UNITED NATIONS,
July 7 – Amid arrests and
censorship by Morocco in the
Al-Rif region, UN Secretary
General Antonio Guterres'
spokesman Stephane Dujarric
told Inner City Press on June
6, "I should
hopefully have something for
you tomorrow." But on June 7
when Inner City Press asked,
not only did Dujarric not have
anything at all - he refused
to accept follow up questions,
saying "I'm done" and running
off the podium. Video
here. Since then,
more arrests, more censorship,
and more fightback, not only
in Geneva, Holland and
elsewhere, but also in the US.
At the UN, the Moroccan state
media the UN gives offices and
full access to don't even come
into the building, must less
ask questions. Today's UN is
corrupt - but it is being
opposed. On July 7, Inner City
Press asked the UN, Spokesman
Dujarric, for the 14th time,
video here,
UN transcript here:
Inner City Press: I've asked
you before about the… the
continuing situation in the
Rif region in Morocco, and you
may have seen that The
Economist… I know your DPA's
[Department of Political
Affairs] work is not driven by
publications, but it's a
pretty respected one, and
their analysis is that things
are getting significantly
worse and that it threatens,
you know, the… the situations
elsewhere in the country, and
the Government has recently
said that they have at least
176 people under "preventative
detention", based on what's
basically a non-violent
protest, including on a beach
where they were banned from
going into the water.
So, I just wanted to know, has
DPA done anything on
this? Have they reached
out to the country? Do
they have any expression of
concern as, you know,
respected observers say the
situation is getting worse?
Spokesman: I don't have
anything specific. I
mean as a matter of principle,
we stand for the people's
right to demonstrate
peacefully.
Right. On
June 27, after a crackdown
on Al Hoceima on the previous
day's Eid holiday, Inner City
Press asked the UN for the
13th time, video here,
UN transcript here: Inner City
Press: in the Rif region of
Morocco, on Eid, there were
more arrests made in this
Al-Hoceima and people were
blocked from actually even
traveling to the town.
The king has said that his
ministers can no longer go on
vacation due to a failure to
implement what's being
demanded by the protesters
there. I'm just
wondering, is [the Department
of Political Affairs] any
closer to either saying
something, doing something?
Spokesman Stephane
Dujarric: I don't have
anything.
This
as Moroccan King Mohammed VI
has banned some of his
ministers from traveling or
vacation, claiming it was them
who failed to follow through
on his royal plan to
supposedly address 90% of the
residents' demands. Somehow
the King didn't realize this
during the now more than eight
months of protests, as his
forces arrested more than 100
people. As in the Bogart
movie, the King is shocked -
shocked - in Casablanca. On
June 21, Inner City Press
asked Dujarric's deputy
spokesman Farhan Haq, UN
transcript here: Inner City
Press: I want to ask you
one more thing about the Rif
region of Morocco. I’d
asked Stéphane a few
times. It seemed like a
comment might be coming
down. Since then, at
least two media, one editor of
Rif24 has been put under
solitary confinement; another
one has been sued with
criminal defamation
charges. Press freedom
groups like IFEX have been
speaking about it. There
have been other arrests.
Is it something that… was it
just… did it almost give rise
to a DPA [Department of
Political Affairs]
comment? Is DPA, in
fact, looking at this
situation which it doesn’t
seem to be abating?
Deputy Spokesman: We’re
looking at the matter.
If we have any further
comment, I will let you know.
On June
15, Inner City Press asked
Dujarric about Morocco
imposing year and a half jail
sentences on 25 protesters,
and new French President
Macron's comments. UN
transcript here:
Inner City Press: I wanted to
ask you again about the Al Rif
region of Morocco, because,
since I last asked, sentences
have been imposed on a number
of the protesters, a year and
a half to 25 people, six
months to five people.
And French President
[Emmanuel] Macron was in Rabat
and said that King Mohammed VI
— I don't know if that's
translated right — stood ready
to assuage the issues of Al
Rif. So I'm just
wondering, if it's now viewed
as international in that way,
does the UN have no guidance
at all? What about
year-and-a-half sentences to
peaceful protestors? Is
that something that the…
Spokesman: I'm not aware
of the details of the
particular case. As I
said, when we have something
to say, we shall. Thank
you.
How does
Guterres STILL have nothing to
say? That is the case- without
explaining the now eight day
delay, Dujarric repeated when
he has something to say he
will. But what will it be? On
June 14, Inner City Press
asked Dujarric, UN transcript
here:
Inner City Press: I'd asked
you in writing about the
situation the Rif region of
Morocco. Now there's
more than 100 allegedly
detained and now allegations
of torture of some of those
detained. So, I'm
wondering, there's been…
Rifians have asked the Human
Rights Council or Prince Zeid
to send observers. And
I'm just wondering, since a
week ago, you said you hoped
to have something from DPA
[Department of Political
Affairs]. Is DPA aware
of this? Are they
watching this? And what
do they say about it?
