UN Gazeti
Wednesday 30 January 2008
Issue No. 252
UN Observances
| 02 February 2008 |
International Mother Language Day |
UN IN KENYA
UN REPORTS SHARP DETERIORATION IN SECURITY, HUMANITARIAN SITUATION
The post-electoral crisis in Kenya has taken a sharp turn for the worse in recent days with violence claiming many more lives and hampering relief efforts by United Nations agencies and their partners, further worsening an already dire situation.
According to the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), at least 19 people had been killed in Naivasha on Sunday and 12 people had been killed in Nakuru yesterday, following violent massacres and the torching of houses.
For more information, visit: http://www.un.org/news
UNHCR RESUMES REPATRIATION OF SUDANESE REFUGEES FROM KENYAN CAMP
The United Nations refugee agency has resumed its repatriation of Sudanese from a camp in the northwest of neighbouring Kenya after the operation had been temporarily suspended because of deadly tribal clashes.
The repatriation scheme resumed last Thursday with the first flight from Kakuma camp to Bor, the capital of Jonglei state in southern Sudan, UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) spokesperson Ron Redmond told reporters yesterday in Geneva.
For more information, visit: http://www.un.org/news
UN GENOCIDE ADVISER URGES END TO VIOLENCE IN KENYA, SENDS STAFFER THERE
The United Nations Special Adviser on the Prevention of Genocide on Monday called for an immediate halt to the destructive cycle of attacks and revenge attacks in Kenya, where post-electoral violence continues to claim lives, and announced plans to dispatch a staff member there.
Francis Deng urged national and local leaders on all sides to publicly call for an end to the violence and to statements inciting violence, UN spokesperson Marie Okabe told reporters in New York.
For more information, visit: http://www.un.org/news
UNICEF WARNS OF ABUSES AGAINST CHILDREN IN KENYA
Children and women have borne the worst of the violence in Kenya and have the most to gain from peace, the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) said on 25 January, drawing attention to rising sexual violence and seeking resources to combat it.
With the two leaders in the disputed election, President Mwai Kibaki and Raila Odinga, set to meet through the mediation of former UN Secretary General Kofi Annan and other eminent African leaders, the agency said the political turmoil has increased incidents of sexual abuse against children, teens and women.
For more information, visit: http://www.un.org/news
UN IN AFRICA
SG SAYS WORLD MUST PROTECT CIVILIANS FROM GENOCIDE
United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon visited a Genocide Memorial in Rwanda yesterday and told the country’s Parliament that he will make good on international promises to protect civilians from mass atrocities.
Mr. Ban also pledged $10,000 from his personal resources to a fund set up by the Government to assist the survivors of the genocide, and help in the education of hundreds of orphans.
For more information, visit: http://www.un.org/news
MOROCCO, FRENTE POLISARIO REMAIN FAR APART ON WESTERN SAHARA
Morocco and the Frente Polisario are still far apart on how to provide for the self-determination of the people of Western Sahara, despite the two parties’ commitment to a process of negotiations, Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon says in a new report.
Mr. Ban writes that during the latest round of talks, held earlier this month in Manhasset, New York, the two sides held several sessions of face-to-face discussions but did not examine specific elements in each other’s proposals.
For more information, visit: http://www.un.org/news
FIRST SET OF MAURITANIAN REFUGEES RETURN HOME UNDER UN PROGRAMME
Over 100 Mauritanian refugees, part of a group of 24,000 who fled to neighbouring Senegal over two decades ago, are returning to their home country yesterday under a voluntary repatriation programme launched by the United Nations refugee agency after steps were taken by the governments concerned to address their plight.
The first 101 returnees are being brought yesterday by truck from two refugee sites located in Thiabakh and Dagana to the official launching ceremony in the town of Rosso in Senegal, UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) spokesperson Ron Redmond told a press briefing in Geneva.
