Central African Republic: UN envoy stresses need for humanitarian access

A United Nations envoy dispatched by United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan to the Central African Republic in the wake of an attempted coup, has reiterated Mr. Annan's call for peace and dialogue in the country and stressed the need for aid workers to reach those who need assistance.

General Amadou Toumani Touré, Mr. Annan's Special Envoy to the Central African Republic, made the appeal during his meeting last night in Bangui with President Ange-Félix Patassé.

"Now that calm has returned to the capital, Touré also appealed to President Patassé to ensure humanitarian access to the population," a UN spokesman, Manoel De Almeida e Silva, said today in New York.

In a related development, the UN Children's Fund (UNICEF), which is the lead UN agency in dealing with this crisis, was scheduled today to receive two planeloads of supplies in Bangui. The 36 tonnes of high-protein biscuits, water purification tablets, oral rehydration kits, blankets and tents were taken from UN warehouses in Brazzaville and Kinshasa, the spokesman said.