made were right and some created discontentment and were the
source of demonstrations in April, May, June and July of this year," he
said.
Mr. Guterres said the Government will conduct a national dialogue "to
recapture the confidence lost by our State institutions" during the unrest,
adding it is also proceeding with reform of the national police force.
He added that Prime Minister José Ramos-Horta yesterday met with
representatives of armed forces members who were dismissed earlier this
year - in the move that sparked much of the violence - "to once again find
a solution which is in conformity with the laws of Timor-Leste and is
acceptable to the various parties involved in this situation."
* * *
TOURISM IS KEY WAY TO BRING WEALTH FROM RICHEST TO POOREST COUNTRIES - UN
Marking World Tourism Day, the United Nations today highlighted the major
role the industry plays in combating poverty in developing countries.
"Tourism is now well recognized as one of the key ways to bring wealth and
experience from the richest to the poorest countries," UN World Tourism
Organization (UNWTO) Secretary General Francesco Frangialli said in a
message.
The agency released an e-booklet on its website underlining tourism's
multifaceted role in promoting development, from its role as the world's
largest service sector to the part it plays in establishing contacts,
recognizing diversity and practicing tolerance.
It
notes that tourism is bigger than cars, agriculture or electronics;
thatit generates $800 billion a year in international tourist spending
- a sum
that will more than double by 2020; and that it creates millions of jobs,
both directly in transport, restaurant lodging and travel firms and
indirectly in agriculture, commerce and manufacturing.
Tourism represents 40 per cent of global service trade and 6 per cent of
total world trade and over the past decade grew in the poorest 49 countries
at six times the rate of Europe.
The 150-member UNWTO, a specialized UN agency, is the leading international
organization in the field of tourism, serving as a global forum for tourism
policy issues and practical source of tourism know-how.
* * *
EL NIńO WEATHER PATTERN NOW LIKELY INTO 2007, UN METEOROLOGICAL AGENCY
FORECASTS
A weak to moderate El Nińo is now likely, persisting into early next year,
according to the latest United Nations forecast on the weather pattern that
periodically disrupts the Pacific area with consequences that can range
from increased rainfall and floods in the United States and Peru to drought
and brush fires in Australia.
But the UN World Meteorological Organization (WMO) warned against trying to
predict any possible impact at this early stage from the phenomenon, which
is caused in part by a warming of the waters of the tropical Pacific and
its effect on the trade winds.
"Climate patterns across the equatorial Pacific over the last one to two
months have developed a notable tendency toward El Nińo conditions," WMO
said in its update bulletin, although it cautioned that at this stage there
is a small possibility that it might not materialize.
"However, it may be noted that El Nińo conditions, once established at this
time of the year, almost always persist until early the following year,"
WMO added.
It called for additional caution, in view of the evolving situation, in
forecasting the impact in those regions typically affected by El Nińo, with
the situation expected to become clearer in the next month or two.
It noted that although sea-surface temperatures (SSTs) are not yet at
uniformly warm levels typical of El Nińo across the whole central and
eastern equatorial Pacific, conditions in the eastern equatorial Pacific
close to the South American coast became warm toward the end of July.
During August, oceanic and atmospheric patterns in the central and western
equatorial Pacific also began to resemble conditions typical of an early
stage of El Nińo. In the central equatorial Pacific, SSTs became more than
one degree Celsius warmer than normal, while at the same time there was a
weakening of the trade winds.
It is very likely that sea-surface temperatures in the central and eastern
equatorial Pacific will in general be warmer than normal through the
remainder of the year and into early 2007, the bulletin said.
"The development of a basin-wide El Nińo event is considered likely based
on expert interpretation of the prevailing situation and the general
consistency of forecast models," it added.
* * *
INEQUITABLE HEALTH CARE RIFE IN THE AMERICAS, ACCORDING TO NEW UN REPORT
Unequal access to services and disparities between rural and urban areas
continue to mar the health systems in North and South America and the
Caribbean, according to the latest United Nations report on the issue.
"The search for equity in health is one of the main objectives," Pan
American Health Organization (PAHO) Director Mirta Roses said in presenting
her annual report to the organization's 47th Directing Council currently
meeting in Washington.
The report focuses on closing the gaps in health in the least protected
populations in the Americas, especially in areas where poverty is highly
concentrated in relation to disadvantaged groups such as women, children,
indigenous populations, young people and the elderly.
"In far too many countries, unnecessary poor health conditions persist" and
evidence shows there are a number of cost-effective interventions to
improve health conditions, PAHO's former Director George Alleyne told the
region's Health Ministers today.
Dr. Alleyne is an editor of the Disease Control Priorities project, which
deals with such issues as tobacco use, cardiovascular disease, maternal and
newborn mortality, and the reduction of infectious diseases, such as TB,
malaria and HIV/AIDS.
The Western hemisphere continues to show inequities in resource allocation
and the design and implementation of health policies, according to PAHO,
which is the regional office for the Americas of the UN World Health
Organization (WHO).
The report notes advances in policy making and strengthening operating
capacity, and outlines examples of progress in reaching disadvantaged
groups such as pregnant mothers and newborns, strengthening primary care
and broadening access to health and nutrition, and protecting the health of
children and adolescents and preventing youth violence.
Other initiatives noted are strengthening gender equality, reducing stigma
and discrimination against people affected by HIV/AIDS, protecting the
disabled, improving health care for the elderly, and advancing programs to
protect against and mitigate the impact of disasters.
* * *
UN ENVIRONMENT HEAD CALLS FOR BETTER BALANCE BETWEEN TRADE AND NATURAL
RESOURCES
Better balance is needed between liberalizing trade and protecting natural
resources, the head of the United Nations environment agency has said,
warning that such "natural capital" is being exhausted at an alarming rate
and calling for "intelligent" globalization that guarantees sustainability
for future generations.
"Money may make the world go round. But we know what makes a significant
amount of that money is natural capital - the goods and services provided
by nature. We also know… that a great deal of this capital is being run
down," Achim Steiner, Under-Secretary General and Executive Director of the
UN Environment Programme (UNEP) told the World Trade Organization (WTO)
yesterday.
