UN Gazeti

Wednesday 01 October 2008

Issue No. 283

UN Observances

UN IN AFRICA

FOUR DEAD AFTER UN-CONTRACTED HELICOPTER CRASHES IN DARFUR

A helicopter contracted by the United Nations crashed in the strife-torn Darfur region of Sudan, killing all four crew members, a spokesperson for the world body has confirmed.

“Preliminary reports indicate there are four crew members dead and that the aircraft had been completely destroyed,” Marie Okabe told reporters in New York. “There were no passengers on board.”

For more information, visit: http://www.un.org/news

CHAD CALLS FOR STRENGTHENED UN PEACEKEEPING PRESENCE IN TROUBLED EAST

The Foreign Minister of Chad yesterday called for a strengthened United Nations peacekeeping mission in his country and for the reinforcement of the hybrid UN-African Union Mission in Darfur (UNAMID) in the neighbouring war-torn Sudanese region.

Moussa Faki Mahamat, in an address to the final day of the General Assembly’s annual high-level debate, said the work of the UN Mission in the Central African Republic and Chad (MINURCAT) and the wider international community was vital to help restoring the balance in eastern Chad.

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IVORIAN ELECTION PROCESS NOW ON TRACK, GENERAL ASSEMBLY TOLD

Much-delayed presidential elections in Côte d’Ivoire are on track to be a success now that the penultimate phase of the lead-up process – the identification and registration of voters – has begun, the country’s Foreign Minister told the General Assembly yesterday.

Youssouf Bakayoko, speaking before the annual General Debate at the Assembly, said his country was determined to hold free, open and transparent polls and the start of voter registration was proof of that commitment.

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UN ENVOY LIKENS PIRACY OFF SOMALIA TO ‘BLOOD DIAMONDS’ TRAFFICKING

Rampant piracy off the Somali coast, demonstrated by the latest hijacking of a Ukrainian ship carrying heavy weapons, can be likened to so-called ‘blood diamonds,’ the illicit trafficking in gems used to finance civil wars in West Africa in recent years, the top United Nations envoy for the strife-torn Horn of Africa country said yesterday.

“There is a striking similarity between the actions of these unscrupulous pirates and the activity in blood diamonds in Liberia and Sierra Leone during the civil wars in these countries,” Special Representative Ahmedou Ould-Abdallah declared in a news release.

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SECURITY COUNCIL SHOULD HAVE PERMANENT AFRICAN MEMBER, SOUTH AFRICA SAYS

The lack of a permanent African member on the Security Council, even though the continent represents a large amount of the 15-member panel’s work, “remains a travesty of justice,” South Africa’s Foreign Minister told the General Assembly yesterday.

In an address to the final day of the annual General Debate at the Assembly, Nkosazana Dlamini Zuma said the Council’s membership needs to be broadened as part of a programme of “fundamental reform” of the United Nations, the so-called Bretton Woods financial institutions and other global organizations.

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REPUBLIC OF CONGO CALLS FOR INCREASED SUPPORT FOR JOINT UN-AU MISSION IN DARFUR

Bringing an end to the protracted conflict in Darfur, on Sudan’s western flank, would serve as a catalyst for peace across the wider region, a top official from the Republic of Congo said yesterday, calling for stepped-up support for the joint United Nations-African Union peacekeeping mission known as UNAMID.

“We welcome the resumption of diplomatic relations between [Chad and Sudan], an initiative that needs to be further consolidated through putting in place military units of surveillance at the common border lines,” Basile Ikouebe, Foreign Minister of the Republic of the Congo, told the General Assembly’s annual high-level debate.

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AT UN, NIGERIA STRESSES DANGERS POSED BY AFRICAN ‘WEAPONS OF MASS DESTRUCTION’

Africa has been devastated by conflicts perpetuated by small arms and light weapons, Nigeria’s Foreign Minister told the General Assembly’s annual high-level debate yesterday, calling for a global pact to rid the continent of the scourge.

“Because of their lethality and ready deployment, they may be described as Africa’s experience of weapons of mass destruction,” Ojo Maduekwe said at United Nations Headquarters.

