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��HIGHLIGHTS OF
THE NOON BRIEFING

��

BY MARIE OKABE

DEPUTY SPOKESPERSON
FOR SECRETARY-GENERAL BAN KI-MOON
��

U.N. HEADQUARTERS, NEW YORK

Wednesday,�� June 10, 2009
��

��

BAN KI-MOON TO HOLD PRESS
CONFERENCE TOMORROW

• At 11 a.m. Thursday, Secretary-General Ban
  Ki-moon is scheduled to hold
  his monthly press conference at �山����headquarters.
  ��

• There will no noon briefing
  tomorrow.

PAKISTAN: BAN
KI-MOON STRONGLY CONDEMNS BRUTAL ACT OF TERROR AGAINST INNOCENT PEOPLE

• As more information emerges about yesterday’s terrorist
  attack on the Pearl Continental Hotel in Peshawar, Pakistan,
  the Secretary-General is further
  by the news that the confirmed death toll is rising and
  includes two �山����staff members – Mr.
  and Ms.
  . Four �山����colleagues – two from WFP, one from WHO and one from
  UNICEF - were injured.
  ��

• A number of Pakistani nationals supporting UN
  programmes were also killed and injured. The search for casualties is
  continuing.
  ��������

• The Secretary-General reiterates his strong
  condemnation of this brutal act of terror against innocent people, many of
  whom were in Peshawar to carry out humanitarian work.��
  ��

• The Secretary-General extends his heartfelt condolences
  to the families of the deceased and wishes those injured a speedy recovery.
  ��

• Last night, the Secretary-General
  
  the attack as “a heinous terrorist attack which no cause can justify.”
  ��

• �山����agencies including the �山����Refugee Agency (),
  , the �山����Population Fund ()
  and the World Food Programme ()
  have issued statements condemning the attack in Peshawar.
  ��

• For security considerations, WFP has
  delayed the resumption of its food distributions at humanitarian hubs and
  settlements for internally displaced persons by 24 hours. All WFP food
  distributions for the humanitarian emergency operation will resume tomorrow.
  ��

• Fikret Akcura, the �山����Resident
  Coordinator in Pakistan, said in a statement that the United Nations is
  determined to continue its support to more than two million Pakistanis who
  have been affected by the ongoing displacement crises.

��BAN
KI-MOON CONCERNED ABOUT HEIGHTENED TENSIONS IN NIGER��

• The Secretary-General
  his concern over recent developments in Niger and the
  heightened political tension in the country following the President’s
  decision to dissolve Parliament. These developments come at a time when
  Niger had made significant progress in the efforts to resolve the Tuareg
  conflict and to consolidate democratic and economic progress.
  ��

• The Secretary-General urges all parties
  to act in full respect of the country’s Constitution and to refrain from any
  action that would undermine Niger’s democratic gains, as well as the
  stability of the country. ��He welcomes the recent initiatives launched by
  Regional Leaders and urges Niger’s stakeholders to extend the fullest
  cooperation to those initiatives in order to resolve the current problems
  peacefully.

��IRAQ: ENVOY
CONDEMNS “CRUEL” CAR BOMBING IN NASIRIYAH��

• Staffan de Mistura, the
  Secretary-General’s Special Representative for
  , today condemned in the strongest terms the car bombing in
  Nasiriyah, which left more than 35 people dead and scores of others wounded.
  He described the bombing as “a cruel crime against innocent civilians that
  aims to derail Iraq’s stability.”
  ��

• De Mistura extended the
  United Nations’ sincere condolences to all the bereaved families and his
  wishes for the speedy and full recovery for the wounded.

��SECURITY COUNCIL DISCUSSES DRAFT
RESOLUTION ON NORTH KOREA��

• The
  held consultations just a short while, to discuss a
  draft resolution concerning the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea.
  ��

• The Security Council yesterday afternoon concluded its
  discussion of
  by issuing a press statement, commending the advances in that
  nation’s peace process. Council members urged all the Burundian parties to
  pursue their efforts to address the remaining challenges, in particular the
  completion of the disarmament, demobilization and reintegration process.
  ��

• The Council President also read a press statement
  condemning in the strongest terms the killing last Friday of one of the
  presidential candidates in
  and of the country’s former Defense Minister. Council
  members called on the Government of Guinea-Bissau to bring to justice those
  responsible for these violence attacks and expressed their deep concern over
  the resurgence of political violence.

