So let's start this, uh, press briefing.
Thank you very much to those who also participated in the press conference before.
But now let's start with our regular programme. Today is Tuesday, 27th of August.
And I have the pleasure to have with me a guest from UN HCR in our bar on my left.
So I will start with Doctor Alan May.
Sir, you are the chief public health of UN HCR. And you're here to tell us about the
ox us on refugees in Africa. Please.
so yes, I'll speak about the concern over the impact of impacts on
refugees and displaced in Africa
and and calling for inclusion and solidarity with the with the countries affected
province, one of the region's hardest hit by
At least 42 suspected cases have been identified
among the refugee population
confirmed and suspected cases have also been
reported in surrounding countries in Republic of Congo
For those fleeing violence, implementing many of the M
Pos measures is a tremendous challenge
the cyclical violence and attacks compounded by natural catastrophes
have been have driven displaced people
into overcrowded shelters
with poor water and sanitation facilities and strain services.
Insecurity has left many areas cut off from humanitarian access and assistance.
With this, we see that displaced families living in crowded schools,
shelters and tents, and also in churches
and also in farmers' fields,
and they have no space to isolate when they develop symptoms of the disease,
staff have found in some afflicted individuals trying diligently
to follow preventive measures and protect their communities,
including by sleeping outside.
balanced diet is also an important aspect for recovery, as we all know.
But this is a reality that is
out of reach for many of the displaced subsisting on
Working under the national health authorities,
the World Health Organisation
and partners have reinforced hand washing points
in public spaces in refugee camps and transit centres.
system preparedness and response measures
enhanced screening measures for those who are entering impacted refugee camps,
reiterates that guaranteeing full inclusion of
refugees and other forcibly displaced people in
national preparedness and response measures to
address a public health emergency is crucial
from monitoring and preparedness to medical care.
This is all something we need to do to ensure no one is left behind.
UNHCR humanitarian response in DC has only been partially funded at that 7%. And
what we've seen is that health activities are among the ones that are hardest hit
international solidarity is urgently needed to expand health services,
access to water and soap for those forced to flee
in conflict zone as well.
We are calling for peace that is desperately desperately needed to
ensure sustained response to stop the spread of the disease.
Thank you very much, sir.
do you want to add anything? No.
OK, so let's go, uh, to, uh the journalist and see if there are any questions.
Let's start with Christian Eri,
our correspondent of the German News Agency.
Good morning. Can you tell us a bit about the people who are affected?
I think most of the people in that region are actually Children. Young Children.
in the refugee population? And do you know whether it's this
one or two because one of them is more
dangerous and spreads faster than the other. Apparently. Thank you.
So we are also seen as just as W
has reported a mixed transmission dynamics and, uh, in in eastern DRC.
C. One B case has been reported
important to note right now that, um,
with the challenges with access and
access to laboratory and diagnostic facilities,
sequencing of the of the samples that are being collected is still undergoing
to be able to understand fully the the strains that we are seeing in the camps.
But yes, we also see a lot of the cases.
Majority of the cases being reported among Children as well.
We don't have the exact figures right now. We are looking at the figures.
As I said, we are reporting suspected cases,
and some of the samples have been sent to the laboratory for confirmation.
Um, I see Margaret has raised her hand. Maybe she has the numbers.
She has the figures. Margaret. Good morning.
we can hear you. We can see you. Right.
And you can hear me too. Great.
Um, there is some confusion. Uh, because there is in In the DRC,
we've got both clade one and clade two clade one a and clade one B, um,
circulating at the same time.
But indeed, in the eastern
where the camps that my colleagues have been referring to,
we are seeing a lot of clade one B.
Uh, I'll just get the exact numbers up for you. I've just got them here.
so and one of the confusions is just as just as my colleague from UN HCR said
lot of the cases are not laboratory confirmed.
You need to do the sequencing to understand which one is which.
So that's why the numbers are a bit confusing.
So overall, we've had reported from the DRC more than 18,000 cases,
but a lot of those have not been laboratory confirmed.
in, uh, the And so, as I said, we're seeing outbreaks of clade one A and cla uh,
one B in endemic areas. Uh, there are mostly clay one a
eastern DRC in north and South Kivu.
There are, uh, and a lot of outbreaks due to the clade one B,
we have recorded 1 5400 cases.
suspected and lab confirmed as of 23. August of clade.
This is in the eastern DRC clade one B, but not absolutely confirmed because,
unless their lab confirmed, we don't know that they're necessarily clade one B.
uh, you mentioned Christian
that it's more dangerous.
We don't have that that data studies are under
way to understand the properties of the new strain,
available epidemiological data doesn't really suggest that the cleared
one B variant causes more severe cases and death.
you've just heard about the description of
the conditions under which people are living
and have arrived in very, you know, already very stressed, hungry,
terrified, displaced. So that gives
there's an immunological deficit.
There's an immunological weakness,
which makes them more likely to become more ill with anything they get,
Thank you very much. Lisa Schlein
Uh, thank you. Yes. Good morning. Uh, I I'd like to, um
how maybe you've mentioned it, and I missed it. But, ho, how many of, uh,
the people infected are Children?
I believe that most of the cases are with Children.
And how is it that they are so susceptible to getting infected with with
ox? Uh, how how do they get infected?
And, uh, have, um, vaccines arrived, or, uh, will they arrive?
And would that actually be a game changer?
If you do have vaccines coming in and you're able to,
Thank you. You want to take this, uh, doctor, mayor
and then maybe Margaret, you can complete,
No, definitely, we are definitely concerned about.
we will be able to explain about the situation of
the white Children as we see more cases among Children.
But what is important to know is that now what we're seeing with the current
one B is mixed transmission dynamics,
including close contact, including through special
as well as sexual contact.
What we're seeing is a challenge in the east
with the challenges of shelter and a lot of people congregating in
Ensuring distance and appropriate infection prevention control measures
is difficult. So we're seeing
some household transmission again
informed that this is something that is being analysed.
To understand this transmission dynamics and migrate to
be a better place to answer that.
But we are definitely concerned that
with the ongoing conflict and a lot of people trying
to find shelter and camped up in one place,
it's making these prevention efforts very, very difficult.
Yes, and sorry. I, um I lost my connection.
My connection is really unstable right now. I'm sorry about that.
uh, So I didn't hear your entire question, Lisa, but, uh,
we're talking about transmission dynamics.
Indeed. We saw that it had been
transmitted through some sexual networks, but the
it that the essential thing to understand,
And in when people are in situations where they cannot avoid
having close physical contact like they're in a refugee camp,
they're crowded together.
It it's very, very difficult for them to maintain
the infection prevention control measures to prevent the, uh, the the spread.
I can see that my system is terrible.
Um, so I hope you can hear me.
Uh, I think there was also some question,
but I I'm sorry, I I've just lost the question. Uh, maybe, uh,
You you get blocked from time to time so they maybe maybe the the let's give
up with the video and and get the voice at least and looking at that.
But, um, it was also the the question why Children get infected
OK, so it's two ways basically, um, close physical contact,
uh, with within the family group because it spread simply skin to skin.
the reason we see some transmission through sexual networks is as
I think you might all know when you have sexual contact.
You have close physical contact.
Uh, within the family groups,
we're seeing that the Children are very vulnerable to getting very ill with, um,
ox, probably due to again the immunological lack of immunological.
Um, the immunological deficit, a weak immunological system.
But this is again one of the unknowns that we need to understand a lot better.
I'm trying to shut off my, uh,
IN Any case? The the The quality is not good. Uh uh. Margaret.
