On UN
Peacekeeping, ICP Asks Lacroix
How Vets Cameroon & Sri
Lanka Troops, Safety
By Matthew
Russell Lee, video here,
photo here
UNITED NATIONS,
January 24 –
When
UN Peacekeeping chief
Jean-Pierre Lacroix held a
rare press
conference on January 24,
Inner City Press encouraged
him to speak
more and asked about safety,
Cameroon and Sri Lanka, video
here. Video here.
Specifically, Inner City Press
asked how the UN is vetting
“peacekeepers” from Cameroon,
as that country's army is
burning
down whole villages in the
Anglophone zones. Lacroix
insisted that
vetting is intensive. Inner
City Press asked about what
sources tell
it, that the ostensibly
vetting of troops from Sri
Lanka, after the
bloodbath on the beach there,
consists of one OHCHR staffer
in
Geneva. Lacroix said he wasn't
sure on that. First, Inner
City PRess
asked him about the so-called
Cruz report's statement that
“contingents lack basic
technology needed to conduct
operational
activities against hostile
actors and to collect tactical
intelligence. Individual
equipment (e.g. night-vision
goggles),
weapons (e.g. special weapons
and ammunition), and vehicles
(appropriate to the terrain
and threat). This proposed
project will
identify required basic
technology and propose methods
to provide the
required technology to
T/PCCs.” Lacroix said it's all
in how you
use the equipment: sit in and
not ON an APC. Inner City
Press for the
Free UN Coalition for Access
urged Lacroix to speak more at
the UN
Security Council stakeout, as
for example Alain Le Roy (but
not Herve
Ladsous) did. We'll see. Watch
this site.
UN Secretary General Antonio
Guterres says he has a "zero
tolerance" policy for sexual
harassment. But his chief of
"Global Communications" Alison
Smale argued that all UN
staff including victims should
"speak with one voice" which
several staff told Inner City
Press they took to mean, Don't
make the UN look bad. Inner
City Press asked Guterres'
spokesman Stephane Dujarric
about it, despite getting cut
off (Vine here),
UN transcript here,
longer tweeted video here:
Inner City Press: I
heard there was a call about
speaking with one voice on
sexual harassment at the UN
this morning. And I
wanted to… I guess I wanted to
ask you, because some staff
members have had a question,
this idea of speaking with one
voice, does it in any way
contradict the idea that staff
are free without speaking with
the same voice as the rest of
the UN, or is UN management to
speak to the press, is
there…Spokesman: There's
no… it's just to ensure… I
think it's important from a
communications standpoint that
all our colleagues are fully
aware of the current state of
play of rules and
regulations. I think
you're con… I don't know the
English word, but you're
mixing up the two. I'll
come… I'll come back to you."
This while a UN compendium on
the discipline it meted out
from 1 July 2016 to 30 June
2017, obtained by Inner City
Press and put online here,
cites "mitigating
circumstances"
including "long
service in
mission
settings"
for
harassment, abuse and public
sex, and provides those
accused with compensation From
the UN document: "A staff
member sexually harassed an
individual, who had worked for
an entity external to the
Organization and then joined a
United Nations agency, by
making unwanted advances,
sending improper messages of a
sexual nature and continuing
to attempt to contact the
individual. There were
mitigating circumstances.
Disposition: separation from
service, with compensation in
lieu of notice and with
termination indemnity.... A
staff member repeatedly and
inappropriately touched the
body of another staff member
who was working in a
subordinate position in the
office of the former.
