UN DAILY NEWS DIGEST - 19 January

UN DAILY NEWS from the
UNITED NATIONS NEWS SERVICE
19 January, 2012 =========================================================================

SOUTH SUDAN: UN URGES REDOUBLING OF EFFORTS TO END CYCLE OF DEADLY ETHNIC VIOLENCE

The top United Nations envoy in South Sudan today urged an immediate end to the cycle of ethnic violence in the newly independent nation, and called on the Government to hold the perpetrators to account and to deploy more forces to key areas to avert further bloodshed.

“The ongoing security crisis in Jonglei state is a test for all of us,” Hilde Johnson, the Secretary-General’s Special Representative and head of the UN Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS), told a press conference in the capital, Juba.

“All concerned should redouble their efforts to put an immediate end to the cycle of violence, which is putting thousands of lives at risk and threatening the stability of the whole area,” she added.

Deadly clashes between the Lou Nuer and Murle communities in recent weeks have displaced tens of thousands of civilians and led to UN agencies launching a major humanitarian operation to assist those in need.

Ms. Johnson noted that UNMISS has in recent months consistently deployed its limited resources to reinforce efforts to prevent and mitigate conflict in Jonglei state, including to the Lou Nuer, Dinka and Murle communities.

“However, more Government forces are urgently needed in key locations, as well as to patrol in the buffer zones between the communities to de-escalate tensions between the communities and avert further violence,” she stated. “I urge the Government to deploy additional forces and further strengthen its forces in the key areas to stop further violence.”

She voiced deep concern about hate messages delivered by some individuals and groups, which she said could incite systematic ethnic violence. “Any statements that could incite ethnically based violence are totally unacceptable.

“I urge the leaders of all communities at all levels in Jonglei state, and nationally, to call for a halt to any such rhetoric. I also call on the Government to bring the full force of the law to bear against those responsible for inciting violence,” Ms. Johnson stated.

“UNMISS strongly condemns the use of violence by communities and urges their political, traditional and youth leaders to do their utmost to end killings and confrontations in an area that has suffered far too many casualties,” she added.

UN peacekeepers have been deployed to the area in recent weeks to support the efforts of Government forces to restore peace and security, and daily air and land patrols have been stepped up to deter further attacks. However, the Mission has a shortfall of operational helicopters, seriously affecting its ability to carry out its mandate.

Ms. Johnson pointed out that the Mission took “decisive” measures, including committing around half of its combat-ready personnel to the heavily-populated areas of Pibor and Likuongole.

“We moved our forces to where civilians were under greatest threat. These actions combined with the presence of Government troops helped save many lives,” she said.

The Mission’s preliminary findings have confirmed evidence of a number of civilians killed and injured, however, the findings so far do not provide the basis for the scale of casualties claimed by some media, Ms. Johnson stated.

“We urge leaders and the public to avoid jumping to conclusions based on unverified human rights violations,” she said, adding that UNMISS commended the Government’s decision to conduct an investigation into the events and the numbers and who may have been responsible.

Retaliatory violence has continued, with a number of attacks in the past few days on Lou Nuer and Dinka communities, she reported.

“The cycle of violence in Jonglei has caused huge suffering to all the people in the area. It has to end,” stated Ms. Johnson.

UNMISS remained very concerned about the deterioration of the humanitarian situation and reiterated its call on the international community to respond generously and rapidly to humanitarian needs.

The UN humanitarian community has launched one of the most complex and expensive emergency operations in South Sudan, aimed at assisting 60,000 people in the affected area. UNMISS will continue to assist in delivering vital supplies, particularly in remote areas where some of the most vulnerable people are located.

The Special Representative also noted that South Sudan is moving with determination towards consolidating its independence on the national and international scenes. At the national level, political reforms and security are among the major challenges that the new State is facing.

“However, the Government’s introduction of political and security reforms show strong commitment to establishing a stable and democratic state worthy of the people of South Sudan,” she stated.


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UN CALLS FOR COMBINING ENERGY ACCESS WITH ANTI-POVERTY PROJECTS IN ASIA

Services that combine access to modern energy for heating, cooking and electricity, with measures that generate cash, supplement incomes and improve health and education would be the most effective energy solutions in Asia and the Pacific, according to United Nations analysis released today.

A report by the UN Development Programme (UNDP) confirms that there can be no development without energy, and that poverty cannot be addressed sustainably without paying due attention to energy services.

The study entitled “Towards an ‘Energy Plus’ Approach for the Poor” reviewed 17 energy access projects across the Asia-Pacific region to find out what works and what does not in breaking the vicious “poverty-energy-poverty cycle.” The poor need energy to get out of poverty, but energy alone is not enough, it states.

“Energy services are often not affordable by the rural and urban poor and on their own have little impact,” says Martin Krause, who leads the UNDP regional climate, environment and energy team in Asia and the Pacific. “The poor need support to generate income so that energy becomes affordable, which in turn will improve household living standards.”

Nearly half the world’s population lacks reliable access to modern energy services. And more than 20 percent of the global population, or 1.4 billion people, remain without access to electricity.

Roughly 2.7 billion people – 40 per cent of the world’s population – depend on wood, charcoal or animal waste for cooking and heating. By 2030, household air pollution from biomass use in inefficient stoves is likely to cause more than 1.5 million deaths a year.

The lack of energy access and its impact on health, education and income continue to be a significant cause of chronic poverty, according to UNDP. Since poverty in turn inhibits access to energy services, a vicious cycle develops.

The findings indicate that most energy projects adopt a minimalist approach, focusing on the basic energy needs of the poor for lighting homes, cooking and heating.

However, “energy services per se do not reduce poverty,” says the report. “Instead, they transform people from being ‘poor without energy access’ to ‘poor with energy access’.”

“This is because the energy services provided do not open opportunities to poor households to increase their incomes. Therefore, the resources needed to acquire modern energy services continue to be limited, and energy programmes are forced to rely on perpetually unsustainable subsidies,” the report notes.


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AS DEMANDS FOR JUSTICE GROW, UN MUST USHER IN NEW ERA OF RESPECT FOR THE LAW – BAN

The United Nations must respond as the demands for justice around the world grow, Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said today, calling for ushering in a new era of respect for the rule of law.

“We have to create a world where the rule of law, social justice, accountability and a culture of prevention will be the foundations of sustainable development and durable peace,” Mr. Ban stated in his remarks to the Security Council meeting on the rule of law and transitional justice in conflict and post-conflict settings.

“It will take commitment from the international community and the Security Council to see that justice is done where justice is due,” he added.

Mr. Ban noted that today’s debate, organized by the South African presidency of the Council, comes at a time of “breathtaking” political change driven by peoples’ calls for accountability, transparency and the rule of law.

“Women and men everywhere want their rights to be respected. They are risking their lives in peaceful protests to demand the opportunities, dignity and secure future that every individual deserves,” he stated.

“There is no silencing this cry for justice. Repression only raises the volume.”

“Our task,” he added, “is to usher in an era of respect for the law in every field: from peace and security to trade and development from the high seas to local communities.”

Never has the UN’s rule of law sector faced such great challenges, or such historic opportunities, noted the Secretary-General, adding that today’s meeting is part of a broader international push to “rise to this moment.”

In September, the UN will convene a high-level meeting on the rule of law – the first event of its kind and the first time, since 2005, that these issues will be discussed by top leaders.

The Organization’s work to promote the rule of law extends to more than 150 countries and includes efforts to combat transnational crime, build confidence and capacity in State institutions and battle discrimination against women.

“For societies traumatized by years of fighting and gross violations of human rights, nothing is more critical than establishing the rule of law,” said Mr. Ban. “When the guns fall silent, the United Nations is often the first organization on the ground helping fractured countries to start building peace and strengthening key institutions.”

The UN’s approach has three basic components: promoting accountability and reinforcing norms through transitional justice; building justice and security institutions to promote trust; and focusing on justice for women and girls to foster gender equality.

“The Security Council has helped bring these priorities to the top of the international agenda,” the Secretary-General said. “But this Council can do more.”

