Ban
Ki-moon Dodges
Qs on Burundi,
Censors S
Sudan &
(His) UN
Nepotism
By
Matthew
Russell Lee,
Follow Up on
Exclusives
UNITED
NATIONS,
August 31 --
Under
Secretary
General Ban
Ki-moon, the
UN has become
so lawless
that Ban's
son-in-law
Siddharth
Chatterjee was
just named
UN Resident
Representative
in Kenya
without Ban
recusing
himself.
Inner City
Press reported
and asked
about this on
August 25.
On
August 26,
Ban's
spokesman
Stephane
Dujarric
confirmed that
Ban had not
recused
himself, had
in fact signed
the letter
giving his own
son in law the
job, see
update here
and below.
On
August 31,
with Ban
Ki-moon amid a
junket that
has taken him
to Sri Lanka,
and with Ban's
spokesman
Dujarric
having
canceled the
noon briefing
at which
questions
could be
asked, Inner
City Press
submitted
these
questions, now
with post-6 pm
"answers"
inserted:
"Aug
31 - 1: Please
confirm or
deny that (1)
the
Secretariat
has sent a
note verbale
to Burundi
seeking to
send a mission
to deploy the
228 police
provided for
in the
resolution and
separately (2)
that the
Burundian
government has
sent note(s)
verbale to the
Secretariat
saying “No”
(or “Non”);
Ban's
Dujarric's
"answer" -
"Not aware of
the NV at this
time." Who did
he ask?
Aug
31 - 2: Given
the issues
raised by the
Secretary
General
signing the
letter
appointing his
son in law as
UN Resident
Coordinator in
Kenya, and
given your
response on
August 26 the
day after
Inner City
Press inquired
into this,
this is a
formal request
that you today
(pre-lid)
provide
a) the names
and/or other
identifiers of
the members of
the
interagency
advisory panel
which you say
selected the
SG's son in
law (to assess
whether they
can be
considered
independent of
the SG) and
the names of
the other
candidates (to
assess whether
the SG's son
in law was
arguably the
most
qualified) --
or provide an
explanation of
WHY such
information in
this situation
will not be
disclosed.
Ban's
Dujarric's
"answer" --
"I've already
answered
extensively on
the naming of
Mr.
Chatterjee.
The process of
choosing
Resident
Coordinator is
done by UN
Development
Group. You
should reach
out to UNDP to
get further
details on how
it's run
because I am
not familiar
with it,
beyond what I
have already
said in the
briefing."
So he
just reads
spin handed to
him?
Aug 31
- 3: On the
already-begun
Sri Lanka
visit by the
SG, you
replied
yesterday
evening that
his itinerary
was in the
highlights,
but I did not
see it there
and have
waited to see
today's
highlight to
send this --
please respond
to the issues
(effective
exclusion of
Northern
Provincial
Council, with
which USG
Feltman
previously
met)...
Ban's
Dujarric: "We
posted on the
highlights
details of the
SG's trip in
SL, which is
just getting
underway.
Tomorrow (Sept
1st), he will
go to Galle
and then, the
following day,
to Jaffna."
We'll have
more on this.
Aug
31 - 4:
Speaking of
Mr. Feltman,
please provide
a readout of
his trip to
Turkey which
Turkey has
made public,
and explain
why the UN /
DPA didn't
announce
Feltman's
trip. See
this.
Aug 31 - 5: On
South Sudan,
please state
the UN's
knowledge of
the killing of
13 civilians
near Renk and,
again, please
explain not
UNMISS' but
the wider
DPKO's (HQ's)
policy on the
use of tear
gas, as well
as explaining
the July 11
“accidental
teargas
explosion.”
Aug 31 - 6:
Relatedly on
South Sudan,
amid reports
(by South
Sudan) that
the UNSC will
visit there,
as soon as
later this
week, please
state whether
your office
will be
informing
(which)
journalists of
the trip and
the chance if
any to go.
Ban
Ki-moon's
spokesman
Dujarric: "The
trip was
announced to
Resident
Correspondents.
The final
decision of
who travels
with the
Security
Council is up
to the leads
of the Mission
to select the
journalist."
Outrageous: see
here
Aug 31 - 7:
Please state
the relation
of this to the
UN system and
any ruling by
the UN Ethics
Office (as
well as, at
long last,
stating who
decided to
stop listing
those official
who refuse
public
financial
disclosure,
and why)."
Supposedly, a
belated answer
is coming,
even as Ban
Ki-moon's
spokesman
Dujarric
ordered Inner
City Press out
of briefing
room, tried to
oust
permanently
from UN,
excludes from
basic UNSC
notices:
censorship.
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