UN chief calls for calm in Egypt
By DPA, IANSSunday, January 30, 2011
ADDIS ABABA - UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon Sunday called for calm, non-violence and respect for human rights in Egypt amid the widening unrest in which at least 150 people have died in the last two days alone.
“With respect to Egypt, I once again make a call for restraint, non-violence, and respect for fundamental freedoms and human rights,” Ban said at an African Union summit in Ethiopian capital Addis Ababa.
“Around the world, the leaders (and ourselves) must listen … more attentively, more sincerely to the voice of the people, their aspirations, their hopes for a better future,” Ban said.
A strong military presence remained on the streets of some parts of Cairo early Sunday, as Egyptian protesters called for a sixth day of demonstrations across the country.
Tens of thousands of demonstrators have thronged the streets of Egypt’s main cities, defying curfews and a heavy military presence, calling for President Hosni Mubarak to step down.
