UN envoy to discuss rights abuses with President of Central African Republic

The Secretary-General's Special Envoy to the Central African Republic is expected to discuss reported human rights abuses with the country's President in Bangui today, according to a United Nations spokesman.

Spokesman Manoel de Almeida e Silva said that the envoy, General Amadou Toumani Touré, would hold his second meeting with President Ange-Félix Patassé to discuss "reports of extra-judicial killings and human rights violations which are reportedly still going on in the aftermath of the coup attempt [late last month] and which are targeting certain ethnic groups linked to the leader of the coup, General André Kolingba."

Meanwhile, the UN Children's Fund (UNICEF) - the lead agency dealing with the humanitarian side of the situation in the Central African Republic - today received in Bangui a planeload of supplies from Denmark, according to the spokesman. The 40-tonne shipment included high-protein biscuits, medicine and water purification supplies.