The Outreach Division’s NGO Relations of the Department of Public Information (DPI) of the United Nations on Thursday, 3 July, launched its own website (www.un.org/dpi/ngosection/conference) designed to provide useful information -- in English and French -- to the community of non-governmental organizations (NGO) and other actors of the civil society worldwide interested in participating in and/or contributing to the work of the sixty-first annual DPI/NGO Conference. The website will constantly be updated and completed as more information becomes available.

The Secretary-General supports the views expressed by the President of the Security Council regretting the decision by the Government of Zimbabwe to go ahead with the presidential elections. The Secretary-General has said repeatedly that conditions were not in place for a free and fair election and observers have confirmed this from the deeply flawed process. The outcome did not reflect the true and genuine will of the Zimbabwean people or produce a legitimate result.

Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon today urged authorities in Zimbabwe to postpone the presidential run-off election slated for Friday, in light of ongoing violence and the “understandable decision” by the opposition candidate to withdraw from the polls.