Peace watch.

KOSOVO

Security Council mission visits Yugoslavia

A Security Council mission-the first to include all 15 members and be headed by the Council President-visited Kosovo and the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia from 16 to l8 June. During its visit, the delegation met with Yugoslav President Vojislav Kostunica in Belgrade, as well as with Russian Federation President Vladimir Putin, who visited Kosovo to review the 3,000-strong Russian contingent at Pristina airport. The delegation further held meetings with representatives of all Kosovo communities, met with members of the Interim Administrative Council and the Kosovo Transitional Council, and visited the divided city of Mitrovica where it met with human rights activists.

Discussing the mission on 22 June, the Council stressed that involving all communities in the political process and guaranteeing multi-ethnicity in the province remained a major challenge for the United Nations Interim Administration Mission in Kosovo (UNMIK). Under-Secretary-General for Peacekeeping Operations Jean-Marie Guehenno stressed that all Kosovars needed to "accept their share of the responsibility". The Kosovo Albanians had to respect the rights of the minority communities, and these communities needed to accept "the risk of participation". He said the November elections in Kosovo would establish provisional self-government and create legitimate interlocutors for discussions on a final settlement.

The current political process in Kosovo was crucial to combating extremism and encouraging moderates on all sides, according to the Council mission's report. The mission "sent a strong message to all communities to reject all violence, extremism and terrorism", Council President Anwarul Chowdhury of Bangladesh said. It recommended that "more intensified efforts should be put into the issue of the missing of all communities and detainees", which continued to be a major impediment to reconciliation. Participation by all communities in the 17 November elections, the return of refugees and displaced persons, and their participation in elections should be encouraged, the report observed. For its part, UNMIK should continue its dialogue with the Yugoslav authorities, "whose influence in Kosovo is key on the implementation of resolution 1244".

On 15 May, Secretary-General Kofi Annan welcomed the conclusion of the Constitutional Framework for Provisional Self-Government in Kosovo, saying that he believed that adequate guarantees were built into the Constitutional Framework to protect the rights and interests of all of Kosovo's communities. Encouraging all communities to participate in the electoral process, he called on the Kosovo Serb community to register and participate in the elections, adding that he supported the holding of Kosovo-wide elections later in the year. He hoped that these would help consolidate democracy and show that the future of Kosovo lies in the peaceful pursuit of the political process, not in acts of violence and extremism.

On 4 June, UNMIK announced the end of the weapons amnesty period aimed at encouraging people to turn in illegal arms. From then on, anyone caught with an unauthorized weapon would be subject to fines and imprisonment of up to ten years. The regulation on illegal border crossing also went into effect, with UNMIK and KFOR having designated 19 legal border and boundary crossing points with the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, Albania, Serbia and Montenegro. Anyone found crossing at other locales would be subject to a fine or jail term.

BOSNIA AND HERZEGOVINA 

Mission extended for another year

The Security Council on 2l June extended the mandate of the United Nations Mission in Bosnia and Herzegovina (UNMIBH) for twelve months, simultaneously authorizing the North Atlantic Treaty Organization-led Stabilization Force (SFOR) to continue operating in the country. The mandate of UNMIBH, which includes the International Police Task Force (IPTF), will run through 2l June 2002. The tasks of IPTF include training law enforcement personnel and providing help in forming a multi-ethnic police force in Bosnia and Herzegovina. The Council noted that "the continued willingness of the international community and major donors to assume the political, military and economic burden of implementation and reconstruction efforts will be determined by the compliance and active participation by all the authorities in Bosnia and Herzegovina in implementing the Peace Agreement and rebuilding a civil society". The Council reminded the parties of their obligation to cooperate with the International Criminal Tribunal for the F ormer Yugoslavia and to surrender all indicted persons.

FORMER YUGOSLAV REPUBLIC OF MACEDONIA

Ceasefire agreement welcomed

Secretary-General Kofi Annan on 26 June expressed support for the ongoing efforts of the European Union to resolve the crisis in the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia and welcomed the recent ceasefire. He called upon the parties to fully honour the ceasefire agreement and "to reinvigorate their efforts" towards a political settlement.