He encouraged the 15-member body to include the promotion of transitional justice measures more broadly in the mandates of peacekeeping and political missions, as well as to reject any endorsement of amnesty for genocide, war crimes, crimes against humanity or gross violations of human rights and international humanitarian law.

“I urge you to bring justice closer to the victims,” he added. “That means giving them the opportunity to speak out to truth commissions and to participate in judicial proceedings. It also calls for supporting remedies and reparations. And it requires strengthening national prosecutions for serious international crimes.”

In a presidential statement read out during the meeting, the Council acknowledged that political will and the concerted efforts of both national governments and the international community are critical to preventing conflict and achieving success in the restoration of and respect for the rule of law.

“The Council notes the need for increased efforts to ensure that conflict-affected countries are able to access a broad range of relevant expertise, in particular from developing countries, in order to effectively build the capacity of justice and security institutions,” it added.


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IMPUNITY FOR CRIMINAL ACTS IN DARFUR CAMPS MUST STOP – UN OFFICIAL

The chief of the joint United Nations-African Union operation in Darfur (UNAMID) stressed today his commitment to end impunity for criminal acts in displacement camps during a meeting with internally displaced persons (IDPs) in the state of North Darfur.

“I have been taking up the issue of impunity with high-level officials of the Government of the Sudan,” Ibrahim Gambari told representatives of the Kassab and Fataborno IDP camp in the town of Kutum.

“Where the people who are engaged in criminal acts are known, they must be brought to justice. As a result of our pressure, now they [the Sudanese Government] have appointed a special court and a special prosecutor [for Darfur],” he said.

During the meeting, some women told the AU-UN envoy that rapes in and around the camp had increased and requested more security. Mr. Gambari vowed to take up the concern with the local authorities.

He also reaffirmed UNAMID’s commitment to implement its core mandate and support the peace process in the region. “We have to bring this conflict to an end. The people of Darfur have suffered too long and too deeply,” he said.

During his visit to the region, Mr. Gambari met with UNAMID troops from South Africa stationed in the area and was briefed on the operational activities and the challenges facing the mission. He stressed that the troops should double their efforts by increasing the number of patrols, including night patrols in the area.

Mr. Gambari also held talks with the Commissioner of the Kutum Locality, Mohammed Kamaldin El Sayed Abu Shouk, who expressed his appreciation to UNAMID, and noted the need to implement more developmental projects in the area. The envoy assured the Commissioner that UNAMID will continue to work for the people of Kutum and Darfur.


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UN INVITES PROPOSALS FOR HOST OF NEW CLIMATE TECHNOLOGY CENTRE

The secretariat of the United Nations climate change convention today invited proposals for hosting the climate technology centre as requested by Governments at a UN conference held last year in the South African city of Durban.

The Climate Technology Centre (CTC), along with its Network, is the implementing arm of the Technology Mechanism established at the conference in Cancún, Mexico, in 2010, the secretariat of the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) said in a press release.

The mechanism is designed to stimulate technology cooperation and to enhance the development and transfer of climate-sound technologies to support action on mitigation and adaptation by developing countries.

The UNFCCC secretariat urged interested organizations, including consortiums, to submit their proposals for hosting the CTC by 16 March this year.

“At the UN Climate Change Conference in Durban, Governments gave themselves a heavy workload for 2012, and the call for proposals is the first big follow-on step from that meeting,” said Christiana Figueres, the UNFCCC Executive Secretary. “It is also a major step towards delivering real and tangible transfer of technologies and know-how to developing countries.”

“Governments decided in Durban to launch the selection process of the host of the CTC which is an important step to make the Technology Mechanism become fully operational in 2012, so we should very soon see concrete results,” she added.

The CTC and its Network are also intended to assist developing countries to build or strengthen their capacity to make their technology choices, and to facilitate the preparation and implementation of technology projects and strategies.


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EASTERN, SOUTHERN AFRICA SCALE UP EFFORTS AGAINST HIGH AIDS PREVALENCE – UN OFFICIAL

Eastern and Southern Africa, the region most affected by the HIV/AIDS epidemic, is making great strides to scale up access to prevention and treatment services, a United Nations official said today, adding that focus is on behavioural change and prevention of mother-to-child transmission.