Spokesman Dujarric: I
think we're… as I said, if I
have any comment to make on
this particular situation or
any other situation, I shall
make them. Obviously, if
people appeal to the Human
Rights High Commissioner, you
should follow up with them.
That's
called passing the buck. On
the mornings of June 12 and 13
Inner City Press went more
formal, in writing: "On
Morocco and Rif, give the
large demonstration in Rabat
over the weekend and use of
tear gas in Rif, at least 86
arrested, reiterating for
eighth time Inner City Press'
question: what is the SG's or
DPAs comment on this, to the
Moroccan authorities?" This
was not answer before noon, at
noon or in the 29 hours and
counting after. Meanwhile, UN
High Commissioner for Human
Rights Prince Zeid has been
asked for "urgent intervention
in order to note in particular
the serious violations of
human rights perpetrated
against the Riffian population
especially the militants of
the non-partisan and
non-violent citizen movement
set up seven months ago, since
the 29th October 2016 after
the death of Mohcine FIKRI
crushed in a garbage truck. At
this moment, more than 80
activists have been abducted,
tortured and detained by the
Moroccan authorities, several
of them were sent to
Casablanca remained without
legal assistance for more than
five days, and others are
detained in the city of
Al-Hoceima without any legal
assistance in the first three
days until their presence
before the court of
Al-Hoceima. There are strong
confirmations that torture has
been inflicted on several
detainees and confirmed in
Al-Hoceima and Casablanca by
their Lawyers present at first
audience or before the crown
prosecutor in Casablanca, and
as announced by several
detainees in Casablanca before
their arrest, they are ongoing
hunger strike [and so request
by, among others] the European
Coordination Committee of
support to the popular
Movement in the Rif: To deal
with this urgent human
situation and urge the
presence of human rights
observers in the region,
especially in trial procedures
as requested by our Lawyers.
To shed full light on the
various attacks perpetrated by
the Moroccan authorities,
which only perpetuates a
campaign of reprisals against
militants and civil pacific
protesters,Protecting the Rif
people from state terrorism
perpetrated by all the police
forces present in the Rif
region, we are certain that
this would send a strong
message to the Moroccan
leaders who had been little
worried for continuing to
perpetrate violent abuses
against the Riffian people
since decades." Inner City
Press also asked Guterres'
holdover spokesman Dujarric on
June 9, from the UN
transcript: Inner City Press:
on this issue of Rif, I
want to ask you, now there's
the use of tear gas on
protesters and at least two
journalists have been arrested
and taken to Casablanca for
questioning, and charges are
unclear. They're from
AWAR TV and Rif Press. I
know three days ago you said
you'd hoped to get
something. What does DPA
[Department of Political
Affairs] think about this?
Spokesman: You know,
obviously, as a matter of
principle, we believe wherever
that people have a right to
demonstrate peacefully but,
more specifically, I have
nothing to share with you.
Nothing.
Then he refused to say where
Secretary General Guterres
will be. From the UN
June 7
transcript: Inner
City Press: I wanted to ask
you, yesterday, you'd said
that hopefully today you would
have something after 4:00… on
the situation in the Al Rif
region of Morocco.
Spokesman: I don't have
anything for you.
Inner City Press: So when you
said that you might have it,
does that mean that DPA
[Department of Political
Affairs] is…
Spokesman: No, it just
means…
Inner City Press Be quiet?
Spokesman: That I… I'm
sorry?
Inner City Press: No,
no… Does it mean that…
Spokesman: It just means
that I don't have anything to
share with you.
This is
today's UN. Back on April 9
Inner City Press reported
UN Secretary General
Antonio Guterres' proposal of
Horst Kohler of Germany to
replace Christopher Ross as
the UN's Western Sahara envoy.
Guterres' holdover spokesman
Stephane Dujarric, when Inner
City Press, repeatedly refused
comment. On May 5 Dujarric said
Guterres "has communicated to
his parties his preferred
candidate to replace
Christopher Ross, you know,
who had announced his
intention to leave.