"It is clear that a better balance is needed that capitalizes on the
benefits of trade liberalization with the absolute necessity of maintaining
and re-investing in the global natural resource base… what we really need
is 'intelligent' rather than benevolent globalisation - one that produces
sustainable markets through sustainable trade."
He acknowledged that the challenges of making international trade work
sustainably for everyone is a key goal of the WTO, as well as for UNEP,
while also emphasizing that environmental policy, far from being a brake on
trade, is "emerging as a powerful new force generating new kinds of trading
opportunities."
Citing various examples of environmental agreements, including the Kyoto
Protocol on Climate Change, he said that these were expanding the notion of
trade as a powerful force for sustainable development, pointing out for
example that the Kyoto agreement has triggered new flows of funds from
developing to developed countries.
"Poverty is not only a challenge to the environment and sustainable
development; it is an obstacle to trade. So environmental treaties like
Kyoto can, by bringing development and wealth to the poor, create billions
of new consumers on continents like Africa, Asia and Latin America who can
genuinely participate in the global market place."
Mr. Steiner also highlighted the sustainability and trade aspects of other
initiatives, as well as raising the possibility of payments for ecosystem
services, noting that some economists argue that the amount of carbon
removed from the atmosphere by tropical forests may be worth up to hundreds
of billions of dollars per year but the countries whose forests remove this
pollution are paid nothing.
"So why do we not pay communities in the tropics for maintaining forests
and the ecosystem services they provide in terms of carbon removal? Could
we extend payment for ecosystem services further or develop flexible
trade-related mechanisms - like those developed for Kyoto - further to more
sustainably manage other natural resources."
* * *
RECENT INTERNATIONAL CRISES PROVE NEED TO REFORM SECURITY COUNCIL, INDIA
TELLS UN
Recent events in Lebanon and the stalemate in the Middle East peace process
have demonstrated the growing failure of the Security Council to tackle
issues under its mandate, the Defence Minister of India told the General
Assembly today, calling for reform of the 15-member body.
"There is wide acceptance that the Security Council can no longer be
regarded as being reflective of the changed international environment that
has emerged since the time of its creation," Pranab Mukherjee told the
Assembly's annual debate. "The Security Council has not only to be more
representative but also to be more effective if it is to be able to
satisfactorily perform the role mandated to it by the Charter."
He also said the global response to terrorism has remained inadequate and
voiced outrage at the bombings in Mumbai and elsewhere that have claimed
innocent lives. "A strong response to terrorism requires broad-based
international cooperation denying the space available to terrorists and
increasing the capability of States to address terrorist threats."
Mr. Mukherjee welcomed the recent adoption of a UN Counter-Terrorism
Strategy but said it should have been stronger. In addition, he said the
international community must "unanimously reject the notion that any cause
can justify terrorism."
The comprehensive convention on terrorism now being drafted would provide
the legal framework for addressing the issue, he said, appealing for
agreement on the pact. "It cannot be beyond our collective ingenuity to
reach an agreement on this comprehensive convention."
* * *
ON ANNIVERSARY OF WORLD WAR II MASSACRE, ANNAN APPEALS FOR GLOBAL TOLERANCE
Using the anniversary of a notorious massacre of Jews and others in Ukraine
in World War II to deplore the recent increase in extremism and
intolerance, United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan today made an
impassioned appeal for pluralism and mutual respect around the world,
decrying those who deny the Holocaust.
"The massacre of many thousands of Jews, Soviet prisoners of war, Ukrainian
nationalists, Roma and others at Babyn Yar was one of the worst horrors of
the Second World War," Mr. Annan said in a message to the ceremony
commemorating the 65th anniversary of the tragedy, delivered by UN Resident
Coordinator in Ukraine Francis O'Donnell.
"If we are to have any chance of sparing future generations from similar
tragedies, we must keep memory alive," he added, warning that communities
under assault must not be left alone to defend themselves.
"Even today, after the Holocaust and other horrors of the last century, we
see people around the world targeted for brutality and violence simply
because of their ethnic, religious, national or other identity. We see Jews
in many places, including in Europe, living in fear for their safety and
freedoms. We see Muslims and others facing attacks and discrimination."
He noted that politicians in several countries have found anti-immigrant
appeals a path to electoral success and added: "We must reject the false
claims of those who say the Holocaust never happened or has been
exaggerated. Everyone must speak out."
Last year Mr. Annan voiced shock over reported remarks by Iranian President
Mahmoud Ahmadinejad casting doubt on the truth of the Holocaust, and the
General Assembly passed a resolution rejecting any denial of the Holocaust
as an historical event, either in full or in part.
Today the Secretary-General stressed UN's wide-ranging, long-standing work
to promote and protect human rights, highlighting the "Alliance of
Civilizations," launched last year and co-sponsored by Spain and Turkey,
which aims to bridge divides and overcome prejudices and polarizations that
potentially threaten world peace.
* * *
WEST AFRICAN COUNTRIES EMERGING FROM CONFLICT NEED GLOBAL SUPPORT,
MINISTERS TELLS UN
West African countries that have emerged from conflict to form
democratically elected governments deserve international support to
consolidate their fragile progress, ministers from the region have told the
United Nations General Assembly as it continued its annual debate in New
York.
"My delegation is pleased to see that peace has been restored to Guinea
Bissau, Sierra Leone and Liberia," the Foreign Minister of Guinea, Mamady
Condé, said on Tuesday.
But he cautioned that these gains remained "quite precarious," and urged
the international community "to strengthen its cooperation with the
democratically elected governments of these countries in order to
strengthen peace and ensure the rapid recovery of their economies."
Mr. Condé also said the peace process in Côte d'Ivoire had entered a
"decisive phase with the sensitive issues related to the holding of
upcoming free and fair elections." He urged the parties there to hold
dialogue with a view to resolving the crisis.
Togo's Foreign Minister, Zarifou Ayeva, echoed this call on Tuesday for
attention to African countries emerging from conflicts, welcoming the fact
that the newly established UN Peacebuilding Commission would consider
Burundi and Sierra Leone. "Liberia must also be helped in strengthening its
peace," he said, adding that Guinea-Bissau deserved attention as well.
