Let's start this press briefing for Tuesday, 16th of March.
We have quite a few items on our agenda, so let's not delay.
Let's go directly to Rolando Gomez from the Human Rights Council for an update on what's happening at the Council today.
Rolando, thank you very much, Rael and good, very good morning to everybody.
I'll be very brief just to keep you on track for the Human Rights Council session for today.
The programme is pretty straightforward today and most of tomorrow.
In fact, they are dedicated is dedicated to the adoption of the reports of the Universal Periodic Review working group for the reviews that took place, human rights reviews that took place in November at its last session.
There are 14 state reports to be adopted today and tomorrow.
So today there are 8 in total.
I'll just recite them in the order in which they are being adopted.
We have Belarus currently underway.
So adoption for Belarus right now, that'll be followed by a report on Libya and then Malawi and then Panama.
And those are for the ones this morning and this afternoon we have Mongolia, Maldives, Andora and Honduras.
Tomorrow, we'll continue with six more report adoptions in the following order starting at 10:00 in the morning, Bulgaria and then the Marshall Islands and then the United States of America and then Croatia.
And then in the afternoon, we have the adoptions for Liberia and Jamaica.
So those are all 14 reports from the UPR Working Group that'll be adopted to today and tomorrow, further reviews which took place in November.
And just to remind you, this is an opportunity for the states under review to pronounce their final positions and all the recommendations that were posed to them during the reviews in November.
And those responses could be found in the addendum to the reports which I shared with you last night.
So you'll have those spelled out, and the delegations under review will articulate those when they have a chance to speak today.
Later in the afternoon tomorrow, we'll hear reports, presentations from the chairpersons of the Forum on minority issues on their latest session, which took place in November last year, and then from the Social Forum.
This is another subsidiary body of the Council on their last session in October last year, and that session focused on its efforts to combat poverty and inequalities.
Thereafter, at the end of the day tomorrow, the Council will start its general debate on Item 5, which pertains to the work of its subsidiary bodies, and that'll spill over to to Thursday morning.
And the last thing, just to remind you that the action on the 31 draught resolutions that have been tabled thus far will take place this coming Monday and Tuesday 22 and 23 March.
We have an extended session.
As I mentioned, all these texts are available on the extranet.
If you have any difficulties finding those, please let me know.
Rolando, are there any questions for Orlando on the Human Rights Council?
So thanks very much Rolando and have a good day at the council.
Let's move over, move on to Claire Nollis from the World Meteorological Organisation who has a few announcements for you.
Yes, good morning everybody.
I hope you're all enjoying the the chilly weather after our brief taste of of spring hurricanes.
At the moment, the WM OS Hurricane Committee meet is holding its annual session.
The hurricane committee covers North America, Central America and the Caribbean.
And so the meeting that's taking place, so yesterday, today and tomorrow is reviewing the season, fine tuning preparations for 20/21.
And the bit which always attracts the media attention is it will be deciding which names to retire.
We retired names of particularly deadly and damaging hurricanes because of the media interest in the naming issue.
We are organising a virtual press conference tomorrow night, 2030 Geneva time.
I know this is late for you, but the the main demand is for this is from North American media.
So we will send out to media advisory today.
If you have colleagues in North America who would like to cover it, please forward it to them.
It's attendances by registration only simply because, you know, we do have to limit it to accredited media.
Members of the public would love to also have, you know, have their say on hurricane names.
So that advisory will be going out to shortly and we send about a press release yesterday with details about the season and we will be sending out a press release after the session finishes tomorrow.
So even if you can't attend, you know, participate in the, in the press conference, you will receive the press release in English, French and Spanish.
COVID-19 today we are sending out under embargo a press release on the report of a multidisciplinary task team.
So it's not just WMO, it's, you know, it's a wide range of meteorological and health experts as well.
They've a task team has, you know, looked at all the literature about the relationship between COVID-19 and meteorological and air quality factors.
So the press release has gone out.
And we will add to that the, the, the French and the Spanish translations and other language translations are coming up one week, today is World Meteorological Day.
The theme is the ocean, our climate and weather.
Obviously, you know, when we think of weather, we normally think about what's happening in the, in the atmosphere.
If we ignore the oceans, we miss a big part of the picture.
It's the start of the UN Decade of Ocean Science for Sustainable Development.
And that's why we selected the theme.
There's no new reports being issued as such, and so we're not planning a press conference.
Obviously, if you would like interviews, please get in touch with me and I'll be more than happy to facilitate them.
And there will be a virtual ceremony starting at noon, the 23rd of March online open to everybody.
And you're more than welcome to participate in that.
And we will be issuing a, a press release on on that.
Normally for World Meteorological Day, we issue our global state of the climate report.
We're not doing that this year.
That will come out just ahead of Earth Day, probably around the 20th of April.
And we will be launching that with the UN Secretary General.
And last but not least, we will be posting a web story today on a huge sand and dust storm, which is hitting, you know, northern China, Mongolia and large parts of Asia.