��BAN KI-MOON CALLS FOR
CONTINUED ASSISTANCE TO SIERRA LEONE��

• Earlier today, the Secretary-General
  has
  on the international community to provide continued support to
  the people and Government of Sierra Leone, as they strive for the dividends
  of peace after years of war.
  ��

• Speaking at today’s high-level special
  session of the Peacebuilding Commission on Sierra Leone, the
  Secretary-General said that though the country has made remarkable progress
  since the war, the situation remained fragile.
  ��

• “Seven years after the end of the civil
  war, the people of Sierra Leone expect to see tangible improvements in their
  lives and their country’s welfare,’ he said.
  ��

• The Secretary-General commended the
  President, Ernest Bai Koroma, his government and the opposition leaders for
  their joint efforts in dealing successfully with the outbreak of political
  violence in March this year.
  ��

• He hailed the adoption of the Joint
  Communiqué of the Political Parties as an event that has renewed hope in
  Sierra Leone’s journey to peace and prosperity.�� He also welcomed the UN’s
  Joint Vision strategy in support of the government’s Agenda for Change.

ENVOY PLEADS
FOR SPEEDY DISBURSEMENT OF FUNDS PLEDGED FOR SOMALIA RECOVERY��

• The International Contact Group on
  , (ICG), has, at the end of a two-day meeting in Rome, called on
  the international community to take concrete action in support of the
  progress being made by the Somali Government.
  ��

• Under the chairmanship of the Secretary-General’s
  Special Representative for Somalia, Ahmedou Ould-Abdallah, the ICG urged
  those who made pledges at the recent Brussels Donors Conference to disburse
  and expedite the use of funds and pledged without further delay. These funds
  should enable the Somali security sector to become more effective and also
  strengthen the capabilities of the African Union peacekeeping mission in
  Somalia, AMISOM.
  ��

• The ICG communiqué also expressed grave concern about
  the deteriorating humanitarian situation, especially the plight of the
  displaced and of refugees.
  ��

• The ICG also supports initiatives aimed at combating
  piracy, which it described as an international security threat that also
  affects the Somali people.

TOP U.N.
POLITICAL ADVISOR TO DISCUSS PEACE & SECURITY WITH CENTRAL AFRICAN REPUBLIC
LEADERSHIP��

• The Under Secretary-General for
  , B. Lynn Pascoe, is expected early tomorrow in Bangui
  for a working visit.
  ��

• According to the �山����peacebuilding office in the Central
  African Republic (),
  Mr. Pascoe will be meeting with senior government officials for
  consultations on the current political and security situation and relations
  between the �山����and the country. Security sector reform and disarmament of
  armed groups will also be discussed.��
  ��

• Mr. Pascoe is also expected to confirm the date of
  arrival in Bangui of the newly-appointed Special Representative of the
  Secretary General there, Ms. Sahle-Work Zewde of Ethiopia.
  ��

• He will also meet members of the foreign diplomatic
  corps to discuss issues of development and peace consolidation.

��TOP U.N. PEACEKEEPING OFFICIAL BEGINS
WEST AFRICA VISIT��

• The Under Secretary-General for
  Operations, Mr. Alain Le Roy, is traveling to West Africa
  and is scheduled to arrive in Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire, this evening.
  ��

• In addition to Côte d’Ivoire, Mr. Le Roy will travel to
  Burkina Faso, Liberia, Mali and Nigeria, where he will meet with Government
  officials and local authorities. The trip includes familiarization visits to
  two peacekeeping operations in the region, the �山����Mission in Liberia, UNMIL,
  and the �山����Mission in Côte d’Ivoire, UNOCI.��
  ��

• This trip, which ends on Friday 19 June, is Mr. Le
  Roy’s first visit to West Africa as Under Secretary-General.