Hundreds of people continued to arrive in Kosovo from the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia as they fled fighting along the border areas, the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) reported on 22 June. UNHCR on 26 June appealed to Governments for urgent financial support to cope with the growing humanitarian consequences of the conflict. The agency is seeking $17.5 million to provide emergency assistance over the next six months to more than 65,000 refugees in Kosovo, some 6,000 refugees in Serbia and thousands more who are internally displaced within the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia.

MIDDLE EAST

Secretary-General visits region

Following a ceasefire between Israel and the Palestinian Authority announced on 4 June 2001, Secretary-General Kofi Annan travelled to the region on l2 June, and met with leaders in Cairo, Damascus, Amman, Beirut, Tel Aviv and Ramallah. Concluding his trip on 18 June, Mr. Annan issued a broad appeal to all involved in the Middle East conflict "to work actively for peace, for the sake of the people and for the sake of the region". He urged the parties to seize the fleeting opportunity for peace by adhering to the ceasefire and returning to the negotiating table to settle their differences by implementing the recommendations of the international fact-finding committee headed by former United States Senator George Mitchell. "The end of the process must be a comprehensive peace settlement, negotiated by the parties on the basis of Security Council resolutions 242 and 338, and the principle of land for peace-and the road that leads back to such negotiations has been clearly traced by the Mitchell Committee."

On 14 May, the Secretary-General had endorsed the report as "a fair and balanced analysis of the causes of the present crisis" and singled out the Committee's emphasis on the need for a halt to all settlement activity, to support the call for maximum effort to control violence in all its forms, and to stress the economic and social crisis facing the Palestinian people. On l5June, Mr. Annan urged rigorous respect for the line of Israeli withdrawal-known as the "Blue Line"-noting that the region could not afford an outbreak of violence there.

On 30 May, the Security Council renewed the mandate of the United Nations Disengagement Observer Force (UNDOF) for another six months until 30 November. It called upon the parties concerned to immediately implement resolution 338 (1973) on a ceasefire in the Middle East and to abide by the Agreement on Disengagement between Israeli and Syrian Forces of 29 May 1974.

EAST TIMOR

Voter registration complete

The head of the United Nations Transitional Administration in East Timor (UNTAET), Sergio Vieira de Mello, on 28 June presented the first State of the Nation address to the East Timorese National Council. Giving an in-depth overview of the progress to date, Mr. Vieira de Mello reaffirmed that preparations were on schedule for East Timor's full independence, with the results of the 30 August elections for the Constituent Assembly to be announced by 10 September, and the appointment of a second Cabinet by 15 September. "I believe strongly that the East Timorese should be as united as possible as they face the extraordinary challenges of independence. Therefore, I will support the formation of a Government of National Unity, based on the spirit of a Pact of National Unity that I am currently encouraging political parties to conclude," he said. The civil registration of East Timorese for the elections ended on 22 June. Some 737,811 people-nearly 93 per cent of East Timor's population-registered with the Mission's Civil Registration Unit. So far, twelve political parties have officially registered, with four of them having presented their lists of candidates.

Thousands of people have been attending Constitutional Commission hearings aimed at soliciting the views of East Timorese on what should be considered by the future Constituent Assembly when drafting a Constitution. Among the prevalent issues discussed are the political system, currency and flag that East Timor should adopt. Other topics include the type of punishments that should be applied to those responsible for serious crimes; the educational system; laws for foreign investors; the distribution of revenue from the Timor Sea; and the official language. Women's groups have been well represented at the hearings, with many calling for Constitutional safeguards against domestic violence and for a robust family law. The Commission will be holding public hearings in each of East Timor's 65 sub-districts until l4 July. The Constitutional Commissioners will subsequently prepare a report to be presented to the future Constituent Assembly.

The National Council of East Timor on 20 June unanimously passed an amended regulation on the establishment of a truth and reconciliation commission and asked UNTAET to set a tribunal to prosecute perpetrators of serious human rights violations in the territory. The Commission on Reception, Truth and Reconciliation will investigate the human rights violations that occurred in the territory between 1974 and 1999, and also create a community reconciliation body to facilitate agreements between local communities and the perpetrators of non-serious crimes and non-criminal acts committed over the same period.