Right now, the Kingdom of
Morocco has not yet responded
to the information passed on
to it." As of June 1, when
Inner City Press asked
Dujarric again, no update. Nor
even on June 5, after
Guterres' letter. And on
Al-Rif, after the arrest of
two more protest leaders, on
June 6 Inner City Press asked
Dujarric, UN transcript here:
Inner City Press: I did want
to ask you because I'd asked
last week and I… given the
reporting around world about
the… the situation in the Al
Rif region of Morocco, not
only was the one protest
leader arrested and called for
a general strike, now two
other protest leaders, Najik
Alhamjik [phonetic] and Silia
Zianni [phonetic] were both
arrested. And there's
been a press fallout of…
expulsion of reporters and now
a report… a newspaper in
Bahrain ordered closed for
reporting on the
protests. So… I guess
I'm asking you again, it seems
like it's a… it's a…
Spokesman: Yeah, I don't
have anything for you on this
today. I should
hopefully have something for
you tomorrow. But,
obviously, on the issue of the
press, we stand loud and clear
for the rights of reporters to
report.
So, tomorrow. The UN
didn't even Google the names
of those arrested. On June 5
when Inner City Press asked
"Do you have anything on
Morocco and Rif?" the UN
Spokesman Dujarric said, "No,
I do not." Then he indulged
for the third time a lengthy
question from the Moroccan
state media he and the
Department of Public
Information give multiple
resident correspondent full
access passes to, while
restricting Inner City Press.
Also on June 1, Inner City Press asked Dujarric about the now
six days of protest in the
Al-Rif region of Morocco,
following the crushing of fish
salesman Mouhcine Fikri and
now the arrest of protest
leader Nasser Zefzafi for
supposedly "undermining the
security of the state." But
all Dujarric said was that he
had nothing on Morocco today -
no prepared statement. Video here
at 18:16. On June 2, Inner
City Press asked Dujarric's
Deputy Farhan Haq, UN
transcript here:
Inner City Press: there's a
press release by Amnesty
International entitled
“Morocco Rif protestors
punished with wave of mass
arrests”. It says that
the… Morocco in the
[inaudible] had carried out a
chilling wave of arrests
rounding up scores of
protestors, activists and
bloggers in Rif, northern
Morocco. And I know that
yesterday I'd asked, and you'd
said that Stéphane [Dujarric]
had no… had nothing on
it. Is… is DPA
[Department of Political
Affairs] unaware of
this? Does DPA have any
comment on what's taking place
and what Amnesty International
has put out this press release
about?
Deputy Spokesman: No,
no, the Department of
Political Affairs is aware of
the situation, and we're
checking on them about a
reaction. We'll let you
know once they have a reaction
to give.
Hours
later, still nothing. From the
June 1 UN transcript:
Inner City Press: Two
questions on Morocco.
One is, there have been six
days of protests in Al-Rif
region following the crushing
of a fishmonger, which
obviously echoes what happened
in Tunisia, and now the arrest
of protest leader Nasser
Zefzafi. So, I wanted to
know… he's called for a
three-day strike. It's
being reported all over the
world. Is the UN or DPA
[Department of Political
Affairs] aware of it?
And do they have any words of
wisdom of how it should be
addressed?
Spokesman: No, I don't
have anything on Morocco for
you today.
Inner City Press: On the envoy
or the Special Adviser,
personal envoy on Western
Sahara, has there been any
response in terms of
confirming…?
Spokesman: I think
we're… we may be nearing the
end of a process. So, as
soon as we have something to
announce, we shall.
Today's UN
is a failure. Back on May 31,
Inner City Press asked
Dujarric, UN transcript here:
Inner City Press: So the
UN Global Compact has a
provision where if NGOs or
civil society complain against
a corporation, they set up a
talk, because that's the one
thing that seems to be
required of corporations is to
actually engage with their
critics. So there's a
company called [inaudible],
which is under fire for
exploitation of natural
resources in Western
Sahara. And a group
commented, and the Global
Compact set up a dialogue
between them and then cancelled
it, saying that there
had been leaks, and if there
are leaks, no
discussions. And I just
wanted to know, the group
itself is unclear who is
leaking. They think the
Global Compact did. But
is that… does… has the
Secretary-General… since he's
come in, has he looked at this
mechanism of the UN having a
body that raises
corporations? And is it
enough to say…
Spokesman: The Global…
first of all, we have to look
in the specific case. The
Global Compact has, throughout
years, removed companies that
have not lived up to its
ideals. I will look into
the specific case you mention.
Hours
later, nothing. Dujarric's
office didn't even look it up
to get the company's name,
preferring to call it
"inaudible." It is Vigeo
Eiris. On May 15, Dujarric said "the
last update I had is that we
had not gotten approval from…
the formality on a name to
replace Mr. Ross. We're
still awaiting clearance."
While pro-Morocco trolls
insist this doesn't ascribe
the delay to their King, in
context it surely does. We'll
have more on this: more
questions, more stories. Watch
this site. Dujarric
also, again, refused to
explain the now week-long
censorship of the Western
Sahara stakeout of April 28.