He also voiced concern about the situation in Côte d'Ivoire. "Given the
many pre-existing variables behind the organization of elections in this
neighbouring country, no matter how one looks at it, one can only be
concerned," he said. "We hope that the resolution of these variables will
allow the holding of free and democratic elections that will lead Côte
d'Ivoire to sustainable peace."
Regarding his own country, the Foreign Minister said Togo had reached a
critical stage in their history with the 20 August signing of a
comprehensive peace agreement. The first step in the agreement was to
promote policies of openness, peace and national reconciliation. Togo had
also established reforms that favoured free and democratic elections and
examined the role of army. Those changes allowed for measures to maintain
public order and for open social dialogue.
* * *
UN AGENCY CHIEFS CALL ON US CONGRESS TO HELP END DEADLY TOLL OF CHILD
HUNGER NOW
Calling the plight of hundreds of millions of poor, malnourished children
who die or fail to develop properly "an affront to conscience," senior
United Nations officials have appealed to the United States Congress to
help end child hunger now.
"Some 18,000 children will die of hunger and malnutrition today," UN World
Food Programme (WFP) Executive Director of the WFP James Morris told the US
Senate Foreign Relations Committee yesterday, testifying on the Ending
Child Hunger and Undernutrition Initiative.
"That is hard for people in the US or Europe to comprehend. But Within a
month, we will lose more children to hunger than there are people living
here in Washington. Yet there are no headlines and no public outcry.
Instead, these poor, forgotten children die in silence in places like
Guatemala, Bangladesh and Zambia - far from our sight. This need not
happen: we have every tool we need to solve hunger."
The Initiative promotes an "essential package," including basic daily
health, hygiene and nutrition practices and a set of life-saving
commodities such as micronutrients, clean water, hand washing with soap and
parasite control such as de-worming, at an estimated cost of $79 per
family.
The initiative, though ambitious, is doable, not only from an economic
standpoint but a practical one, since the population of undernourished
children tends to be highly concentrated, said Mr. Morris, who appeared
together with UN Children's Fund (UNICEF) Executive Director Ann Veneman, a
core partner in the project.
He stressed that beyond the death toll, the physical damage and ill health
brought on by malnutrition have lasting impact on those children who
survive, affecting every stage and aspect of life, not only stunting bodies
but slowing mental growth - dropping IQ by 10, 15 points or more. In some
countries, stunting rates exceed 60 percent.
"Imagine the impact on poor countries, seeking to develop their economies.
How can their workers compete? The bottom line is that very little - not
education and certainly not development - can happen where hunger rules,"
he said.
"We must help these children early on in life. Once severe malnutrition
takes its toll, it cannot be reversed later on. There's no such thing as
retroactive nutrition."
The two UN agency heads are working to engage partners throughout the aid
world - humanitarian organizations, foundations and businesses, as well as
governments - to eliminate the extreme hunger that still threatens the
lives of an estimated 400 million children in the developing world today.
According to the Initiative, the cost of helping 100 million families
protect their children from hunger and undernutrition is estimated at
roughly $8 billion. Of this amount, it is estimated that approximately $1
billion of new international resources could be effectively programmed
immediately, Mr. Morris said.
"This investment can change lives, even generations. And the cost of action
is but a tiny fraction of the enormous costs we will shoulder by continuing
to do 'business as usual'," he added.
* * *
DESPITE RECENT RAINS, UN STILL FACES SHORTFALL IN FEEDING DROUGHT-STRICKEN
KENYANS
Although rains have reduced the number of drought-stricken Kenyans in need
of food aid from 3.5 million to nearly 3 million, the United Nations World
Food Programme (WFP) said today it still needs $44 million to continue its
operations there for the next six months and is concerned that donor
contributions have slowed considerably.
"The numbers in need have gone down but that is no consolation or help to
those who remain victims of the drought," WFP Emergency Coordinator in
Kenya Denise Brown said. "In particular, WFP now has a big problem with a
shortage of cereals, which make up most of the food ration. We will
completely run out of cereals from October and through November."
WFP has so far received $155 million or 69 per cent of the $225 million
needed for its Emergency Operation from March this year until March 2007.
At the height of the drought this year, 3.5 million people received food
aid each month.
The Agency is $44 million short of the funds it needs to feed 2.4 million
people with general food distributions from September to March 2007, as
well as feed 550,000 school children in drought-stricken areas.
The greatest needs are in nine pastoralist districts, where the number of
people receiving general food distributions will be cut from September from
1.3 million to 1.2 million. In marginal agricultural districts, the number
of beneficiaries is reduced from 1.4 million to 1 million. In coastal
districts, the numbers receiving food rations were reduced by 55 per cent.
An assessment report by the Government, WFP, other UN agencies and
non-governmental organizations noted that 84 per cent of Kenya's land area
is arid or semi-arid and chronic poverty is high. It found that the latest
rains varied from fair to good in the northeast, coast and parts of the
south to 50-75 per cent below normal in north western and northern parts of
Kenya and stressed that drought will inevitably return.
A commitment to developing the arid areas is a humanitarian obligation and
economic imperative and long-term development is needed both to alleviate
poverty and mitigate the damage done by drought, the report added.
* * *
UN EXPANDS ACCESS TO AGRICULTURAL INFORMATION FOR RESEARCHERS IN POOR
COUNTRIES
Over 100 of the world's poorest countries will now be able to access
leading food and agriculture journals for little or no cost with the launch
today of the second phase of a joint United Nations-private sector
initiative to provide yet one more tool in the fight against poverty and
under-development.
The Global Online Research in Agriculture (AGORA) project responds to the
needs of thousands of students, researchers and academics in poorer
countries, who continue to face challenges in accessing up-to-date
information which is vital to their work.
AGORA was launched in 2003 by the UN Food and Agriculture Organization
(FAO), 37 leading science publishers and other key partners including the
UN World Health Organization (WHO) and Cornell University, providing access
to 69 low-income countries.
Under today's expansion it will now include universities, colleges,
research institutes and government ministries as well as non-governmental
organizations in an additional 37 lower-middle-income countries.
"We have seen from the first phase of this initiative that there is
increasing demand for access to vital information by poorer countries," FAO
Library and Documentation Systems Division Director Anton Mangstl said. "In
less than three years, AGORA has already helped bridge the knowledge gap by
providing 850 institutions access to over 900 journals in the areas of
agriculture and related subjects."