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DR CONGO CALLS ON UN TO USE FORCE TO IMPOSE PEACE ON REBEL HOLDOUTS IN EAST

The Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) yesterday called for United Nations peacekeepers to be given a clear mandate and the resources necessary to impose peace by force if necessary on a rebel group that is the sole holdout on a disengagement plan in the east of the vast country.

“Confronted by the drama occurring in the east of the Congo, MONUC must be authorized to act, and can act in a convincing manner,” DRC Permanent Representative Ileka Atoki told the General Assembly as it began the second week of its General Debate, referring to the to the UN mission in the DRC by its acronym.

For more information, visit: http://www.un.org/news

ERITREA TELLS UN DEBATE THAT UNITED STATES CAUSES OR LENGTHENS CRISES WORLDWIDE

The “misguided and domineering policies” of the United States are causing and exacerbating crises around the world, Eritrea’s Foreign Minister told the General Assembly yesterday, calling for collective international action to check the power of Washington.

“The fingerprints of the sole superpower are discernible in most of the conflict situations that are raging in many parts of our globe with the deleterious economic, financial and humanitarian ramifications that they invariably entail,” Osman Saleh told the final day of the Assembly’s annual General Debate.

For more information, visit: http://www.un.org/news

UN AROUND THE WORLD

UN WHO ISSUES GUIDELINES ON MELAMINE-CONTAMINATED FOOD

With the crisis of contaminated milk products in China having driven over 54,000 children to seek medical treatment, the United Nations World Health Organization (WHO) has issued preliminary guidance to help authorities decide on the health concerns of melamine levels in food.
Kidney stones and renal failure has been reported in children in China, where three have died and a further 13,000 hospitalized, believed to be associated with the ingestion of melamine-contaminated infant formula.

For more information, visit: http://www.un.org/news

STUDENTS FROM LEBANON, SYRIA GRAB TOP HONOURS AT UNESCO-BACKED SCHOOL CONTEST

A team of students from Lebanon and Syria has taken first place in the largest global contest for students, backed by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), which seeks to foster dialogue between children from different cultural backgrounds.

The Lebanon-Syria team beat out over 36,000 students from 140 countries in the 2007-2008 Mondialogo School Contest, which wrapped up last week in Beijing.

For more information, visit: http://www.un.org/news

PRESIDENT URGES END TO ‘BUSINESS AS USUAL’ AS UN ASSEMBLY DEBATE WRAPS UP

The President of the General Assembly yesterday proclaimed the need to end “business as usual” in global affairs, issuing a call at the conclusion of the 192-member body’s annual high-level debate for urgent action to address challenges ranging from the twin food and financial crises to United Nations reform.

“We have outlined our priority concerns, and reaffirmed our conviction that this uniquely representative body remains the most important and most democratic forum for global debate,” Miguel D’Escoto said, wrapping up the five-day event that heard from over 100 heads of State and government.

For more information, visit: http://www.un.org/news

SHORT OF FUNDS AND RESOURCES, UN NUCLEAR AGENCY AT CROSSROADS, WARNS CHIEF

The United Nations atomic watchdog agency urgently needs greater funds and resources to carry out its multifaceted tasks, from verifying that Iran is not seeking nuclear weapons and preventing terrorists from acquiring radioactive materials to spurring advances in medicine and agriculture, its chief warned yesterday.

“I must stand here today and let you know that all is not well with the IAEA,” Director General Mohamed ElBaradei told the annual general conference of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA). “There is a disconnect between what you, the member States, are asking us to do, and the legal authority and resources available to us. This will hamper our effectiveness, sooner rather than later, if it is not addressed.”

more information, visit: http://www.un.org/news

SG REPORTS SECURITY SITUATION IN AFGHANISTAN ‘MARKEDLY’ WORSE,

Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has called for a change of pace and direction in Afghanistan, where the worsening security situation is hampering the efforts of the Government, the United Nations and international partners to rebuild the strife-torn nation.