Now, after ten days of
censorship, the UN has annexed
the stakeout to this
video and put it online,
While it dispenses with
pro-Morocco trolls'
arguments, explanations
of the delay, and policy,
remain needed. Inner City
Press asked Dujarric for both
and was told the UN likes to
re-invent the wheel; no
explanation was offered for
the Turkish Cypriot Community
getting their own, immediately
archived UNTV stakeouts and
this ten day delay. Watch this
site. A ship moving phosphate
taken from Western Sahara to
New Zealand has been impounded
in South Africa: the Marshall
Islands flagged bulk carrier
NM Cherry Blossom. The issue
is the illegality of Morocco's
exploitation of the natural
resources of the Western
Sahara territory it occupied,
a question Inner City Press
asked about at the UN Security
Council stakeout on April 28,
still not put online by the
UN. So on May 4, Inner City
Press asked UN spokesman
Stephane Dujarric about both
issues: the ship and
exploitation of Western
Sahara's natural resources. On
the first, Dujarric merely
alluded to Antonio Guterres'
report. On the UN's ongoing
censorship of the April 28
Q&A stakeout including on
exploitation of resources,
Dujarric said he has nothing
new - it's been six days and
we will keep asking. At
Morocco's "Universal Periodic
Review" at the UN Human Rights
Council in Geneva on May 2,
the representative of the US
urged the Kingdom of
Morocco to release detained
journalists, and Sweden called
on Morocco to respect freedom
of the press. This call is
apparently not heard by
Morocco's Ambassador to the UN
Omar Hilale, who even after
Inner City Press published a
blurring Morocco-AU document
at his request used the UNTV
microphone to claim that all
of Inner City Press'
publication are anti-Morocco.
Nor is the call heard by the
UN, which five days after the
back to back stakeouts by
Hilale and the Polisario
representative has refused to
put the latter video online.
Inner City Press for the third
day -- "question 228" by
Hilale's count -- asked
Dujarric about the delay; he
again offered no explanation
despite this same scenario
having arisen in the past.
From the May 3 UN transcript:
Inner City Press: I’m sorry to
ask you this again, but it’s…
the stakeout took place
Friday. It’s now
Wednesday. So it’s five
days later. You’d said
that it’s something working
on. I’d like you to
explain it, because in April
2016, after, I think, a
shorter period of time, it was
decided to append the
Polisario stakeout behind
Algeria. What’s the
difference now?
Spokesman: When I’m
ready to have something to
announce. I will
announce it and I will explain
it.
Inner City Press: Does that
solution…?
Spokesman: That’s all I
can say.
Censorship. After several
delays, the UN Security
Council renewed for one year
the mandate of its Western
Sahara mission MINURSO at 6 pm
on April 28. Final resolution
put on Scribed by Inner City
Press here.
After the vote when Morocco's
Permanent Representative to
the UN Omar Hilale came to the
UNTV stakeout, and after
questions from Moroccan state
media, Inner City Press asked
Hilale three questions, on
Horst Kohler as possible new
envoy, on the C-24 Committee
visiting the regions, and what
Morocco had accomplished by
ousting the MINURSO
peacekeepers. Hilale rather
than answering used the podium
to, as he put it, give some
statistics. 6-second Vine
Camera video here.
He said that
Inner City Press has asked 225
questions about the conflict
in the past year - quelle
horreur -- and had had
the temerity to write 150
articles about it. Inner City
Press pointed out that it has
written more about other
countries, such as these days
Cameroon. But Hilale went on
from there. Video
here. Three days after
the stakeouts, the UN
Department of Public
Information had put on its
website only two of the three
speakers that evening (May 1
photo here).
So on May 1 Inner City Press
asked the UN's holdover
spokesman Stephane Dujarric,
video
here, UN transcript here: Inner
City Press: This happened
before, so maybe you’ll have
an answer to it. On
Friday, after the meeting on
Western Sahara, in the
Security Council, there were
three stakeouts, Morocco,
Algeria and then
Polisario. And three
days later, only Morocco and
Algeria are up and not
Polisario. Now, the last
time it took several days, and
then it was appended behind
Algeria. How did the
same thing happen again, or it
hasn’t even been… [inaudible]
Spokesman: I can look
into it.
Inner City Press But
isn’t it… I mean, after last
time…
Spokesman: I said I
would look into it.