Under the second phase, 37 countries with a per capita GNP of between $1000
and $3000 will be eligible. Institutions wishing to register will have a
three-month free trial period before they are asked to pay an annual
subscription of $1000. FAO will invest all subscription income into local
training initiatives to help increase awareness and usage of AGORA amongst
librarians and scientists.
"AGORA is making an important contribution to the achievement of the United
Nations Millennium Development Goals by providing essential information to
improve the livelihoods of those who need it most," FAO said, referring to
referring to the targets of slashing a host of ills, such as extreme hunger
and poverty, high infant and maternal mortality and lack of access to
education and health care, all by 2015.
* * *
UNESCO CHIEF CONDEMNS YET ANOTHER JOURNALIST'S MURDER, THIS TIME IN
BANGLADESH
Keeping up his campaign to defend the freedom of the press, the head of the
United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO)
today deplored the murder of a Bangladeshi journalist as a blow against
democracy.
Bellal Hossain Dafadar, 38, a correspondent of the Khulna-based daily
newspaper Janabani, died after he was stabbed by four or five assailants as
he was cycling back home from a local bazaar on 14 September.
"I am very distressed by this new attack on a journalist in Bangladesh and
urge the authorities to ensure that such crimes do not go unpunished,"
UNESCO Director-General Koďchiro Matsuura said in a statement.
"It is essential that journalists be able to carry out their professional
duties and exercise the basic human right of freedom of expression in the
interest of democracy and rule of law," he added.
According to the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ), nine journalists
have been killed in Bangladesh over the past five years.
UNESCO has a mandate to defend freedom of expression and press freedom, and
Mr. Matsuura has issued frequent condemnations of the murder of journalists
around the world.
* * *
TIMOR-LESTE: FIRST BATCH OF POLICE RETURN TO WORK UNDER UN MENTORING SCHEME
The first group of Timor Leste police has resumed work under a United
Nations mentoring scheme after being relieved of duty earlier this year in
violence that shook the small South East Asian nation, which the world body
shepherded to independence from Indonesia just four years ago.
"The return to duty of these police in the capital is a crucial step in
restoring Timorese public authority and ensuring law and order to the
streets of Dili and the whole country," Antero Lopes, Acting Police
Commissioner for the new UN Integrated Mission in Timor-Leste (UNMIT) said
today.
The UN Security Council created the expanded Mission last month, citing
ongoing threats to stability. The crisis, attributed to differences between
eastern and western regions, erupted in late April with the firing of 600
striking soldiers, a third of the armed forces. Ensuing violence claimed at
least 37 lives and drove 155,000 people, 15 per cent of the total
population, from their homes.
Eighteen of this first batch of 25 police officers are on general patrol
duties, five have been assigned to the Dili detention centre, and the
remaining two are working in the UN Police (UNPol) communications room, all
in co-location with UNPol.
They are participating in an ongoing screening process that began in early
September with a call to registration by the Ministry of Interior. Some 900
Dili-based police registered for screening, a prerequisite to returning to
work. The programme is to be implemented in outlying districts later.
The screening is carried out by UNPol together with the Government, based
on records from various offices including those of the Prosecutor and
UNMIT's human rights section. Any officer found to have had a complaint
lodged against him is subject to UNPol investigation and/or criminal
investigation by the Prosecutor's Office.
If there are no complaints or the complaints are found to be invalid, the
officer can begin the six-week training and mentoring programme that
includes a five-day intensive refresher course at the Police Academy and
five weeks of on-the-job mentoring. The officers are evaluated on a daily
basis. No PNTL officer may carry firearms during mentoring.
UNMIT initially is to consist of a civilian component, including up to
1,608 police personnel and some 34 military liaison and staff officers.
* * *
hese children early on in life. Once severe malnutrition
takes its toll, it cannot be reversed later on. There's no such thing as
retroactive nutrition."
The two UN agency heads are working to engage partners throughout the aid
world - humanitarian organizations, foundations and businesses, as well as
governments - to eliminate the extreme hunger that still threatens the
lives of an estimated 400 million children in the developing world today.
According to the Initiative, the cost of helping 100 million families
protect their children from hunger and undernutrition is estimated at
roughly $8 billion. Of this amount, it is estimated that approximately $1
billion of new international resources could be effectively programmed
immediately, Mr. Morris said.
",1]
);
//-->health, hygiene and nutrition practices and a set of life-saving
commodities such as micronutrients, clean water, hand washing with soap and
parasite control such as de-worming, at an estimated cost of $79 per
family.
The initiative, though ambitious, is doable, not only from an economic
standpoint but a practical one, since the population of undernourished
children tends to be highly concentrated, said Mr. Morris, who appeared
together with UN Children's Fund (UNICEF) Executive Director Ann Veneman, a
core partner in the project.
He stressed that beyond the death toll, the physical damage and ill health
brought on by malnutrition have lasting impact on those children who
survive, affecting every stage and aspect of life, not only stunting bodies
but slowing mental growth - dropping IQ by 10, 15 points or more. In some
countries, stunting rates exceed 60 percent.
"Imagine the impact on poor countries, seeking to develop their economies.
How can their workers compete? The bottom line is that very little - not
education and certainly not development - can happen where hunger rules,"
he said.
"We must help these children early on in life. Once severe malnutrition
takes its toll, it cannot be reversed later on. There's no such thing as
retroactive nutrition."
The two UN agency heads are working to engage partners throughout the aid
world - humanitarian organizations, foundations and businesses, as well as
governments - to eliminate the extreme hunger that still threatens the
lives of an estimated 400 million children in the developing world today.
According to the Initiative, the cost of helping 100 million families
protect their children from hunger and undernutrition is estimated at
roughly $8 billion. Of this amount, it is estimated that approximately $1
billion of new international resources could be effectively programmed
immediately, Mr. Morris said.
"This investment can change lives, even generations. And the cost of action
is but a tiny fraction of the enormous costs we will shoulder by continuing
to do 'business as usual'," he added.