WEST AFRICA

Integrated regional approach needed

On 6 June, the Security Council called upon the international community to make more funds available for relief work on behalf of refugees and internally displaced people in West Africa, in particular in the Mano River Union countries-Guinea, Sierra Leone and Liberia. Encouraging the three countries to enter a process of dialogue, the Council also expressed appreciation for the role of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) for promoting peace in the subregion.

On 14 May, Council members agreed on the need for an integrated regional approach to West Africa, including establishing a United Nations office and strengthening the role of ECOWAS. Briefing the Council on the inter-agency mission to West Africa he headed in April, Assistant Secretary-General for Political Affairs Ibrahima Fall said that an integrated approach was crucial to stemming the cycle of instability, insecurity and displacement in the region. The mission had proposed the creation of a United Nations Office for West Africa, as well as the expansion of the mandate of the United Nations Mission in Sierra Leone (UNAMSIL)to Guinea and Liberia. While controversial, an expanded UNAMSIL would not only help address problems in Sierra Leone but could create the circumstances for monitoring the other borders as well. Also briefing the Council, Under-Secretary-General for Peacekeeping Operations Jean-Marie Guehenno and Deputy Emergency Relief Coordinator Carolyn McAskie amplified the call for an integrated appr oach to the region's problems.

In accordance with Council resolution 1343 (2001) imposing an embargo on diamonds from Liberia and a travel ban on Liberian officials, the Security Council Sanctions Committee on 5 June published a list of senior Liberian Government and military officials subject to the travel ban. The ban, which came into force on 7 May, also covers individuals providing financial and military support to armed rebel groups in countries neighbouring Liberia, in particular the Revolutionary United Front (RUF) in Sierra Leone. On 23 May, the Committee had published a list of RUF members subject to the measures.

SIERRA LEONE

Disarmament process advances

The peace process in Sierra Leone has witnessed remarkable developments in recent months. Briefing the Council, UNAMSIL head Oluyemi Adeniji on 28 June said the UN operation continued to work closely with the Sierra Leonean Government and had solidified its contacts with RUF. He noted that progress had led to a follow-up to the Abuja Ceasefire Agreement to discuss the practical resumption of disarmament, demobilization and reintegration of RUF in Kambia. The international community needed to step up its support for the disarmament process, he said, warning that the current programme would run out of funds in August unless it received the $31 million in additional funding.

Security issues were at the centre of high-level talks held on l6 June between UNAMSIL and RUF Mr. Adeniji and Force Commander Lt. Gen. Daniel Opande discussed with RUF interim leader Issa Sesay the disarmament and reintegration process, as well as the proposed Truth and Reconciliation Commission and Special Court. On 2 June, UNAMSIL, RUF and the Government of Sierra Leone had reached an agreement on the next phase in the process of disarming the country's armed groups. The joint Committee on Disarmament, Demobilization and Reintegration (DDR) agreed to continue the ongoing disarmament process in the Kono and Bonthe districts, as well as in the Port Loko and Kambia areas. On l2 June, over 1,500 RUF combatants began disarming in Masiaka and Lunsar, about 90 kilometres east of the capital.

Parallel to the disarmament process, RUF has also released children associated with its forces to UNAMSIL, which transfers them to the care of non-governmental organizations that help rehabilitate and reunite them with their families. The most recent transfer took place on 4 June m Kailahun, where RUF freed some 400 young people. The hand-over marked the second release of children in two weeks, following the transfer of 591 children in Makeni on 25 May. On 8 June, the first 265 of an expected 4,000 Pakistani peacekeepers arrived in Sierra Leone.

DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF THE CONGO

Mission strengthened

Extending the mandate of the United Nations Mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (MONUC) until 15 June 2002, subject to an assessment every four months, the Security Council on 15 June unanimously decided to strengthen the operation's logistic capability to support current and future deployment. It approved the Secretary General's revised operational concept, creating a civilian police component and an integrated civilian/military planning section to coordinate disarmament and reintegration operations, as well as reinforcing the presence of MONUC in Kisingani. The Council also authorized the Mission to assist in the early disarmament and reintegration of armed groups, and requested Secretary-General Kofi Annan to deploy military observers as necessary. The Council again demanded that all foreign forces withdraw from the Democratic Republic of the Congo, in compliance with resolution 1304 (2000) and the Lusaka accord, and urged those forces to accelerate their withdrawal, calling on all the parties to refrain from any offensive action during the pull-out process. It asked Mr. Annan to submit proposals on how MONUC could monitor the implementation of the pull-out plans being drafted by the Political Committee, which comprises signatories to the Lusaka Ceasefire Agreement, and to assign human rights personnel to areas where MONUC is deployed.

Stressing that a durable peace in the Democratic Republic of the Congo could not be achieved at the expense of peace in Burundi, the Council requested the Secretary-General to make proposals on how to address those interrelated crises. The Council further stressed that a durable peace was only possible if all the countries of the region successfully defined amongst themselves the rules by which to promote security and development. It reaffirmed that an international conference on peace, security, democracy and development in the region should be organized under the aegis of the United Nations and the Organization of African Unity.

On 3 May, the Council condemned the illegal exploitation of natural resources and wealth in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and expressed serious concern at those economic activities fuelling the conflict. Debating the report of the Expert Panel charged with investigating the illegal exploitation of Congolese natural resources, the Council noted with concern the terrible toll the conflict was taking on the people, economy and environment of the country. It asked the Secretary-General to extend the Panel's mandate by three months and requested its members to submit an addendum to the main report, providing an update of relevant data and conclusions about whether progress had been made. On 28 June, the Secretary-General recommended Mahmoud Kassem of Egypt as the new chair of the Expert Panel.

GREAT LAKES REGION 

Council debates Great Lakes mission

The Security Council on 30 May held an open debate on the Council mission to the Great Lakes region, which had visited nine countries in southern and central Africa from 15 to 26 May. The twelve-member delegation, headed by Ambassador Jean-David Levitte of France, had held talks with Heads of States involved in the conflict in the Democratic Republic of the Congo to help resolve problems m establishing an interim administration for the zones vacated by foreign forces. Outlining positive developments indicating movement towards a possible solution to the conflict, Ambassador Levitte underscored that there was a true window of opportunity to move towards peace in the region. The mission had achieved results in the military sphere and there had also been progress in the inter-Congolese dialogue. He noted the reopening of the country's river network to humanitarian and commercial traffic.

Ambassador Levitte expressed concern about the impasse in Burundi. The mission had met with the President, political parties and leaders of the two armed groups, as well as with former South African President Nelson Mandela. Addressing the refugee problem, the mission had suggested establishing a Tanzanian/Burundian commission to find practical ways to reduce tension.

Secretary-General Kofi Annan said the timely visit of the Council mission to the region had served to consolidate the recent momentum for peace in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Highlighting some daunting challenges to the peace process, he noted that current international support for humanitarian work was "unacceptably low", with only 20 per cent of the 2001 appeal for $139.4 million being funded. He also voiced concern at the dire human rights situation: "Without accountability for the most severe crimes, there can be no lasting peace."

The mission's report concluded that the outlines of a solution appeared to be taking shape for the first time since the outbreak of the conflict, and the country appeared to be eager for "national reconciliation, democratization and development, with respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms in a climate of political plurality". Nonetheless, implementation of the Lusaka Agreement would remain difficult as long as the parties viewed the sequencing of the disengagement and withdrawal of forces subjectively. The report stressed that the complete withdrawal of all foreign forces from Congolese territory and the disarmament, demobilization, reintegration and repatriation of armed groups needed to be finalized as quickly as possible.

