REGULAR PRESS BRIEFING BY THE INFORMATION SERVICE

Corinne Momal-Vanian, the Director of the United Nations Information Service in Geneva, chaired the briefing which was also attended by Spokespersons for the World Meteorological Organization, the International Organization for Migration, the World Health Organization, the United Nations Refugee Agency and the International Telecommunication Union.

Earth Hour

Ms. Momal-Vanian said that for the second consecutive year, the UN System would participate in Earth Hour, a global event that was initiated by the World Wildlife Fund. The event, which would take place tomorrow, Saturday, 27 March at 8:30 p.m., called on households, organizations and cities to turn off their lights for one hour, with the aim of encouraging communities to take a stand against global warming. At the Palais des Nations, non-essential lights would be switched off, as well as at a number of United Nations offices around the world.

Human Rights Council

Ms. Momal-Vanian said that the Human Rights Council was closing today its thirteenth session. The President of the Human Rights Council, Alex Van Meeuwen would hold a press conference later today a 1:45 p.m. in Press Room I.

Conference on Disarmament

Ms. Momal-Vanian said that the Conference on Disarmament was also closing the First Part of its 2010 Session.

Human Rights Committees

Ms. Momal-Vanian said that the Committee on the Rights of Migrant Workers and their Families would meet from 19 to 30 April 2010. The Committee Against Torture would meet from 26 April to 14 May 2010.

Director-General

Ms. Momal-Vanian said that next Monday, 29 March, Sergei Ordzhonikidze, Director-General of the United Nations Office at Geneva, would participate in a United Nations Institute for Disarmament Research conference on space security, under the theme of “From Foundations to Negotiations”. The Conference would be held in Room XI from 29 to 30 March.

Iran/Radio Interference

Sanjay Acharya of the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) said the question of radio jamming signals emanating from the territory of Iran, which had been interfering with radio signals from satellite networks operated by the European satellite organization EUTELSAT, had come up before the ITU Radio Regulations Board, which had been meeting for the last week. Among the Board’s responsibilities was to consider reports of harmful radio interference and to formulate recommendations for their resolution.

France, on behalf of EUTELSAT, had notified the ITU Radio Regulations Board of the interference. After examining the evidence before it, the Board has determined that EUTELSAT satellite networks were indeed receiving interfering signals which were prohibited under the Radio Regulations and which were hampering the lawful operations of the satellites, said Mr. Acharya.

The Board has also concluded that the interference appeared to be emanating from the territory of Iran, based on measurements provided by France that followed the techniques and technologies recognized in the ITU Handbook on Spectrum Monitoring, said Mr. Acharya. The interference had been reported of having persisted for some time, adversely affecting the operation of several EUTELSAT satellite transponders and channels.

Mr. Acharya said the Radio Regulations Board has urged Iran to continue its efforts in locating the source of the interference and to eliminate it as matter of the highest priority. The Board has also called on France and the ITU Radio Communication Bureau to assist Iran in identifying the source of the interference.

Answering to a journalist’s question on the membership of the ITU Radio Regulations Board, Mr. Acharya said that it was composed of twelve experts elected from various countries but that they did not represent countries.

Turning to another question on the possible penalties Iran could face, Mr. Acharya said that Iran had not said that it was the source of these signals but that it would investigate the matter. Further, the ITU Regulation Board did not have a policing authority in this matter. ITU was currently looking at the diplomatic measures that could be used. If the issue could not be cleared now, it would come up before the ITU Council, the ITU’s governing body which would meet next month. If the matter was still not be resolved by then, it would go up before the World Radio Communication Conference in 2012.

Somalia/Health Situation

Paul Garwood of the World Health Organization (WHO) said that WHO was facing a major crisis in Somalia, in terms of lack of funding. WHO had requested, in the 2010 Consolidated Appeals Process for Somalia, US$ 46 million, of which only 8 per cent have been funded so far. The main donor was the United Nations Central Emergency Fund itself.

There was a lack of support from donors at the moment for healthcare activities in Somalia. This was putting WHO in a very awkward position, said Mr. Garwood. They were currently on the verge of reducing activities in some parts of the country due to this situation. In a month time, they would have to consider, in some parts of the country, whether they would be able to maintain appropriate adequate levels of healthcare services.

WHO had achieved already very much in terms of health in Somalia. The health sector was one in which donors should be investing in, said Mr. Garwood. In recent years, millions of children had been vaccinated, hundreds of doctors have been trained in surgery and care and hundreds of health workers have been trained in surveillance and detection of outbreaks. All this had had a major impact on the health of Somali people. If these activities would not continue to be funded, there would be a negative impact on the health of Somalis.