Disposition: a
fine of one month’s net base
salary and separation from
service, with compensation in
lieu of notice and without
termination indemnity. A staff
member performed a sexual act
at the workplace in the
presence of employees of a
contractor, and in a second
instance, performed a sexual
act in public view. Mitigating
factors included the staff
member’s long service in
mission settings. Disposition:
separation from service, with
compensation in lieu of notice
and with termination
indemnity." This (mis) use of
mitigating factors hearkens
back to the just-previous head
of UN Peacekeeping, the fifth
of six Frenchmen in a row atop
DPKO, saying that peacekeepers
committed sexual abuse due to
a lack of "R&R," which
most in the UN(CA) press corps
ignored. On January 12
Guterres' spokesman Stephane
Dujarric had no comment at all
when Inner City Press asked
about the widely reported
sexual harassment allegations
against the deputy chief of
UNESCO, Frank La Rue. When
Inner City Press asked a
second time on January 17,
Dujarric said La Rue is no
longer in his position. But
what are the UN's policies,
now in light of the Guardian's
report and UN official Jan
Beagle's letter to the editor
about it? Inner City Press is
informed that on January 23
there was a UN wide conference
call on which two
contradictory positions were
expressed: let staff talk
freely to the media, or in the
alternative, "speak with one
voice," meaning control. Could
this be Guterres' "Global
Communications" strategy, a
continuation of censorship? On
January 22, Inner City Press
asked UN Spokesman Stephane
Dujarric, UN transcript here:
Inner City Press: as I'm sure
you know, Jan Beagle has
written to The Guardian about
the series about sexual
harassment. And, among
other things, she said,
unequivocally, the UN staff
are free to speak… free to
speak to the media, which, if
true, is a great thing.
I just wanted to ask you
about, there's a UN rule that
says that for statements or
announcements to the press,
permission is required, and
I'm aware of a number of
cases, but, for example, the
case of Emma Reilly in the UN
system at the Office of the
[United Nations] High
Commissioner for Human Rights
(OHCHR), she was explicitly
told that she could not speak
to the press. And I know
that because that was
explained to me and… so… so
can you just… what I want to
do, rather than…? Can
you make clear… if, in fact
you're announcing that staff
can speak freely and will not
be retaliated against, this
would be the time.
Spokesman: I
understand. Okay.
There are media guidelines in
which staff members are told
they can speak to the press in
their areas of
responsibility.
Obviously, I think it's clear
that they should tell… they
should do it in concert with
their supervisors. There
need to be some
coherence. But, I think
the larger point is, if a
staff member feels they have
been wronged, they have not…
they have exhausted every
avenue, they feel they live in
a climate of fear, the press
remains an outlet. Inner City
Press: I understand, as
whistle-blowers, there's all
kinds of rules of what… you
have to exhaust your ability
inside the system before you
speak, but that's not what Jan
Beagle told The
Guardian. She said staff
aren't… aren't prohibited at
all, and I want to read you
something that… that Emma
Reilly… this was quoted to
her. “As a conduct
provision, within the UN
system, it would not be proper
for international civil
servants to air personal
grievances or criticize their
organizations in
public.” And, obviously,
the type of harassment we're
talking about…
Spokesman: As I said,
there are media guidelines,
and, obviously as… I'll repeat
what I've said. If
people feel they've exhausted
every avenue and they need to
“blow the whistle” on a
situation, the press remains
an outlet. Inner City
Press: Right, but if
they get retaliated against,
can they hold up the letter
and…? Spokesman: We do
not want to have… We are
working, I think, with great
effort in ensuring that we
create an atmosphere in which
staff members are… feel they
can speak up to their
supervisors, to other outlets,
and report on harassment or
retaliation. That is our
focus. Yes, sir. " Back
on January 18, Inner City
Press asked Dujarric, UN
transcript here:
Inner City Press: the article
just came out, but it
describes some policies that I
think you could address.
One policy that it mentions is
that some UN agencies have a
six-month statute of
limitations on
complaints. Is that
something the
Secretary-General is
interested in changing, and
another… Spokesman: I
don't know which UN agencies
the article is referring
to. What is clear is
that the Secretary-General
wants to see, across the
board, in parts of the UN over
which he has no direct-line
authority — as you know, some
specialized agencies and
others, he has no direct
authority — but through the
Chief Executives Board, he
wants a harmonization and he
wants effective policies to be
put in place to ensure that
people feel free and
comfortable coming forward.
Inner City Press: How about
comfortable speaking?
One of the… one of… the
article says that… that… that
those interviewed spoke on
condition of anonymity, quote,
partly because they are
precluded from talking
publicly by UN rules governing
staff. Can you say from
this podium that UN staff are
free to speak to the press
about abuse they suffer within
the UN from superiors?
