Envoy says Robinson did not discuss mission

Algeria's UN ambassador says that "at no time" was the sending of an investigative mission to his country brought up in a meeting yesterday with the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, Mrs Mary Robinson.

Mrs Robinson, who flew to New York after the meeting, could not be contacted for comment. However, a statement issued by UNHCHR in Geneva said the meeting with Mr Mohamed-Salah Dembri had resulted in "helpful dialogue" on a number of matters.

"During a constructive meeting, we discussed Algeria's co-operation with the various United Nations human rights mechanisms and the potential for future co-operation with these mechanisms, and agreed to continue dialogue on this point," the statement continued.

Mrs Robinson is coming under growing pressure to intervene in the conflict, which has been marked by massive human rights violations. Several human rights bodies, including Amnesty and the International Federation of Human Rights (IFHR), have called for an international mission to be sent to Algeria, which is plagued by a five-year civil war between Islamic extremists and the army and features almost daily massacres of civilians.

The Non-Governmental Organisations (NGOs) are also pushing for an emergency session of the 53-member UN Human Rights Commission to discuss the crisis.

Ms Robinson said yesterday she appreciated that the Algerian ambassador had dissociated himself from "misinformation" which had circulated recently about the exercise of her mandate and responsibilities as High Commissioner.

She had earlier written to the ambassador to deny having pressed for a session of the Human Rights Commission to discuss the Algerian situation.

"I said it had been necessary to write to the ambassador and to permanent missions on this point in order to preserve the integrity and impartiality of my office," the statement said.

Mrs Robinson's stance is likely to disappoint the human rights bodies which have been urging the West to take more action. Mr Dembri said yesterday Algeria would seek to bar Amnesty and the IFHR from acting as consultants to the UN because of their "defamatory" attacks against his country.

Speaking in Washington at the weekend, Mrs Robinson said the violence against civilians in Algeria had become "intolerable" and there was now "a terrible problem of human rights" in the country.