{"id":179847,"date":"2019-02-20T14:17:16","date_gmt":"2019-02-20T19:17:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.un.org\/pga\/73\/?p=179847"},"modified":"2019-02-21T14:11:05","modified_gmt":"2019-02-21T19:11:05","slug":"press-briefing-by-spokesperson-20-february-2019","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.un.org\/pga\/73\/2019\/02\/20\/press-briefing-by-spokesperson-20-february-2019\/","title":{"rendered":"Press Briefing by Spokesperson \u2013 20 February 2019"},"content":{"rendered":"
Good afternoon, everyone! I will say hello to 14 students of Political Sciences and International Relations at the Sciences Po University of Lille, who are visiting us today all the way from France. Welcome!<\/em><\/p>\n
PGA WILL TRAVEL TO GENEVA<\/strong>\u00a0TO ATTEND 40TH<\/sup>\u00a0SESSION OF THE HUMAN RIGHTS COÄ¢¹½ÊÓƵCIL<\/strong><\/p>\n
The\u00a0President of the General Assembly, Mar\u00eda Fernanda Espinosa, will travel to Geneva to take part in the High-Level Segment of the\u00a040th session of the Human Rights Council,\u00a0where she will\u00a0deliver a\u00a0statement at the formal opening of the session on Monday 25 February.<\/p>\n
The PGA will also participate in the\u00a0Annual High-Level Panel Discussion on human rights under the theme;\u00a0\u201cHuman rights in the light of multilateralism: opportunities, challenges and the way forward\u201d.<\/p>\n
In Geneva, Ms. Espinosa will hold bilateral meetings with\u00a0the\u00a0Prime Minister of Fiji, H.E,\u00a0Voreqe Bainimarama,the\u00a0First Vice-President of Costa Rica H.E Epsy Campbell Barr; the\u00a0Minister for Foreign Affairs of Uruguay, H.E Rodolfo Nin Novoa;\u00a0the\u00a0Director-General\u00a0of the World Health Organization, Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus;\u00a0the President of the Human Rights Council, H.E\u00a0 Coly Seck;\u00a0the\u00a0High Commissioner for Human Rights, H.E. Michelle Bachelet; and the\u00a0Special Rapporteur on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, Ms. Catalina Devandas. And while, in Geneva, Ms. Espinosa will speak to\u00a0national\u00a0media outlets.<\/p>\n
The PGA\u2019s delegation includes an adviser, her spokesperson and her personal assistant. All travel costs are being covered by the PGA\u2019s office trust fund.<\/p>\n
Ms. Espinosa will be back in New York on Tuesday 26 February.<\/p>\n
\u00a0<\/p>\n
WORLD DAY OF SOCIAL JUSTICE<\/strong><\/p>\n
The PGA has issued a tweet today marking World Day of Social Justice. Ms. Mar\u00eda Fernanda Espinosa says that we advance social justice when we create better quality jobs and decent work for all. The President reminds all that social justice is vital for\u00a0the\u00a0peaceful and prosperous coexistence within and among nations. This year, the theme is;\u00a0\u201cIf you want peace & development, work for social justice\u201d. According to the International Labour Organization, about 2 billion people live in fragile and conflict-affected situations, of whom more than 400 million are between the ages of 15 and 29.<\/p>\n
PGA\u2019S AGENDA AND OTHER ISSUES<\/strong><\/p>\n
Ms. Espinosa received this morning, the President of Ukraine, H.E. Petro Poroshenko, for a bilateral meeting before the session at the GA Hall on \u201cThe situation in the temporarily occupied territories of Ukraine \u2013 Item 67\u201d, where President Poroshenko spoke. As of this morning, there were 29 other speakers inscribed to take the podium. The PGA also met with the Ambassadors of the Caribbean Community, CARICOM, and as we speak, she is meeting the Ambassadors of France and Germany at her office. Later today, Ms. Espinosa will receive the Permanent Representatives of the United Arab Emirates and of Luxembourg for a meeting on the Intergovernmental Negotiations on the reform of the Security Council.<\/p>\n
Starting tomorrow until Tuesday 26 February, there will be no PGA Noon Briefing here in the Press Briefing Room, but you will receive our daily updates on the PGA\u2019s trip to Geneva on our website and through email. If you are not on our mailing list, please let us know and we will include your email address. My colleague Mark Seddon, media adviser to the PGA, will be your focal point.<\/p>\n
This is all from us.\u00a0\u00a0 Now I am happy to take your questions.<\/p>\n
(More details on our website un.org\/pga\/73 and on our YouTube channel @unitednationsga73. The Twitter account is @Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵ_PGA.)<\/p>\n