HORN OF AFRICA 

Peacekeepers still face restrictions

Peacekeepers still face restrictions in areas adjacent to the Temporary Security Zone (TSZ) which impedes the United Nations Mission in Ethiopia and Eritrea (UNMEE) from fully monitoring the redeployment of the two parties' armed forces. In a new report released on 20 June, Secretary-General Kofi Annan stressed the need to move forward on unresolved matters. Noting the importance of the work of the Boundary Commission, mandated to delimit and demarcate the border between the two countries and resolve the dispute that originated the war, the Secretary-General called on both Governments to cooperate with the Commission and meet their obligation to bear the related costs.

On 15 May, the Security Council called for unrestricted free movement and access for UNMEE, including within the TSZ separating the armed forces of the parties to the conflict. In a presidential statement, it said that free and unhindered access for the Mission was a fundamental condition for the success of the peacekeeping operation. It also announced that the arms embargo imposed on both sides in May 2000 had not been extended beyond 16 May 2001. The Council urged the parties to ensure that efforts were redirected from weapons procurement and other military activities towards the reconstruction and development of both economies and regional reconciliation, with a view to achieving stability in the Horn of Africa.

Since the TSZ was established on 18 April, large numbers of internally displaced people have returned to their places of origin. On l5 June, UNMEE reported the return of over 81,000 internally displaced persons to their home areas m Senafe, Adi Quala and Tserona. Cautioning that sanitation and shelter could become a major problem in the camps when the rains began, the Mission reported that humanitarian mine action programmes were taking place in conjunction with the return of internally displaced persons. In anticipation of rains, UNHCR reported on 22June that it had intensified its efforts to return Eritreans from the Sudan. The operation, launched in mid-May, aims to repatriate over 170,000. Some of the returnees have lived in exile for more than twenty years and have no homes to return to.

On l9 June, UNHCR announced the repatriation of the first group of 1,253 Somali refugees living in Eritrea since the early 1990s. Earlier; UNHCR returned 117 Somalis from Yemen; another 2,800 refugees were expected to return by boat before the end of the year. In addition, around 7,700 Somalis in Kenya have expressed the desire to return home. In total, UNHCR cares for over 281,000 Somali refugees in the Horn of Africa, including approximately 137,000 in Kenya.

Other Peacekeeping-related Operations

Afghanistan: The Security Council on 5 June held an open debate on establishing a new UN monitoring mechanism aimed at strengthening the international arms embargo against the Taliban and keeping track of terrorist training camps in Afghanistan. A five-member expert group had recommended the creation of a UN office that would work with border control and counter-terrorism services in the six States neighbouring Afghanistan. The office would also employ specialists in illegal arms trafficking, drugs, money laundering and counter-terrorism.

Angola: Urging all parties in the conflict to respect the neutrality of humanitarian operations and allow unhindered delivery of aid, the World Food Programme (WFP) on 21 June resumed humanitarian assistance flights, ending a six-day suspension forced by attacks on its aircraft. The agency had halted its air deliveries on 15 June, when two WFP airplanes encountered an exploding missile on their flight path from Catumbela to Kuito. WFP currently assists and feeds over 1 million people in Angola, with 60 per cent of all inland food deliveries made by air. Most of the provincial capitals have been practically isolated for months because military activity impedes access by road.

Burundi: On 6 June, the Security Council called on all parties to the conflict in Burundi to immediately cease hostilities and to respect human rights and international law. Reiterating its "strong support for the Arusha Agreement as the basis for the resolution of the conflict in Burundi", the Council urged the Forces for National Liberation and the Forces for the Defence of Democracy to refrain from violent action and to enter into the Arusha process. It called upon countries in the region to use their influence to bring the armed groups into the peace process.

Central African Republic: Following an attempted coup on 28 May, Secretary-General Kofi Annan on 5 June sent his Special Envoy, General Amadou Toumani Toure of Mali, to the capital Bangui for urgent talks with President Ange-Felix Patasse to help end the fighting between government forces and rebels, and to restore peaceful political dialogue within the framework of the country's democratic institutions. An estimated 100,000 people had been displaced or left homeless as a result of the violence.

Cyprus: On 15 June, the Security Council extended the mandate of the United Nations Peacekeeping Force in Cyprus (UNFICYP) through 15 December 2001. It also urged the Turkish Cypriot side to lift restrictions imposed on the Mission's operations.

