United Nations Daily Highlights, 99-03-26

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From: The United Nations Home Page at <http://www.un.org> - email: [email protected]

DAILY HIGHLIGHTS

Friday, 26 March, 1999

HEADLINES

• Security Council rejects Russia's draft resolution demanding end to NATO airstrikes.
• Head of UN refugee agency calls upon European countries to keep borders open for fleeing Kosovars.
• UN human rights chief appeals for maximum vigilance to protect right to life in Federal Republic of Yugoslavia.
• UN tribunal prosecutor urges Yugoslav authorities to prevent violations of humanitarian law in Kosovo.
• Last group of Cambodian refugees leave camps in Thailand - UNHCR.
• UN human rights envoy, Cambodian Prime Minister meet to discuss Khmer Rouge tribunal.
• Poor donor response threatens humanitarian operations in Tajikistan, UN warns.
• UN international staff return to Afghanistan on "limited, gradual and rotational" basis.

The draft, which had been introduced by Russia and co-sponsored by Belarus and India, was not adopted after 12 members voted against it, with China, Namibia and the Russian Federation casting votes in favour of the text. According to the United Nations Charter, decisions of the Security Council are made by an affirmative vote of nine members, including the concurring votes of the permanent members.

Speaking before the vote, Russian Ambassador Sergey Lavrov said NATO airstrikes had already caused severe humanitarian consequences and seriously damaged efforts to find a political settlement in Kosovo. The "illegal use of force" had significantly destabilized the Balkan region and Europe as a whole, undermined the basis of international relations, and grossly violated key provisions of the UN Charter, he said.

The Permanent Representative of China, Qin Huasun, said the situation had seriously deteriorated because of the NATO airstrikes which had already caused severe damage. The military action was a challenge to the Security Council's authority, he said, calling for it to end immediately in order to facilitate the restoration of peace.

Countering that view, Ambassador Peter Burleigh of the United States said the allegation contained in the draft resolution that NATO was acting in violation of the United Nations Charter had turned the truth on its head. He stressed that the UN Charter did not sanction armed assaults on ethnic groups or imply that the international community should turn a blind eye to a growing humanitarian disaster.

Representatives of several other countries that voted against the draft also took issue with the contention that NATO's action contravened international law since it had not been authorized by the Security Council. They stressed that previous Council resolutions had declared the Kosovo crisis was a threat to international peace and security. They argued that the NATO action was needed to protect Kosovo civilians against an onslaught by Yugoslav forces and had been undertaken only after all attempts to resolve the crisis peacefully had failed.

The United Kingdom Ambassador Jeremy Greenstock said in the current circumstances military intervention was justified, as an exceptional measure to prevent an overwhelming humanitarian catastrophe. Ambassador Alain Dejammet of France said the Belgrade Government had violated its international obligations and failed to comply with previous Council resolutions demanding implementation of agreements on Kosovo.

"I am asking all governments in the region and elsewhere in Europe to maintain their policy of open doors," Mrs. Ogata said Friday in Geneva.

Mrs. Ogata demanded that all sides in the conflict refrain from attacking civilians and warned that those guilty of atrocities would be held accountable by the international community.

"Reduced international presence in Kosovo does not mean impunity," she said.

In New York, a UN spokesman said Secretary-General Kofi Annan was concerned about the humanitarian situation in Kosovo and hoped the situation would swiftly allow the United Nations to "go back in and assist all those in need of much-needed humanitarian assistance."

Meanwhile, a UNHCR spokesman said only a "trickle" of refugees have crossed from Kosovo into the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia but that Bosnia and Herzegovina reported a substantial influx of Muslim Slavs from an area straddling Serbia and Montenegro.

Two of the agency's offices in Kosovo and in northern Yugoslavia were ransacked and two vehicles were stolen, the spokesman said.

Ms. Robinson said she had been following with "dismay and deep anguish" events on the ground that had led to massive violations of the right to life and had caused so much human suffering. It was imperative for all concerned to do their utmost to protect people from the threat of harm or of being forced to flee from their homes and neighbourhoods, she said.

She appealed for all concerned to make a special effort to help turn the current situation around so that the people of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, particularly the people of Kosovo, could enjoy their inalienable rights in peace and dignity.

The Office of the Prosecutor said on Friday that Justice Louise Arbour had taken the unusual step of addressing herself directly to President Slobodan Milosevic and other seniors officers in the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, reminding them of their obligations under international law. So as not to leave any doubt as to the relevant law, copies of the salient portions of the text of the Statute of the International Tribunal had been attached to the letter she forwarded to the Yugoslav officials.

In the letter, Justice Arbour said that she intended to investigate all serious violations of international humanitarian law that merited prosecution in the international forum, particularly those involving attacks on the civilian population.

"Meanwhile, I believe that everything must be done to deter the commission of future crimes," Justice Arbour wrote, stressing that she looked to the Yugoslav officials to exercise their authority to prevent new crimes and to take all necessary steps to punish those who had committed serious violations of international humanitarian law in Kosovo.

According to a UNHCR spokesperson, most of the 50,000 Cambodian refugees have gone back to the northwestern part of the country. UNHCR also assisted in returning 2,500 refugees to two remote eastern provinces.

A UNHCR programme has been established to monitor the welfare of the returnees and to assist in their reintegration. Three UNHCR field offices will implement projects to rehabilitate local infrastructure and help returnees to become self-supporting. UNHCR is also urging more attention to the need for clearing landmines from rural areas.

In a statement to the media, the Secretary-General's Special Representative for Human Rights in Cambodia Thomas Hammarberg stressed that "there were no negotiations."

Before the meeting, the Prime Minister had submitted a written clarification to Secretary-General Kofi Annan, which said that Ta Mok, one of the Khmer Rouge leaders, would be tried in an existing domestic court. Whether other Khmer Rouge leaders would also be tried will be decided by the court's prosecutor. The Cambodian tribunal may seek the assistance of foreign legal experts.

In remarks last week, the Secretary-General called for the creation of an international tribunal to prosecute the captured Khmer Rouge leaders. However, Cambodia's foreign minister has said the prisoners should be tried in a domestic court with international assistance.

The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) said on Friday that out of the needed $24.7 million, donors had provided only slightly over $600,000 for the operations outlined in the UN Inter- Agency Consolidated Appeal for 1999.

The humanitarian programme in Tajikistan focuses on assisting with the resettlement and reintegration of internationally displaced persons, as well as improving their food security. Other humanitarian activities include the rehabilitation of basic infrastructures and the provision of assistance in health, water and sanitation.

OCHA said that these programmes, along with the demobilization and reintegration of former combatants, were vital to underpin the peace process stemming from the General Agreement of 1997 to end the conflict in Tajikistan.

The UN Humanitarian Coordinator for Afghanistan Erick de Mul told reporters in Islamabad on Friday that five other international staff who were now in Kandahar would rotate out over the coming Eid holidays, and then return next week.

Mr. de Mul stressed in particular the importance of Afghan national staff in allowing UN programmes to continue during the seven months' absence of international staff. During that period, the UN had focused on projects aimed at alleviating human suffering and improving food security and health.

The UN Humanitarian Coordinator stressed, however, that there was a considerable shortfall in funding. The Consolidated Appeal for Afghanistan, for example, had so far generated only $14 million out of the $115 million needed for highest priority activities. Mr. de Mul said that the shortfalls were having an impact on various programmes, including the voluntary repatriation of Afghan refugees in Pakistan.

From the United Nations home page at <http://www.un.org> - email: [email protected]

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