Syria
GA
Session Monday
To Include
Resolution,
"10% New,"
Target Tells
ICP
By
Matthew
Russell Lee,
Exclusive
UNITED
NATIONS,
February 10,
updated -- The
General
Assembly
session on
Syria now set
for February
13 will,
its target
told Inner
City Press
midday on
Friday,
involve not
only a
briefing but a
draft
resolution,
with 90%
consisting of
a resolution
passed in the
Third (Human
Rights)
community and
"the remaining
ten percent is
related to new
ideas such as
proposing to
meet again in
15 days, 30
days, asking
to appoint a
special envoy,
ideas like
these. They
will call for
a vote on
Monday. We are
counter
attacking, of
course."
The
complaint is
that the
President of
the General
Assembly,
previously
Qatar's
Permanent
Representative
to the UN, is
"violating his
mandate" as
PGA to advance
the interests
of his own
country,
Qatar, and
those of a
subset of the
UN's
membership
"without
consulting the
plenary... He
is doing it at
the behest of
the UK and
Saudi Arabia,
the PGA and
his office,
they are not
the
mastermind."
Moments later
a BRICS-side
country's
representative
told Inner
City Press,
"Isn't the
timing
strange? They
say it's an
Arab
initiative,
but they are
drafting it
before the
Arab League
meeting [on
Sunday]. If
they circulate
it on Monday,
there's no way
to get
instructions
from the
capitals and
vote that
day."
On
February 9 at
5 pm, Inner
City Press
asked the
PGA's
spokeswoman to
confirm or
deny
a statement
-- on Twitter
-- that
there would be
a GA session
on
Syria on
Friday. She
wrote back at
6:30 pm,
"About Syria,
I am
not aware of
any meetings
at the GA at
this point." At
6:51, after a
follow up from
Inner City
Press ("there
was a rumor
that Syria
would be taken
up Friday, so
I wanted to check"),
she wrote
right back and
specified, "To
the best of my
knowledge
Syria will not
be taken up at
the GA on
Friday."
At
7 pm Inner
City Press
learned of an
invitation by
the PGA to
member states
to a
meeting on
Syria on
Monday
morning. Inner
City Press
confirmed this
with other
diplomats and
published
the news at 9
pm on Thursday.
On
Friday
morning, after
confirmation
and the
promised posting
of the
invitation
letter,
Inner City
Press asked
the PGA
spokeswoman
when the
invitation
went out. She
replied, "I'll
check."
In this wider
debate around
Syria,
transparency
and
accountability
by all, not
only or even
mostly
spokespeople
but the
"masterminds,"
whether PGA or
otherwise,
would seem to
be called for.
This is
published in
that spirit.
Less than an
hour after
first
publication of
this story,
representatives
of two
Security
Council
members
complained to
Inenr City
Press that the
PGA is
operating
"without
informing the
membership,"
and "for some
but not all in
the General
Assembly."
(c) UN Photo
In the UNSC,
Syria huddle,
"Qatari" Prez
of GA not
shown
Ironically,
the
Security
Council
ambassadors
are scheduled
to travel to
Haiti, which
would have
them missing a
General
Assembly
session on
Monday or even
the next two
days, a sort
of Second
Syria
Superbowl.
At
Thursday's
noon
briefing,
Inner City
Press asked
Ban's
spokesman
Martin Nesirky
the
most recent
date on which
Ban spoke with
is previous
envoy, to
Libya,
Jordanian
politician and
businessness
Al Khatib.
Nesirky said
he
would get the
date, but 24
hours later
and counting
it had not
been
provided.
Watch this
site.
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