Irag: The Security Council extended the oil-for-food programme for 150 days beginning 4 July. The Office of the Iraq Programme on 26 June reported that there have been no Iraqi petroleum exports since 4 June under the oil-for-food programme. On 21 June, the Compensation Commission, the UN panel charged with disbursing payments for damages arising from Iraq's invasion and occupation of Kuwait, approved awards of over $842 million, including $243 million to five countries--Iran, Jordan, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia and Syria-for 69 separate claims concerning environmental monitoring and assessment. To date, the Commission has awarded over $35.4 billion to successful claimants.

Rwanda: The first President of the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda (ICTR), Judge Laity Kama of Senegal, died on 6 May 2001. Serving as President from 1995 to 1999, Judge Kama made historic contributions to international humanitarian law in 1998 as presiding judge in the Tribunal's judgements in the Akayesu and Kambanda cases. The Akayesu case was the first-ever judgement for the crime of genocide by an international court and the first-ever to convict an accused person of rape as a crime against humanity. Judge Kama's verdict in the Kambanda case, involving the former Prime Minister of Rwanda, was the first-ever conviction of a head of Government for genocide. On 7 June, the ICTR issued its first acquittal. The Tribunal ruled that the Prosecution had failed to prove its case beyond a reasonable doubt against the former Bourgmestre of Mabanza Commune in Kibuye Prefecture, Ignace Bagilishema.

Western Sahara: Expressing its full support for Secretary-General Kofi Annan's proposal for new talks, the Security Council on 29 June extended for five months the mandate of UN Mission for the Referendum in Western Sahara (MINURSO). The Council fully supported Mr. Annan's efforts to invite the parties to meet directly or through proximity talks, under the auspices of his Personal Envoy James Baker, to discuss a proposed draft Framework Agreement on the Status of Western Sahara.

RELATED ARTICLE: Milosevic Handed to Tribunal

Secretary-General Kofi Annan on 28 June welcomed the transfer of former President Slobodan Milosevic to the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY), based at The Hague. Calling the event "a day few had imagined, but many had hoped for", Mr. Annan expressed hope that it would bring to the victims of the Balkan wars of the past decade "some measure of comfort, some sense that even the most powerful leader can be brought to justice, and face the consequences of his actions". The indictment against Mr. Milosevic charges him and four others with crimes against humanity and violations of the laws of war during a "systematic attack directed against the Kosovo Albanian civilian population of Kosovo in the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia". His forces "forcibly expelled and internally displaced hundreds of thousands of Kosovo Albanians from their homes across the entire province of Kosovo". ICTY Prosecutor Carla Del Ponte called Mr. Milosevic's transfer "an important milestone for international criminal justice", while Tribunal President Judge Claude Jorda said it marked "a turning point and the beginning of a new era" in the development of international criminal justice. "The forthcoming trial of a former Head of State is a new and irreversible step in relation to the international community's resolve to fight against impunity", he said.

International Staff Security Summit

With UN peacekeeping and civilian personnel continuing to face an array of threats, top UN officials on 28 June called on Governments to ensure the protection of the Organization's staff. Addressing the fourth Summit on the Security of International Staff, Secretary-General Kofi Annan recalled that 68 countries had lost their nationals in the service of the United Nations. Deploring the fact that less than one third of the 189 Member States were parties to the Convention on the Protection of United Nations and Associated Personnel, he urged countries to ratify the treaty "without delay" and approve a Protocol that would extend its application to all UN operations and categories of personnel. He also urged ratification of the Statute of the International Criminal Court, which defines attacks against peacekeeping and humanitarian personnel as war crimes. Stressing that host Governments had the primary duty, to protect humanitarian personnel under their jurisdiction", General Assembly President Harry Holkeri sai d it was a matter of "serious concern" that the number of incidents and casualties had increased in the past decade. UN Development Programme head Mark Malloch Brown stressed that "risks in the field hay been shifting from peacekeepers to humanitarian and development workers". Staff Council Vice-President Fernando Astete said that 15 UN civilian staffers had lost their lives in 2000 and 6 this year, while 242 had been victims of hostage-taking and kidnapping in the past seven years. The meeting was organized by the UN Staff Council and its Standing Committee on the Security and Independence of the International Civil Service.