It's the it's said to be the worst in the decade.
So I'm compiling information on that and we will post that on on the web today.
Lots of stuff happening at WMO.
I see that Christophe folk from AFP has his hand raised.
So I understand that you have to be aware of the press answer in the world, but 830 is really late for something that the public really likes.
Was there no way to get it done a little bit earlier so that Americans can also have it at the same time than us?
Or is there a possibility that you could send the press release beforehand instead of after the press conference?
OK, so this is on the Hurricanes.
We are having the press conference at the end of the meeting.
We originally had the discussed doing it only on on Thursday, but, you know, doing it the day after is, you know, had problems in itself.
So literally, you know, the meeting ends at I think sort of 730 Geneva time and we're having the first conference immediately after that.
The the press release, it obviously depends on what the committee decides on the name.
So the discussions are all tomorrow.
They're not, you know, they're not taking place today.
But as soon as I can, you know, I will, I will send out the press release and I will try to do so ahead, you know, ahead of the press conference.
It's, you know, it's 3:30 in the afternoon, American, American time.
So, you know, I know it's late for us, but for North America and the Caribbean, it's, you know, it's, it's still, it's still mid afternoon.
And obviously that is where the, you know, the, the main, the main interest, the main interest is.
But, you know, I, I, you know, I take note of your concerns.
But you know, we really are trying to accommodate, you know, the, the media interest in this story.
We don't normally have a press conference, even it's normally just a press release.
But we decided this time, given that the season was so exceptional, you know, we will, we will have a virtual press conference.
We'll wait to hear more from you on on that topic and we'll watch for the results of that meeting of the committee eagerly.
I don't see any other questions.
So let's move on with our agenda.
We have Jens Lark from OCHA here to tell you a little bit about the humanitarian response plans for Nigeria and South Sudan, which are long being launched today.
And and that's, that's right.
And I just say I just could be coordinating here with Thompson from WFP.
So because he also has a few things to say about Nigeria.
So I'll take Nigeria 1st and and then Thompson will say a few words on that as well.
The Nigerian humanitarian response plan is being launched today in Abuja.
It asks for $1 billion to help 6.4 million of the most vulnerable people, including two million people who are internally displaced.
The bulk of the assistance will be directed to the north eastern states of Borno, Adamawa and Yobe.
Over 5 million people there are at risk of acute hunger during the upcoming lean season.
That's the worst outlook in four years, and that's due to escalating conflict, displacements and the disruption of livelihoods, which is made worse by the effects and restrictions of COVID-19.
Last year, just over half of the funding needed for the humanitarian response plan was secured, yet humanitarian partners reached over 5 million people and, among other interventions, helped avert malnutrition for over 2 million children.
Now we'll go to Thompson theory from the World Food Programme for some remarks as well.
Yes, I just wanted to quickly add that while farming has not been declared in any part of the country, suffering has reached emergency levels in parts of the North East of Nigeria.
The World Food Programme is extremely concerned but armed conflict, particularly in the states of Bono in Adamawa and Yobe continues to uproot thousands from their homes, disrupting their livelihoods and preventing people from growing food, thus exposing them to a hunger catastrophe.
From 2010 to 2020, there has been significant cropland reduction in over 90% of localities in the North East.
Some areas were heavily affected by cropland abandonment in 2020 due to population displacements and movement restrictions.
Millions of people are already facing dangerous levels of hunger as their lives and livelihoods are being severely disrupted by non starts and groups who are vying with each other and fighting against government forces for control of territory.
In in the Northeast states which we have mentioned, the World Food Programme is scaling up its food and nutrition support to assist 1.8 million people by the end of the year.
We are prioritising assistance to the most vulnerable and hopefully we can bring about change.
I will stop here and see if there are any questions.
You want to take questions on this, Jens or you want to?
Are there questions on this first issue for either Jens or Thompson?
Musa Jay, question for Thompson, Mr Yemen Pastor, we on that on the Thompson someone has a Musa has a question for you on Yemen, but we'll come back to you on that.
I don't see any other any hands raised on this specific issue.
So maybe we move to the next one.
It is a day where we are launching plants, humanitarian response plans.
The one I just want to mention now is South Sudan, another one of the countries that are on our famine watch list.
South Sudan is facing its highest levels of food insecurity and malnutrition since independence 10 years ago.
The South Sudan Humanitarian Response Plan for 20/21, which is being launched today, aims to reach 6.6 million people with life saving assistance and protection.
This year, this plan requests $1.7 billion in funding.
South Sudan is expected to see devastating flooding again this year.
Last year and in 2019, flooding affected almost 1,000,000 people each year.
Violence and localised conflicts in many parts of the country also drive up humanitarian needs and the impact again of COVID-19 on markets, services and people's ability to move around have increased their vulnerability.
So the upcoming lean season in South Sudan from May to July is likely going to be the most severe on record.
And the immediate priorities in the response plan are to sustain the deliveries in the most food insecure areas and prepare for this upcoming rainy season, which could again be devastating.
And I understand Thompson, you also want to add something on this.
Thank you so much for that.
Approximately 7.2 million S Sudanese have been pushed into severe food insecurity due again to sporadic violence, extreme weather and the economic impact of COVID-19.
Now this figure includes over 100,000 people who are in those hard to reach areas of 6 counties who are at risk of famine.
They are literally one step away from famine.
According to the Famine Review Committee's report, the World Food Programme has been scaling up its support in counties such as Akabo in People A, Wheel W, Tones N, Tones South and Tones East counties and we have reached approximately 195,000 vulnerable people in early 2021.
In the areas I've mentioned.
The World Food Programme has started to pre position food stocks again ahead of the rainy season to ensure that crucial food assistance reaches the most vulnerable populations without delay during the lean season.
In 2021, the World Food Programme plans to reach over 5 million people in South Sudan with food and Nutrition Assistance across the entire spectrum of its programmes, be it emergency nutrition and livelihood programmes.
I will leave it there and again see if there are any questions for us.
I see that we do have some questions from to begin with, let's go to Anya Espereiro from IIT.
As I say in the chat, my question is not to to WFP neither Ocho, so I can wait.
And yes, we'll come back to you.
Yes, good morning, everybody and sorry I'm a little late with my thinking here.
First, Thompson, regarding Nigeria, I didn't get a question in there if you could perhaps elaborate upon the situation of malnutrition and particularly of children, how many are affected.
And then also in both Nigeria and South Sudan, and this is the question for you and also for you, Jens, please, is they're extremely, you know, countries that have a great deal of violence.
And are your humanitarian workers actually able to access these people?
You get this a great amount of money that you need.
What sort of security is available?
How are you able to get to them?
And besides food, what other priorities do you have in terms of helping these people?
I will go first in terms of malnutrition rates.
We are, we fear for the West in both South Sudan and and Nigeria.
What we have observed is that continued fighting is contributing to increased numbers of people who are in need.
The majority of the people in in localities in the northeast, in Adamawa, in Yobe, in Nigeria are no longer able to farm.
And these are people who rely on their farm lands to survive.
These are people who live literally by farming and whatever it is that they produce is what they take to the market or is what they bring home for to the dinner table.
So this means more and more people are unable to access a nutritious diet in both countries really In South Sudan, there are parts of South Sudan that we have struggled to access.
These are parts of Jonglei state.
The same as well in in northeast Nigeria.
When there is conflict and these there is risk of humanitarian workers being attacked.
This delays our ability to actually reach the people in need.
All these fears of famine, all these hunger levels that are worsening are largely driven by insecurity.
And when the people are insecure, by extension, humanitarians as well at times become, are unable to reach these people due to fighting, due to access restrictions.
Sometimes access is provided, sometimes it's denied, sometimes it's delayed.
And all this has a knock on effect on the situation of the most vulnerable.
We are confident of gaining access in most areas because authorities are aware of what we are able to do as humanitarians to rescue the situation and what we can only do is appeal for funding and at the same time appeal for greater access into areas in need.
Want to add something against.
Let me just chip in with a few points helpful on taking Nigeria.
First, in, in terms of priorities, as we heard, food security is very much on the top out of the out of the 1 billion appeal that's asking for $354 million.
But there are of course other priorities.
And I want to mention nutrition, which is very ****.
Protection is also very ****.
Water, sanitation and hygiene is also almost at the $100 million level in terms of what we're asking and early recovery and livelihoods, which is a very important element if we are trying to make it better not just now but also in the years ahead.
There's no way to do that without getting people back on their feet.
Security Northeast Nigeria is of course it's a long standing issue and we see almost at least every week some kind of security incident that unfortunately kills people, children abducted and so on and and so forth.
So it's a highly insecure area.
That doesn't take away from the fact that for example, as I mentioned last year, we were able to help some 2 million children there avert malnutrition.
South Sudan also on priorities, we heard about food and nutrition, but among the priorities are also healthcare and access to schools and education.
Again, this is a longer perspective.
We are looking at here something we need to address today as an emergency issue, not to extend the emergency way into into the future.
Another particularly important issue are the protection from women and children.
We know about gender based violence which is widespread in these types of conflicts and that needs to be addressed head on access.
I would say in South Sudan, very important to notice that the vast majority of those aid workers working there, as S Sudanese, they know their way about much better, frankly, than foreigners do.
The second part is that we as humanitarians, and that is also something that's that is valid across our operations, is that acceptance is the best security of what we do.
Of course we do not when we at all can avoid it, have escorts or guards and that sort of thing.
We really do rely on the people accepting our presence and seeing the value of the humanitarian work that is being done.
I see that the Jan Eberman also has his hand raised.
Just just to clarify, you have launched an appeal for inside South Sudan and at the same time UNHCR is asking for another 1.2 billion U.S.
dollars to to provide assistance for more than 2.2 million S Sudanese refugees in the area.
So these two appeals sort of different appeals, they're not, it's not part of one overall appeal.
That's my, my first question.