Seven hours later, nothing. So
here is part of the video. What
is wrong with the UN, and its
DPI? It was to the DPI
that Hilale's Moroccan mission
made a frivolous complaint
about Inner City Press
taking photos at the stakeout;
it was this DPI which evicted
Inner City Press and still
keeps it restricted, trying to
give its long time shared
office to an Egyptian state
media which rarely comes in
and never asks questions. This
zero, apparently, is a count
that Hilale, Morocco and its
state media and trolls are
most comfortable with. Up to
death threats have been
received. Here then is a song,
Western Sahara Blues, the
Ballad of Omar Hilale.
In front
of the UN Security Council's
Western Sahara closed door
consultations on April 25,
Inner City Press asked French
Ambassador Francois Delattre
why there is no human rights
monitoring in the mandate of
the MINURSO mission, as urged
by for example Amnesty
International. Delattre said
human rights "is in our DNA,"
but said there are many ways
to work for human rights. Video here. Now the vote
on the resolution, one draft
of which is below, has been
pushed back from 5 to 5:30 to
6 pm on April 28. Verification
of Guerguerat, inclusion or
deletion or modification of
language in the resolution,
below. Up on the UN's 38th
floor after a photo
op of UK Boris Johnson
and Secretary General Antonio
Guterres, Inner City Press
spotted Uruguay's ambassador.
He has been pushing for human
rights monitoring, DNA or no
DNA. But down at the stakeout
of the Security Council, the
questions to him concerned
mostly a reported missile
firing by North Korea. Watch
this site. Inner City Press
asked about Horst Kohler as
Antonio Guterres' nominee as
Personal Envoy on Western
Sahara. Delattre smiled and
answered in German. Then
and the next
day, as Inner
City Press got
versions of
the draft,
Morocco
diplomats and
state
journalists
walked freely
up and down
the UN's 2d
floor, while
Inner City
Press was
confined to
Department of
Public
Information
minders. After
the meeting, Russia's Deputy
Permanent Representative Petr
Ilyichev said the real work on
the MINURSO resolution, which
he still expects to be put to
a vote on April 27, was at the
level of experts, not in the
April 25 meeting. Periscope
video here.
And here now, the draft
resolution:
The Security
Council, Recalling and
reaffirming all its previous
resolutions on Western Sahara,
Reaffirming its strong support
for the efforts of the
Secretary-General and his
Personal Envoy to implement
resolutions 1754 (2007), 1783
(2007), 1813 (2008), 1871
(2009), 1920 (2010), 1979
(2011), 2044 (2012), 2099
(2013), 2152 (2014), 2218
(2015), and 2285 (2016),
?Reaffirming its commitment to
assist the parties to achieve
a just, lasting, and mutually
acceptable political solution,
which will provide for the
self-determination of the
people of Western Sahara in
the context of arrangements
consistent with the principles
and purposes of the Charter of
the United Nations, and noting
the role and responsibilities
of the parties in this
respect,
Reiterating its
call upon the parties and the
neighboring states to
cooperate more fully with the
United Nations and with each
other and to strengthen their
involvement to end the current
impasse and to achieve
progress towards a political
solution,
Recognizing that
achieving a political solution
to this long-standing dispute
and enhanced cooperation
between the Member States of
the Maghreb Arab Union would
contribute to stability and
security in the Sahel region,
Welcoming the
efforts of the
Secretary-General to keep all
peacekeeping operations,
including the United Nations
Mission for the Referendum in
Western Sahara (MINURSO),
under close review and
reiterating the need for the
Council to pursue a rigorous,
strategic approach to
peacekeeping deployments, and
effective management of
resources,
Emphasizing the
need to regularly evaluate
MINURSO’s performance such
that the mission retains the
skills and flexibility needed
to effectively carry out its
mandate,
Further
emphasizing that hiring,
retention and assignment
processes of the United
Nations for MINURSO should
allow for mission structures
to quickly and easily adapt to
changing operational
environments, and noting the
Secretary-General’s intention
to reform these
processes to make the
Organization more nimble,
Recognizing the
important role played by
MINURSO on the ground and the
need for it to fully implement
its mandate, including its
role in supporting the
Personal Envoy to achieve a
mutually acceptable political
solution,
Expressing
concern about the violations
of existing agreements, and
calling on the parties to
respect their relevant
obligations,
Welcoming
Morocco’s positive response on
26 February 2017 to the
Secretary General’s call for
both parties to withdraw from
the buffer strip in
Guerguerat,
Expressing deep
concern that elements of the
Polisario Front remain in the
buffer strip in Guerguerat,
including its obstruction of
regular commercial
traffic,
Taking note of
the Moroccan proposal
presented on 11 April 2007 to
the Secretary-General and
welcoming serious and credible
Moroccan efforts to move the
process forward towards
resolution; also taking note
of the Polisario Front
proposal presented 10 April
2007 to the Secretary-General,
Encouraging in