For more information, visit: http://www.un.org/news
SOMALIA ECONOMY STRONGER THAN OTHERS IN AFRICA
Despite 17 years of crisis in Somalia, the economy there is stronger than that of many countries in Africa in terms of gross domestic product and imports and exports, participants at a United Nations-backed meeting held in Dubai said yesterday.
In a final declaration adopted at the end of the meeting organized by the UN Political Office for Somalia (UNPOS), business people from Africa and the Middle East, personalities from Europe and the United States and members of the Somali business community acknowledged economic stagnation in the country, which has not had a functioning government since the fall of Siad Barre's regime in 1991 and where fighting has intensified in recent months.
For more information, visit: http://www.un.org/news
SG DEPLORES KILLING OF AID WORKERS IN SOMALIA
Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon on Monday condemned the brutal roadside bombing in Somalia that killed three aid workers and reportedly also claimed the life of a local journalist.
Offering his condolences to the victims’ families, Mr. Ban reminded the country’s Government “of its obligation to ensure the safety and security of humanitarian workers operating in Somalia,” according to a statement issued by his spokesperson, and he also called on authorities to mount a thorough investigation of the attack.
For more information, visit: http://www.un.org/news
UN HOLD TALKS WITH SUDAN ON DEPLOYMENT OF PEACEKEEPERS
Senior United Nations officials met with Sudanese Government and African Union (AU) officials over the weekend to discuss ongoing issues relating to the deployment of the joint UN-AU peacekeeping mission (UNAMID) to the war-wracked region of Darfur.
The status of forces agreement (SOFA) between UNAMID and the Government topped the discussions, held yesterday in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, according to a press statement issued by the mission in El Fasher.
For more information, visit: http://www.un.org/news
ERITREAN FUEL RESTRICTIONS THREATEN VIABILITY OF UN MISSION, WARNS ENVOY
Eritrea’s fuel restrictions imposed on the United Nations Mission in Ethiopia and Eritrea (UNMEE) is paralyzing the work of the mission and could force it to withdraw from that side of the disputed border between the two countries, a UN official warned on Friday.
Azouz Ennifar, UNMEE’s acting head, told journalists after briefing the Security Council that the mission has not been able to obtain fresh supplies of fuel in Eritrea since 1 December last year.
For more information, visit: http://www.un.org/news
UN AROUND THE WORLD
SECURITY COUNCIL VOICES OUTRAGE AT LATEST ASSASSINATION IN LEBANON
The Security Council yesterday condemned last Friday’s terrorist bombing in Lebanon that took the life of a senior member of the country’s Internal Security Forces and also killed and injured several others, pledging to help the Government pursue the case.
In a statement to the press, Ambassador Giadalla Ettalhi of Libya, which holds the Council presidency this month, said it was “of the highest importance that the perpetrators, organizers and sponsors of this heinous crime are brought to justice.”
For more information, visit: http://www.un.org/news
UN WARN OF MALNUTRITION THREAT AS GAZA BORDER CROSSINGS CONTINUE
Every border crossing into the Gaza Strip from Israel remains closed, except for the import of fuel supplies, United Nations officials said yesterday, warning that Palestinians face the rising threat of malnutrition if the current lockdown continues.
Only 32 truckloads of goods have entered Gaza since 18 January, when the comprehensive Israeli closures were imposed, the Office of the UN Special Coordinator (UNSCO) reported. This compares to a daily average of 250 truckloads before June last year.
For more information, visit: http://www.un.org/news
UN PEACEKEEPERS RESCUE SAILORS FROM LEBANESE SHIP IN DISTRESS
Following an extensive search and rescue operation, peacekeepers serving with the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) yesterday saved 14 sailors from a Lebanese ship in distress at sea.
Early this morning UNIFIL’s Maritime Task Force (MTF) received a distress signal from a Lebanese vessel at sea, the MV GEVO VICTORY, which had suffered several leaks, the mission said in a news release.