And the second question is on the people in need in South Sudan, inside South Sudan.
How many ID, PS are among the 6.6 million people in need inside South Sudan?
Let, let me just look through on the ID PS on in, in terms of the appeals, yes, they are separate appeals, but they're very complementary.
So of course the refugee appeal deals with those that are crossing international borders, the South Sudanese there and I think we are going to hear from UNHCR about that.
So maybe we can do that and I'll try to look up the IDP figure in the meantime.
Yes, maybe at this point we should bring in Baba Balosh from UNHCR so he can also brief you on the request for some funding to support over 2,000,000 S Sudanese refugees who are in dire need.
Yes, thank you and thank you Jens.
Indeed, as as youngsters talking, these are two different but very much complementary to to each other because we are dealing with the other equation of, of of of of the results of the conflict in South Sudan, talking about the refugee population that have fled to the five neighbouring countries.
Today, units are the UN Refugee Agency and our partners.
We are appealing for 1.2 billion U.S.
dollars to provide water vital humanitarian assistance for more than 2.2 million S Sudanese refugees living in five neighbouring countries for the year 2021.
South Sudan became the world's youngest nation nearly a decade ago, but as since the last eight years, the result of conflict and insecurity, today we have millions of its population being displaced either inside or outside its borders.
The crisis continues to be a children's one, with more than 65% of the refugee population being under 18.
So if we do a quick math, we are talking about at least 1.4 million children, 1.4 million S Sudanese refugees being children today under the age of 18 and they include some 66,000 children who have been separated from their parents.
While some progress has been made in implementing the latest peace agreement, humanitarian and protection needs remain **** for the largest refugee situation on the African continent.
The majority of South Sudanese refugees are hosted in relatively remote or underdeveloped areas in the hosting countries.
The COVID-19 pandemic combined with the climate change related challenges including severe flooding, droughts and desert locusts have compounded an already dire situation.
Funding is urgently needed to provide life sustaining assistance including shelter, access to safe drinking water, education and health services.
Food shortages are particularly acute, with insufficient funding already leading to Russian cuts impacting hundreds of thousands of refugees.
While some 350,000 refugees have independently made the decision to return to South Sudan since 2017 and efforts are being made to move the peace process forward and support these returns, conditions are not yet in place for large scale returns and funds are needed now to help the refugees and the local communities that have welcomed them.
So now Yan's will try to maybe answer Yan's question.
Yes, just to get that right.
So internally displaced people in South Sudan stands at 1.62 million, 1.62 million, very good.
Are there more questions for either UNHERWFP or OCHA on South Sudan or Nigeria?
OK, I don't see any Hands up, Thompson, if you might just stay on the line.
Moussa, you had a question for you on Yemen, so why don't we take that?
Well, good morning, Thompson.
In the light of the last donor country conference, how do you see the full situation in Yemen, especially, you know, this conference filed to reach the goal of 3.85 billions?
Thank you so much for that.
And maybe before Yens leaves the room, he can also assist with overall funding levels in in the view of the Yemen pledging conference.
On the food side, Yemen is on the brink of farming.
This is a matter of public record now.
People need immediate food assistance to stop this.
But the World Food Programme is working against three factors that are making life harder for millions of Yemenis.
There has not been any commercial fuel vessel since 3 January 2021 into our data port.
This has created crippling fuel shortages, which means that many people are struggling to meet their basic needs as increased fuel prices hamper access to staple foods and essential services.
There is escalating conflict in Marie Bin Dais in Adeli, which is threatening a new wave of displacement.
Many families have been displaced multiple times throughout six years of conflict.
The World Food Programme does not have the funds to sustain even prioritised assistance for the next 6 months.
Monthly food assistance is being prioritised to approximately 350,000 people in 11 districts, which we fear are just a step away from famine.
But then again, you have 5 million people who are facing the shortages and these remain at acute risk of famine without monthly food assistance now.
To prevent famine in Yemen, WFP needs at least 1.9 billion U.S.
We are already distributing prioritised assistance and need money now so that we can ramp up assistance as required over.
Thank you very much, Thompson.
Jens, I don't know if you have anything else to add on the issue of Yemen.
I, I have another question about Yemen, but maybe not for Thompson.
I think it would be for IOM or maybe for UNHCR.
It was about the, the fire over the weekend at the migrant camp.
Well, Babar is with us and I think Paul Dillon joins us online as well.
So maybe you can go ahead with your question on Yemen.
Yeah, no, there was a big fire over the weekend and we're trying to get some details on on what happened.
There seems to be a lot of different details going around and we're very interested to know if there's any information about what caused the fire and also how many people died.
If you have any concrete information about that, that would be very helpful.
Babal, do you want to go ahead and have any?
I'm trying to find my notes, try to see if I have any details.
I'll, I'll quickly look through them and if I find them, I'll raise my hand.
Otherwise then I'll get back to you once, once I have the details, if that's OK.
That sounds like a good solution.
I don't know if Paul Dillon from ION who is on the line, do you have any information on this issue?