this context, the parties to
demonstrate further political
will towards a solution
including by expanding upon
their discussion of each
other’s proposals and further
encouraging the neighboring
countries to make
contributions to the political
process,
Taking note of
the four rounds of
negotiations held under the
auspices of the
Secretary-General and
recognizing the importance of
the parties committing to
continue the negotiations
process,
Encouraging the
parties to resume cooperation
with the United Nations Office
of the High Commissioner for
Refugees in implementing the
January 2012 updated Plan of
Action on Confidence-Building
Measures, including programmes
focused on linking people who
have been divided for more
than 40 years due to the
conflict and further
encouraging the parties to
consider additional
appropriate
confidence-building measures,
Stressing the
importance of improving the
human rights situation in
Western Sahara and the Tindouf
camps, and encouraging the
parties to work with the
international community to
develop and implement
independent and credible
measures to ensure full
respect for human rights,
bearing in mind their relevant
obligations under
international law,
Encouraging the
parties to continue in their
respective efforts to enhance
the promotion and protection
of human rights in Western
Sahara and the Tindouf refugee
camps, including the freedoms
of expression and association,
?Welcoming in this regard, the
recent steps and initiatives
taken by Morocco, and the role
played by the National Council
on Human Rights Commissions
operating in Dakhla and
Laayoune, and Morocco’s
interaction with Special
Procedures of the United
Nations Human Rights Council,
Commending the
technical visit of the Office
of the United Nations High
Commissioner for Human Rights
(OHCHR) to Western Sahara in
April 2015, and to the Tindouf
refugee camps in July-August
2015, and strongly encouraging
enhancing cooperation with
OHCHR, including through
facilitating further visits to
the region,
Noting with deep
concern the continued
hardships faced by Sahrawi
refugees and their dependency
on external humanitarian
assistance,and further noting
insufficient funding for those
living in Tindouf refugee
camps and the risk of
potential reductions in food
assistance,
?Reiterating its request for
consideration of a refugee
registration in the Tindouf
refugee camps and emphasizing
efforts be made in this
regard,
Stressing the
importance of a commitment by
the parties to continue the
process of negotiations
through the United
Nations-sponsored talks and
encouraging the meaningful
participation of women in
these,
?Recognizing that the
consolidation of the status
quo is not acceptable, and
noting further that progress
in the negotiations is
essential in order to improve
the quality of life of the
people of Western Sahara in
all its aspects,
? Expressing gratitude for the
efforts of the
Secretary-General’s Personal
Envoy for Western Sahara,
Ambassador Christopher Ross,
throughout his tenure, and
affirming its continued full
support for the
Secretary-General’s Personal
Envoy for Western Sahara in
facilitating negotiations
between the parties, and
calling on the parties and
neighbouring states to
cooperate fully with the
Personal Envoy,
?Affirming full support for
the Special Representative of
the Secretary-General for
Western Sahara and Head of
MINURSO Kim Bolduc,
Having considered
the report of the
Secretary-General of 10 April
2017 (S/2017/307),
1.?Decides to
extend the mandate of MINURSO
until 30 April 2018;
2.?Reaffirms the need
for full respect of the
military agreements reached
with MINURSO with regard to
the ceasefire and calls on the
parties to adhere fully to
those agreements;
3. ?Expresses deep concern
with the continued presence of
elements of the Polisario
Front in the buffer strip in
Guerguerat and strongly urges
the Polisario Front to fully
and unconditionally withdraw
from the buffer strip in
Guerguerat immediately;
4.?Requests the
Secretary-General to brief the
Council within 30 days on
whether elements of the
Polisario have withdrawn from
the buffer strip in Guerguerat
and expresses its intention,
if there is no full and
unconditional withdrawal, to
consider how best to
facilitate achievement of this
goal;
5.?Recognizes that the
crisis in Guerguerat raises
fundamental questions related
to the ceasefire and related
agreements and encourages the
Secretary-General to explore
ways that such questions can
be resolved;
6.?Calls upon all
parties to cooperate fully
with the operations of
MINURSO, including its free
interaction with all
interlocutors, and to take the
necessary steps to ensure the
security of as well as
unhindered movement and
immediate access for the
United Nations and associated
personnel in carrying out
their mandate, in conformity
with existing agreements;
7.?Emphasizes the importance
of the parties’ commitment to
continue the process of
preparation for a fifth round
of negotiations, and recalls
its endorsement of the
recommendation in the report
of 14 April 2008 (S/2008/251)
that realism and a spirit of
compromise by the parties are
essential to achieve progress
in negotiations, and
encourages the neighbouring
countries to make important
contributions to this process;
8.?Calls upon the parties to
