On
Golan,
With Ladsous'
DPKO Under
Fire, Spox
Helps Him
Avoid
Hard Qs
By
Matthew
Russell Lee
UNITED
NATIONS,
September 3 --
The capture
and continued
holding of 45
UN
Peacekeepers
in the Golan
Heights, while
their UN
vehicles now
drive
around with
black Al Nusra
Front flags,
gives rise to
many questions
about the UN
Department of
Peacekeeping
Operations.
But
things are
arranged for
DPKO chief
Herve Ladsous
to avoid the
tough
questions,
just as he has
announced he
will not
respond to
questions
of media whose
questions he
doesn't like.
Video
here and here and here.
Inner
City Press on
September 2 asked
Secretary
General Ban
Ki-moon's
spokesman
Stephane
Dujarric:
Inner
City
Press: the
Philippines
military has
complained
that the
military
force
commander of
UNDOF asked or
ordered the
Filipino
peacekeepers
to lay down
their weapons
in some sort
of in relation
to the Fijians
and they
refused to do
so and has
asked, as they
say, for an
investigation
of the
commander.
Could you
explain under
what
circumstances
the UN central
peacekeeping
or force
commander
would
ask
peacekeepers
to lay down
their weapons
in the face of
a hostile
group and why?
Spokesman
Dujarric:
Again, as the
situation is
ongoing and
the situation
in
the Filipinos
and Fijians
are obviously
linked, I'm
not getting
into
the detail of
it. What I
will say is
that we will
respond to any
formal request
made by Member
State. Its
normal
procedure of
review
of action
being taken
and after
review action
be taken by
mission
once the
situation has
concluded. So,
I think we
have to get
through
this is
extremely
volatile
situation. The
safety of all
our
peacekeepers
here is
foremost on
our mind. It's
at risk. We
have
seen the kind
of area they
are operating
on and I think
we need to
let this — we
need to let
all of this
conclude and
then we can
address it
more formally.
Inner
City
Press: for
troop-contributing
countries, are
you aware of
any
other case in
which
peacekeeping
has asked
peacekeepers
to
essentially
surrender and
are they
supposed to
obey those
orders?
Usually they
complain the
other way and
they are
ordered to
fight and
they won't
fight. Are you
aware of any
other case
when they are
ordered to
surrender?
Spokesman
Dujarric:
And I think
every
situation is
different, and
as I said
what is
foremost on
our mind is
the safety of
our soldiers.
Since
Dujarric on
September 2
said he
couldn't or
wouldn't
answer, when
he
moderated a
supposed press
briefing by
Herve Ladsous
on September
3,
it was
expected he
would call on
Inner City
Press to put
these
questions to
Ladsous. But
now Dujarric
has
internalized
Ladsous'
censorship.
Dujarric
gave
the set-aside
first question
to the UN
Correspondents
Association,
whose
Executive
Board never
complained
about Ladsous'
selective
answers -- and
in fact tried
to get Inner
City Press to
change its
reporting on
Ladsous. Later
on September 3
UNCA's
President
loudly offered
“free food” at
an event with
the Ladsous
spokesperson
who
rationalized
his
non-answering,
see video
here.
Dujarric
gave the next
question to
Reuters, then
to France 24.
This
is how the UN
works, or
doesn't. The
new Free
UN Coalition
for Access
is opposing
these trends
at the UN, of
which Ladsous
is only one
example,
albeit an
extreme one.
Only
once Ladsous
had left did
Dujarric call
on Inner City
Press to ask a
question --
which he then
proceeded to
essentially
not answer.
Inner
City Press
asked about
the
black-flagged
UN vehicles,
and about
public and
widely
reported
comments by
Ireland's
minister of
defense
that no more
Irish troops
will be send
to the UNDOF
mission until
it
is reviewed.
Dujarric
didn't substantively
respond,
saying no
formal
communication
has been
received from
the Irish
government.
UNCA's
President's
soft ball
question,
unpressed, was
about Filipino
Colonel
Ezra James
Enriquez.
Ladsous said
he has
“tendered his
resignation”
but that “is a
matter for
them.” For
whom? It's now
reported that
Ezra James
Enriquez has
“left his
post.”
There
is more to be
said. Watch
this site.
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