Actually, I don't see him on, on on the line.
So Nina, we take note of your question.
Baba will look for some information if he has it and come back to you as soon as we can with, with some, with some information.
Thank you for your your patience.
And so let's close on those issues and bring Ravenna Shamdasani, sorry, from human rights, who has a briefing on Myanmar.
On Myanmar, the death toll has soared over the past week in Myanmar, where security forces have been using lethal force increasingly aggressively against peaceful protesters, and they continue to arbitrarily arrest and detain people throughout the country.
Deeply distressing reports of torture in custody have also emerged.
Hundreds of people who have been unlawfully detained remain unaccounted for and have not been acknowledged by the military authorities, and this amounts to enforced disappearances.
Confirming information is becoming increasingly difficult, particularly with the imposition of martial law in a number of townships in and around Yangon and Mandalay, but also because many of the working class neighbourhoods where people have been killed and displaced are easier to cut off through state imposed communications block outs.
We have, however, managed to confirm that at least 149 people have been arbitrarily deprived of their lives since the 1st of February as a result of the unlawful use of lethal force against peaceful protesters in Myanmar.
Of these, at least 11 were killed yesterday on Monday and 57 over the weekend.
There are many more reports of further killings that we have not been able to corroborate yet.
These figures include people killed during a violent crackdown on Lang Tai Ur, a Township in Yangon, by security forces after unknown actors set fire to Chinese operated or invested factories.
As I mentioned earlier, the military authorities also declared martial law in a number of townships in and around Mandalay and sorry in and around Yangon and Mandalay.
Under these terms, military law would apply to civilians, with both stricter curfews and subjecting offenders to military tribunals with no right of appeal.
Arrests and detentions have continued throughout the country, with more than 2084 people remaining arbitrarily detained.
At least 37 journalists have been arrested, of whom 19 remain in arbitrary detention.
At least 5 deaths in custody have occurred in recent weeks and at least two victims bodies have shown signs of severe physical *****, indicating that they were tortured.
We are deeply disturbed that the crackdown continues to intensify and we again call on the military to stop killing and detaining protesters.
As the **** Commissioner has stressed, all those with influence have a responsibility to take measures to bring an end to this state violence against the people of Myanmar.
And you will have seen also the both the Special Envoy for Myanmar.
Christine Shanna Bergner and the Secretary General himself have issued condemnations of the violence and ongoing brutality.
Just on Sunday, the Special Envoy on Myanmar said that she strongly condemned the continuing bloodshed in the country as the military defies international calls, including from the Security Council for restraint for dialogue and full respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms.
And just yesterday, the Secretary General also expressed that he was appalled by the escalating violence in Myanmar at the hands of the country's military.
He said the killings of demonstrators, arbitrary arrests and the reported torture of of prisoners violate fundamental human rights and stand in clear defiance of calls by the Security Council for restraint, dialogue and a return to Myanmar's democratic path.
So both of these statements were shared with you.
We have a couple of questions, Christian, right here in the room.
Do you have any information about Robert Bocciaga, who is a freelancer working for DPAA Polish National, who has been detained a couple of days ago or any other foreign journalists being detained in Myanmar?
Thanks for your question, Christian.
No, I don't have specific information on the DPA journalist, but I can definitely check and get back to you because colleagues are very closely monitoring.
So I will revert to you on that.
On the media, the other information I have relates to the shutdown of several media organisations in Myanmar by the military.
Just shuffling through my papers to try to find which outlets these were.
Yes, the military authorities issued orders revoking operating licences of five major Myanmar news outlets, including Minimal Myanmar Now, DVB, Kit *** and Seven Day Media.
This has of course, made it even more difficult for us to be able to verify information or corroborate information.
And of course, it has greatly increased the apprehension and the fear within which journalists are operating in the country.
But on on the fate of the the DPA journalists and other foreign journalists, I'll get back to you.
Let's go to body here **** about or still about Myanmar, some countries mentioned the there's no interference in each other's internal affairs.
Do you have any feedback of Thank you.
Thanks for the question body.
Yes, the the issue of non interference is often raised when there are serious human rights situations occurring in a country.
The state has a duty to protect the human rights of the people who are living within that states where the state fails to protect the human rights.
So where the state is carrying out human rights violations against its own people, it is the duty of the international community to do something about it, to take measures to bring the violence to an end, to take measures to ensure accountability.
You cannot argue non interference when you are shooting your own people.
Jamie, I see you have a question, but let's just take one from Peter Kenny first, who's been waiting.
Ravina, I would just like to ask you, you mentioned the lethal use of force.
Does that mean that the security forces, you've had reports that they are using live ammunition?
And separately, is there any news about or reports about any effects of this crackdown on the Ranger minority?
Yes, we have very, very clear reports on that.
The security forces are using live ammunition against protesters and in many cases just against bystanders or people who are watching the protests.
We also have reports of snipers, but that this is something that we haven't been able to fully verify.
And the use of other weapons as well, other non lethal weapons.