* * *
DESPITE RECENT RAINS, UN STILL FACES SHORTFALL IN FEEDING DROUGHT-STRICKEN
KENYANS
Although rains have reduced the number of drought-stricken Kenyans in need
of food aid from 3.5 million to nearly 3 million, the United Nations World
Food Programme (WFP) said today it still needs $44 million to continue its
operations there for the next six months and is concerned that donor
contributions have slowed considerably.
"The numbers in need have gone down but that is no consolation or help to
those who remain victims of the drought," WFP Emergency Coordinator in
Kenya Denise Brown said. "In particular, WFP now has a big problem with a
shortage of cereals, which make up most of the food ration. We will
completely run out of cereals from October and through November."
WFP has so far received $155 million or 69 per cent of the $225 million
needed for its Emergency Operation from March this year until March 2007.
At the height of the drought this year, 3.5 million people received food
aid each month.
The Agency is $44 million short of the funds it needs to feed 2.4 million
people with general food distributions from September to March 2007, as
well as feed 550,000 school children in drought-stricken areas.
The greatest needs are in nine pastoralist districts, where the number of
people receiving general food distributions will be cut from September from
1.3 million to 1.2 million. In marginal agricultural districts, the number
of beneficiaries is reduced from 1.4 million to 1 million. In coastal
districts, the numbers receiving food rations were reduced by 55 per cent.
An assessment report by the Government, WFP, other UN agencies and
non-governmental organizations noted that 84 per cent of Kenya's land area
is arid or semi-arid and chronic poverty is high. It found that the latest
rains varied from fair to good in the northeast, coast and parts of the
south to 50-75 per cent below normal in north western and northern parts of
Kenya and stressed that drought will inevitably return.
A commitment to developing the arid areas is a humanitarian obligation and
economic imperative and long-term development is needed both to alleviate
poverty and mitigate the damage done by drought, the report added.
* * *
UN EXPANDS ACCESS TO AGRICULTURAL INFORMATION FOR RESEARCHERS IN POOR
COUNTRIES
Over 100 of the world's poorest countries will now be able to access
leading food and agriculture journals for little or no cost with the launch
today of the second phase of a joint United Nations-private sector
initiative to provide yet one more tool in the fight against poverty and
under-development.
The Global Online Research in Agriculture (AGORA) project responds to the
needs of thousands of students, researchers and academics in poorer
countries, who continue to face challenges in accessing up-to-date
information which is vital to their work.
AGORA was launched in 2003 by the UN Food and Agriculture Organization
(FAO), 37 leading science publishers and other key partners including the
UN World Health Organization (WHO) and Cornell University, providing access
to 69 low-income countries.
Under today's expansion it will now include universities, colleges,
research institutes and government ministries as well as non-governmental
organizations in an additional 37 lower-middle-income countries.
"We have seen from the first phase of this initiative that there is
increasing demand for access to vital information by poorer countries," FAO
Library and Documentation Systems Division Director Anton Mangstl said. "In
less than three years, AGORA has already helped bridge the knowledge gap by
providing 850 institutions access to over 900 journals in the areas of
agriculture and related subjects."
Under the second phase, 37 countries with a per capita GNP of between $1000
and $3000 will be eligible. Institutions wishing to register will have a
three-month free trial period before they are asked to pay an annual
subscription of $1000. FAO will invest all subscription income into local
training initiatives to help increase awareness and usage of AGORA amongst
librarians and scientists.
"AGORA is making an important contribution to the achievement of the United
Nations Millennium Development Goals by providing essential information to
improve the livelihoods of those who need it most," FAO said, referring to
referring to the targets of slashing a host of ills, such as extreme hunger
and poverty, high infant and maternal mortality and lack of access to
education and health care, all by 2015.
* * *
UNESCO CHIEF CONDEMNS YET ANOTHER JOURNALIST'S MURDER, THIS TIME IN
BANGLADESH
Keeping up his campaign to defend the freedom of the press, the head of the
United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO)
today deplored the murder of a Bangladeshi journalist as a blow against
democracy.
Bellal Hossain Dafadar, 38, a correspondent of the Khulna-based daily
newspaper Janabani, died after he was stabbed by four or five assailants as
he was cycling back home from a local bazaar on 14 September.
"I am very distressed by this new attack on a journalist in Bangladesh and
urge the authorities to ensure that such crimes do not go unpunished,"
UNESCO Director-General Koďchiro Matsuura said in a statement.
"It is essential that journalists be able to carry out their professional
duties and exercise the basic human right of freedom of expression in the
interest of democracy and rule of law," he added.
According to the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ), nine journalists
have been killed in Bangladesh over the past five years.
UNESCO has a mandate to defend freedom of expression and press freedom, and
Mr. Matsuura has issued frequent condemnations of the murder of journalists
around the world.
* * *
TIMOR-LESTE: FIRST BATCH OF POLICE RETURN TO WORK UNDER UN MENTORING SCHEME
The first group of Timor Leste police has resumed work under a United
Nations mentoring scheme after being relieved of duty earlier this year in
violence that shook the small South East Asian nation, which the world body
shepherded to independence from Indonesia just four years ago.
"The return to duty of these police in the capital is a crucial step in
restoring Timorese public authority and ensuring law and order to the
streets of Dili and the whole country," Antero Lopes, Acting Police
Commissioner for the new UN Integrated Mission in Timor-Leste (UNMIT) said
today.
The UN Security Council created the expanded Mission last month, citing
ongoing threats to stability. The crisis, attributed to differences between
eastern and western regions, erupted in late April with the firing of 600
striking soldiers, a third of the armed forces. Ensuing violence claimed at
least 37 lives and drove 155,000 people, 15 per cent of the total
population, from their homes.
Eighteen of this first batch of 25 police officers are on general patrol
duties, five have been assigned to the Dili detention centre, and the
remaining two are working in the UN Police (UNPol) communications room, all
in co-location with UNPol.
They are participating in an ongoing screening process that began in early
September with a call to registration by the Ministry of Interior. Some 900
Dili-based police registered for screening, a prerequisite to returning to
work. The programme is to be implemented in outlying districts later.
The screening is carried out by UNPol together with the Government, based
on records from various offices including those of the Prosecutor and
UNMIT's human rights section. Any officer found to have had a complaint
lodged against him is subject to UNPol investigation and/or criminal
investigation by the Prosecutor's Office.
