@FUNCA_info
has also
raised,
without
explanation,
favoritism and
lack
of
transparency
in the issues
of access
tickets (for
example to
Malala Day),
to DPI's
summaries of
meetings being
politicized
(and even
intentionally
different in
different
languages),
which was
complained of
by India in
the last
Committee on
Information
meeting, but
happened again
on Latin
American
ministers
meeting with
Ban Ki-moon
about NSA
spying and Edward Snowden , without explanation once
raised.
FUNCA
also provides
praise where
appropriate,
like here.
Ironically, countries'
mission to the
UN answer
FUNCA's access
questions,
while those in
the UN charged
with these
issues try not
to. That's
this UN.
UN
staff sources
describe to
Inner City
Press and
FUNCA a "Town
Hall" meeting
in mid July in
which the
Department of
Public
Information,
which controls
the
above-named
units, said
that the
Department of
Management led
by Yukio
Takasu
promised it
would all be
workin "by the
General
Assembly,"
meaning the
General Debate
week in late
September.
But
DPI has not
even taken
action on
simple
problems
raised to it
early in the
summer. On
June 10, FUNCA
and Inner City
Press e-mailed
Dujarric and
others in DPI
a description
of the photo
booths above
the floor of
the new /
interim
General
Assembly Hall,
with tables, a
broken chair,
and no
interpretation
of the
speeches
taking place
on the floor.
A
commitment was
made to act on
it. But
nothing has
been done
since, even as
it was raised
again in
connection
with example
with a GA
session on
Syria, or a staged
Youth Day
event at which
Dujarric was
present,
taking and
tweeting
photographs of
Ban Ki-moon.
It is
noteworthy
that at least
some in DPI
are loud
proponents of
social media,
but refuse to
respond to
back issues
raised to them
in such media.
Meanwhile
their units
like UN
Webcast tweet
welcomes to
the new US
Ambassador,
which they
don't do for
any other
country.
Perhaps they
think that
will give them
the immunity
the UN claims
in Haiti.
Meanwhile
by
enforcing an
anachronistic
monopoly for
the old UN
Correspondents
Association
they cut off
other means of
communication,
and have even
threatened
Inner City
Press' accreditation
with
suspension or
withdrawal
for merely hanging a sign of
the Free UN
Coalition for
Access on
the door of
its shared
office, while
UNCA
now has five
signs. It
is pathetic.
On
Friday, August
9, Ban's
associate
spokesperson
Farhan Haq
read out a
short
announcement:
On
Monday,
12 August, the
Department of
Public
Information
and other
offices at UN
Headquarters
will be
performing a
large-scale
testing of the
new
audio-visual
conferencing
system. During
this test, we
will be
simulating
meetings
throughout the
system to
check the
performance
and work flows
during peak
demand periods
for the
forthcoming
General
Assembly. This
exercise will
include the
simultaneous
testing of
every
conference
room and every
studio in the
facility. Some
of this
activity may
be seen on the
IPTV/EZTV
system, and
you may
experience
some
disruptions
during the
time of the
test.
Later
on Friday, a
range of UN
staff
contacted
Inner City
Press, and
some
explicitly
FUNCA, with
information
about this
so-called
"stress test."
One said,
"It's a total
fiasco,
Patrick
Morrrison got
his D-1 and
he's leaving,
money is being
wasted
everywhere and
no one, least
of all DPI, is
taking
responsibility."
Several urged
the Free UN
Coalition for
Access to keep
pushing the
issue. And so
we will,
seeking as
from FUNCA's
founding to
make the UN
more
accessible,
without favoritism
or
intimidation.
Watch this
site.
, 