We've seen videos that we've been able to corroborate of security forces beating protesters, beating journalists as well as medical staff and ambulance workers with batons quite brutally on the situation of the Rohingya.
I mean, as you know that the situation of the Rohingya over decades now has been very precarious.
That's that's a real understatement.
It's been very precarious in the country and it has led to the flight of, you know, hundreds of thousands of Rohingya.
Now, those who remain in the country are already in very difficult circumstances.
They've they've generally had a lack of freedom of movement, lack of access to basic services.
So we are concerned that the situation for these internally displaced people could get much worse under the current situation in the country.
Why don't we take a question from Jamie here in the room.
Rina, could you just give us specifics about the numbers?
You said the death toll has soared.
Just could you give us the numbers and the evolution?
Yes, So we've documented and again I have to stress that we these are only the numbers that we've been able to corroborate.
We've received many, many other reports that we haven't been able to corroborate.
So this is definitely a conservative estimate, an underestimate.
According to what we've been able to corroborate, there were at least 11 deaths yesterday on Monday and there were 57 over the weekend.
And the breakdown for that 57 is 39 on Sunday and 18 on Saturday.
Prior to that, there were 94, I believe.
In fact, the the Secretary General spokesperson yesterday used the figure of 138 peaceful protesters who were killed and that came from our office as well.
We've been able to update that this morning where because unfortunately people continue to succumb to their injuries as well.
So yes, 11 on Monday, 39 on Sunday and 18 on Saturday.
The total comes to 149 since the 1st of February.
I can send you a clearer breakdown.
We also had, you know, we had mentioned 5410 days ago.
Lisa Schlein, Voice of America.
Yeah, hi, this may be for you real, but certainly you can pitch in.
I'd like to know who actually represents Myanmar right now.
I don't believe that any of the Honda have accredited any of their people yet with the UN.
And there have been a number of well, some resignations from the previous democratically elected government.
So I'm wondering who do we listen to who talks for Myanmar?
Thank you, Lisa, over the questions.
Well, currently, I mean we are the UN is dealing with those people who have, who are in the representing their country at the moment in the permanent missions and embassies.
I mean, in terms of whether there would be a change in this, this is a decision that would be taken by the General Assembly.
There is a credentials committee that is responsible for looking at at these issues if the member states need to clarify this situation.
So it would be a question for this credentials committee of the General Assembly.
And you, you have anything to add on that?
Gabriella Sotomayor, you have your hand raised.
Good morning, Ravina, nice to see you.
We know that the any initiative of the Security Council will be blocked by Russia and China.
I mean regarding the situation in Myanmar.
So what can the international community do to increase the pressure, the pressure I mean, concretely?
The **** Commissioner has been stressing from the beginning that the international community needs to speak with one, one voice on Myanmar.
The situation is dire and it's it's just getting worse by the day.
As you can see from from the death toll that that we've just shared with you, the **** Commissioner has asked for all states which have influence to take measures to ensure that this violence is brought to an end.
Now, these measures can take many different shapes.
I understand that some states have chosen to impose sanctions.
Now, as you know that the **** Commissioner has always cautioned against the use of broad sanctions, which may in fact end up harming the human rights situation in the country.
She has stressed that any sanctions that are imposed need to be targeted.
So asset freezes against specific military officials, travel bans against specific military officials, really, you know, targeted sanctions.
And there is really like, a clear need for a unified message from the Security Council to one stress that this violence needs to be brought to an end and to call for accountability of the perpetrators of this violence and of previous severe human rights violations that were committed by the military.
Ravina, can you hear me right?
I was wondering if you could bring us up to speed on the drawn out discussions between the Office of the **** Commissioner and the Chinese mission in Geneva on the **** Commissioner's visit to China, which she has an open invitation from the the Minister of Foreign Affairs of China.
What's the state of play and what are the hiccups?
Yes, thanks for that, John.
As the **** Commissioner said in her speech at the Human Rights Council, we are still in discussions with the government of China for a mission including to to Xinjiang.
And now as you're aware, we when the **** Commissioner visits a country where we don't have an office, it is important that we first have a technical mission that goes into the country to, you know, be able to ensure that any access that we do get would be meaningful.
So we have proposed this to to the government of China and discussions are ongoing.
And we have one last question from Jamil Shadh Ariel.
It is a question to you and to double HO sorry for that.
OK, we'll come right back to you.
And I know that Agnes is also waiting for a question on WHO.
And Ravina, you have another topic.
Let me just pull it up on we actually, we just wanted to draw your attention to a fact sheet that our office has published addressing human rights and climate change.
Now we do produce a number of fact sheets on various human rights issues, which I think you as journalists would probably enjoy maybe studying to to understand better our position.
So this particular fact sheet helps to answer a range of questions and promote better policies for people and the planet.
The fact she describes the links between climate change and human rights.
It highlights the obligations of States and businesses under international human rights law to mitigate climate change and to prevent its adverse effects on human rights.
To ensure that everyone is able to adapt to the negative effects of climate change.