So no worries for the video.
Uh, Lisa has maybe AAA request for clarification. Then I'll go to Catherine.
Uh, I, I think what you missed hearing from me was I was wondering, uh,
whether vaccines were on the way or whether that would, uh,
will not be a game changer, perhaps, but for to help you control
uh, this, uh, this outbreak.
I'm I'm wondering whether and and the or
an HCR person representative could also answer this,
too is is the conflict preventing medications?
A. I DS and so forth from getting through to
the area and then for you again. Margaret,
I understand that, doctor Ted
uh has got some kind of a six month programme in order to get
epidemic under control. Um,
is that already functioning? And
what hopes do you have for that? Thank you.
thanks. Both good questions on the vaccines.
they are They are a really important tool.
The true infection prevention control measures in
uh, the communities empowered and understanding what's going on.
And that's why the work that my colleagues in the UN HCR is so important.
Oh, dear. It looks like my connection is unstable again.
it so that it's much, much more than simply vaccines and the vaccines do help.
And we, uh the various countries are donating,
and we've, uh Doctor Tedros has advised, uh, U and a, uh uh, sorry,
UNICEF and Gavi to go ahead and procure the vaccines and get them going not
to wait for the the the the details of the emergency use listing pro process,
but that will is also ongoing as quickly as possible.
One of the, um, vaccine producers has submitted their full dossier, uh,
So everything is moving quickly as quickly as
possible to get the vaccines to country.
Uh, but it should not be seen as the only thing. It will be part.
It must be part of a much bigger response.
plan you refer to is a strategic response plan, which yes has been launched.
That's a six month plan laying out what's needed, how to do it. Who's going to do it?
What should be done with all the different aspects. So the community empowerment
the, uh, research to understand better what's going on with this virus?
vaccination, of course, the provision of medical countermeasures,
the provision of healthcare services,
and so it really puts together everything that needs to be done,
on the question of the vaccinations is, uh
so the question was whether the conflict is affecting delivery of supplies.
Medicines. Thank you, Lisa.
The conflict is having a toll in terms of logistics and delivering supplies.
We're working very closely with
and other partners, including MSF and others, to ensure that we are able to
The challenge right now is that resources are
not sufficient for the needs that we have.
complicated by the dynamic nature of the conflict
and people having to move for safety and
getting people to access services is a challenge.
For example, we targeted to have 300,000
and health visits by refugees this year, and so far as of July,
we only had 60,000 visits by refugees to the health facilities
we project. By the end of the year,
only 200,000 visits have been achieved.
So it's one thing to get the resources there.
It's another thing to ensure that the refugees are able to access the services.
Yes. Good morning. Thank you, Alexandra. Thank you to all, Uh I have a few questions.
Um, the first one is, uh, regarding, uh, Children
as, uh, the question has been addressed also by my colleague,
Children seems to be the most affected by
So in as you just mentioned that there's, um, a problem of, um,
Are the vaccines efficient for Children?
That's my first question.
And are you going to pre, uh, give a priority?
Uh, for vaccinations of Children?
My, uh, second question is, um, if I understood Well, Mister mayna did mention
infection through droplets.
Does it mean that there's an airborne transmission?
Um, do you have did you get enough time to confirm that? There's maybe,
um an airborne transmission
it's not a question. It's a request.
about the outcome of the vote for the new director of W
Afro that is taking place in Brazzaville now.
Thank you, Katrine. I'll start with Doctor Maya.
So, as I said, as we mentioned also, Margareta mentioned we we're
trying to understand the transmission dynamics. Close contact is known
But also we've seen that, as as has been reported,
there are also infectious respiratory particles that was transmitted
when somebody is talking or breathing close to one another
an extended period of time.
is best placed to answer that?
As I hope Margaret is connected on the
latest in terms of the the airborne transmission.
Margaret on on the second aspect and on the election
of the on the designation of the new director of
the Africa Region for you?
Um, so, first of all, no, it's It's the confusion there is if you're
talking closely to someone,
um, breathing on them, um, physically close face to face
There is a possibility for the the the the droplets
from if you've got lesions being spread to somebody else.
But this is a minor source. It's it's not what we're seeing. What we're seeing
is the close physical skin to skin.
But you know, when you're talking to somebody,
you're spitting out droplets and so on, especially if you're talking loudly.
So if you're talking closely face to face, that's a possible mode of transmission.
But it's not the the major form of It's not a very major form of transmission,
long distance sort of transmission that I think that's what you're referring to.
Um, on the vaccines for Children they have There is some
evidence from the, uh, global
the, uh, vaccines were used.
That indicates that some of them can be used in Children.
There are very specific recommendations
and I'll send you the detailed information from our stage recommendations.
We have a long paper which describes how they can be used
and what the the the evidence and the data is to date,
uh, on the, uh, African region. You're quite right.
um I will get back to you on exactly
when the announcements and the proceedings will be done.
This has been done by my colleagues in, um,
uh, in the Brazzaville office,
and I will link you with them with the details on when you'll have that information.
Catherine, is that fine with you? I see your hand is still up.
Oh, sorry about the hand. Uh,
I'll change it. But I mean,
um, I I come back to that.
Even if you say Margaret, that it's not a major transmission,
Uh, about, uh, droplets. Um,
wouldn't it be good to advise people globally to wear masks when they are
in, uh uh, travelling in, um, planes, trains, um,
and also locally in Africa to advise, uh, people, uh, to wear, um, in fact, masks.
Margot. Uh, currently, the advice is yes.
the advice is certainly for healthcare workers and
people who are in contact with somebody known
to be ill that this is one means
of preventing transmission of or protecting its transmission.
it's really related to being in contact with a person who already has the illness.
So, in other words, not a global recommendation, but a recommendation in, uh,
Last question from Emma. Far Reuters.
I wanted to understand the scale of this a
little bit better in in the displacement camps.
are we talking about, um, a
major outbreak in displacement camps or or, uh,
just a few suspected cases and And how much potential do
these camps have to be sort of incubators to even fuel,
outbreak in DC and beyond just to know I had questions for Margaret on
but maybe you want to do them after a
answer your first question, and then we have a list of speakers today.
So if Margaret will stay with us at the end, we will. We can get more questions to the
after the briefings, please,
Thank you very much. So thank you,
the number of cases being reported in the in the camps is still being worked out.
the challenges with access to treatment, access to
The main emphasis here is on the
risks associated with the vulnerable situation they're in
in terms of the overcrowded shelters, close contact, as Margaret has explained
and logistical challenges with the testing of suspected cases
situation of the devastated health infrastructure
that makes it compounds the challenge
in terms of ensuring timely access to treatment and care and prevention.
So these vulnerable situations make us very concerned that
we would need to be able to ensure that
we are co ordinating among the various actors of the Ministry of Health,
that we are ensuring that every person who is possibly
displaced is included in the national preparedness and response efforts,
from diagnostic to treatment, prevention
and vaccines when they become available.
To engage the communities appropriately as leaders in the response, in terms of the
informing the community in terms of where to access treatment,
how to access treatment, how to prevent themselves and
then also be able to provide materials in the language that they understand.
And lastly, is also the health system strengthening health system resilience,
calling for sustainable financing
not just for this emergency response but being able to
ensure that the infrastructure is ready for the next outbreak.
And lastly, as we talked about, is a piece that is very important to be able to
get the much needed healthcare access that
the refugees need and the displaced populations.
for bringing this aspect of this
we really have a very long list of
Can you just tell us how many people are in
the displaced persons camps That where you detected those cases?