Of the estimated 34 million people living with HIV/AIDS across the world, almost three quarters live in Eastern and Southern Africa, Sheila Tlou, the Director of the Regional Support Team for the Joint UN Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS) told a media briefing in Geneva.

“We have to now focus on making sure that we scale up voluntary medical male circumcision, behaviour change, and all those [interventions] to make sure that we reduce infections,” she said.

She stated that even in South Africa, where an estimated 5.6 million people are infected, the Government has scaled up prevention measures and is politically committed to turning the tide against the epidemic, including reducing mother-to-child transmission (MTCT).

“A lot has been in countries in Eastern and Southern Africa on mother-to-child infections,” said Ms Tlou. “Our services to prevent mother-to-children transmission are more than 77 per cent – that region is leading in terms of scaling up of services,” she said.

She, however, stressed that for a country to succeed in reducing transmission of the HIV virus to newly-born infants, MTCT coverage must be at least 90 per cent. “And we know it can be done – in Botswana we brought down mother-to-children infections from 40 per cent to 4 per cent in less than 4 years,” said Ms. Tlou.

The majority of the estimated 15 million HIV-infected people eligible for of anti-retroviral treatments also reside in Eastern and Southern Africa, and it is crucial that access to treatment there also be scaled up. Some 4.2 million area already receiving treatment, while 3.4 need to be put on anti-retroviral drugs, she added.

The Asia and Pacific region has seen a 20 per cent reduction in new infections over the past 10 years and access to treatment has more than double, according to Steve Kraus, the Director of UNAIDS Regional Support Team for the region.

“What drives the epidemic in Asia, in broad strokes you can say, is key affected populations – people who buy and sell sex, those who inject drugs, transgender populations and their intimate partners,” said Mr. Kraus.

The success of efforts to combat the epidemic in Asia-Pacific are dependent of the quality of partnership and collaboration with those groups, he said.


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WITH LAUNCH OF ORAL HISTORY COLLECTION, UN SHEDS LIGHT INTO ITS PAST

A collection of more than 200 interviews covering major events in the history of the United Nations was launched today at the world body’s Headquarters in New York, and will be accessible to the public through a website.

The UN Library’s Oral History Collection consists of interviews conducted over the course of 25 years with former delegates, UN staff members and journalists, all of whom recounted their experiences on major world events.

They also discuss various crises and wars of independence, as well as topics such as apartheid, weapons of mass destruction, and what it was like to work with former Secretaries-General Kofi Annan and Boutros Boutros-Ghali.

The audio files and interview transcripts, which were conducted by UN staff and Yale University researchers, also include discussions held during the creation of the UN Charter as well as reflections of staff members who remembered what it was like working at Hunter College before the Headquarters moved permanently to Manhattan’s East Side.

The Collection seeks to shed light on the history of the founding of the Organization and its role in conflict resolution since 1945, and to be a useful primary source of information for scholars and the media that spotlights the activities of the UN during turbulent periods in world history.


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SECURITY COUNCIL TO HOLD ELECTION IN APRIL TO FILL UN WORLD COURT VACANCY

The Security Council today set 27 April as the date for an election to fill the vacancy on the International Court of Justice (ICJ), the principal judicial organ of the United Nations, resulting from a recent resignation.

In a resolution that was adopted without a vote, the Council noted with “deep regret” the resignation of Judge Awn Shawkat Al-Khasawneh which took effect on 31 December 2011. His term was to end on 5 February 2018.

According to the Court’s Statute, its judges must be chosen by coordinated actions of both the Council and the General Assembly, with the date of elections determined by the Council.

Judges are chosen on the basis of their qualifications, not their nationality, but no two judges can be from the same country. Effort is also taken to ensure that the principal legal systems of the world are reflected in the composition of the court.

Established in 1945, and based in The Hague in the Netherlands, the ICJ settles legal disputes between States and gives advisory opinions on legal questions that have been referred to it by other authorized UN organs.


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