ICP
Asks UN of
Burundi Abuse
of IDPs, No
Answer In 6
Days, But
Ruhororo,
Ousted
By Matthew
Russell Lee
WASHINGTON,
March 18 -- Six
days ago Inner
City Press
asked UN
Spokesman
Stephane
Dujarric,
about UN (in)
action in
Burundi. UN
transcript
here:
Inner City
Press: On
Burundi, there
are these IDP
[internally
displaced
person] camps
inside the
country, one
of which is
called Mutaho,
there are
published
reports, Radio
Republique
Africaine and
elsewhere,
that people in
the camps are
being accused
of being
supporters of
the
anti-Pierre
Nkurunziza
movement.
They're being
searched for
weapons.
Some have now
fled these
camps. I
wanted to
know, does the
UN have any
role, does the
UN system, IOM
[International
Organization
for Migration]
or UNHCR have
any role?
Spokesman
Dujarric:
I will check
with UNHCR.
Six days
later from
Dujarric, who
threw Inner
City Press out
of the UN
Press Briefing
Room, here has
been no
answer, as on
so many Press
questions to
Ban Ki-moon's
UN on Burundi.
On March
20, this was
reported:
"From the
beginning of
March 2016
police
harassment
increased in
the principal
Internally
Displaced
Persons (IDPs)
camps of
Ruhororo
(North of
Burundi) and
Bukirasazi
(Centre of
Burundi) and
Mutaho (Centre
of Burundi)
and Bugendana
(Centre of
Burundi). Each
IDP camp is
populated by
at least 3000
persons that
fled the 1993
ethnic
massacres.
Residents
suggest that
dozens of
youths were
arrested and
detained at
different
police
stations
before being
transferred to
Ngozi (North
of Burundi)
and Gitega
(Centre of
Burundi). Hate
speech is
often utilized
to threaten
IDPs whose
majority are
Tutsi. Mr.
Vincent
Gahungu,
former member
of the
parliament who
fled the
country in
January, told
Radio Humura
Burundi (March
9, 2016) IDPs
are subjected
to police,
administration
harassment and
death threats
as they are
frequently
accused of
supporting
rebels and
insurgents." h/t Vital Nshimirimana
As Burundi's
Pierre
Nkurunziza
government
stepped up the
killing and
censorship of
opponents, its
lobbyists in
the U.S.
capital,
Scribe
Strategies,
were paid
$60,000 to
among other
things set up
interviews
with
US-government
broadcaster
Voice of
America and
the French
government's
France 24.
Nkurunziza's
party the
CNDD-FDD paid
Scribe
Strategies
$59,980 on
November 10,
2015. Scribes
has this month
disclosed, for
the six month
period ending
January 31,
2016, that in
exchange for
this money it
arranged for
example for
Nkurunziza's
adviser to be
"interviewed"
on Voice of
America and
France 24.
Scribe
Strategies
also, during
the reporting
period, was
paid to
arrange for
Sam Kutesa, a
former
President of
the General
Assembly who
was involved
with many of
the same
donors named
in the
corruption
case against
his
predecessor
John Ashe, to
be
"interviewed"
by Voice of
America about
his tenure as
PGA, during
which he was
as now foreign
minister of
Uganda.
On
February 19,
Inner City
Press was
thrown out of
the UN on two
hours notice.
Audio
and petition
here. On
February 22
Inner City
Press was told
it was Banned
from all UN
premises.
After three
days reporting
on the UN from
the park in
front of it,
and stories in
BuzzFeed
and Business
Insider,
Inner City
Press
re-entered the
UN on a more
limited
"non-resident
correspondent"
pass, under
which on March
10 UN Security
ordered it to
leave the UN
as it worked
in the UN
lobby at 8 pm.
Video
here; UN
Spokesman Stephane Dujarric's March 11
justification
here.
The
underlying UN
rule only says
that
non-resident
correspondents
can only come
into the UN up
until 7 pm.
But the UN's
goal, it
seems, is to
prevent or
hinder
coverage of UN
corruption,
which usually
doesn't take
place in the
UN Press
Briefing Room.
(January
29, 2016
and September
8, 2011 --
Frank Lorenzo,
UNdisclosed
-- are notably
exceptions.)
Lobbying the
deciding UN
official,
Under
Secretary
General for
Public
Information
Cristina
Gallach, were
the honchos of
the UN
Correspondents
Association,
including
France 24 and,
as in 2012,
Voice of
America.
Scribes
Strategies'
disclosures do
not (have to)
mention the
Nkurunziza
government's
lobbying in
and around the
UN. We'll have
more on this.
Back on
March 9 when
the Burundi
configuration
of the UN
Peacebuilding
Commission
met, the
conference
room was too
small and the
meeting was
not televised,
at least not
to the outside
world (see
below). There
was talk of
Burundi's
Pierre
Nkurunziza
have allowed
two of four
closed radio
stations to
re-open.
But Special
Adviser Jamal
Benomar said
these two
stations were
not critical
of the
government;
beyond that,
it has emerged
that the
stations'
directors had
to sign a
commitment
about their
future
coverage. Some
in the UN, it
is clear,
would like to
do just this -
in fact,
that's why
Inner City
Press could
not watch the
meeting on UN
in-house TV in
its shared
office the UN
has seized,
and so came to
the meeting.
In
Conference
Room 8, the
Permanent
Representatives
of Tanzania,
Belgium,
Burundi,
Norway, The
Netherlands,
and others,
and Deputies
from France,
Rwanda and
others. France
was given the
floor first in
the debate;
its Deputy
Alex Lamek
after a bland
speech left
the meeting,
his seat taken
by another
French mission
staffer.