We need just be sure that about 200,000
refugees in some of these camps in the eastern side
I just need because you're asking for the specific camps in
to refer the 42 cases you mentioned to
the total population of refugees or displaced people
can the numbers that we have
Thank you, dear. Just to put things in context.
as we all know, has a huge
So that number currently stands more than 7.3 million IDPs in the countries.
And let's also not forget, DRC
also hosts refugees from other countries.
So we are at least talking about more than half a million
refugees who come from the Central African Republic,
south Sudan, Burundi and other places as well.
C also has a big refugee population that has been
forced to flee and seek safety across the borders.
That number currently stands at 1 million. Thank you.
I raise my hands. We will stay here until 12.
Yes, thank you. Uh, this is a question to Margaret.
To To something she she said about the masks.
she said that the the mask should I understand that people should
wear the mask if they're in contact with a person who is,
Um, but what about if the person doesn't know that, um uh, this person is hell, uh,
when, uh, the person knows that, um I mean, when the transmission can begin,
does it mean that the transmission could
only begin when the symptoms have appeared?
Or could the transmission already begin?
Uh, even before the symptoms are there.
Sorry. Having trouble? IMing.
So again, more research is needed to fully understand the transmission dynamics.
Uh, particularly since we are.
That's one of the reasons we called
the public health emergency of international concern
to see if anything has changed.
But what we currently understand and what our current recommendations are,
is indeed the people who need to be wearing masks
are those who are giving care to somebody who's infected.
So that is somebody that you know is infected.
And if you are a healthcare worker, and you're working with people,
uh, likely to be infected or known to be infected.
You are advised to be wearing a mask.
And you and also ask that those likely to be infected wear a mask so that they are not,
uh, transmitting through the the droplets.
So those are the two groups and we
are not currently recommending We're not recommending,
uh, that mask be worn for the general public at this point.
Thank you very much. Mark. Uh, Jamie,
Sorry. I just want to be very clear on this.
Last last week, I believe it was the government in Congo announced that they had had,
uh, 1000 cases over the previous week.
That's a large number that you talk about 42. So,
you know, 1000 and 42 out of the out of 1000.
how concerned are you that
these refugee areas, because of the concentration of people in them,
will be a vector for either
geometric or exponential? Uh, expansion of
the number of cases of impact? Is that a vector
for increase either for you or for Margaret?
Is that a vector for a very sharp increase in case counts. Thank you.
I think we have to be very careful how we
how we put that in perspective because first of all,
ox can affect anyone. And
it's about the conditions that they are in, not necessarily because they
talk about refugees or displaced populations and
because if we put in that context, it could be seen as stigmatising in one way
what we are saying, what our emphasis is the conditions that are in East Dr
C, which are not just in the camp but the whole of the
impoverished health systems and difficulties in accessing health services
and difficulties in implementing the prevention measures,
poor sanitary conditions and
poor access to health and diet and food that is needed.
These conditions are further compounding the efforts to control and
not just the specific fact that they are refugees, incomes.
But we have seen we've had experience in the
region management of outbreaks in these camp settings,
and we've seen tremendous responses among
the communities and also with actors
about ensuring that the right resources are available and accessible for this
for the communities in this location,
the question of the discrepancy
So there's no discrepancy. I think that's not your question because there are
it's just I think you wanted to just put in comparison.
The main point there is that we have challenges in
ensuring that we get the samples being tested on time.
The rate at which we're able to get these
tests being confirmed is a challenge.
And even those who are suspected of having
illness are having challenges getting to
the facilities where we can be able to collect samples to be able to test them.
So we definitely would have
difference a big gap in the number of the data that
we're getting from the camp settings and the conflict affected areas.
So let's stay with UNHCR.
in Myanmar for the Rohingya
refugees. But maybe just to remind everyone
over the weekend, as we will hear also from
we did mark seven years since the first mass
displacement of Rohingya people and other communities from Myanmar,
To mark these sad milestones,
we have issued a statement in which the secretary
general called on all parties to the conflict in Myanmar
to end the violence and to ensure the protection of civilians
in accordance with international human rights
standards and international humanitarian law.
There was also the special envoy for Myanmar, Julie Bishop, which, as we said,
is engaging all stakeholders to move towards an inclusive
Myanmar led process for sustainable peace and national reconciliation.
And the Secretary General renews his appeal
to strengthen the regional protection efforts,
provide access to conflict affected communities
and further support host communities,
including through the 2024 Joint Response Plan for
the Rohingya Humanitarian Response Plan for Bangladesh.
And maybe we will hear more about this
Thank you, Alexandra. Exactly
as the world marked the seventh anniversary of the large scale forced displacement
the UN refugee agency again calling
for sustained commitment from international partners to
support and protect nearly 1 million Rohingya
refugees hosted by Bangladesh
and to help secure solutions to end their plight.
This reminding ourselves Seven years ago on 25 August 2017,
some 700,000 Rohingya men, women and Children were forced to flee Myanmar
and seek protection in Bangladesh. The gender support from Bangladesh
and the international community has been critical in meeting
refugees' most basic needs in providing protection.
the new evolving situation inside Myanmar
and funding uncertainties inside Bangladesh now undermine all
but the most critical and life saving assistance
state. The escalated conflict has only worsened
conditions for the Rohingya inside Myanmar.
Internal displacement is at an all time high,
with more than 3.3 million people displaced within the country.
Among them at least 128,000 in northern
MDO townships. Fighting is
occurring very close to the Bangladesh border areas and can be heard
by Bangladeshi communities living close to the border.
As conflict in Myanmar continues unabated, we are closely monitoring
the situation at the border,
providing life saving assistance and
educating with the Bangladeshi authorities for
access to asylum for civilians fleeing the conflict in Myanmar.
voluntary and sustainable return to Myanmar remains
the primary solution to this Rohingya refugee crisis
UNHCR calls on the international community to demonstrate the political will
to make this possible for Rohingyas
welcomes Bangladesh's renewed commitment to the refugees made by Dr
chief adviser of Bangladesh's interim government, on 18 August.
We echo his call for continued solidarity
from the international community through consistent financial support
their eventual repatriation to Myanmar with safety, dignity and full rights.
Until that happens, the refugees need immediate assistance
and help to build a future for themselves.
52% of the refugees are under the age of 18 years old
asylum or having spent their first years in the refugee camps.
In 2024 humanitarian agencies have appealed for $852
million to assist some 1.3 million people
including Rohingya refugees and Bangladeshis in the surrounding communities.
inadequately funded at 34 per cent. Currently,
underfunding has severely affected and hampered humanitarian efforts
to support refugees and hosts in Bangladesh,
leading to reduced food rations
in the first half of this year,
shortages of medical personnel,
specialised equipment and medicines in the health centres
and a decline in water quality leading to
an upsurge in cholera and hepatitis and a reduction
in vocational training and income generation opportunities, among others.
Bangladesh is also currently facing catastrophic flash floods affecting
millions of its citizens. It cannot be left to shoulder this
has immediately made available water purification tablets, hygiene kits,
jerricans and tarpaulins from its existing humanitarian
stockpiles to support the communities hosting refugees.
Two inflatable rescue boats have also been deployed.
But a more systematic and sustained global support is needed for countries like
Bangladesh exposed to extreme weather conditions and
natural disasters that are becoming increasingly extreme
and more frequent due to climate change.
This recent and latest flash flooding are at least the fourth extreme weather
or climate events that people in Bangladesh have to face this year.
Thank you very much. Bavar,
Uh, let me look at the platform too.