��SLOW BUT STEADY PROGRESS IS BEING MADE
AT CLIMATE CHANGE TALKS��

• Negotiations in Bonn on an international climate change
  deal, to be concluded in Copenhagen in December, continue to make slow but
  steady progress, according to the �山����Framework Convention on Climate Change
  ().
  ��

• It says that more than 200 pages of comments and
  suggestions for the text that will ultimately be adopted in Copenhagen are
  now on the table.
  ��

• UNFCCC adds that countries have made significant
  progress in two areas: how to approach the issue of reducing deforestation
  and how to facilitate and finance technologies that can help developing
  countries address climate change. This, it stresses, will pave the way for
  these key issues to be included into the eventual outcome document.
  ��

• The talks are to conclude Friday.

��MYANMAR EDUCATION SECTOR NEEDS SUPPORT��

• More support is required for the education sector in
  Myanmar. That was the key message in the donor meeting on Education,
  organized by the
  .
  ��

• In a press release issued in Yangon, the top UN
  official in Myanmar, the resident coordinator, says there are shortages of
  learning material and qualified teachers. Further education or vocational
  training opportunities for dropout students from general education are
  limited.
  ��

• In addition to the meeting, the participants took a
  field visit today to several villages in the Ayeyarwaddy Delta.
  ��

• So far 1,400 of the more than 4,000 schools destroyed
  and/or damaged by Cyclone Nargis have been repaired. The objective is to
  build back all the destroyed schools with permanent structures designed to
  reduce the risk of possible future disasters, by April 2011. According to
  the Post-Nargis Recovery and Preparedness plan, some $150 million is needed
  for the Education sector for the next three years.

ECONOMIC CRISIS
COULD HAVE POOR FAMILIES FORCE DAUGHTERS ��INTO CHILD LABOUR��

• The global financial crisis could push an increasing
  number of children, particularly girls, into child labour. That’s according
  to a new report issued by the International Labour Office (ILO), ahead of
  the World Day Against Child Labour, Friday.
  ��

• More than 100 million girls are already involved in
  child labour worldwide, says ILO, adding that an increase in poverty,
  resulting from the crisis, could mean families will be faced with a choice
  as to which children stay in school, often to the detriment of girls. Other
  factors which could push up the numbers in child labour include cuts in
  national education budgets and a decline in remittances of migrant workers.

��MORE PEOPLE PLANTING MORE TREES AROUND
THE WORLD��

• The Billion Tree Campaign has mobilized thousands of
  people around the world to put more trees on the planet,
  the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), and has already
  surpassed the four billion mark, in a crucial step towards its target of
  seven billion trees to be planted by the end of 2009.
  ��

• To date, 166 countries around the world have been
  planting trees, and groups such as the World Organization of the Scouts
  Movement and �山����Peacekeepers have also joined the campaign on World
  Environment Day.

��BAN KI-MOON CONGRATULATES GENERAL
ASSEMBLY PRESIDENT-ELECT ��

• The Secretary-General this morning
  Ali Abdessalam Treky of Libya on being elected President
  of the 64^th session of the
  . He also congratulated the current President on his
  valuable contribution.
  ��

• From climate change to hunger, from the economic crisis
  to the urgent need to reach the , the General Assembly will be challenged to
  forge new levels of international cooperation to solve our common problems,
  the Secretary-General said. He adds that his own experience tells him that
  the Assembly can rise to this challenge.

“BOLD AND
SWIFT” ACTION NEEDED TO COUNTER ADVERSE EFFECTS OF ECONOMIC CRISIS IN AFRICA��

• The �山����Economic Commission for Africa ()
  and the African Union Conference of Ministers of Finance and Economy said in
  a joint statement today that the continent must take “bold and swift” action
  to cushion the impact of the global financial and economic crisis. The call
  came following the conclusion on Sunday of a gathering of African finance,
  planning and economy ministers in Cairo.
  ��

• Speaking at the event, Under Secretary-General and
  Executive Secretary of the Economic Commission for Africa, Abdoulie Janneh,
  said the economic crisis is a setback, but also an opportunity for
  innovation, self reliance, and practical solutions. Janneh joined other
  participants in reaffirming their commitment to improve economic and fiscal
  reforms and improve governance and accountability.

��

Office of the
Spokesperson for the Secretary-General

United Nations, S-378
New York, NY 10017
Tel. 212-963-7162
Fax. 212-963-7055

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