Spokesman: No one is
putting a gag order. I
don't… but you know,
obviously, those quotes are
anonymous quotes. I
can't address them. But
the whole point is to create
an atmosphere in which people
who have suffered harassment
or who are… feel comfortable
to come forward and speak and
comfortable enough without any
fear of retaliation, which
would be unacceptable. Inner
City Press: And the one last
thing, it talks about OIOS
[Office of Internal Oversight
Services] and… and
interviewing the wrong people
and bungling
investigations. And I
just wondered, since… I think
since Ms. [Heidi] Mendoza took
over, I haven't seen her have
a press conference, and I'm
just wondering if… on this
issue, if this issue is
important enough in order to
understand how investigations
are done. Spokesman:
Look, we will have people come
forward to talk about
investigations. I can't
speak for OIOS, but I know…
you know, I know as for… they
have been investigating these
cases, I think, 15 reports in
2016 and about 17… 18 in
2017." So he had those
numbers, if-Pressed. Inner
City Press asked, if UNESCO's
investigation finds the
allegations, including that
the victim had a mental
breakdown, are well founded,
should La Rue remain a UN
official? Periscope
video here.
Dujarric
had no comment. Here's
video of La Rue answering
Inner City Press' questions in
October 2016, saying he wants
"transparency in UN bodies."
Having heard nothing back from
Dujarric, despite sending him
a link about the La Rue case,
on January 17 Inner City Press
again asked Dujarric about it,
UN transcript here:
Inner
City Press: I'd
asked you, it was last week
about this Frank La Rue
complaint or case at UNESCO,
and so what is the position, I
understand that he's entitled
to due process…
Spokesman: "No, I think
you may… you may have seen
that UNESCO announced that he
was relieved of his… of his
post. Whether it's
administrative leave, I don't
know what the exact term is,
but he's no longer in that… in
that function. UNESCO
has its own investigative
mechanisms, which are fully…
fully under way. And
whether it's UNESCO or the
Secretariat, there's obviously
zero tolerance for… for sexual
harassment, and the case will
be… will be investigated."
We'll have more on that - and
this: throughout 2016 New
Zealand documentary maker
Gaylene Preston and her crew
staked out the UN Security
Council along with Inner City
Press, awaiting the results of
the straw polls to elected Ban
Ki-moon's sucessor as UN
Secretary General. Preston's
focus was Helen Clark, the
former New Zealand prime
minister then in her second
term as Administrator of the
UN Development Program.
Preston would ask Inner City
Press after each poll, What
about Helen Clark's chances?
Suffice it to say Clark never
caught fire as a candidate.
Inner City Press told Preston,
as did many other interviewees
in her documentary “My Year
with Helen,” that it might be
sexism. But it might be power
too - including Samantha
Power, the US Ambassador who
spoke publicly about gender
equality and then in secret
cast a ballot Discouraging
Helen Clark, and praised
Antonio Guterres for his
energy (yet to be seen).
Samantha Power's hypocrisy is
called out in Preston's film,
in which New Zealand's
Ambassador complains that
fully four members of the
Council claimed to be the
single “No Opinion” vote that
Clark received. There was a
private screening of My Year
With Helen on December 4 at
NYU's King Juan Carlos Center,
attended by a range of UN
staff, a New Zealand designer
of a website for the country's
proposal new flag, and Ban
Ki-moon's archivist, among
others. After the screening
there was a short Q&A
session. Inner City Press used
that to point out that
Guterres has yet to criticize
any of the Permanent Five
members of the Council who did
not block him as the US,
France and China blocked
Clark, with Russia casting a
“No Opinion.” And that
Guterres picked a male from
among France's three
candidates to head UN
Peacekeeping which they own,
and accepted males from the UK
and Russia for “their” top
positions. Then over New
Zealand wine the talk turned
to the new corruption at the
UN, which is extensive, and
the upcoming dubious Wall
Street fundraiser of the UN
Correspondents Association,
for which some in attendance
had been shaken down, as one
put it, for $1200. The
UN needed and needs to be
shaken up, and hasn't been.
But the film is good, and
should be screened not in the
UN Censorship Alliance but
directly in the UN Security
Council, on the roll-down
movie screen on which failed
envoys like Ismail Ould Cheikh
Ahmed are projected. “My Year
With Helen” is well worth
seeing.
***
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