Belgium called
for a
re-opening of
all media
without
restriction.
There
were other
speeches, but
Inner City
Press had to
go upstairs,
with its its
currently
reduced access
pass, and ask
the UN's
Deputy
Spokesperson
why Ban had
praised the
re-opening,
with
restrictions,
of only two of
the four radio
stations
closed. Vine
here; UN transcript
here:
Inner City
Press: About
Burundi.
You'd said
that the
Secretary-General
discussed it
with the
[German]
Foreign
Minister.
Just came from
a meeting down
in Conference
Room 8 of the
Burundi
configuration
peacebuilding,
and there Mr.
[Ivan]
Šimonovic said
that the two
radio stations
that were
reopened were
forced to sign
commitments
about their
future
coverage.
And Mr.
[Jamal]
Benomar said
that the two
stations were
not critical
of the
Government.
I'm asking you
because the
Secretary-General
praised this
as a move
toward freedom
of the press,
the reopening
of two
stations in
Burundi.
And now two
people that
work for him
said that they
were never
critical of
the Government
and they were
forced to sign
commitments
about their
future
coverage.
So, I wonder,
what did he
mean by
that?
Was this
really a
positive step,
or was there
some
difference of
opinion
between the
38th Floor and
these other
two floors
that these
gentlemen are
on?
Deputy
Spokesman
Haq: No,
no, the
Secretary-General's
comments were
regarding the
general
principle of
allowing media
to go about
their
tasks.
Obviously, we
would be
concerned
about any
restrictions
imposed upon
the media, but
at the same
time, we
appreciate any
efforts to
open up space
for freedom of
expression and
freedom of the
press
Inner City
Press:
But, what
about telling
a media, as a
condition of
reopening, it
has to commit
to a certain
kind of
coverage?
That's what
they're
discussing
down in
Conference
Room 8.
Deputy
Spokesman:
Ultimately,
what we want
is for the
media to be
free to do
their work
unconditionally.
On January 29,
Inner City
Press asked
Dujarric
again, transcript
here.
So it's
all on Zeid,
nothing from
Ban Ki-moon,
who appears to
be playing
this like he
did Sri
Lanka...
At the
UN Security
Council
stakeout,
Inner City
Press waited
-- including
through two
North Korea
questions, and
softballs --
then asked if
this UN use of
Burundian
troops makes
sense. There
has yet to be
an answer,
although there
are
indications
one might be
forthcoming.
(More than 24
hours later,
no). Here
for now is
about the US
training
Burundian
troops.
Watch this
site.
We're
told that
Ambassador
Albert
Shingiro, who
blocks the
Press on
Twitter, told
the scribes
that US Power
said she would
send “a strong
message to the
government of
Rwanda."
Again,
Shingiro
blocks the
Press on
Twitter: some
diplomat.
On January 22,
Inner City
Press asked UN
Deputy
Spokesperson
Farhan Haq for
the UN's
response to
Pierre
Nkurunziza
denying the
existence of
his party's
youth militia,
and why there
was no video
or even audio
stream of the
Security
Council's -
and
Nkurunziza's
-- press
statements. Video here.
Haq
replied that
"the
facilities are
difficult,"
that the UN
Spokesperson's
Office had
reached out to
the traveling
party for
information
but hadn't
gotten any.
The Free
UN Coalition
for Access
calls this a
failure.
Burundian
civil society
has written to
Ban seeking
the
repatriation
of the
country's
peacekeepers.
Inner City
Press has put
the letter
from Vital
Nshimirimana
to Ban online
here, and
will be asking
the UN about
it. Watch this
site.
On
December 30
Nkurunziza
threatened to
have his
forces attack
peacekeepers
proposed for
the country.
On
December 16
Inner City
Press was
banned from
questions to
Secretary
General Ban
Ki-moon, but
learned from
the mission
MINUSCA that
Baratuza was
already in
Entebbe. Inner
City Press
asked several
Security
Council
members, then
Ban's
spokesman
Stephane
Dujarric on
December17.
Dujarric told
Inner City
Press
Baratuza's
deployment is
suspended and
he is being
repatriated:
"based on the
information
we've received
regarding the
Lieutenant
Colonel, his
deployment has
been
suspended, and
he will be
repatriated
back to
Burundi." Video here. Dujarric told Inner
City Press
this shows the
UN system
working - on a
day when a
report on
rapes was
issued showing
UN
Peacekeeping
under Herve
Ladsous not
sufficiently
vetting for
human rights.
We'll have
more on this.
Amid the
escalating
killings in
Burundi,
summary
executions in
neighborhoods
opposed to
Pierre
Nkurunziza's
third term
stand out. But
Burundi Army
spokesman
Gaspard
Baratuza was
quoted on
December 12
blaming all of
the deaths on
attempts to
steal weapons
to free
prisoners.
Inner City
Press heard
that Mr.
Baratuza was
already in the
process of
being deployed
to the UN
Peacekeeping
mission in the
Central
African
Republic
(MINUSCA) even
when he was
giving these
quotes,
issuing
statements and
speaking to
state-owned
radio, and so
asked
MINUSCA's
acting
spokesperson,
“Is Gaspard
Baratuza of
Burundi's army
getting a
MINUSCA job?”
Ultimately,
after the
questioning,
he didn't.
But the UN
should have to
say more.
Inner City
Press has
repeatedly
asked the UN
how its
Department of
Peacekeeping
Operations
under Herve
Ladsous vets
those who
deploy to UN
missions;
Inner City
Press exclusively
reported
on an October
1, 2015
meeting in
which Ladsous
told Burundi's
Vice President
Joseph Butare
that he is
“pragmatic” on
human rights.
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