It's the most comprehensive guidance that we've been able to put out thus far.
It provides examples of climate litigation, the rights of future generations and the role of international cooperation and solidarity in climate change.
It also contains forward-looking rights compliant climate action recommendations at all levels.
We will send you more information and a link to this fact sheet in the briefing note when it goes out.
Any final questions for human rights?
So thanks very much, Havina for being with us this morning.
And we are at the end of our agenda.
We'll be going to a briefing by WHO but which is under embargo.
So we will stop the recording shortly.
But before that, let me take see with any yes about her question and see if we can have an answer.
I don't think Margaret, Margaret is not on the line, but let's see if I have the information that you are looking for.
Any yes, please go ahead We sitting.
For those who are interesting in knowing what's happening with the Global Advisory Committee on Vaccine Safety meeting today at The Who, it will be reviewing the reports of rare blood coagulation disorders in persons who have received the AstraZeneca vaccine against COVID-19.
The committee is reviewing the evidence in close dialogue with the European Medicines Agency.
This is the EMA and the committee may issue a statement after its meeting as soon as the as WHO has a clearer picture.
They will, of course, inform the public of the findings.
I see that Baba has his hand raised, which means he has probably some information to share from a previous question.
So, Baba, let's give you the floor.
Yeah, I just found what Nina was asking about, so I can go back to to what has been shared.
Indeed, there was a tragic incident in Sanaa in Yemen on Sunday 8th of March and the reports are that there was tragic loss of lives in a fire incident at the Immigration Passport and Naturalisation Authorities Immigration holding centre in Sanaa.
And it is reported that at least seven people died and more than 170 were injured, many with serious burns.
It is believed that most of those affected are Ethiopian migrants held at the centre, allegedly due to their illegal stay in northern Yemen.
Are UNICI is in contact with the refugee community leaders who have not for the time being reported any of their community members being part of the victims.
We are also following up with relevant health authorities and refugee partner organisation Unity are together with International Organisation for Migration, IUM and and the International Committee of the Red Cross and other partners is providing medical assistance to those who have sustained injuries.
We wish to express our most sincere condolences to the families and friends of those affected by the incident.
And as far as I understand, the cause of the fire has not been a certain.
Thank you very much, Baba.
And I see that Angela Wells from IOM is also on the line.
Maybe she has something to add on this issue as well.
Yes, I can, I can confirm as well that what what Barbara just said.
However, we believe now the death toll is likely in the dozens.
We we can't confirm an exact number, but it's it's certainly it's higher.
It's certainly higher than than the original 7 that we had reported H sorry that we had reported.
We also know that there are 170 people who've been injured and I can confirm IOM teams have been responding to their health needs in, in in Sanaa.
Some of this group have also been able to to make it to Aden where they are in our currently in our medical clinic and we've been providing medical services to them.
IO Ms Director General expressed his condolences on Saturday and called for an alternative to detention for all migrants across the country.
We also have a flight that will leave today, a voluntary humanitarian returns flight in which 140 migrants will be taken from Aiden to Addis Ababa and there will be a press release issued on that shortly.
Thank you very much, Angela for joining us and, and, and briefing on this.
So let's go now to Jamil, Jamil Shah, Let's see if we are able to help you.
You're always able to help me, right?
Question to Christian if I may.
Brazil has just chosen it's 4th Minister of Health in a year.
What are the recommendations?
What message would you send in the situation Brazil is confronting at the moment to a new administration in the health ministry?
And a second question to Christian as well, Lockdowns do, do they work?
Do you have evidence that they work?
And one question to real before we go to the offline real, when will the 5th committee in New York take the issue of the unpaid interns?
I take note of your question about the 5th committee.
I'm not sure if the committee is, is, has this issue on, on its agenda or when it would be meeting.
I'll have to look into it and and I'll get back to you on it if I can find some information.
Do we have Christian on with us?
Yes, Christian, good morning.
There were two questions from.
I have, I have nothing to to comment on this today as I'm not here for the regular briefing.
That's why we all read out the statement by WHO or the statement the the update we gave you for today's meeting.
I'll guide through the ageism briefing.
Christian, I don't know if Christian, you have some update on that.
The other day Margaret said that Tariq was in fact in charge of that issue, so she recommended that you contact Tariq directly.
I think unless Christian you have additional information.
No, I can, I can say say something on this.
So what the what we hear from the technical experts, from the mission members is that the report most likely will come out now next week.
That's that's all we have.
And it's the report made and compiled by the experts and we're waiting for it.
And the latest we have it will most likely come out next week, but not today or tomorrow.
Hi, thanks for taking my question.
I just have a very short one.
Do you know what like if the if the expert group on discussing the AstraZeneca vaccine, if they're meeting this afternoon, do you have any sense of timing if that's on going on right now or if it's later in the day just for prep?
I don't have that detail in Margaret's statement.
She just said that the committee was meeting today.
I don't know whether just, you know, you have more specifics on that.
It might have started just now.
I will start in the next minutes.