Nick. Yeah. Thank you. Um, but I just wonder if you could, um, update us on
you reckon have crossed from, uh,
Myanmar into Bangladesh this year.
And whether you have also any, uh, data or information on forced returns. Thank you.
Thank you, Nick. Very hard to ascertain the exact numbers.
The border between Bangladesh and Myanmar remains officially closed
and under surveillance of Bangladesh Border guards since the beginning of 2024
has monitored cases of people fleeing from Myanmar,
including both Rohingyas and non Rohingya,
either crossing or attempting to cross the border
through land borders as well as through the Naf
and Bay of Bengal on boats.
Calls on Bangladeshi authorities to ensure
access to safety for civilians and to prevent refoulement
of refugees fleeing the conflict inside
The number of those who have fled
in the region since February 2021 is in the range of 150,000.
But as we know and the total of people who have left
Myanmar, including the Rohingya exodus currently stands at 1.3 million.
But let's not forget the majority of them are Rohingyas who left in 2017. Thank you.
Thank you very much, Babar.
I don't see other questions,
but Lisa is saying in the chat if you can send the notes both yours and Doctor Allen
Oh, yes. Thank you very much for reminding me. Yeah, Babar
You have also short announcement on the Olympic Games
and it's an occasion also to congratulate Filippo Grandi,
the high commissioner, for the fantastic recognition that he had
in the first part of the Olympic Games. But you have got more coming right,
Thank you very much, Alexandra.
Tomorrow on 28 August 2024 the largest
refugee Paralympics team to date will compete at
the Paralympic Games in Paris.
The team of eight athletes and two guide runners
represent more than 120 million forcibly displaced people,
the estimated 18 million people with disabilities who have been
displaced from their homes as a result of war,
conflict, violence and human rights violations.
will be the refugee Paralympic teams flag
bearer at Wednesdays at Wednesday's opening ceremony,
marching along the Champs Elysees
into Paris's iconic Place de la Concorde.
thank you, and we will all be chairing and supporting the team. Boris
Over the past 23 years, we have seen documentaries,
documentary films on the Rohingya refugees in Bangladesh,
fearing radicalization there under the
this development in this situation?
Issues of insecurity in the refugee camps are dealt by the local authorities.
As we keep reminding, There are
million nearly a million Rohingya refugees over there and
all security concerns are conveyed to the local authorities
and limited resources available for refugees,
their well being and their Children are a big concern for us.
I don't have any update in terms of exactly on that subject.
But I can tell you that in the in the camp of 1 million we
are worried about well being of all refugees who are hosted at the camps.
Thank you very much, Babar.
And thanks for this update. Please remember to send out the notes to the journalist.
now go with Ravina to Afghanistan. You will have seen
the under secretary general for political and Peacebuilding Affairs,
said that the morality law recently promulgated by the de
facto authorities in Afghanistan further restricts human rights and freedoms,
She added. This is unconscionable
the law can only impede Afghanistan's return to international fault.
the special representative of the secretary general for Afghanistan, Roza
said the morality law extends the already intolerable restrictions
on the rights of African women and girls,
with even the sound of a female voice
outside the home apparently deemed a moral violation.
and she is expected to brief the Security Council on 18 September.
And I will hear from Ravina what the Office of Human Rights has to say about this
dire development, really, for human rights.
Yes, that's right, Alexandra. Good morning, everyone.
And the newly adopted Law on the Promotion of Virtue and the Prevention of Vice by
the de facto authorities in Afghanistan cements policies
that completely erase women's presence in public,
silencing their voices and depriving them of their individual autonomy,
effectively attempting to render them into faceless, voiceless shadows.
This is utterly intolerable.
The UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Volker
Tur, calls for this egregious law to be immediately repealed.
The long list of repressive provisions that this law imposes on women
reinforces a number of existing restrictions
that violate their fundamental human rights,
including their freedom of movement,
their freedom of expression and their right to live free from discrimination.
The law includes a requirement to wear clothes that
completely cover their bodies from head to toe,
A ban for transport providers on transporting women
unless they are accompanied by a male relative.
And a prohibition on women's voices being heard in public.
Other restrictions in the law, which are vaguely defined,
affect other human rights, such as the right to freely practise one's religion.
The law also grants state agents broad discretionary powers to detain people
to impose punishments on them or to refer matters to courts.
The law further tightens the grip on the media sector
with a ban on publishing images of human beings,
presumably also those of de facto officials.
We call on the de facto authorities to immediately repeal this legislation,
which is in clear violation of Afghanistan's
obligations under international human rights law,
disempowering and rendering invisible and voiceless.
Half the population of Afghanistan will only worsen the
human rights and humanitarian crisis in the country.
this is a time to bring together all
the people of Afghanistan respective of their gender,
religion or ethnicity, to help resolve the many challenges that the country faces.
Let's open the floor to questions. Jamie.
Good morning, Ravina. Thank you for that.
Um, I just wanted to ask you, um,
what you think can be done about it.
I mean, we've got a response from the Taliban already. Um, yesterday,
um, rejecting the concerns, um, expressed by other, uh, United Nations officials.
So? So what can be done about it?
It's a very good and a very difficult question, Jamie. What can be done about it?
We have a presence in Afghanistan.
We are doing what we can to engage to try to persuade.
It is important as well that we keep the public attention on this.
Let's remember that 23.7 million people will
require humanitarian assistance in Afghanistan this year.
We don't see this in the headlines very much.
Now, women's voices are being completely silenced.
I mean, when I was in Afghanistan about two years ago,
this should come as no surprise.
We were sitting around the table with several women representatives who were
sharing with us the issues that their communities face and solutions.
These women were full of solutions.
They are in contact with people in the community at a very close level.
They understand the issues that are facing the most vulnerable.
They need to be given a seat at the table to help implement those solutions.
These are partners who are being completely silenced and
and they're attempting to render them into shadows.
Their voices are no longer permissible. Education is no longer permissible.
Uh, you cannot even see their faces.
This needs to stop. And we need to continue talking about it.
We need to continue advocating for it and
putting pressure on the authorities to listen.
Speaking of putting pressure, I mean,
for example, UN support humanitarian support,
other types of support Should that be contingent on whether or not
you know, uh, O on, um, decisions like this from the ruling Taliban. I mean,
and you always need to be careful in your response not
to end up making the situation worse for the people.
On the broader question of the UN support that that's really more a question for
the secretary general and perhaps for the humanitarian
agencies on what's being considered in that respect
and and humanitarian. So yeah,
yes, thank you. I don't see how punishing
women in need of humanitarian support
would be the way forward,
but But I think what Mr DeCarlo said it's important because
she she really made the point that this kind of,
of of laws doesn't really help at all the
Afghanistan to come back on the international scene.
This is This is something it's it's a very
hard, sometimes hard equilibrium to find,
it cannot be done at the expenses of the more vulnerable.
That's that's really the problem.
the most important thing is continuing working with those who
can make a difference in Afghanistan on the international scene.
And please continue talking about it. And that's your voice. Mainly,
uh, that brings our our, uh,
I don't see other questions in the room. OK, so let me go to Lisa.
I believe a lot of female headed households women who do not have husbands or another
to support them. Uh, how do they How do they live? I mean they can't work.
Uh, how do how do they feed themselves and their Children?
Does the Taliban provide them with any sort of assistance?
girls cannot go to school
eventually, there will be no female doctors.
women can see male doctors. So what happens? They just die. That's it.
You are painting a very dire picture, Lisa. That's not too far from the truth.