For more information please contact http://www.un.org/news
NEW UN EXHIBIT PAYS TRIBUTE TO THOSE WHO RESCUED JEWS DURING HOLOCAUST
The Holocaust demonstrated that human beings are capable of great cruelty, but also of great courage and strength in the face of evil, Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon declared yesterday at the opening of a new United Nations exhibit focusing on the courageous men and women who helped rescue Jews during World War II.
“Today, we honour the victims and survivors of the Holocaust and those who protected and saved lives,” Mr. Ban said in a message, delivered by Under-Secretary-General for Communications and Public Information Kiyotaka Akasaka.
For more information, visit: http://www.un.org/news
TOURIST NUMBERS NEAR 900 MILLION AS INDUSTRY MARKS RECORD YEAR
The number of international tourists continues to climb, with 898 million arrivals registered last year and further increases expected as traditionally poor countries emerge as more popular tourist destinations, according to the latest United Nations snapshot.
The UN World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) reported that last year’s total represents a jump of 52 million people – or about 6 per cent – on 2006 figures, with all major regions experiencing an above-average percentage increase.
For more information, visit: http://www.un.org/news
SG SAYS CHILD RECRUITMENT CONTINUES IN OVER ONE DOZEN COUNTRIES
The recruitment and use of children in armed conflict is taking place in more than one dozen countries around the world, Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon states in a new report, calling for further measures to combat the scourge.
The practice continues in Afghanistan, Burundi, Chad, the Central African Republic (CAR), Colombia, the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), Myanmar, Nepal, the Philippines, Somalia, Sudan, Sri Lanka and Uganda, Mr. Ban notes in his latest report on children and armed conflict, covering the period from October 2006 to August 2007.
For more information, visit: http://www.un.org/news
UNHCR NEEDS $90 MILLION MORE TO HELP INTERNALLY DISPLACED PERSONS
The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) is asking donors for more than $90 million to fund the agency's programmes assisting people who have fled within the borders of six conflict-torn countries this year.
The agency issued a news release yesterday on the appeal, which is included in the overall UN funding goal for the Central African Republic, Chad, Colombia, Côte d'Ivoire, the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), Liberia and Uganda.
For more information, visit: http://www.un.org/news
MEMORY OF HOLOCAUST VICTIMS HONOURED THROUGH SERIES OF UN EVENTS
Marking the International Day of Commemoration in memory of the victims of the Holocaust, United Nations offices worldwide are holding a series of events this week, including concerts, exhibitions and the issuance of a special stamp, to raise awareness about the tragedy and to honour those that perished.
The annual Holocaust Remembrance Week kicked off on Monday at UN Headquarters in New York with the launch of a special postal stamp by the UN Postal Administration.
For more information, visit: http://www.un.org/news
SG HEADS TO RWANDA FOLLOWING EASTERN EUROPE TRIP
United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon on Sunday held high-level talks in Bratislava with senior Slovakian officials before heading to Kigali for an official visit to Rwanda.
Speaking to the press following his meeting with Slovakian President Ivan Gasparovic, Mr. Ban said the two discussed Slovakia’s contributions to the causes of the United Nations, ranging from peace and security to development and human rights, as well as on key regional issues, especially in the Middle East and the Balkans, including Kosovo and Cyprus.
For more information, visit: http://www.un.org/news
ASMA JAHANGIR VOICES CONCERN ABOUT ISRAELI RESTRICTIONS
The security restrictions imposed by Israel in the occupied Palestinian territory are intrusive, disproportionate, discriminatory and arbitrary, an independent United Nations human rights expert has stated, warning that they restrict the access of Muslims, Christians and Jews to worship at their holy places.
The Israeli-Palestinian conflict has had “an adverse impact on the right of individuals and communities to worship freely and to attend religious services at their respective holy places,” said Asma Jahangir, the Special Rapporteur on freedom of religion or belief, in a statement issued yesterday after an eight-day visit to Israel and the occupied Palestinian territory.
For more information, visit: http://www.un.org/news
For more information on the United Nations and its activities, please visit the main U.N. website at www.un.org or the U.N. Kenya website at www.un-kenya.org
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