show political will and work
in an atmosphere propitious
for dialogue in order to
resume negotiations, thus
ensuring implementation of
resolutions 1754 (2007), 1783
(2007), 1813 (2008), 1871
(2009), 1920 (2010), 1979
(2011), 2044 (2012), 2099
(2013), 2152 (2014), and 2218
(2015) and the success of
negotiations;
9.?Affirms its full support
for the commitment of the
Secretary-General and his
Personal Envoy towards a
solution to the question of
Western Sahara in this context
to relaunch the negotiating
process with a new dynamic and
a new spirit leading to the
resumption of a political
process with the aim of
reaching a mutually acceptable
political solution, which will
provide for the
self-determination of the
people of Western Sahara in
the context of arrangements
consistent with the principles
and purposes of the Charter of
the United Nations;
10.?Calls upon the parties to
resumenegotiations under the
auspices of the
Secretary-General without
preconditions and in good
faith, taking into account the
efforts made since 2006 and
subsequent developments, with
a view to achieving a just,
lasting, and mutually
acceptable political solution,
which will provide for the
self-determination of the
people of Western Sahara in
the context of arrangements
consistent with the principles
and purposes of the Charter of
the United Nations, and noting
the role and responsibilities
of the parties in this
respect;
11.?Invites Member States to
lend appropriate assistance to
these talks;
12.?Requests the
Secretary-General to brief the
Security Council on a regular
basis, and at least twice a
year, on the status and
progress of these negotiations
under his auspices, on the
implementation of this
resolution, challenges to
MINURSO’s operations and steps
taken to address them,
expresses its intention to
meet to receive and discuss
his briefings and in this
regard, and further requests
the Secretary-General to
provide a report on the
situation in Western Sahara
well before the end of the
mandate period;
13. Further requests the
Secretary-General to update
the Security Council within
six months of the appointment
of the new Personal Envoy on
(i) ways in which the Personal
Envoy, working with the
parties, is progressing
towards a mutually acceptable
political solution, which will
provide for the
self-determination of the
people of Western Sahara in
the context of arrangements
consistent with the principles
and purposes of the Charter of
the United Nations, and
present a clear path
forward; (ii) how
MINURSO’s performance measures
are being developed and
implemented(iii) how
structures and staffing can be
reorganized to achieve mission
goals efficiently, and (iv)
how new technologies are being
considered to reduce risk,
improve force protection, and
better implement the mandate
of MINURSO;
14. Encourages
the parties to resume
cooperation with the Office of
the United Nations High
Commissioner for Refugees to
review and, where possible,
expand confidence-building
measures;
15.Urges Member
States to provide new and
additional voluntary
contributions to fund food
programmes to ensure that the
humanitarian needs of refugees
are adequately addressed and
avoid reductions in food
rations;
16.?Requests the
Secretary-General to continue
to take the necessary measures
to ensure full compliance in
MINURSO with the United
Nations zero-tolerance policy
on sexual exploitation and
abuse and to keep the Council
informed, and urges
troop-contributing countries
to take appropriate preventive
action including
pre-deployment awareness
training, and other action to
ensure full accountability in
cases of such conduct
involving their personnel;
17.Supports an
increase in the ratio of
medical personnel within the
current uniformed
authorization as requested in
the most recent report of the
Secretary-General to address
the severely overstretched
medical capacity of MINURSO.
18.Decides to
remain seized of the matter.
Outside the
Council, a half dozen Moroccan
diplomats milled around, the
same crowd from within which a
frivolous complaint to the
Department of Public
Information was made, to stop
taking photos or video from
the UNSC stakeout (which is in
fact permitted). The same DPI
allows Morocco state media to
chase Christopher Ross into
the elevator - but censured
Inner City Press for the same
thing. This is today's UN.
Numerous diplomats have asked
Inner City Press why Secretary
General Antonio Guterres is
"so pro Moroccan," as one of
them put it. The perception is
become widespread. The answers
proffered include Guterres'
time as Prime Minister of
Portugal, with references to
prior Moroccan King Hassan II
and Abdellatif Youssoufi. On
April 20, Inner City Press
asked Guterres' holdover
spokesman Stephane Dujarric
about Amnesty International urging
the inclusion of human rights
monitoring in the mandate of
the MINURSO mission, and why
Guterres ignored it as he
apparently ignores several
other human rights issues. From the UN
transcript: Inner City
Press: Amnesty International,
you may have heard of, has
issued a de… a call saying
that the UN Mission for the
Referendum in Western Sahara,
MINURSO, should have a human
rights monitoring
function. And I… I've
seen a copy. I'm not
sure if you can say what the
status of the
Secretary-General's report
is. Is it now
officially…?