How do they feed themselves? This is true. There are women headed households.
And this is why you see the
the humanitarian assistance needs 23.7 million people, uh,
require humanitarian assistance.
Some of this, I mean, there are There will be multiple reasons, uh, for this, uh,
but the fact that women are not allowed to educate, uh, themselves,
the fact that they're not allowed to work and to support themselves, uh,
surely contributes to this.
as we said it, this is exactly the recipe for making a bad situation.
Um, let me see if there's another question.
I don't see any. You have another point to that?
shortage of questions doesn't mean that this will not make headlines,
because I really do hope that Afghanistan remains in the headlines.
the other item we have is on China in response
to questions in relation to our work on China,
particularly as we approach two years
since the publication of our offices Assessment
on Human Rights in the Xinjiang
Uyghur Autonomous Region.
The High Commissioner and the Office have
had detailed exchanges with the government of
China on a range of critical issues such as counterterrorism laws and policies,
other policies of concern that impact on the
human rights of ethnic and religious minorities,
including in Xinjiang and in the Tibet Autonomous Region,
equality and non discrimination,
as well as national security and human rights
concerns in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region,
notably in June this year,
a UN human rights team visited China and engaged in dialogue
with the authorities specifically on counterterrorism
policies and the criminal justice system
in particular on Xinjiang.
We understand that many problematic laws and policies remain in place,
and we have called again on the authorities to undertake a full review
from the human rights perspective of the
legal framework governing national security and counterterrorism
and to strengthen the protection of minorities against discrimination.
Allegations of human rights violations, including torture,
need to be fully investigated.
We hope to continue our active engagement with
the government as well as with civil society
actors to seek tangible progress in the protection of human rights for all in China.
We are also continuing to follow closely
the current human rights situation in China,
despite the difficulties posed by limited access to information
and the fear of Reprisals against individuals who engage with the United Nations.
We've continued to raise with the
government individual cases of particular concern,
calling on the authorities to take prompt steps
to release all individuals arbitrarily deprived of their liberty
and to clarify the status and whereabouts of those
whose families have been seeking information about them.
We are continuing to advocate for implementation
of these and other recommendations made by us
as well as those made by other UN human rights mechanisms
and during the Human Rights Council's universal periodic review process.
The High Commissioner is committed to sustained engagement with the
government of China and to advocating on behalf of victims
always guided by the goal of helping improve human
rights protections for the people on the ground.
You're You're calling for a lot. The high Commissioner is calling for a lot.
Uh, is China listening? Uh, is anything gonna change?
What sort of response have you received?
Uh, or have they just nodded, Uh, you know, uh, looking cryptic.
Uh, will the internment camps be closed? Will the people get their freedom? I mean,
you know, it's fine. These calls have been going on for a lot a long time. Thanks.
Thanks. Lisa, um, we are asking for a lot.
Um, but, uh, we are asking for what is the obligation of the state, Um, in terms of, uh,
in terms of their commitments.
Um, under human rights law, in terms of their obligations under human rights law,
on on whether they're listening, you'll have to ask them, um, this is, you know,
not I. I speak for the High Commissioner.
Uh, not not, of course, for for any government authorities.
Um, but on our engagement, um,
we have had a lot of engagement on very difficult issues as well.
Um, quite open engagement.
There were several round tables that were held here in Geneva
with visiting delegations from China.
Um, and we also deployed a team. The high Commissioner deployed a team
Uh, sorry. Let me just check that. I'm getting that right here.
June It was the 26th of May to the first of June
and they were able to meet with a lot of
different state representatives from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs,
Justice, Public Security, the Supreme People's Court,
Supreme People's Procuratorate,
the National People's Congress, National Ethnic Affairs Commission,
as well as representatives from Xinjiang and from Hong Kong.
So we are conveying our messages. Um, we are offering our engagement, our support.
We are continuing to engage with the authorities as well as with civil society
and again guided by the ultimate goal of doing whatever we can
to try to improve the situation on the ground for those people who
need it to try to help ensure human rights protection for all
in China that that really is the ultimate goal that guides both our
diplomatic engagements as well as our public advocacy.
Yes, on this visit in in June.
Um, could you tell us if you have been able to to move? You mentioned the Xinjiang.
You talked about the Xinjiang region, but were you able to to move there?
And if you could specify if the visit this visit was at the
invitation of China or if it was a request from from the UN?
Thanks. And this particular visit was to Beijing.
Um, and it was to interact with all of the, you know,
several of the different line ministries as well as judicial officials.
Um, from from different parts of, uh, of the administration.
there were representatives from Xinjiang and from Hong Kong,
but the visit was just to Beijing.
At this point. As I said, there was also a previous
there were previous set of round tables that
was held in Geneva with visiting delegations again.
was this at the invitation of the authorities?
Well, yes, it was at the invitation of the authorities,
and it was the result of a series of engagements,
including the round tables that were held in Geneva.
Yes, Uh, Philip? Um, so do you expect more? Um, uh, visits to come next month.
And maybe in other regions of the country,
Um, this is part of the the engagement that we're having with them.
And we are also encouraging the
authorities to consider special procedures visits,
um, as well as visits from our office to to various parts of China.
So this is it's part of the discussions. There's nothing
in the calendar yet, but it's part of the discussions.
you mentioned in your, uh, initial comments about, um, cases of torture,
Um, that have been discussed. Are those recent cases could you give us a time frame?
And as to what? When? When? The That torture, um, may have taken place.
And, uh And you also said that you raised individual cases?
Um, of particular concern. Can you tell us which ones those are,
and then I just more broadly, I mean, we had the, you know, the the the
commission report from Madame Bachelet on.
How long is it? Um, Coming up on what, three years now? Is that right? Two years.
Uh uh. the 31st of August, as I remember,
you you you said, you know,
we need to ask Chinese officials about their Cooper operation.
But, you know, it's been two years, so I mean,
can you just generally qualify the level of Cooper operation
that you are getting from Beijing on these issues?
Thanks, Jamie. On torture.
Uh, this was a key recommendation, uh, from the Xinjiang report.
The report that you're referring to the assessment report
that that was put out two years ago.
one of the key recommendations was to promptly
investigate allegations of human rights violations in the
the so called vocational education and
training centres and other detention facilities,
including allegations of torture, sexual violence, ill treatment,
forced medical treatment as well as forced labour and reports of deaths in custody.
So this is a recommendation that we are repeating that stems from the report itself
On individual cases, I can't get into details.
we do speak publicly about about cases where it's deemed appropriate.
And in some cases, we're trying private engagements on those.
I wouldn't be able to give you names.
Yes, it has been two years. You asked about Cooper operation with the authorities.
Look on Cooper operation. Yes, we have had a lot of engagement with them.
There's been a lot of discussion as you know, that the issues that I laid out,
these are not soft issues.
These are quite sensitive and pertinent issues on counterterrorism laws,
criminal justice policies, ethnic and religious minorities in Xinjiang,
as well as security and human rights concerned concerns in Hong Kong.
So in terms of cooperation's positive and
the high Commission is committed to sustained engagement
in terms of actual implementation of the recommendations,
there's a lot to be desired, which is why we need to continue to work with them,
We can have some some progress, tangible progress,
as the High Commissioner has said.
And of course it's not just us.
there have also been recommendations of other UN human rights mechanisms,
including during the universal periodic review process.
there were a lot of recommendations made to the government of China.
Some of them were accepted as well and we will be using
those recommendations as well to try to find entry points to to get
So if I had to summarise what you just finished saying, I mean,
you would applaud China on its receptiveness to your participation.