I'm not aware of the exact timing, but the important thing is we're expecting or where we, we think that the committee may issue a statement by the end of the day just as we all just read out.
That's the important part.
Jamie Keaton in the room here.
Hi, Christian, good to see you.
Could you elaborate on why the report into the origins is going to be next week because we have been told that it would be coming this week.
Is there any reason for the delay?
Sorry, I make this the last comment now because I'm not here for the COVID briefing or the regular briefing.
I'm here for the ages and briefing.
The report is simply not ready.
Umm, the experts are drawing it up together.
Umm, and as you know, with all of these reports, the more people involved, the more people need to, we'll have to have a say in it and we'll have to write in it.
And it needs to be clear, it needs to be finalised and they want to get it right.
And that's the important part.
They want to get it right.
And we, we're waiting for the, for the final report.
Catherine, Catherine Fioncall Yeah, good morning, real good morning, Christian.
I mean my question was the one that Jamie asked about the reports of the experts.
Could you tell us if we would have, if we will have a briefing before they issue maybe an under embargo briefing before they issued their report next week?
And also regarding you just mentioned to a question asked by a colleague regarding the meeting of the advisory committee of WHO they just started their meeting now.
So it means that we, we will likely have a maybe access to a press release at the end of the day, no comment, no press conference, nothing.
Yeah, Catherine, let me just reread the last line of the statement that Margaret gave me.
She said the committee may issue a statement after its meeting, and as soon as we have a clearer picture, we will inform the public of the findings.
I think that's as much as who has at the moment John Zaracosta, if we could, we'll just take John and Domain.
And then we will go to the briefing that for which Christian is.
Yes, can you hear me, Riola, can you hear me?
What is your question good.
My question is to whoever is present from UNICEF, IRM and UNHCR, I'd like to get some details on the 200 child soldiers that were recruited in Syria by a regional country in the conflict and are currently stranded in Libya.
If you could tell us what's happening to help repatriate the child soldiers?
Thank you, John, for that question.
I don't think UNICEF is with us.
I, I don't see the, the, the spokesperson for UNICEF with us.
Do you have anything to add on this?
Maybe we need to look into the the specifics of this issue.
I don't have anything with me right now, but I can check if there's any update I can get back to you.
OK, John, thank you for your question.
We take note of it and we'll share it with UNICEF.
So someone will try to get back to you with the specifics.
Last question and yes, Pedrero, and then we move on to the rest of the briefing.
Still OMS Vermont near Southeast briefing the packet reminded the packets from the Joffrey.
Do you have some information on that?
So that is indeed the most pressing question.
And we're trying to respect those days.
And as far as I know, there's there are movements on the way to move the briefings away from the Monday into Friday.
Look, we need to move on to the rest of this briefing.
So let me just give you the details of what I need to tell you and then we'll go to the briefing by WHO, which is under embargo.
So just in terms of press conferences this week, just a reminder that tomorrow at 4P, no, sorry, what am I saying, Tuesday, 16th of March, that's today, 4:00 PM, there will be a virtual press conference by UNGTAD, a new UNGTAD analysis, and it's an update on their global economy report, a report which is embargoed until the 18th of March at 6:00 AM GMT.
That will be with Richard Kozol Wright, the director of Division of Globalisation and Development Strategies, and Nelson Barbosa from the University of Brasilia.
And then Wednesday, tomorrow, 17th of March, at noon, a virtual press conference by WHO.
The Who Strategic Advisory Group of Experts on Immunisation will be presenting its centre and recommendations on the use of Johnson and Johnson COVID-19 vaccine with Doctor Alejandro Raviotto, Chair of the Strategic Advisory Group of Experts on Immunisation, Dr Joachim Hombach, the Executive Secretary of SAGE and Doctor Kate O'Brien, the Director of the Department of Immunisation, Vaccines and Biologicals at The Who.
In terms of meetings, this, the next public plenary meeting of the Conference on Disarmament will be held this Thursday, 18th of March at 10 AM and the Human Rights Committee will close on the 26th of March, it's 131st session, during which it has reviewed the reports of Finland and Kenya.
The Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities will conclude tomorrow at 12:30.
It's review of the report of Estonia and you've heard from Rolando on what's going on at the Human Rights Council.
So this concludes the briefing.
John, I see your hand is up.
Then we need to go to The Who briefing.
When we get the flyer for the upcoming briefings, Tuesdays and Fridays, can you in advance tell us which spokespeople will be attending, not necessarily to brief, but to be present at the briefing?
Otherwise, we don't know which questions to ask.
Like today, I wanted to get a response on the question on Libya, and the spokesperson from IOM who was attending did not respond as well.
So I'd like to get that in advance so we we can prepare ourselves better for questions we have.
Normally when we do send out the the announcement of of the briefing agenda, we have at the bottom people the the reps from the various agencies who are listening and are supposed to be available for questions.
And now from IOM today I had Paul Dillon, but Angela Wells actually joined us.
And so normally they, if they say that they will be listening and participating, expect them to be there.