If there are no complaints or the complaints are found to be invalid, the
officer can begin the six-week training and mentoring programme that
includes a five-day intensive refresher course at the Police Academy and
five weeks of on-the-job mentoring. The officers are evaluated on a daily
basis. No PNTL officer may carry firearms during mentoring.
UNMIT initially is to consist of a civilian component, including up to
1,608 police personnel and some 34 military liaison and staff officers.
* * *
these children early on in life. Once severe malnutrition
takes its toll, it cannot be reversed later on. There's no such thing as
retroactive nutrition."
The two UN agency heads are working to engage partners throughout the aid
world - humanitarian organizations, foundations and businesses, as well as
governments - to eliminate the extreme hunger that still threatens the
lives of an estimated 400 million children in the developing world today.
According to the Initiative, the cost of helping 100 million families
protect their children from hunger and undernutrition is estimated at
roughly $8 billion. Of this amount, it is estimated that approximately $1
billion of new international resources could be effectively programmed
immediately, Mr. Morris said.
",1]
);
//-->health, hygiene and nutrition practices and a set of life-saving
commodities such as micronutrients, clean water, hand washing with soap and
parasite control such as de-worming, at an estimated cost of $79 per
family.
The initiative, though ambitious, is doable, not only from an economic
standpoint but a practical one, since the population of undernourished
children tends to be highly concentrated, said Mr. Morris, who appeared
together with UN Children's Fund (UNICEF) Executive Director Ann Veneman, a
core partner in the project.
He stressed that beyond the death toll, the physical damage and ill health
brought on by malnutrition have lasting impact on those children who
survive, affecting every stage and aspect of life, not only stunting bodies
but slowing mental growth - dropping IQ by 10, 15 points or more. In some
countries, stunting rates exceed 60 percent.
"Imagine the impact on poor countries, seeking to develop their economies.
How can their workers compete? The bottom line is that very little - not
education and certainly not development - can happen where hunger rules,"
he said.
"We must help these children early on in life. Once severe malnutrition
takes its toll, it cannot be reversed later on. There's no such thing as
retroactive nutrition."
The two UN agency heads are working to engage partners throughout the aid
world - humanitarian organizations, foundations and businesses, as well as
governments - to eliminate the extreme hunger that still threatens the
lives of an estimated 400 million children in the developing world today.
According to the Initiative, the cost of helping 100 million families
protect their children from hunger and undernutrition is estimated at
roughly $8 billion. Of this amount, it is estimated that approximately $1
billion of new international resources could be effectively programmed
immediately, Mr. Morris said.
"This investment can change lives, even generations. And the cost of action
is but a tiny fraction of the enormous costs we will shoulder by continuing
to do 'business as usual'," he added.
* * *
DESPITE RECENT RAINS, UN STILL FACES SHORTFALL IN FEEDING DROUGHT-STRICKEN
KENYANS
Although rains have reduced the number of drought-stricken Kenyans in need
of food aid from 3.5 million to nearly 3 million, the United Nations World
Food Programme (WFP) said today it still needs $44 million to continue its
operations there for the next six months and is concerned that donor
contributions have slowed considerably.
"The numbers in need have gone down but that is no consolation or help to
those who remain victims of the drought," WFP Emergency Coordinator in
Kenya Denise Brown said. "In particular, WFP now has a big problem with a
shortage of cereals, which make up most of the food ration. We will
completely run out of cereals from October and through November."
WFP has so far received $155 million or 69 per cent of the $225 million
needed for its Emergency Operation from March this year until March 2007.
At the height of the drought this year, 3.5 million people received food
aid each month.
The Agency is $44 million short of the funds it needs to feed 2.4 million
people with general food distributions from September to March 2007, as
well as feed 550,000 school children in drought-stricken areas.
The greatest needs are in nine pastoralist districts, where the number of
people receiving general food distributions will be cut from September from
1.3 million to 1.2 million. In marginal agricultural districts, the number
of beneficiaries is reduced from 1.4 million to 1 million. In coastal
districts, the numbers receiving food rations were reduced by 55 per cent.
An assessment report by the Government, WFP, other UN agencies and
non-governmental organizations noted that 84 per cent of Kenya's land area
is arid or semi-arid and chronic poverty is high. It found that the latest
rains varied from fair to good in the northeast, coast and parts of the
south to 50-75 per cent below normal in north western and northern parts of
Kenya and stressed that drought will inevitably return.
A commitment to developing the arid areas is a humanitarian obligation and
economic imperative and long-term development is needed both to alleviate
poverty and mitigate the damage done by drought, the report added.
* * *
UN EXPANDS ACCESS TO AGRICULTURAL INFORMATION FOR RESEARCHERS IN POOR
COUNTRIES
Over 100 of the world's poorest countries will now be able to access
leading food and agriculture journals for little or no cost with the launch
today of the second phase of a joint United Nations-private sector
initiative to provide yet one more tool in the fight against poverty and
under-development.
The Global Online Research in Agriculture (AGORA) project responds to the
needs of thousands of students, researchers and academics in poorer
countries, who continue to face challenges in accessing up-to-date
information which is vital to their work.
AGORA was launched in 2003 by the UN Food and Agriculture Organization
(FAO), 37 leading science publishers and other key partners including the
UN World Health Organization (WHO) and Cornell University, providing access
to 69 low-income countries.
Under today's expansion it will now include universities, colleges,
research institutes and government ministries as well as non-governmental
organizations in an additional 37 lower-middle-income countries.
"We have seen from the first phase of this initiative that there is
increasing demand for access to vital information by poorer countries," FAO
Library and Documentation Systems Division Director Anton Mangstl said. "In
less than three years, AGORA has already helped bridge the knowledge gap by
providing 850 institutions access to over 900 journals in the areas of
agriculture and related subjects."
Under the second phase, 37 countries with a per capita GNP of between $1000
and $3000 will be eligible. Institutions wishing to register will have a
three-month free trial period before they are asked to pay an annual
subscription of $1000. FAO will invest all subscription income into local
training initiatives to help increase awareness and usage of AGORA amongst
librarians and scientists.
