Peacekeepers Day & other topics - Daily Press Briefing

In a short while, I will be bringing out Jean-Pierre Lacroix, Under-Secretary-General for Peace Operations, who will brief as we mark today the International Day of UN Peacekeepers, ahead of its official date on 29 May.

Peacekeepers Day

As you will have seen, the Secretary-General this morning participated in a wreath laying ceremony and the General Assembly and Security Council both held moments of silence in honour of our fallen peacekeepers.

In his remarks today in the General Assembly, the Secretary-General told Member States that we must seriously reflect on the need for a new generation of peace-enforcement missions and counter-terrorism operations, led by our partners with a UN Security Council mandate under Chapter VII of the Charter, with guaranteed funding, namely through assessed contributions.

The Secretary-General also presented the Military Gender Advocate of the Year Award to Captain Cecilia Erzuah of Ghana for her work in Abyei as the Commander of the Ghana Engagement Platoon, a post she held since March 2022.

In Abyei, he said, Captain Erzuah saw first-hand the enormous toll of armed conflict on entire communities — and especially on women — and she spared no effort to ensure that their voices were heard and reflected.

Deputy Secretary-General’s Travel

A quick trip announcement for you from the Deputy Secretary-General, Amina Mohammed: ;She will travel to Geneva, Switzerland, to brief Member States on preparations for the SDG (Sustainable Development Goals) summit, and the ambition of the UN development system reforms and the UN resident coordinator system reform.

She will also meet with Heads of United Nations Specialized Agencies and with UN officials, building on the outcomes from the recently held UN SDG and Chief Executives Board meetings in Nairobi.

Ms. Mohammed will then travel to Lisbon, Portugal, to attend the Opening Session of the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) Conference, entitled, “Thinking about Industrial Property, Sustainability and the Future of the Planet”. nbsp;She will also meet with senior Government Officials in Lisbon, and other stakeholders.

The Deputy Secretary-General will be back in the office on 31 May.

Security Council

This morning, the Security Council held a session on peace and security in Africa, with a focus on predictable, sustainable and flexible resources.

Rosemary DiCarlo, the Head of the Political and Peacebuilding Affairs Department, told Security Council members that the cooperation between the African Union and the UN has grown significantly in the past few years, adding that the African Union has shown its readiness to quickly deploy peace support operations in response to armed conflicts on the continent.

The African Union operations should be considered as part of the range of responses to crises in Africa, alongside with established UN mechanisms, she said. ;As such, the case for adequately financing AU-led peace support operations is beyond solid.

Ms. DiCarlo added that we are hopeful the Security Council will agree to provide its backing, including allowing access to UN assessed contributions.

As the Secretary-General has stated, she concluded, concrete action on this long-standing issue will address a critical gap in the international peace and security architecture and bolster the efforts of the African Union to tackle peace and security challenges on the continent.

Africa Day 2023

Today is also… What day is today?;Africa Day, yes. ;Very good. In his message, the Secretary-General said Africa’s dynamism is unstoppable; its potential is breath-taking, from the vibrancy of its huge number of young people to the possibilities of free trade.

He also urged the international community to stand with Africa, saying that historic and economic injustices hamper its progress.

The Secretary-General said the UN will continue to be a proud partner in advancing peace, sustainable development and human rights for the people of Africa.

His statement was shared with you.

Sudan

A couple of updates from the continent.First in Sudan: The humanitarian community there is mobilizing to reach as many people as it can while the ceasefire is in place and respected, in the parts where it is in place and respected.

The Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs tells us that some 20 trucks carrying supplies from UNICEF (United Nations Children’s Fund) and the International Organization for Migration (IOM) are now on their way to different parts of Sudan today.

The World Food Programme (WFP), for its part, has reached more than half a million people in nine states with food and nutrition support since restarting distributions about three weeks ago.;WFP is also planning distributions in Central Darfur and Northern State. ;Yesterday, trucks loaded with food aid arrived in Wadi Halfa, and today in Port Sudan, WFP started providing food to some 4,000 new arrivals.

And I just want to highlight the impact that the ongoing fighting is having on the humanitarian situation. ;According to UN agencies, six newborn babies died at a hospital in the city of Eld’aeen in East Darfur in just one week recently due to problems, including lack of oxygen amid electricity blackouts, as we have been telling you.

WHO (World Health Organization) reports that more than 30 newborns have died at the hospital since the start of the fighting.;The Organization is in touch with health-care providers to see what it can do to support.

South Sudan

Some updates from South Sudan: The Humanitarian Coordinator ad interim there, Peter Van der Auweraert, condemned a new attack on humanitarian supplies in Jonglei State.