During the recent fighting in and around Mogadishu, health partners had reports 433 trauma cases and 48 deaths in the first two weeks of March. The first confirmed case of cholera had also been reported recently. There was an increase in the number of disease cases currently being reported and the risks of outbreaks were very high, said Mr. Garwood.

Answering to a journalist’s question, Mr. Garwood said that their main concern was that access to healthcare would continue to be diminished without proper funding. Mothers delivering babies might not get the right kind of care to deliver their babies safely. One in six Somali children under five years of age could suffer from acute malnutrition or continue to suffer from it. One in seven children would not live to celebrate its fifth birthday, if the right kind of funding did not arrive. And 7,300 children would have no access to healthcare, which would lead to serious complications, malnutrition and deaths.


European Union/Asylum Seekers

Melissa Fleming of the United Nations Refugee Agency (UNHCR) said that UNHCR had released yesterday a study which looked at the situation of asylum seeking procedures in 12 European Union Member States. In 2005, the European Union had adopted a very welcome Directive in order to harmonize how asylum seekers were being treated and received at their arrival in European Union countries. UNHCR had subsequently decided to conduct a wide-ranging study to see how these practices were being put into effect. The study concluded that the situation was very uneven from one country to the other and that the practices were being applied inconsistently and, in some cases, in ways that might breach international law.

Ms. Fleming said that the study showed that applicants were not always being afforded personal interviews or not given enough time to prepare for interviews or to explain their claims. Interpreters were not always available or qualified enough. In one country, UNHCR had found 171 absolutely identically worded interview reports, with only the name of the applicant and the country of origin differing. UNHCR also found that three States had used lists of so-called “safe countries of origins” for the basis of decision-making. There were also so-called “accelerated processes”, for persons originating from such “safe-countries”.

UNHCR believed such practices reduced safeguards to protect asylum seekers, creating the risk that protection needs were not being properly identified and that asylum seekers might be sent back to persecution or serious harm. Asylum decision-making was one of the most difficult judicial and administrative tasks; it involved a very complex assessment, having to do with the future of a human life and it could really be a matter of life or death for an asylum seeker, said Ms. Fleming.

UNHCR was hoping to be able work very intensively with the countries identified in the report to analyze the situation further, provide them with training and assistance and to help them improve their systems, said Ms. Fleming.


Yemen

Melissa Fleming also said that the United Nations country team in Yemen, which included UNHCR, has been able to do an assessment of the situation in the Sa’ada Province, where intense fighting had been taking place. It was the first time in eight months that they had been able to reach this region.

Ms. Fleming said the team reported that the city of Sa’ada appeared to be recovering and returning to life as its streets were bustling with people and traffic and all the shops were open. Prices of basic necessities were gradually decreasing and the supply of water and electricity was improving. Some schools were also reopening.

However, there were continued concerns as the ceasefire was still fragile. There were also concerns about unexploded ordnances and mines, said Ms. Fleming. Tragic accidents were frequent and a landmine killed a 16-year-old boy on Monday. Also, UNHCR’s funding for Yemen had improved and its part of the 2010 UN consolidated appeal for Yemen was now 30 per cent funded.

Pakistan/Afghan Refugees

Melissa Fleming noted that UNHCR had very much welcomed Pakistan's decision to allow 1.7 million registered Afghans to remain in the country by extending they stay for three more years. Pakistan remained the host of the largest refugee population under UNHCR’s care in the world and its continuing generosity to the uprooted was absolutely crucial for these people.


Situation in Haiti

Jared Bloch of the International Organization for Migration (IOM) said that IOM was continuing with the internally displaced persons’ registration process in Port-au-Prince to identify specifically the areas of origin of the displaced and the overall situation of the families. The registration provided key information to IOM’s partners involved in house assessment, debris removal, and relocation of the displaced.

Five options were available to the displaced said Mr. Bloch. These were: returning to their homes if they were considered safe; returning to a safe plot from which the debris have been removed; staying with a host family; staying temporarily in a site in proximity to their area of origin, or, where possible, staying in an existing spontaneous site; and for those who did not have another option, temporarily relocating to planned sites identified by the Government of Haiti.

Additionally, 17 sites have been identified as being at high risk of flooding and/or mudslide and have been prioritized for decongestion, said Mr. Bloch. Those sites alone hosted a population of 245,000 individuals. IOM was working with partners to provide immediate solutions for those individuals.

South Africa/Trafficking

Jared Bloch, of the International Organization for Migration (IOM) said that IOM had released a report last week on the situation of human trafficking between Zimbabwe and South Africa. The report looked specifically at the northern region of Limpopo Province, South Africa.


Next Week’s Agenda

Gaelle Sevenier of the World Meteorological Organization said that the El-Nino Report would be launched next Tuesday, 30 March, during the regular bi-weekly press briefing.