On
Syria, Staged
Ban Does Not
Answer on
Rwanda, nor
Houla or M23
By
Matthew
Russell Lee
UNITED
NATIONS, July
30 -- As
questions
build up about
the UN's
performance
not only in
Syria but also
Cote d'Ivoire,
Haiti and the
Congo, the UN
on Monday
canceled its
normal noon
press
briefing.
Inner City
Press
asked why and
was told
"because
the
Secretary-General
is holding a
press briefing
at roughly the
same
time, at 12:40
pm. In keeping
with standard
practice, no
noon
briefing takes
place on days
when the
Secretary-General
briefs the
press."
It's
been no means
clear that
this practice
is
standard. But
Inner City
Press
submitted some
questions in
writing to Ban
Ki-Moon's
spokesperson's
office, then
went early to
the promised
12:40
stakeout.
When
Ban arrived,
his deputy
spokesman
Eduardo Del
Buey said he
would
deliver
remarks then
take "one or
two
questions."
Ban
talked about
being on the
Internet in
China, about
his pleasure
with
Kosovo's work
under Security
Council
resolution
1244, and
visiting
Bosnia, among
other places.
Ban
had cited
Srebrenica and
said he
doesn't want
his successor
as
Secretary
General --
Inner City
Press would
add, assuming
the UN
hasn't gone
the way of the
League of
Nations -- to
have to
apologize
for Syria
today.
But
there is also
the analogy of
Rwanda, where
a UN force
fled as the
Hutu
government and
allies
slaughter
800,000
Tutsis. Here,
Ban's
head of
peacekeeping
Herve Ladsous,
who as French
Deputy UN
Ambassador in
1994 defended
the actions of
the Hutu
government, is
now
"dismantling"
the UN
observer
mission in
Syria.
So
is Ban,
through
Ladsous,
setting up
another
Rwanda?
This
question was
not allowed.
Rather Ban was
urged to pull
out even
faster -- even
though Robert
Mood's
replacement
atop the
UNSMIS
mission,
Babacar Gaye,
only today was
able to to go
Homs and
Al-Rastan and
met with the
Free Syrian
Army -- and to
give tacit
approval to
action outside
the Security
Council. He
was asked
about
Kofi Annan,
for whom of
course he
could not and
did not
comment.
After
Ban dodged a
question about
the plight of
the Rohingya
in Myanmar,
saying he
wouldn't
comment until
after the
Special
Rapporteur
hold a
press
conference.
Ban didn't
even mention
that his
former chief
of
staff Vijay
Nambiar still
is supposedly
his envoy to
Myanmar, while
acting as
chief of
Sexual
Violence and
Conflict. Then
it was over,
and Ban left.
So
the trade
became, a noon
press briefing
on a range of
UN topics
canceled for
four
selected
questions, two
of which Ban
did not even
purport to
answer.
Here
are some of
the questions
Inner City
Press
submitted to
Ban's top
three
spokespeople
and have not
yet been
answered:
On
Cote d'Ivoire,
it has been
reported that
ONUCI did not
know that
Ivorian
authorities
identified and
detained
suspects in
the killing
of the seven
UN
Peacekeepers
from Niger.
What is the
state of the
UN's
knowledge, and
what will
happen with
those charged?
Also
on Cote
d'Ivoire, did
Mr. Koenders
interview any
of the on the
record
witnesses to
the killings
and beating at
the camp near
Duekoue before
issuing his
statement on
Friday? Have
those people,
two of whom I
named at a
noon briefing
last week,
been
interviewed?
What is the
status of the
UN's
investigation,
and how does
it relate to
SRSG
Koender's
statement on
Friday?
Also
on reports,
where is /
what is the
status of the
UN's inquiry
into
whether one or
more civilians
were killed by
UN helicopter
gunships
and missiles
in combating
M23?
Where
is / what is
the status of
UNSMIS' report
on the
killings in
Houla?
I
have other
questions but
will await
answers to
these.
And
we're still
waiting. Watch
this site.
, 
