UN / MOROCCO
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STORY: UN / MOROCCO
TRT: 02:45
SOURCE: UNIFEED-UNTV /FILE
RESTRICTIONS: NONE
LANGUAGE: ENGLISH / NATS
DATELINE: 21 MARCH 2016, NEW YORK CITY /FILE
RECENT-
1. Wide shot, exterior, UN headquarters
21 MARCH 2016, NEW YORK CITY
2. Wide shot, press room
3. SOUNDBITE (English) Farhan Haq, Deputy Spokesperson for the Secretary-General, United Nations:
“We do not accept the reasons for any of this. Morocco, as we made clear is in violation of the status of mission agreement and the Secretary-General will bring this up again to the Security Council at the monthly luncheon with them taking place in the next couple of hours, to make clear the need for the Security Council to take action on this.”
4. Wide shot, reporters
5. SOUNDBITE (English) Farhan Haq, Deputy Spokesperson for the Secretary-General, United Nations:
“At the end of the day, the response of the Security Council will have implications beyond Western Sahara and will affect current and future peacekeeping interventions. As the Council was told on Friday, if the MINURSO mission can be rendered ineffective and inoperative by one member state’s recalcitrance and if the people of the region can be threatened by a possible renewal of hostilities because a government took offence at a single word, how can we guaranty a stability of any peacekeeping mission.”
6. Wide shot, podium
7. SOUNDBITE (English) Farhan Haq, Deputy Spokesperson for the Secretary-General, United Nations:
“The Secretary-General used the word "occupation" at a very specific time and under a very specific circumstances and he continues to uphold that. Ultimately his point is that Sahrawi refugees deserve better future and he referred to occupation as related to inability of Sahrawi refugees to return home.”
8. Cutaway, reporter
9. SOUNDBITE (English) Farhan Haq, Deputy Spokesperson for the Secretary-General, United Nations:
“There is no reason – none, for this escalation. The mission was going about its work for more than a quarter of a century. It’s been there to assure a degree of stability and even though the situation on the ground has not been to the satisfaction of the Sahrawi people, as long as the mission has been there, there’s been lessening of tensions. Right now, that system is in peril.”
5 MARCH 2016, BIR LAHLOU, WESTERN SAHARA
10. Areial shot, "sand wall" in Western Sahara
11. Wide shot, helicopter landing
12. Med shot, Ban disembarking
13. Med shot, Ban shaking hands with UN mil. observers
14. Various shots, Ban at a demeaning training site
5 MARCH 2016, SMARA REFUGEE CAMP, ALGERIA
15. Tracking shot, women demonstrating
16. Tracking shot, Polisario units
5 MARCH 2016, RABOUNI, ALGERIA
17. Wide shot, Ban and Polisario SG Abdelazaiz shaking hands
A United Nations (UN) spokesperson said that Morocco was “in violation of the status of mission agreement” for ordering the withdrawal of dozens of UN civilian personnel from Western Sahara.
Farhan Haq, told reporters today (21 Mar) that the Secretary-General will ask the Security Council to take action on the matter and that the Council’s response “will have implications beyond Western Sahara and will affect current and future peacekeeping interventions.”
Haq said “if the MINURSO mission can be rendered ineffective and inoperative by one member state’s recalcitrance and if the people of the region can be threatened by a possible renewal of hostilities because a government took offence at a single word, how can we guaranty a stability of any peacekeeping mission.” He also said “There is no reason – none, for this escalation.” The deputy spokesperson said “as long as the mission has been there, there’s been lessening of tensions. Right now, that system is in peril.”
The Secretary-General used the word "occupation" while visiting Sahrawi refugees in camps in Algeria earlier this month. Haq explained that “The Secretary-General used the word "occupation" at a very specific time and under a very specific circumstances and he continues to uphold that. Ultimately his point is that Sahrawi refugees deserve better future and he referred to occupation as related to inability of Sahrawi refugees to return home.”
On Morocco’s demand, 73 international civilian personnel were evacuated yesterday (20 Mar) from the mission area.