Appeal for Palestine Refugees

The United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) launched an appeal on 22 June for $77 million needed to bring food, medical supplies and other assistance to people in the West Bank and Gaza. UNRWA, the principal United Nations agency providing humanitarian relief to Palestinian refugees, aims to provide 217,000 refugee families with basic food aid, and rebuild some 200 refugee shelters that have been destroyed by shelling or bulldozing by Israeli security forces.

UN and Media Search for Peace

Prominent journalists and Middle East experts, including senior officials and lawmakers from Israel and the Palestinian Authority, gathered on 18 June at the Paris headquarters of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) to discuss the search for peace in the region. Secretary-General Kofi Annan, in a message delivered by Shashi Tharoor, Interim Head of the Department of Public Information, which also organized the event, said that during his tour of the Middle East he had met with victims of the conflict, including Palestinian children mutilated by gunfire and Israeli school-friends of teenagers killed by a recent bombing in Tel Aviv. "Their suffering is terrible in itself, but all the worse in that each act of violence sows the seeds of the next and further erodes each side's belief that peace with the other will ever be possible", he said, adding that the two parties shared a mutual desire to see an end to the bloodshed. "On both sides there is also a deep yearning to escape from this hell and find the way to a normal and peaceful life."

Trafficking on the Rise in West Africa

Reporting a rise in the trafficking of children in West and Central Africa, the International Labour Organization (ILO) on 15 June urged a concerted regional response to combat this scourge. ILO said that while there had been some cases of trafficking for commercial sexual exploitation, most cases involved labour exploitation, as such as domestic work, work in plantations, small trade, begging and soliciting. The report blamed the trend on a number of factors, including the decline in the extended family system. Traffickers usually offer money and jobs in order to persuade parents to send their children away, but neither the child nor the parents are paid what was pledged. Trafficked children work from 10 to 20 hours a day, carry heavy loads, operate dangerous tools and lack adequate food or drink, according to the report. Nigeria reported that one out of five trafficked children die of illness or mishaps. Others succumb to sexually transmitted diseases, including HIV/AIDS. The report recommended the adoption of a subregional plan of action to combat the problem, including research, awareness-raising, training, strengthening the legal and institutional framework, direct assistance to victims, and bilateral collaboration for repatriation and extradition of traffickers.

Conflict Prevention Debated

In an open meeting held on 21 June, the Security Council confirmed the need to make preventive action a key part of the international security system in the twenty-first century. Introducing the far-reaching measures put forward by Secretary-General Kofi Annan in his report submitted on 15 June to the Security Council and the General Assembly, Deputy Secretary-General Louise Frechette said that "we must intensify our efforts to move from a culture of reaction to one of prevention". Mr. Annan proposed ten principles to guide the United Nations future approach to conflict prevention. He recommended the adoption of a subregional plan of action to combat the problem, including research, awareness-raising, training, strengthening the legal and institutional framework, direct assistance to victims, and bilateral collaboration for repatriation and extradition of traffickers. The report also emphasized the need to focus on the. root causes of conflict, to approach prevention in a comprehensible way, and to view confl ict prevention and sustainable development as mutually reinforcing, which, in turn, makes a case for looking at development activities from a conflict prevention perspective.

World Refugee Day 

Observing the first-ever World Refugee Day. the United Nations on 20 June highlighted the plight of people displaced by conflict and natural disaster, and called for respect for the 1951 Geneva Convention-the bedrock of the international system for protecting refugees, which marks its fiftieth anniversary this year. UN High Commissioner for Refugees Ruud Lubbers urged decision-makers to do more to preserve the institution of asylum and give financial backing for refugee programmes worldwide. "Refugees are resourceful people, survivors, but they still need considerable help from the international community", lie said. "Helping them and protecting them is a moral and legal obligation, rather than an optional act of charity."