On 23 May, a group of armed individuals on motorbikes attacked five trucks that were carrying 100 tons of food supplies from the WFP (World Food Programme) just outside of the UN compound in Bor, in South Sudan’s central region.

Nearly seven tons of food were looted during the attack.;Following this new incident, and for the third time this year, WFP had no choice but to pause operations in that area.

This will impact more than a million people in Jonglei and Pibor area who rely on food from the World Food Programme.

It’s estimated that 9.4 million people, that is 76 per cent of the population in South Sudan, will need some sort of humanitarian assistance this year.

Libya

A quick update from Mr. [Abdoulaye] Bathily, our Special Representative in Libya.;Yesterday he co-chaired along with Türkiye in Tripoli a plenary session of the Security Working Group of the Berlin Process International Follow-Up Committee on Libya. That is the name of the Committee. That session included the participation of the 5+5 Joint Military Commission and other relevant Libyan interlocutor;This is the first time the Security Working Group meets inside of Libya itself, which is good.

Participants continued discussions on advancing the security track, implementation of the ceasefire agreement, including reunification of military institutions and withdrawal of foreign fighters and mercenaries.

Mr. Bathily emphasized the importance of future meetings of the Security Working Group taking place in different regions of Libya, to continuing advancing the overall political process and to create a conducive environment for holding free and inclusive elections this year.

Occupied Palestinian Territory

An update from the Occupied Palestinian Territory: nbsp;The Acting Humanitarian Coordinator there, Yvonne Helle, today warned of repeated demolitions, settlement expansion and settler violence following the dismantling of a Palestinian herding community in the West Bank.

On 22 May, the Palestinian herding community of Ein Samiya, which is close to Ramallah and which is home to 178 people, began dismantling and leaving their homes. ;They cited settler violence as the main reason. ;Several communities have been displaced in similar circumstances.

We and our partners are assessing their needs and will continue to provide them with assistance.

**Non-Self-Governing Territories

Today […] the International Week of Solidarity with the Peoples of Non-Self-Governing Territories starts today. In these territories, people have not yet attained a full measure of self-government.

Today, 17 non-self-governing territories remain under the purview of the Special Committee on Decolonization. ;We have been calling on the international community to find practical ways to implement the decolonization process.
Senior Personnel Appointment

A senior personnel announcement: ;Today, the Secretary-General, along with the World Food Programme (WFP) Executive Director Cindy McCain and the Food and Agricultural Organization (FAO) Director General Qu Dongyu, are appointing Carl Skau of Sweden as WFP Deputy Executive Director and Chief Operating Officer, to serve at the Assistant Secretary-General level. Most of you will remember Carl from his role here as Ambassador and Deputy Representative to the UN for Sweden and Deputy Representative to the European Union Political and Security Committee in Brussels.

He brings over 20 years of experience and we congratulate and welcome Carl.

Rwanda

And before I finish with our quiz, it should be a good one today, I have a statement on the arrest of a Rwanda national: nbsp;The Secretary-General welcomes the arrest of Fulgence Kayishema in South Africa, who has been sought since 2001 for allegedly committing genocide and crimes against humanity in Rwanda in 1994, following a warrant for his arrest by the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda.

Mr. Kayishema’s apprehension sends a powerful message that those who are alleged to have committed such crimes cannot evade justice and will eventually be held accountable, even more than a quarter of a century later. nbsp;The Secretary-General commends the cooperation between the International Residual Mechanism for Criminal Tribunals and the South African authorities for the arrest of Mr. Kayishema. nbsp;He further recalls that all States have an obligation to cooperate with the Mechanism in the location, arrest, detention, surrender and transfer of the accused persons still at large.

The Secretary-General’s thoughts today are first and foremost with the victims of Mr. Kayishema’s alleged crimes, the victims of other serious international crimes and their families. nbsp;Ending impunity is essential for peace, security and justice.

There is also a statement from Serge Brammertz, the Chief Prosecutor of the [Residual Mechanism for Criminal Tribunals], who said that his arrest ensures that Mr. Kayishema will finally face justice for his alleged crimes, adding that the investigation that led to this arrest was made possible through the cooperation and support of South Africa and the Operational Task Team established by President [Cyril] Ramaphosa to assist the tribunal’s Fugitive Tracking Team.

Financial Contribution

Finally, we are up to 110 Member States paid up in full. […] Benno is still on probation.;This is from our stand-in quizmaster, David Hunter. In 1976, Bob Dylan wrote a beautiful song about this Portuguese speaking country in Africa.;[response from the crowd: nbsp;“Mozambique!”] Mozambique, exactly.

So, we say thank you to our friends in Maputo for paying their dues in full.

For further details please see SOURCE below.
Office of the Spokesperson for the Secretary-General