You would not necessarily applaud them on the results from those conversations.
Is that a simple oversimplification?
yeah. No, No. As I said, sustained engagement. It's a long term thing, right?
You can't expect immediate results overnight,
but we are committed to sustaining this engagement
with a view to tangible results and tangible progress.
yeah. You talk about the desire for tangible progress. Um,
results of of the outcomes of all this
impressive amount of engagement that you've described.
What would you flag as a tangible progress so far,
um, either in relation to human rights defenders
or in relation to Xinjiang or in relation to Tibet or in relation to Hong Kong.
Thanks, Nick. Listen, it's a work in progress. Um,
there has been a deepening of the engagement, really starting, you know,
from more general engagement and getting into really specific issues,
specific laws that we're looking at as well,
including a particularly egregious law on
picking quarrels which has been used against, you know,
people who are exercising their human rights.
Freedom of expression, freedom of assembly, freedom of association.
Um, so we are getting much more specific on the types of issues, laws, cases
that we are we are looking for results on
it would be good to know a little bit more
about the specific areas where you see this progress.
But also, I mean, you referred to
the outcomes of the U PR. And what human rights groups said was that, um,
yes, China accepted some recommendations and it rejected record number.
So it didn't seem as if there was a particularly positive response to
you or the human rights community were making in that process.
you know, during the U PR process,
the rejection of certain recommendations does not take
away the obligation of the state to actually comply
its human rights obligations with with international human rights law.
but the recommendations that were accepted as well
those are recommendations that we are now using to
take forward our engagement further,
Yes, but this is not a question on China. So I will.
think I don't see other question on this particular matter because unless
because there's you and Musa
got the feeling that Musa
maybe we'll ask just Musa
Your question was on something else, right?
so maybe you you can go ahead and then we'll
see if Musa has What's the question from from him?
Ok, thank you. And thank you, Irina, for being here.
questions about two different topics. I will start with the first one
directly accused of not coopering sufficiently with
the intelligence services and the French police
to give them data on telegram users when they're asking for them.
does this pressure from security services to obtain access to data from a non crypt,
uh, application used by many human rights defenders? Were you
and are you worried about the situation in general.
And secondly, for the other topic. This is about the
Coast Oblast, and not only about the Bryansk and the Belga.
are the discussions with Russia continuing to obtain access
to the Oblast after you called for it two weeks ago.
And have you received a definitive answer if it's not the case? Thanks.
Thanks for your questions, Yuri.
On the case of Pavel Durov, Of course, we are aware of the reports of his arrest
At this stage of the investigation, we just don't have enough information.
And it would really be too early for us to weigh in.
So I'll refrain from weighing in on that one at this point.
on the access to Russia, we have not yet received a formal response.
has been waiting just a second. Sorry. Just as a follow up on Yuri's question.
just as a general rule, Um uh, Ravina What is the position of OHC HR?
you know, platform social media platforms and the rights of, you know,
freedom of expression on those platforms.
I mean, we always stress that the same rights apply online as they do offline.
Um, so there is, of course, the the right to freedom of expression.
uh um to not be subjected to Reprisals.
Um, you know, to be able to express your opinions and your views freely.
of course, this right is not
There are permissible restrictions to this, right, Um,
in the interest of public order.
there are very clear kind of parameters set up where these
rights can be can be restricted on social media platforms.
This is a very complicated issue. There are obligations that the business
themselves have to comply by,
and there are obligations of the state
You need to be very careful not to encourage and overreach either by the state or
by businesses into regulating social media platforms and
the kinds of content that is there.
So it it's not something I can I can respond to, you know, in a in
short sound bite. I'm afraid it's it's quite complex, and it has to be.
This is why, on this specific issue of this arrest, it's too early for us to weigh in.
We just don't have enough information to be able
to do the analysis that would be required.
Last question. Let's try again, Musa.
Otherwise we maybe Musa, you can send the question to rabina afterwards.
OK. You should be on now.
I had already forgotten your first question because your second one had three parts
contacts with the French. We are We are seeking more information about this case,
on the situation in in the occupied Palestinian territory and, uh and and and
broad more broadly, in the Middle East.
In fact, of course it won't.
The High Commissioner has consistently stressed
that the protection of civilians must be the
top priority in the midst of this conflict,
all parties must comply with international humanitarian
law and ensure the protection of civilians.
the escalations that we are seeing are very worrying
Palestinians detained. I don't have that in front of me.
Of course, colleagues are continuing to follow the situation.
But let me send you that information by email afterwards.
Thank you very much. Ravin, I think this concludes uh, the questions for you.
Thanks for this. Uh uh, Updates and let me turn to my left.
Uh, yes. Thanks for your patience. You have a point on
no. Last but not least no
Thanks for your patience.
some 38 kilometres northwest of Port Sudan in Sudan's Red
Sea state suffered extensive damage due to heavy rains,
and flooded downstream communities.
Local authorities have confirmed 30 deaths,
but we fear that the number of casualties could be much higher.
Many more people are missing or displaced.
70 villages around the dam have reportedly been affected,
of which 20 have been destroyed.
Some 50,000 people living on the western side of
the dam have had their homes destroyed or damaged,
and people urgently need water, food and shelter assistance,
according to the authorities.
Some village residents were reportedly forced to escape to the mountains
for safety, while others were evacuated.
Our reports also say that
84 boreholes have collapsed,
10,000 animals are missing and 70 schools have
been either damaged or destroyed big humanitarian impact.
The impact on the Eastern Bank, however,
is still to be assessed as road access has been cut off.
Local rescue teams are attempting to open these roads.
An inter agency team led by the UN's humanitarian office
is departing Port Sudan. As I speak
and heading towards the affected area,
the team will in co ordination with partners
and the authorities support assessments of the damage
and look at people's most urgent humanitarian needs and, of course,
help co ordinate the response
to note the damage at the ABA
dam is expected to have wider consequences as it
is a primary source of fresh water for Port Sudan
and will impact water supplies there.
Since the onset of the rains in Sudan in June,
floods have wreaked havoc across many parts of the country,
with the most affected states
Darfur and River Nile state.
Before this dam collapse on Sunday, an estimated 317,000 people have been affected
and 118,000 of them have been displaced and tens
of thousands of homes have been damaged or destroyed.
Thank you very much. Let me see. Ok, let's start with Robin.
on the situation at the ad
Could you give us an update on
the flow of trucks across the crossing? Are we seeing
the proper sort of flow that you
Archer would like to see?
So if you could just give us the picture of of aid at the crossing? Thank you.
I think the latest on the crossing is from WFP. So if I may ask you to
I was in contact with the office earlier this morning,
our office in Sudan and they said
that we should expect in the not too distant future an update on the
crossing. But for now, the latest is from W.
a convoy of the World Food Programme trucks crossed from
Chad to Sudan's Darfur region by the Adri border crossing,
carrying some 205 metric tonnes of food assistance.
That would be for about 17,000 people, 17,000 people. That is the second
convoy to cross through this crossing recently.
that the food assistance will be delivered,
to communities across Darfur and distributions will
start as soon as the trucks arrive.
I don't know if he she us back, but in in case you can, uh,
definitely ask her for another update. This is from yesterday.
I had seen another hand in the in the room. Not seeing anymore. Yeah, Christian,
I have a question to Jens, but not on Sudan.
Just wait, because I've got two more on the on the platform, so just let me see.
Uh, let me go to Stephane Stephane. Board
Thank you. Thank you for, uh, briefing.
