On
Libya,
Work of UN's
Post-Conflict
Expert
Vandewalle
Withheld from
Press &
States, Though
Public Money
Used: No FOIA
at UN?
By
Matthew
Russell Lee
UNITED
NATIONS,
August 23 --
The UN's
role in Libya
is ostensibly
premised
on its
transparency
to the public,
and that it
accountable to
all and
not just some
of its member
states.
So
when UN
consultant
Dirk
Vandewalle was
quoted that he
prepared a 30
page
report, and
three page
summary for
Secretary
General Ban
Ki-moon
and
as describing
these in a
lecture at
Dartmouth, it
seemed fair
for
Inner City
Press to ask
about the
summary he
prepared, with
public
money, for
this public
institution.
But
Ban's acting
deputy
spokesman
Farhan Haq
said "Those
are not in any
way
public
documents...
"I wouldn't
comment on the
work he did as
a
consultant...
preparing
ideas for what
the
post-conflict
situation
will be."
The
UN has no
freedom of
information
act,
apparently not
even to its
member states.
Haq said "what
we would give
to Member
States are the
final
documents. All
documentss go
through a
process of
editing and
approval."
So
is the UN
editing down
Vandewalle's
work? Or as he
said in his
lecture, was
his
job to edit
other UN
documents? And
how can the UN
not "comment
on the work he
did as a
consultant"
with public
money?
Vandewalle,
reports
prepped with
public money
not shown
On
August 15,
Inner City
Press asked
Haq about
another
article which
"quotes
Dirk
Vandewalle as
a Libya expert
at
Dartmouth...
is Dirk
Vandewalle
still a
consultant to
the UN and Ian
Martin’s
post-Qadhafi
team,
and if so, was
his contract
renewed?
What’s the
status of
that?"
Acting
Deputy
Spokesperson
Haq: He is a
consultant
working with
Ian Martin
on the
transition
team, yes.
Inner
City
Press: Are his
views
attributable
to the UN?
Acting
Deputy
Spokesperson
Haq: His views
on this
particular
topic, I
believe, if
you are
referring to
this
particular
article, he
did that
in his
capacity as an
expert at
Dartmouth
University.
Now
with the UN
saying it
won't share
Vandewalle's
reports, which
he is
describing at
a private
university,
with the
public, press
or even member
states,
Inner City
Press asked if
Vandevalle is
in any way
barred from
disseminating
his
"confidential"
work product?
Earlier,
some in
the UN
question why
Ian Martin was
named Ban's
"post-conflict"
expert, when
he needed yet
another
expert. Now,
the views of
this
"post-conflict"
team are
opaque, even
deemed
confidential.
This is the
UN's
legitimating
function?
We'll continue
on this. Watch
this site.
* * *
On
Libya,
UN's Martin to
Doha As His
"Post-Conflict"
Post Called
Misnomer
By
Matthew
Russell Lee
UNITED
NATIONS,
August 22 --
Hour after UN Secretary
General Ban
Ki-moon said
he was sending
to Doha his
envoys Al
Khatib and Ian
Martin, in
charge of
"post-conflict
planning" in
Libya, Inner
City Press
asked Martin
when he would
go, and asked
the Council on
Foreign
Relations'
experts about
the UN's
performance.
CFR's
Robert Danin
told Inner
City Press
that there's
been planning
in European
capitals "but
not at UN
headquarters,
since the UN
has to be
driven by a
strong force
to take
action.
Inner
City Press put
the same
question to
Daniel Serwer
of Johns
Hopkins School
of Advanced
International
Studies, who
said that
European
planning, at
least by the
UK, was on the
"civilian
side," not
policing or
peacekeeping.
He took issue
with Libya
being
characterized
as "post
conflict,"
calling it a
"misnomer"
when Libya is
not yet even
fully "post
Gaddafi."
Ian
Martin, to the
surprise of
some, was
still in New
York on Monday
afternoon.
Inner City
Press told him
what Serwer
had said,
contesting his
"post-conflict"
job title.
Martin nodded,
and was
non-committal
in response to
repeated press
requests that
he give a
briefing or
answer
questions.
Others
tell Inner
City Press
that Martin
heads Monday
night to Doha,
and then will
see where that
will lead. Ban
Ki-moon's call
Monday morning
for a new
Security
Council
mandate won't
bear fruit,
this people
say, for "a
week or ten
days," after a
series of
consultations.
Ban & Ian
Martin, who's
yet to brief
the press:
"post
conflict"?
Footnote:
Earlier
on Monday, US
President
Barack Obama
said he's told
his UN
Ambassador
Susan Rice to
ask Ban to
"use next
month's
General
Assembly to
support this
important
transition" in
Libya. While
the first step
would seem to
be to
re-credential
Ibrahim
Dabbashi as
Libya's UN
Ambassador,
some cynics
later Monday
mused that to
get the
General Debate
to focus on
Libya rather
than the moves
for
Palestinian
statehood
scheduled for
September 20
might be one
of Obama's
motives. Watch
this site.
, 
in