New partnership between Haiti and UN & other topics - Daily Briefing (15 October 2019)

Noon briefing by Stéphane Dujarric, Spokesman for the Secretary-General.
Highlights:
- Haiti
- Syria
- Afghanistan
- Burkina Faso
- UNICEF
- Ecuador
- Tunisia
- Senior Personnel Appointment
- Rural Women
Haiti
Speaking to the Security Council this morning, Jean-Pierre Lacroix, the Head of Peace Operations, reiterated that the end of peacekeeping in Haiti marks the beginning of a new partnership between the country and the United Nations. He said it is an opportunity to ensure that the UN is providing the right support, at the right time, for the Haitian people. 
However, Mr. Lacroix added that the people of Haiti are faced with a vicious cycle they have seen one too many times. Without a confirmed government, key tasks, such as the submission of the budget, and the organization of the legislative elections, remain stalled.
The President’s call for national dialogue and the formation of a unity government has been viewed by the opposition as quote “too little, too late”. But Mr. Lacroix pointed out that making the departure of the President as a precondition for dialogue leaves little room for negotiation. Yet, the formation of such a government may well be providing a way forward to lasting political solutions that are desperately needed.
Turning to progress achieved in the past 15 years, Mr. Lacroix mentioned – among other things - the UN’s support to the justice system and the development of the Haitian National Police, which has led to an almost 50 per cent reduction in the homicide rate. Today, all of Haiti’s communes have full time national police presence. The number of officers has grown from 2,500 in 2004 to 15,400 today.

Syria
Since the escalation of violence in the north-east of Syria last week, teams from the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR) have assisted some 31,800 people. UNHCR said it has distributed blankets and other core relief items to some 20,250 people in three camps for internally displaced people and to another 11,550 people living in communal shelters in Al-Hassakeh and Tal Tamer. The agency has also sent additional aid to Qamishli, including blankets for 52,000 people, plastic sheeting for 15,000 people and solar lamps for 20,000.  The International Organization for Migration (IOM), meanwhile, has reported the arrivals of hundreds of Syrian Kurds into Iraq following their departure from Syria in recent days.
And the World Food Programme (WFP) says that as of today, they have provided immediate food assistance to more than 83,000 people fleeing towns in north-east Syria. WFP has the capacity to reach over 450,000 people in the area with one round of ready-to-eat food packages.
And the Human Rights Office says that, since the Turkish offensive began on 9 October, it has verified a number of civilian casualties each day as a result of airstrikes, ground-based strikes and sniper fire. The Human Rights Office is also appalled to learn of further attacks that affected medical facilities, which have been a particular and persistent feature of the conflict in Syria. It calls for a thorough investigation of all incidents.
Full Highlights: