Annalena Baerbock (General Assembly President) at the end of the first week of the 70th Session of the Commission on the Status of Women - Press Conference

Yeah, I just don't, you know, there's just so much.

Absolutely.

No, it is.

And, you know, I do do some drugs where, you know, I'm doing all of them all. Because the thing is, is with.

Do you still play with, like, with photography?

Yeah, I still do as much as I can. There's no such thing. I mean, I'm the quintessential.

Those are medium.

Yeah.

Square.

Yeah.

The light is so much better with those because the whole mechanism inside is different.

Yeah, because you're trying to get. I mean, look, the portrait mode is not bad.

No, it's not. No.

I mean.

My generation, we're the ones that can see it, but the film doesn't.

Yeah,

it does all the balance.

Yeah.

I mean, the. The Yushika, I was always great at work very hard. I mean, I couldn't deal with.

Hello, everyone. Thank you all for coming. I see that we're also joined by a number of folks online who have tuned in. Very happy to have with us today Her Excellency Annalena Baerbock, President of the General assembly. And she will be providing some updates and taking questions from you about things that are happening with the General assembly and with her office.

And so, without further ado, I will turn the floor over to Her Excellency.

Good afternoon, also from my side. Happy Friday and thank you for the opportunity to update you on the current priorities of the General Assembly. As you all know, we are in the midst of the 70s session of the Commission of the Status of Women, which began by marking the International Women's Day and underlining how important it is, especially in these days, to strengthen women's rights. Because all around the world we can see women rights are the benchmark for the strength, freedom and economic development of societies. So therefore, in the interest of all, gender equality has never been more supported globally than today.

But at the same time, we have never seen such organized attempts to roll back these successes. That makes this session of the CSW an incredibly important one. And I think we have all felt in the room, but especially also in the run up to the International Women's Day all around the world, the strong signal that women and girls everywhere in the world will never let go of the rights that they have achieved so far. This was underlined also on Monday in the General assembly hall by the vast majority of member states who defended women's and girls rights with their vote. A rebuke to those who would have us turned back the clock on women's equality, whether it be to the protection of women and girls in the digital space, the understanding of intersectionality and the right of every woman, like every man, to decide about their own bodies and their own health and these days also underline the strong commitment of many, many delegations.

I have welcomed many representatives from all regions around the world, be it presidents of the parliaments, be it foreign ministers, be it feminist ministers from family or for social affairs, because most of the states have understood over the last decades that any improvement with regard to gender equality is also strengthening their societies. As we say, sometimes it's the economy, stupid. And the facts are crystal clear. If countries would close the gender pay gap, the productivity all around the world, the GDP would would increase by 12 trillion US dollar. If we would close a digital divide between men and women, the world economy would grow until 2050 by over 100 trillion US dollar.

This is the GDP combined between the United States and China. And we would also see if all women had the same opportunities to work as they would like to work. Also ensuring that you have child care, this could increase the global GDP by 28 trillion again, which would be an increase of 26% according to the McKinsey Global Institute. So again, women rights are in the interest of all. Yet as we have seen over the last week, not only women rights are under attack, it's also true for the international order.

Therefore, defending the UN Charter remains my central priority of the the 80th session. In just the last few weeks we have marked the fourth year of the Russian full invasion of Ukraine and we have seen an extremely dangerous military escalation between Iran, the United States and Israel that threatens to engulf the entire region in conflict. The Secretary General and I have underlined the UN Charter is clear. The international community and and its member states all have a responsibility to protect human rights as well as to refrain from the threat or use of force against the territorial integrity or political independence of any state or in other manner inconsistent with the purposes of the United nations, we know that the Charter and international law is only as strong as the will to uphold it. Therefore, given the recent discussions on international law, I would like to remind Member States that international law was not only written for the good times, but especially for the challenging situations.

And we have seen also in last decades that unfortunately also here in the United nations, the Security Council has faced virtues and blockage. Yet in every time it has been extremely important to not question this institutional international law, but try to overcome this blockage of the Security Council, as difficult as this might be, because otherwise we would lose the principle of this institution all by itself and by that the life insurance for all countries around the world to be able to sleep in peace, because you can trust that nobody is violating peace and security and thereby violating the security of your own countries. So again, I call on all Member States to abide by the values and principles enshrined in this fundamental document. At a time when this institution is under so much pressure, the UNAD reform becomes even more important, so there is no time to waste. The opposite is true.

Because the times are so challenging and this institution is so much under pressure, we need even more and very serious debate how to modernize this institution and make it more efficient and more delivering on the principles. Together with the Secretary General, therefore, I, as the President of the General assembly, am driving the reform process forward and we are keeping up our ambitious timetable, especially for Workstream 2 to make this organization fit for purpose and strengthen it for the 21st century challenges the co Chairs of the ADHAC working group for Workstream2 are currently working with the Member States to finalize the outcome report for adoption in the General assembly by the end of this month, which is when their mandates draws to a close. For work stream 1 and 3 of the UNAD process, I continue to hold monthly informal briefings on the progress of the United Nations UNAD reform initiative with usg, Guy Ryder and the other speakers and agencies heading towards April. So no time to rest here as well. As you all know, we are also heading towards the interactive dialogue for the next Secretary General.

This process is well underway. As you are aware, the interactive dialogue with the SGE candidates will be the week of the 20th of April. We circulated information how the dialogues will be conducted and we will continue to share additional information as it becomes available. During the interactive dialogues, each candidate will have the opportunity to present their vision statement, answer Member States questions and engage with civil society organizations. I invite you as representatives of the press and therefore also Those who could share all these dialogues throughout the world to engage in this process, maybe even before the interactive dialogue starts to cover the topics and also the different candidates.

Because the choice of who leads this organization matters deeply, especially in these challenging times, as they will also represent what this institution stands for in the future and if it truly represents all humankind in this regard, I'm looking forward to seeing you quite soon again. When we get into the months of April and the preparation for the interactive dialogues. Wonderful. So we have 21 minutes. So if there are questions, just so that we provide some structure, if there are questions regarding the SG selection, we will take those first, followed by questions on CSW and women's rights.

And then if we have time for other questions, we will take those questions on the SG selection.

Can I do an official welcome to the President of the General Assembly. On behalf of the United Nations Correspondence association, thank you for doing this briefing and we hope you you will do many more. My question is mainly on csw, but can you tell us the date that you're going to start doing these meetings with the individual candidates? Thank you.

I'm happy to come back to the CSW question, but you wanted to collect for Secretary General. Yeah. So I take notes. Would you like a few of those PGA SG questions? Okay.

Pamela, Gabe. And we have one more. Yes, we'll take those. Thank you. To the PGA for all of us as well.

Mike. Pamela Falk from U.S. news World Report. Big picture question, in summary, you've been in office. What do you think the best, the qualities that you'd like to see in the next Secretary General?

I mean, you could write a doctoral thesis on this, but in short, thank you.

Okay. Gabriel.

Hi, this is Gabriel Zondo from Al Jazeera English. I know we're short on time, so I'll make it quick.

Have you spoken specifically to Rafael Grossi about stepping down as the head of the IAEA or not? And if not, why?

Thank you, Madam President, for this briefing. On the next Secretary General, I just want to know your personal opinion on why this organization hasn't had a woman president in 80 years. And how hopeful are you that we're going to have a woman president this time? One more on the sg.

Kiyota Tanaka from the Asashima Japanese newspaper. Similar question. We got three candidates, female candidates so far. What are your reaction to it and what do you expect for the selection process?

Wonderful.

Thank you. So maybe I start with the last part and repeat. So everybody is aware again, we have indeed so far, five nominations. First Came in November by Argentina of Rafael Grossi, then in February by Chile, Brazil and Mexico of Michel Bachelet, then beginning of March by Burundi, the former President of Senegal, Marquis Sall. Then in March by Costa Rica of Rebecca Greenspan and just recently in March by Maledives Virginia Gamba of Argentina.

With regard to Pamela, your question. Obviously we all have different thoughts in our mind, but the PGA does not have time for thesis to write about her criteria for the next sg. And especially my role is to implement the revitalization resolution. And as outlined in the revitalization resolution and in the joint letter, there are a couple of criteria. So also the question about competence is answered in this letter that this next Secretary General should provide strong and dedicated effective leadership skills with experience in governance structures, but also with regard to United nations, with regard to management skills of this institution in the light of the reforms.

And then it has also the strong call with regard to regional diversity and this call in consensus by 193 member states to strongly call on Member States for the nomination of women. And these are the criteria set by all Member States in consensus. And then everybody who will be part of this process can also decide by themselves about their choice. My role is to lead this process based on the resolution, but also based on the strong call for the representation of this institution, the principles and the charter. And this is why the setup for this interactive dialogue as outlined in my letter will be structured.

It will be three hours for every candidate. I know myself this is long, but as PGA I have also done it. And Member States really valued that. They really had the chance to ask the question and to engage. We invite also civil society.

And this will be structured around the personal vision statements and the management skill. And then in the second part around the three pillars being peace and Security, sustainable development and climate and human rights to precisely speak about these principles of the United Nations. As I said, as outlined in the resolution 79 stroke 327 and the joint later in this regard, this is also the answer to question of Al Jazeera. Many of the candidates contacted me, so I spoke with many of the candidates at different occasions. There had been also the call with regard to a financial disclosure, again in the resolution by the Member States.

And also the call with regard of upholding current positions in the UN system. Again, it's up to Member States with regard to the implementation of this resolution. I'm guiding the process. And with regard to individual person, please you probably understand in this process that this is a very transparent, very neutral and fair Process in which every candidate, and maybe there are more coming, will have the same chances and opportunities of this three hour interactive dialogue. And this is why relating again and thank you for the kind words for the date.

We will start in the week of the 20th of April. Again these times are not short of challenges. We have in parallel the NPT Review conference with many delegations and representatives here as well and with many room bookings. So also these technical issues are being part of the process. So it depends how many more candidates will come, how often we have to split the day in a morning session of three hours and an afternoon session of the three hours.

And if we have tripling of the candidates, obviously this one week won't be enough. But for the current moment we have five and this would fit in all in these dates. So this is why we will be more precise on the exact dates when we know how many. And this is also why I called on the nomination to be handed in before 1st of April so we can organize a process when not only member states can be assuring that they are all there, but also media and the big interest. I heard it also from many member states visiting me how they can also live stream these interactive hearings to their countries, to their parliament or their regional constituencies.

Okay, follow up questions on SG or csw. Okay, then we have csw. Edie and then Stefano, you also had a CSW question. Other questions on CSW please. Edie.

Thank you very much. Madam President. This was the first time that the in CSW's history that the Commission on the Status of Women did not adopt its outcome document by consensus. What is your reaction to that and what do you believe the impact of these divisions are for the fight to achieve gender equality?

Stefano, you had a question as well on csw.

Madam President, thank you. During CSW week, Israel hosted a UN side event with Iranian women who described imprisonment, torture and repression under the Iranian regime who openly called for its hand. Would you have been willing to participate in such an event? And what message would you send today to those Iranian women in Iran?

Do we have other questions on csw?

Sorry, Abdel Hamid online, who's joining us online, I believe I see your hand. Yes.

My question also on CSW 70 and I want to ask you Madam President, about the Gaza women. I feel they were ignored in this session. Why is that?

And the second about the girls school in Iran, which hundred seventy of them were killed. Do you condemn that outright and unequivocally? Thank you.

Okay, those are all of our questions on csw. Looking Online as well.

