France
Tries to Block
W. Sahara
Briefing to
Aid Morocco's
UNSC
Bid, AU Pushes
Back
By
Matthew
Russell Lee,
Exclusive
UNITED
NATIONS,
September 28,
updated --
During April's
fight at the
UN about human
rights in
Western
Sahara, it was
agreed that UN
envoy
Christopher
Ross would
come back and
brief the
Security
Council in
October.
But
with Morocco
up for a
contested
election with
Mauritania for
a seat on the
Council, the
Secretariat of
Ban Ki-moon
told the
Council's
president
for October,
Nigeria, that
Ross didn't
want to brief,
that he had
little new
information
and didn't
want to
conflict with
the Council
election.
That is, a
briefing about
human rights
violations in
Western Sahara
would not be
helpful to
Morocco's run.
Inner
City Press
on September
28 asked South
African
Permanent
Representative
Baso
Sangqu about
the claim the
Ross did not
want to brief.
"Preposterous,"
Sangqu called
it, adding,
"They were
trying to say
there is an
election to
the Security
Council, with
Morocco
running."
Supporting
or
directing Ban
Ki-moon's
Secretariat in
this was
Morocco's main
supporter
France,
assisted to
the surprise
of some by the
United
Kingdom. (Even
one of the
surprised said
perhaps the UK
wanted to
"preserve the
Special
Envoy's
independence,"
and noted that
the election
for the
Security
Council has
been moved to
later in
October.)
Late
Wednesday,
Inner City
Press asked
Ambassadors
Gerard Araud
of France and
Mark Lyall
Grant of the
UK, "What
about Western
Sahara?"
Looking
surprised,
Lyall Grant
said "You have
to ask my
French
colleague
about that,
the UK has a
carefully
balanced
position on
Western
Sahara." Araud
himself did
not answer.
In
order to stand
up to the
pressure,
South Africa
and Nigeria
joined forces
with Brazil,
and also to
the surprise
of some Gabon,
which went
silent on
Western Sahara
back in April.
In
a rare UN
victory for
non-Permanent
members, the
African Union
Three and
Brazil
appear to have
won, with the
decision as of
September 26
being that
Ross will
brief the
Council on
October 11.
But could that
change?
Araud
of France with
Ban and
Nambiar, Ross
and Morocco SC
election not
shown
Some
were
reluctant to
confirm it.
Inner City
Press asked
Nigerian
Ambassador
Joy Ogwu,
October
Council
president, who
looked
surprised and
replied, "All
those are
speculation."
But multiple
sources
say this is
just how it
happened. How
will October
be?
In
another
contested
race, Hungary
faces off
against
Slovenia and
others, with
positions on
Palestine one
of the litmus
tests. Watch
this site.
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