As
NGOs
Disassociate
with UN
Peacekeeping,
Chief Ladsous
Cancels
Stakeout
By
Matthew
Russell Lee
UNITED
NATIONS,
December 19 --
Since Herve
Ladsous was
put in charge
of the
UN Department
of
Peacekeeping
Operations, as
the fourth
Frenchman in
a row in the
position, he
has given a
single press
conference in
New
York, dodged a
question on
Haiti at one
stakeout,
and canceled a
December 19
stakeout.
At
the stakeout
at
which he
refused the
Haiti
question,
he claimed
that DPKO
would
"immanently"
sign a Status
of Forces
Agreement with
Sudan
for its
mission in
Abyei.
But that didn't
happen
immanently,
and a
representative
of Ethiopia,
the troop
contributing
country, told
Inner City
Press last
week that it
still hasn't
been signed.
Ladsous
has not
explained.
The
working theory
is that while
the UN had
interviewed
and offered
the top DPKO
job to
French
ambassador to
India Jerome
Bonnafont,
when his
bragging about
getting the
job was
reported by
the Press, the
UN balked.
France says
it owns the
top DPKO job
and so gave it
to Ladsous,
who so far is
widely
described as
underwhelming
and
unprepared.
Earlier
on
December 19,
Inner City
Press had
asked the UN
about a NRC
report
stating,
as to DPKO
"integrated"
missions, that
"Some
NGOs in
Afghanistan,
DRC and
Somalia
deliberately
distance
themselves
from the UN in
order to
ensure
acceptance for
their own
actions."
This
seems like
the type of
damning
criticism that
DPKO should
respond to.
But under
Ladsous,
who at his
single press
conference
dodged
questions on
Ben Ali,
Rwanda and
Aristide,
it has not.
Inner City
Press asked:
Inner
City
Press: there
is pretty
detailed study
that has been
put out by
the Norwegian
Refugee
Council
and it talks
about this
idea of
[Department of
Peacekeeping
Operations] of
having
integrated
missions
in which
humanitarian
and others
work alongside
peacekeepers
and the
political arm.
And they say
that it is
leading to a
rift between
humanitarian
[non-governmental
organizations]
and the UN,
that there
is a growing
hesitancy
within part of
the
[non-governmental
organization]
community to
engage with
the UN,
including
sharing
information,
joint
assessment and
joint field
visits,
because of the
perception
that the UN
has taken
sides or they,
by going with
the
military
component of
the UN, they
are no longer
independent
humanitarians.
And it seems
like it is a
pretty damning
critique
from a pretty
respected
[non-governmental
organization],
and I
wondered if
the UN is
aware of it
and if it has
any thoughts
on
either how to
mitigate those
harms or
thinks that it
is inevitable.
Ladsous
1st presser,
no answer Air
Ben Ali,
Rwanda,
Aristide (c)
UN Photo
Associate
Spokesperson
Farhan Haq:
Well, we are
aware of the
report. I
imagine that
we will need
to study it to
make a fuller
response. In
terms of the
independence
of
humanitarian
workers,
though, one
thing
I would like
to make clear
is that the
United Nations
does respect
the
independence
of
humanitarian
workers. It is
vital to their
effort, and
certainly in
our own
humanitarian
work, we try
to make
sure that that
work is done
independently
of other
considerations.
Question:
Do you think
[Office for
the
coordination
of
Humanitarian
Affairs]
or [Department
of
Peacekeeping
Operations] or
one of them
will
actually have
a kind of
either a
response to
this study or
at least
sort of a
statement on
the issue of
integrated
missions
harming
humanitarian
work?
Associate
Spokesperson:
Well, I don’t
know. First, I
think they’d
need to
review and see
what sort of
reaction is
appropriate.
Haq
had begun the
December 19
briefing by
announcing
that "Mr.
Ladsous,
accompanied by
Mr. Kubis,
expects to
speak to
reporters at
the
Council
stakeout
following
today’s
meeting."
Inner
City Press
ran to the
stakeout to
question
Ladsous and
here his
responses. But
upon arrival,
another
reporter said
that a DPKO
spokesman had
said
Ladsous would
not, in fact,
speak at the
stakeout. This
was later
announced, and
added to the UN's
transcript:
[The
Associate
Spokesperson
later
announced that
Mr. Ladsous
would not be
speaking to
reporters at
the stakeout,
as indicated
earlier.]
In
neither format
was any
explanation
given. And so
it goes at the
UN.
Footnote:
Even
Kubis, the new
envoy to
Afghanistan,
did not go to
the stakeout.
Inner City
Press found
him outside
the Security
Council and
asked if
it was aware
of and would
pursue the
case of Louis
Maxwell, a UN
staff killed
reportedly by
Afghan
national
forces. Kubis
said, "I
am aware of
it;" he did
not say he
would pursue
it, as his
predecessor
had said.
We'll see.
, 