“Despite the enhanced capabilities of both the Afghan National Army and the international forces, the security situation has deteriorated markedly,” Mr. Ban writes in a new report released yesterday.

For more information, visit: http://www.un.org/news

SG URGES LEBANESE NOT TO LET LATEST BOMBING DETER EFFORTS AT NATIONAL DIALOGUE

Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has strongly condemned yesterday’s terrorist attack in the Lebanese city of Tripoli, and urged the people of the Middle East nation to forge ahead with national reconciliation efforts in spite of the violence.

Today’s bombing reportedly killed at least four people including three members of the Lebanese Armed Forces.

For more information, visit: http://www.un.org/news

SWEDEN STRESSES IMPORTANCE OF HUMAN RIGHTS DURING GENERAL ASSEMBLY DEBATE

Human rights must be at the heart of all United Nations activities, especially conflict prevention, peacekeeping and peacebuilding activities, Sweden’s Permanent Representative told the General Assembly’s annual General Debate tonight.

Ambassador Anders Lidén said the efforts to make the values and norms enshrined in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights – which was adopted by the General Assembly 60 years ago – a reality everywhere “must also include the United Nations itself.”

For more information, visit: http://www.un.org/news

MORE INVESTMENT NEEDED TO BOOST GLOBAL ENERGY SECURITY, TURKMENISTAN TELLS UN

Ensuring global energy security requires stepped-up investment, a top official from Turkmenistan, one of the world’s major oil and natural gas producers, told the final day of the General Assembly’s high-level annual debate.

As a top producer, the Central Asian country takes part in increasing international cooperation regarding energy, Rashid Meredov, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Foreign Affairs, said.

For more information, visit: http://www.un.org/news

SECURITY COUNCIL EXTENDS TERMS OF JUDGES ON UN’S BALKANS WAR CRIMES TRIBUNAL

The Security Council yesterday extended the terms of office of a number of judges serving on the United Nations tribunal set up to deal with the worst war crimes committed during the Balkan conflicts of the 1990s to help the court to finish its caseload at the earliest.

“The extension of the terms of office of the judges concerned will enhance the effectiveness of trial proceedings and contribute towards the implementation of the Completion Strategy,” the Council said in its unanimously adopted resolution.

For more information, visit: http://www.un.org/news

SG URGES MAJOR EFFORT TO SPUR DISASTER REDUCTION PLANS IN FACE OF CLIMATE CHANGE

A major boost in efforts to reduce the fall-out from natural disasters is vital as climate change ushers in harsher weather extremes, from fiercer droughts to more devastating flooding and landslides, Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon warned yesterday.

“Without concerted action, we could see natural catastrophes on an unprecedented scale, which could even become threats to international security and inter-State relations,” Mr. Ban told the ministerial meeting on reducing disaster risks in a changing climate, held at United Nations Headquarters in New York.

For more information, visit: http://www.un.org/news

UN MORE NECESSARY THAN EVER, GENERAL ASSEMBLY HEARS DURING HIGH-LEVEL DEBATE

The principles and the work of the United Nations are needed more than ever as the world confronts an array of major challenges and crises, several countries told the final day of the General Assembly’s annual General Debate yesterday, urging stronger global leadership from individual States and continued UN reform.

The magnitude of such problems as climate change, terrorism, poverty and natural disasters illustrates the need for multilateral strategies and solutions, Botswana’s Foreign Minister Phandu T. C. Skelemani said.

For more information, visit: http://www.un.org/news

TACKLING IMPUNITY KEY TO SUCCESS OF INTERNATIONAL CRIMINAL COURT – LIECHTENSTEIN

The establishment of the International Criminal Court (ICC) is the most significant feat in international law in decades, Liechtenstein told the General Assembly’s annual high-level debate yesterday, noting that the body’s legacy will be measured by its moves to address the issue of impunity.

“We must work in practice to give [the ICC] the necessary political support,” said Rita Kieber-Beck, the small European nation’s Foreign Minister. “The success of the ICC will be the yardstick in the fight against impunity.”

For more information, visit: http://www.un.org/news