Uh, I have a question, but not about Sudan.
about Gaza. We heard very. Can
Sorry, because I think there are more than one on Gaza.
Let me ask just Emma, If this is on Sudan,
then we go to Sudan and we go to the other questions. Sorry,
Can you give us a rough idea of how many people are unaccounted for in this disaster?
And can you tell us a bit about, um,
how the war is affecting your ability to respond to it?
truth is, we don't know how many are unaccounted for.
Communications with the area has been disrupted. It's very difficult to get
out from there. We had the initial
assessment that went from the government of Sudan to the area.
And as I just said, we are on the road to go there ourselves. So hopefully we'll have
when they return and debrief us.
The area is under control of the government of Sudan and the
So we do not expect, at least in this initial phase, that the conflict,
as such horrible as it is,
will have an impact on the immediate assessment that we that we are doing in the area.
Thank you. Other questions on Sudan I don't see hands up. So let's go back to,
and see what was the question about? And and Christiania? Sorry,
Stefan. It was on Gaza, you said,
Jens, could you give us an update about the current, uh,
humanitarian situation? We heard
dramatic UN reports saying that, uh,
humanitarian aid couldn't be delivered in the region of Deir
And it sounds pretty pretty, uh, critical. Could you give us a real update?
What is possible? What is not possible in terms of delivering humanitarian aid?
Thank you, Stefan. Let me let me give you what I have
on the situation, particularly
that we are talking about.
the Israeli military has issued three new evacuation
orders for over 19 neighbourhoods in northern Gaza and in their
people staying in these areas, many sheltering in displacement sites.
That actually brings to 16 the number of mass evacuation orders
that have been issued in the March of August alone.
those orders have displaced UN, humanitarian staff,
NS and service providers along with their families.
These relocations took place at very short notice and in dangerous conditions.
Our humanitarian colleagues on the ground
are particularly worried about the order issued
albala. It affected 15 premises hosting UN and NGO aid workers,
three wells, one water reservoir
and one desalination plant. All of these are either in or near the designated area.
The sum of this is that it effectively up ends a whole life saving humanitarian hub
severely impacts our ability to deliver essential support and services.
I had a related question on Gaza, please.
Um, it it's about the polio vaccination campaign.
And I'm just struggling, struggling to see how something
on this scale can be rolled out in in the current circumstances that Jens described,
Um, So how will that be rolled out? Maybe it's a question for Margaret.
Has Israel agreed to a pause? And is this a
prerequisite for a roll out, or will you go ahead anyway?
Um, with your plans on the polio vaccines.
Or chair is not rolling out this campaign. It certainly is with the WHO.
I see you're still there.
I'll try the video again, huh? Ok,
access, safety, security. It's absolutely critical to for a successful roll out.
We have to be able to reach every child.
And we're aiming to reach every child under 10 in
every part of the strip So it's critical that
it's agreed that we're going where we need to go
and that that happens with safety and security.
the the vaccines have arrived in the strip
and the cold chain equipment so that technical
bits and pieces are in place.
The healthcare workers, the vaccinators who are going to deliver the vaccine,
are in the process of being trained. Uh, not training is, I think, concluding today.
or where, how and and doing that, with full safety and full access,
And that's why we haven't given you a date,
Uh, thank you. Th those were the two questions I was also going to ask.
And maybe I can just dig a bit more. Um,
can you, um uh, to Margaret, can you, uh, remind us how many,
uh, vaccines are there and how many Children are going to be vaccinated?
And whether you expect this to happen in the next few days or not?
And Jens, can you tell us
Have are operations still going or or
is nothing possible because the, uh, employees have been displaced
and are now scrambling to find new accommodation. I don't know. Warehouses.
Um Is this something that needs to be set up a new and takes a week or two or, uh,
are operations still going on?
Um, so the numbers, I'll just have to double check,
because the the different numbers have come.
Uh, but as I said, it's the aim is to reach. At least
I have to get my numbers in front of me. Sorry. Can you go to
first? And I'll just get my N numbers?
Our braces are ongoing where feasible, but no
Um, we've been there for 10 months.
going on where we're feasible,
I want to remind you that only 11%
of the territory of the Gaza Strip
11 per cent is not under evacuation orders.
and keep the operation going.
As I mentioned, the humanitarian hub
that has now been displaced was That's the second time it's been displaced.
It was originally established, as you will recall in Rafah,
the trucks were coming in and where the operations was run from.
Then, when that became impossible,
Established itself there, and now
Can you tell us how many people? Sorry. Can you tell us how many people
I don't have an exact count
of how many people? I believe a number was mentioned
yesterday. I don't want to
hot water on the exact number, because there's different numbers,
And also because there are
families of, of, of, of staff that are that are being encountered their dependents.
Yes, and I agree with you, and it's awful getting in hot water over numbers.
I do have, uh, the numbers
we we aim to reach 640,500 Children.
So these are Children under 10 years of age across Gaza.
doses we approved the release of 1.6 million doses of polio vaccines. That's
O PV two. Because that's the specific, um,
strain that we ha is circulating.
Uh, and and they were released from the global stockpile and UNICEF
actually transported them,
uh, to the the the strip and the cold chain equipment.
And to be successful, we need more than 95% coverage. So that's why it's critical.
Stefan near the follow up.
Uh, yes. Thank you. Uh, Jan,
could you give us a broader picture of where we are in terms of humanitarian aid?
Can the humanitarian trucks go through Karem,
do? How many are there a day? Could you elaborate on that? Thank you.
reopened and the West Iris crossing has been closed.
is technically open for entry, but it is too
for aid organisations to actually go there and pick up
whatever aid is being dropped off just across the border.
My question is, for Margaret is about Al Aqsa Hospital in Gaza.
evacuation for the area of this hospital and decorated as a military zone.
The hospital continues its activities
rates of attack. And my question is,
what is the situation about the hospital? How many patients still there.
the hospital? Also, thank you.
I don't have the numbers about how many patients are still there,
but certainly my colleagues,
uh, have described how every time there's an evacuation order,
many patients and staff do leave
just because of, even if it's not specifically it, even if it's just,
it's in the area very close because of the terror,
the fear and their experience of what happens when the conflict comes to them.
The other important thing to know whenever
there's a evacuation order whenever a hospital
um, a lot of looting occurs, and a lot of the equipment things like the generators,
the solar, uh, power, all the things that we have spent
a lot of work to put back in.
It's taken every time. So
it's not just that the hospital itself doesn't function,
but that the hospital is often very much damaged by the the, uh,
experience of the evacuation order.
And, um, what also happens is that many of those patients they have to go somewhere
so they end up trying to go or or more
patients go to the other hospitals that are already overburdened
Thank you very much. Emma,
can I ask Margaret my question about cholera? Is this the right time?
I'm gonna go for it. Thank you, Margaret, for your patience.
We're really leading on your expertise today.
Um, there was some good news out of India. Uh, the vaccine manufacturer Barat
Biotech said that its phase three trials of an oral
cholera vaccine proved that it's safe for public use.
So I'm just wondering, what is the WHO doing now?
Are you ready and equipped to handle an application for pre qualification?
And how long do you think that process will take? Thanks a lot.
Certainly an unexpected question.
And, I, I don't have any detailed information on that for you,
I will talk to our pre qualification team and and
the cholera team to see what the arrangements are there.
as you know, pre qualification is dependent on three different things.
Uh, proof of efficacy, Uh, proof of safety. And, um,
and and proof of good manufacturing, uh, process.
And that applies to absolutely every, um,
product that's looked at for pre qualification.
But I do not have any details on
timelines. Uh, applications, et cetera.
For you in front of me, so I'll have to get back to you on that.
Thank you very much. Margaret. Let me see if there's any other question for you or for
Not in the room and not in the platform. So thank you very much,
I've got on my right. Claire from
As you will have noticed because we've sent it to you
during the night hoping that you will find it this morning
and read it very attentively yesterday.
The Secretary general has been first of all. He, as you know, is in Tonga
He has participated in the opening of the 53rd Pacific Island Forum.
So he has given speeches. We have distributed them to you. But yesterday
he gave a press conference together with
the World Meteorological Organisation Secretary General,
where a couple of reports were launched. We'll hear more from
but the most important thing that I wanted to raise is that the Secretary General
has been highlighting the present day impacts
and future projections of sea level rise.
SOS that really underscored the need to save our seas a
He has been saying that the ocean is overflowing.
I think science demonstrated it largely, and these reports confirm it.
The reason is clear that the secretary general greenhouse gases
overwhelmingly generated by burning fossil fuels are cooking our planet,
and the sea is taking the heat
The secretary general said that this puts Pacific islands at a grave danger,
underlining that without drastic cuts in emissions,
the Pacific islands can expect at least 15
centimetres of additional sea level rise by mid
century and more than 30 days per year of coastal flooding in some places.
The reports that were launched showed that the average rate of
sea level rise has more than doubled since the nineties,
and emerging science suggests that the two degree temperature rise could
potentially lead to the loss of almost all the Greenland ice sheet
and much of the West Antarctica ice sheet.
This would mean condemning future generations to unstoppable sea level rise
up to 20 metres over a period of a millennia.
But at the three degrees of warming, which is our current trajectory,
the rise in sea level would happen much more quickly over centuries,
which this in fact spells disaster wide ranging and brutal impacts coming far,
thicker and faster than we can adapt
to them destroying the entire coastal community
communities. So the secretary general said that only by limiting warming to 1.5
°C do we have a fighting chance of preventing this irreversible collapse
and the catastrophe that accompanied them.
This means cutting global emissions by 43% compared to
The world must massively increase finance and support for vulnerable countries.
We need a surge in funds to deal with surging
seas. And he concluded by saying that the world must act and answer the
And I understand, Claire, you wanted to add something on this. But I also speak about
maybe another report. I give you the floor now.
Thank you, Alexandra. Well, there's
not actually much that I can add to that
from the perspective of the World Meteorological Organisation.
Our Secretary General, Celeste Saulo,
spoke of We are sending a red alert to the world
on sea level rise and indeed on the impacts of climate change
just to summarise what Alexandra has just said, we released
our state of the climate in the South West Pacific Report for 2023.
This shows that indeed sea level rise in the region is above the global average.
It's not uniform. It does vary.
Within the south West Pacific Sea surface temperatures have risen
three times faster than the global average since 1980.
marine heatwaves have approximately doubled in frequency and
they are more intense and lasting longer.
So you should have received details.
In addition to the UN Secretary general's speech,
we sent out all the information under
It's not. It's not all bad news.
The Pacific Islands Forum, which is taking place in Tongo,
which is where we had the press conference these important reports were launched,
has seen a number of other activities, and one of them was the
inauguration of a new weather radar station at the airport in Tonga.
And this means that it's a big boost, both for weather forecasts
which is one of our top priorities,
as both Celeste Saulo and Mr Guterres underlined in Tonga,
we need to get the early warnings out and we need to
make sure that people can act on them. Another good
example of why we need early warnings is that the
UN secretary general he actually visited a primary school yesterday
while he was there at the primary school, they got
alert on the cell phones for a minor earthquake. So
we're not just dealing with one single hazard. It's cascading cascading hazards
will be heading via Fiji to Singapore
next week. Several important events in Singapore, including the
Centre on climate resilience. We'll be sending you details on that.
That is the fourth and the fifth of September
ahead of that on the second of September,
we are launching the state of the climate in Africa 2023 report.
regional climate statements.
week long conference in Cote d'Ivoire.
will, as usual, send you the press release under embargo in hopefully French and
English. We're not planning a press conference as such, but if you need to speak to
any of the authors. Please, please just let me know.
releasing its annual report on air quality and climate.
It's pegged to the 7 September, which is
Is it blue? The International Day of Clean Air for Blue Skies,
that is 7 September. We do do an annual report on air quality and climate.
Now, if there is interest, we can have an embargoed press conference on that.
We're proposing this Friday, which is quite a long time ahead,
but it's just because our
our expert who's dealing with it, he's at a conference all of next week.
So we've given these press conferences the past couple of years,
and they have been quite well received.
interested in an embargoed press briefing,
We can probably do it anyway. Even if you're
they might be interested.
We'll send out the notice for that after this briefing, but the plan is for 2 p.m.
so that will hopefully give you time to write up from the briefing,
and it will be embargoed for the following week.
Thank you. Thank you very much.
Stay here because there may be questions I just wanted
to add that also in terms of the Secretary General
when he finishes his commitments in Tonga, we go to Timor
Leste for from 28 to 31st of August,
where he will take part in the commemoration of the 25th
anniversary of the popular consultation in the country which was organised.
As you will know by the United Nations.
He is also then going to Singapore on the first and 2nd September when he will meet
with the president and the prime minister and then
from the second to the fifth of September,
But he will also take part in the 2024 summit
of the Forum on China Africa Cooper operation in Beijing,
where it will highlight the importance of South South Cooper
to build solidarity and drive progress on shared development goals.
government officials and since he is there on the other side of the world,
he cannot be at the opening of the Paralympic Games.
But our director General is representing him there
so she will be in Paris for the opening and we will report on social media engagements
and I'll open the floor to questions on all these
in the room. I don't see hands, although I saw people nodding before about
that's good on the platform.
It's not a background briefing. It is.
It's an on the record briefing,
but it's technical level with one of our technical experts who speaks
Spanish, French and English Just for your information. That's good,
if there are no other points, I have just one last announcement from
the office of the special envoy for Syria.
No. OK, just one second. Let me. I've got a couple of announcements.
just to inform you that tomorrow Wednesday, the UN Special envoy for Syria, Mr
will brief the Security Council at 10 a.m. New York time, which is, as you know,
The transcript of the briefing will be distributed, it
concludes, as Jennifer usually does.
And also let me remind you that the
Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities
is going to start this afternoon. The review of the report of Ukraine,
which will be the last one on their agenda.
The Committee on the Rights of the Child will start
this afternoon the report examining the report on Bahrain,
which will be followed by Turkmenistan, Mexico, Argentina, Israel and Armenia.
And that is what I have. I have no press conference to remind you
Yes. I just read in some calendar that today at UN Geneva Opens
opened two events. One is at Pale
on racism in Palestine. Israel. That's what I heard. Something related
So is it open to the media? And what can we know?
And another event is on autonomous weapons.
Good points. Let me ask and come back to you.
Do you know where the little, uh, autonomous weapons one was today too?
I just got it from General calendar. Like
the one on autonomous weapons. I think is the whole week starting today. That's
is it worth for us to rush there and try to attend?
Ok, let me ask colleagues. The one on the lethal autonomous weapons. I think we can.
We I had heard about it, but I didn't have the dates. So let me check
on the other one. I will ask the colleagues of human rights
Uh uh, just after the the end of the briefing,
which I think is now because I don't see any any other hand up.
So thank you very much, uh, for for attending this long briefing.
And, um and see you next time. And let me inform you by email about these two events.