All right, thank you all. I will turn the floor over to the pga.

Thank you for all these very important questions. Edi, first, with regard to the vote on Monday on the CSW outcome, to be very precise, we never have seen a vote before, but we have seen before that there hasn't been an outcome document. And I think this is very important because it also underlines in these challenging times that we have progress besides the backlash.

And for me, this is really important. I think we have spoken about it before because especially in a digital world where hate and bad news click six times better than good news, we have to be very careful that we are not entering this vicious circle about negative news reinforcing more negative news because the successes are all there, especially for women rights. I was naming numbers if full gender parity would be there, what the economy would achieve. But I mean, there are many women here in the room who still had the situation that when you were working and your husband had a job being paid less still you need the signature in this country to get a credit card, or at least to improve the limit of the credit card. Even recently in the last years, my generation was facing the same situation now on a digital level that the algorithm of credit cards was still programmed on this old bias that when I earned more than my husband, still automatically the credit card debit frame was larger for a male husband.

Doesn't matter what the woman was earning. So this work in progress is ongoing, but we are taking positive step by positive step. And now looking at this situation that for the first time we do have a vote. But this also underlined for the first time because there has been this vote that the vast majority was not working hand in hand with those who want to see a backlash. So the positive news about this and this is the positive news that the rest, all other member states being part of CSW decision making at that moment, are supporting the progress also in the CSW resolution and the second very important message from this year.

But I think we all feel it around the world. Women are so strongly empowered everywhere. The topics we had in the past about cultural relativism that maybe in some regions women's rights are not as important as another region. This is not there anymore, especially not shared by women at all. And these women, because they are capable by digital tools, are now joining hands.

So women in the Americas, in Europe are speaking up, maybe related to the question if they are facing atrocities of women suffering in Iran. The question was, what is my message to the women of Iran as a woman and also as a PGA standing up for human rights, we stand at your side. In my previous role. This is why there has been installed a fact finding mission in the Human Rights Council with regard to the violations against Iranian women related to the question in Gaza. We have had this discussion also before because for me, human rights and also women rights are indivisible.

I do not work on the grounds. If you speak about violation in Afghanistan about women rights at one event, this would mean you are not looking at violations of women rights in Gaza or the suffering of women and girls in Gaza. If we start to divide who's suffering more against the ethnic groups and especially against women, this in the hands of those who are trying to divide this big solidarity. And why is there an effort to divide this big solidarity? Because at the moment everybody can see women will not step back if their rights are being under attack.

And therefore also especially with Afghanistan. And this is why I'm mentioning it very often also here at csw. The systematic attack on women and girls in Afghanistan is this most severe attack on human rights. Because in Afghanistan women are denied every normal human right we are all enjoying. They are imprisoned in their own homes.

And unfortunately we have not spoken about that one intensively enough, especially in a time when we saw other violations of international law in peace and security. At the same moment, the Taliban regime issued this new legislation about violence against women and girl and there was no outcry at all. This doesn't mean that other human rights violations in other parts are less important. It just underlines again why it's so important to speak about all of one. And therefore I also condemned the massive killing and exercise use of force against the protesters in Iran.

At the same time in January, February, where we have reports about more than 30,000 people being killed, especially also young people, many, many women and girls. This is why I also called not only a strong condemnation of this human rights violation to stop, but that all of those have to be held accountable for these crimes. This is why the fact finding mission of the Human Rights Council is so important still in these times, because they are responsible for collecting these evidence so that one day perpetrators can be brought to justice. And this goes also to the sit of women and girls in Gaza. I just met with De Gross from undp.

He reported me back on his visit in Gaza about the horrible situation that with regard to the trucks and humanitarian aid entering Gaza, the progress is very, very little. Also for UN trucks, this means again women and girls are suffering most if housing is demolished as it is on the Ground that hardly any reconstruction at the mom is possible. And therefore I'm really thankful because also the horrible situation of civilians in Gaza has to be addressed. And the same goes for accountability and the protection of civilians in Gaza. Bringing me to the question of the horrible strike on the girls school in Iran that has resulted in the deaths of more than 160 civilians, especially children, especially girls.