"AGORA is making an important contribution to the achievement of the United
Nations Millennium Development Goals by providing essential information to
improve the livelihoods of those who need it most," FAO said, referring to
referring to the targets of slashing a host of ills, such as extreme hunger
and poverty, high infant and maternal mortality and lack of access to
education and health care, all by 2015.
* * *
UNESCO CHIEF CONDEMNS YET ANOTHER JOURNALIST'S MURDER, THIS TIME IN
BANGLADESH
Keeping up his campaign to defend the freedom of the press, the head of the
United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO)
today deplored the murder of a Bangladeshi journalist as a blow against
democracy.
Bellal Hossain Dafadar, 38, a correspondent of the Khulna-based daily
newspaper Janabani, died after he was stabbed by four or five assailants as
he was cycling back home from a local bazaar on 14 September.
"I am very distressed by this new attack on a journalist in Bangladesh and
urge the authorities to ensure that such crimes do not go unpunished,"
UNESCO Director-General Koďchiro Matsuura said in a statement.
"It is essential that journalists be able to carry out their professional
duties and exercise the basic human right of freedom of expression in the
interest of democracy and rule of law," he added.
According to the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ), nine journalists
have been killed in Bangladesh over the past five years.
UNESCO has a mandate to defend freedom of expression and press freedom, and
Mr. Matsuura has issued frequent condemnations of the murder of journalists
around the world.
* * *
TIMOR-LESTE: FIRST BATCH OF POLICE RETURN TO WORK UNDER UN MENTORING SCHEME
The first group of Timor Leste police has resumed work under a United
Nations mentoring scheme after being relieved of duty earlier this year in
violence that shook the small South East Asian nation, which the world body
shepherded to independence from Indonesia just four years ago.
"The return to duty of these police in the capital is a crucial step in
restoring Timorese public authority and ensuring law and order to the
streets of Dili and the whole country," Antero Lopes, Acting Police
Commissioner for the new UN Integrated Mission in Timor-Leste (UNMIT) said
today.
The UN Security Council created the expanded Mission last month, citing
ongoing threats to stability. The crisis, attributed to differences between
eastern and western regions, erupted in late April with the firing of 600
striking soldiers, a third of the armed forces. Ensuing violence claimed at
least 37 lives and drove 155,000 people, 15 per cent of the total
population, from their homes.
Eighteen of this first batch of 25 police officers are on general patrol
duties, five have been assigned to the Dili detention centre, and the
remaining two are working in the UN Police (UNPol) communications room, all
in co-location with UNPol.
They are participating in an ongoing screening process that began in early
September with a call to registration by the Ministry of Interior. Some 900
Dili-based police registered for screening, a prerequisite to returning to
work. The programme is to be implemented in outlying districts later.
The screening is carried out by UNPol together with the Government, based
on records from various offices including those of the Prosecutor and
UNMIT's human rights section. Any officer found to have had a complaint
lodged against him is subject to UNPol investigation and/or criminal
investigation by the Prosecutor's Office.
If there are no complaints or the complaints are found to be invalid, the
officer can begin the six-week training and mentoring programme that
includes a five-day intensive refresher course at the Police Academy and
five weeks of on-the-job mentoring. The officers are evaluated on a daily
basis. No PNTL officer may carry firearms during mentoring.
UNMIT initially is to consist of a civilian component, including up to
1,608 police personnel and some 34 military liaison and staff officers.
* * *
hese children early on in life. Once severe malnutrition
takes its toll, it cannot be reversed later on. There's no such thing as
retroactive nutrition."
The two UN agency heads are working to engage partners throughout the aid
world - humanitarian organizations, foundations and businesses, as well as
governments - to eliminate the extreme hunger that still threatens the
lives of an estimated 400 million children in the developing world today.
According to the Initiative, the cost of helping 100 million families
protect their children from hunger and undernutrition is estimated at
roughly $8 billion. Of this amount, it is estimated that approximately $1
billion of new international resources could be effectively programmed
immediately, Mr. Morris said.
",1]
);
//-->health, hygiene and nutrition practices and a set of life-saving
commodities such as micronutrients, clean water, hand washing with soap and
parasite control such as de-worming, at an estimated cost of $79 per
family.
The initiative, though ambitious, is doable, not only from an economic
standpoint but a practical one, since the population of undernourished
children tends to be highly concentrated, said Mr. Morris, who appeared
together with UN Children's Fund (UNICEF) Executive Director Ann Veneman, a
core partner in the project.
He stressed that beyond the death toll, the physical damage and ill health
brought on by malnutrition have lasting impact on those children who
survive, affecting every stage and aspect of life, not only stunting bodies
but slowing mental growth - dropping IQ by 10, 15 points or more. In some
countries, stunting rates exceed 60 percent.
"Imagine the impact on poor countries, seeking to develop their economies.
How can their workers compete? The bottom line is that very little - not
education and certainly not development - can happen where hunger rules,"
he said.
"We must help these children early on in life. Once severe malnutrition
takes its toll, it cannot be reversed later on. There's no such thing as
retroactive nutrition."
The two UN agency heads are working to engage partners throughout the aid
world - humanitarian organizations, foundations and businesses, as well as
governments - to eliminate the extreme hunger that still threatens the
lives of an estimated 400 million children in the developing world today.
According to the Initiative, the cost of helping 100 million families
protect their children from hunger and undernutrition is estimated at
roughly $8 billion. Of this amount, it is estimated that approximately $1
billion of new international resources could be effectively programmed
immediately, Mr. Morris said.
"This investment can change lives, even generations. And the cost of action
is but a tiny fraction of the enormous costs we will shoulder by continuing
to do 'business as usual'," he added.
* * *
DESPITE RECENT RAINS, UN STILL FACES SHORTFALL IN FEEDING DROUGHT-STRICKEN
KENYANS
Although rains have reduced the number of drought-stricken Kenyans in need
of food aid from 3.5 million to nearly 3 million, the United Nations World
Food Programme (WFP) said today it still needs $44 million to continue its
operations there for the next six months and is concerned that donor
contributions have slowed considerably.
"The numbers in need have gone down but that is no consolation or help to
those who remain victims of the drought," WFP Emergency Coordinator in
Kenya Denise Brown said. "In particular, WFP now has a big problem with a
shortage of cereals, which make up most of the food ration. We will
completely run out of cereals from October and through November."
WFP has so far received $155 million or 69 per cent of the $225 million
needed for its Emergency Operation from March this year until March 2007.
At the height of the drought this year, 3.5 million people received food
aid each month.
The Agency is $44 million short of the funds it needs to feed 2.4 million
people with general food distributions from September to March 2007, as
well as feed 550,000 school children in drought-stricken areas.
The greatest needs are in nine pastoralist districts, where the number of
people receiving general food distributions will be cut from September from
1.3 million to 1.2 million. In marginal agricultural districts, the number
of beneficiaries is reduced from 1.4 million to 1 million. In coastal
districts, the numbers receiving food rations were reduced by 55 per cent.
An assessment report by the Government, WFP, other UN agencies and
non-governmental organizations noted that 84 per cent of Kenya's land area
is arid or semi-arid and chronic poverty is high. It found that the latest
rains varied from fair to good in the northeast, coast and parts of the
south to 50-75 per cent below normal in north western and northern parts of
Kenya and stressed that drought will inevitably return.
A commitment to developing the arid areas is a humanitarian obligation and
economic imperative and long-term development is needed both to alleviate
poverty and mitigate the damage done by drought, the report added.
* * *
UN EXPANDS ACCESS TO AGRICULTURAL INFORMATION FOR RESEARCHERS IN POOR
COUNTRIES
Over 100 of the world's poorest countries will now be able to access
leading food and agriculture journals for little or no cost with the launch
today of the second phase of a joint United Nations-private sector
initiative to provide yet one more tool in the fight against poverty and
under-development.
The Global Online Research in Agriculture (AGORA) project responds to the
needs of thousands of students, researchers and academics in poorer
countries, who continue to face challenges in accessing up-to-date
information which is vital to their work.
AGORA was launched in 2003 by the UN Food and Agriculture Organization
(FAO), 37 leading science publishers and other key partners including the
UN World Health Organization (WHO) and Cornell University, providing access
to 69 low-income countries.
Under today's expansion it will now include universities, colleges,
research institutes and government ministries as well as non-governmental
organizations in an additional 37 lower-middle-income countries.
"We have seen from the first phase of this initiative that there is
increasing demand for access to vital information by poorer countries," FAO
Library and Documentation Systems Division Director Anton Mangstl said. "In
less than three years, AGORA has already helped bridge the knowledge gap by
providing 850 institutions access to over 900 journals in the areas of
agriculture and related subjects."
Under the second phase, 37 countries with a per capita GNP of between $1000
and $3000 will be eligible. Institutions wishing to register will have a
three-month free trial period before they are asked to pay an annual
subscription of $1000. FAO will invest all subscription income into local
training initiatives to help increase awareness and usage of AGORA amongst
librarians and scientists.
"AGORA is making an important contribution to the achievement of the United
Nations Millennium Development Goals by providing essential information to
improve the livelihoods of those who need it most," FAO said, referring to
referring to the targets of slashing a host of ills, such as extreme hunger
and poverty, high infant and maternal mortality and lack of access to
education and health care, all by 2015.
* * *
UNESCO CHIEF CONDEMNS YET ANOTHER JOURNALIST'S MURDER, THIS TIME IN
BANGLADESH
Keeping up his campaign to defend the freedom of the press, the head of the
United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO)
today deplored the murder of a Bangladeshi journalist as a blow against
democracy.
Bellal Hossain Dafadar, 38, a correspondent of the Khulna-based daily
newspaper Janabani, died after he was stabbed by four or five assailants as
he was cycling back home from a local bazaar on 14 September.
"I am very distressed by this new attack on a journalist in Bangladesh and
urge the authorities to ensure that such crimes do not go unpunished,"
UNESCO Director-General Koďchiro Matsuura said in a statement.
"It is essential that journalists be able to carry out their professional
duties and exercise the basic human right of freedom of expression in the
interest of democracy and rule of law," he added.
According to the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ), nine journalists
have been killed in Bangladesh over the past five years.
UNESCO has a mandate to defend freedom of expression and press freedom, and
Mr. Matsuura has issued frequent condemnations of the murder of journalists
around the world.
* * *
TIMOR-LESTE: FIRST BATCH OF POLICE RETURN TO WORK UNDER UN MENTORING SCHEME
The first group of Timor Leste police has resumed work under a United
Nations mentoring scheme after being relieved of duty earlier this year in
violence that shook the small South East Asian nation, which the world body
shepherded to independence from Indonesia just four years ago.
"The return to duty of these police in the capital is a crucial step in
restoring Timorese public authority and ensuring law and order to the
streets of Dili and the whole country," Antero Lopes, Acting Police
Commissioner for the new UN Integrated Mission in Timor-Leste (UNMIT) said
today.
The UN Security Council created the expanded Mission last month, citing
ongoing threats to stability. The crisis, attributed to differences between
eastern and western regions, erupted in late April with the firing of 600
striking soldiers, a third of the armed forces. Ensuing violence claimed at
least 37 lives and drove 155,000 people, 15 per cent of the total
population, from their homes.
Eighteen of this first batch of 25 police officers are on general patrol
duties, five have been assigned to the Dili detention centre, and the
remaining two are working in the UN Police (UNPol) communications room, all
in co-location with UNPol.
They are participating in an ongoing screening process that began in early
September with a call to registration by the Ministry of Interior. Some 900
Dili-based police registered for screening, a prerequisite to returning to
work. The programme is to be implemented in outlying districts later.
The screening is carried out by UNPol together with the Government, based
on records from various offices including those of the Prosecutor and
UNMIT's human rights section. Any officer found to have had a complaint
lodged against him is subject to UNPol investigation and/or criminal
investigation by the Prosecutor's Office.
If there are no complaints or the complaints are found to be invalid, the
officer can begin the six-week training and mentoring programme that
includes a five-day intensive refresher course at the Police Academy and
five weeks of on-the-job mentoring. The officers are evaluated on a daily
basis. No PNTL officer may carry firearms during mentoring.
UNMIT initially is to consist of a civilian component, including up to
1,608 police personnel and some 34 military liaison and staff officers.
* * *
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