Spokesman: Yeah, the
report… I would refer
you…
Inner
City Press:
I want to make sure…
Spokesman: I would refer
you to the report.
Inner
City
Press:
Since it… is it fair to say
that he's not recommending a
human rights monitoring
function? If so, how… how… why
not?
Spokesman: I think it's
fair to say that the report
speaks for itself.
Inner City Press:
Right. So he's not
recommending it?
Spokesman: You do the
analysis...
OK. And
then there's this: Moroccan
trolls, using Dujarric's (and
the now-gone Gallach's)
eviction of Inner City Press
for covering corruption like
this, that Inner City Press
"was sacked out from the #UN
because he was caught filming
a closed meeting." No, Inner
City Press said openly it
would film, and did, a meeting
in the UN Press Briefing Room
by a group that took dues
money from now indicted Ng Lap
Seng's bribery conduit. The
Moroccan state "media" at the
UN don't even ask questions.
Troll on. On April 19 as
Guterres held a rare Q&A
session, about Africa, his
holdover spokesman Stephane
Dujarric had pre-selected
questions, many of them not
about Africa at all. The UN
Department of Public
Information under Guterres has
threatened
Inner City Press after a
frivolous complaint from the
Moroccan mission about photos
taken according to the rules
at the UN Security Council
stakeout, while DPI has given
multiple "Resident
Correspondent" badges to
Moroccan state media, some
moonlighting for the UN
itself, while restricting the
UNderdog Press. Meanwhile,
Inner City Press has learned,
the UN's decoloniziation
(C-24) committee is preparing
to visit the Tindouf refugee
camp. We'll have more on this.
While Guterres breezed by the
issue of Western Sahara on
Friday, April 7 as Morocco
tried to get the Press which
covers it further restricted,
Inner City Press was leaked
the email below, from the UN's
Kim Bolduc, amid reports of
Germany's Horst Kohler as new
Personal Envoy. While
Guterres' holdover spokesman
Stephane Dujarric refused to
comment on either,
here (contrary to his
Q&A last week about "Sex
in the City, here),
now Inner City Press has put
on Scribd the full text
of Guterres' first MINURSO
report such as it is, here.
But when Inner City Press
asked the UN's holdover
spokesman Stephane Dujarric
about both on April 10, he
wouldn't answer either
question. Video
here. From the UN
transcript:
Inner City Press:
on Western Sahara, you'd said
to wait for the report, but I
guess I just want to say, this
Kim Bolduc e-mail, which Inner
City Press published, was
directed to, like, many, many
people in UNHCR. So,
5I'm wondering what then, it
talks about a code cable for
Jean-Pierre Lacroix to go
forward and… and… and, you
know, re… bring all 17 people
back. So, I'm sort of
wondering, like, is it that
you know it, but she shouldn't
have written that first?
Is it…?
Spokesman: She's the
master of her e-mails.
She's obviously communicating
what she needs to communicate
with her… with her staff, and
the Secretary-General's
position will be made very
public and updated once the
report comes out in the next
day or so.
[Also:
Question:
Follow-up. There were
some reports also last week
that the Polisario have
threatened to shoot the
MINURSO peacekeepers if they
try to conduct ceasefire
patrols in the areas under
their control. What's
the Secretary-General think
about that and the integrity
of the peacekeeping mission
itself?
Spokesman: Well, it's
incumbent on all the parties
involved to respect the,
respect UN personnel in the
area, whether uniformed or, or
not, in the way they go about
their work on a mandate of the
Security Council.
Correspondent: I'm
sorry. Just a quick
follow-up. The Polisario
also reported that you have
prevented the MINURSO from
patrolling the El-Guerguerat
area after the Moroccan forces
have withdrawn from it…
Spokesman: I think it is
important that all the parties
ensure that MINURSO has full
freedom of movement.
Masood-ji.
Correspondent: Thank
you, Stéphane-ji. ]
Inner City
Press: Will he, by that
time, confirm or deny that
he's nominating Mr. Horst
Kobler as… or Köhler…?
Spokesman: As you know,
whenever we have a nomination
for a high-level person,
there's a lot of the rumours
prior. The Security
Council will have to be
consulted, and once all that
is done, we will announce it
officially and, no doubt, you
will have the information
before it is announced
officially.
Inner City Press: Just
finally, on both this and on
South Sudan, is it possible to
get Mr. Jean-Pierre Lacroix to
do a stakeout or some type of
Q&A…?
Spokesman: I'm sure Mr
Lacroix will be delighted to
come meet you as soon as it is
possible for him. Good
day.
Inner City Press: Can I
ask a Burundi question?
Spokesman: No.
We're done. Thank you.
This
is today's UN.
***
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