Civilians and civilian infrastructure must be protected in all times. Unacceptable that a school was hit by strike during school hours. There's clear international humanitarian law about the responsibilities in times of war. Therefore it is very important that we have an investigation of this terrible and tragic incident. And any violation of international humanitarian law cannot remain without consequences.

Also here accountability for those responsibly must be given.

Okay, that is, we have time for one more question. Is it a follow up? Oh, sorry, let me go to someone who hasn't asked a question yet. Sorry, you could just say your name and your news organization. Okay.

Steven Capdepum from fnus. Thank you for your briefing. My question is regarding the reformation on the UN reform process. I was wondering you can give some more details or be some more specific on some issues. For example, what's going on, what's going to happen with the veto power and then if you can advance some of these ambitious timetable that you are working with.

Thank you. Okay, thank you. Given the short time at this complex unity process, I try to point at a different expert. First of all, we have this three different work stream. Work stream One, about the financial situation.

Luckily we could succeed to have a budget at the end of 2025. But the SG has rang the alarm bell that we would face another liquidity not only crisis, but shutdown in June July if Member States are not paying their contribution in full in time is not possible anymore because is over. But many after this strong call paid then a couple of days later. But still many Member States have not paid their current obligation. So therefore this is the most important thing the call amendments date.

Second, it's also part of the reform step. The SG&I myself we are again tabling the proposal that the money which could not be spent because it was not being paid by Member States, that this should not be reimbursed to the rest of the Member States because this is currently the rule and this is a vicious circle. If the UN has to pay back money which it never received, obviously it's losing even more money and more cuts are needed. This is now again under discussion in the fifth Committee and especially also myself. I'm calling on Member States to look at at this point again so this is work stream one with the current financial situation.

Work stream two is the work in the General assembly. And this is where I said with a very ambitious timetable because Member States decided to have this ad hoc working group looking how we can make our work in the General assembly more efficient. For example that we have thousands of resolutions with duplications. They are proposal now to have sunset clauses for resolutions but also if we have to have every resolution every year or if we can be biannual or not, there are other parts where we have the high level meetings. We have also more than 1,000 meetings all around what I said even difficult to find spaces.

Member States agreed for example that in September there should not be more than three high level meetings altogether but five have been already suggested. So obviously this is contradicting the own proposals. So we are trying to bring this down again then proposals on speaking time limitation. Because if we have unlimited speaking times we need translation all the six languages, we need the rooms. This is also a lot of money.

So many proposals in this working group and as I said the co chairs from Jamaica and New Zealand they worked intensively and I'm very thankful to that in the last month on almost daily consultation with Member states and especially also with capitals they will publish their final reports at the end of March and their mandate goes till the end of March. So 31st of March and there has been this clear call of adopting the proposals. But we are in the midst of the negotiations so we can give more update on that report when it's finally published. Workstream 3 also topic which has been here for CSW is regarded especially of the many agencies the proposals by the SG with regard to mergers making the work on the ground efficient direction really delivering for the people on the ground. And we are in the midst of this process.

But the SG can update more on the details and especially guy riders but he's giving his monthly briefing also in the General Assembly. So it comes from the resident coordinators how they can coordinate better. It's a discussion about the humanitarian reset, how the humanitarian agencies work more efficient together. It's a question about duplications over the last couple of years. The merger between UN women and UNFP A so many, many proposals and also on that one we are trying to do as much as we can in the upcoming months to decide on these reform steps within this eight year session but also within the term of this Secretary General.

So don't book a too long summer holiday because I can promise you hopefully not outside there in the world with other neg events happening, but inside this building that we will have many, many not only work but also reform steps we are going to take. I thank you. Thank you all so much and have a lovely week.