As
Myanmar
Blocks UN Human Rights Rapporteur, Not Clear If Nambiar Raised It, He
Still Won't Take Questions
By
Matthew
Russell Lee
UNITED
NATIONS,
May 23 -- After part time UN envoy to Myanmar Vijay
Nambiar
visited the country and gave what was called an upbeat (or Pollyanna)
report to the UN Security Council, the UN's human rights rapporteur
Tomas Ojea Quintana spoke of "land confiscation, forced labor,
internal displacement, extrajudicial killings and sexual violence
[as] widespread, they continue today, and they remain essentially
unaddressed by the authorities” in Myanmar.
Nambiar
has
refused request to take questions about his envoy work for the UN.
Inner City Press on May 23 asked again, this time to explain the
contract between Nambiar's and Quintana's assessments, and if Nambiar
even asked the Myanmar authorities to allow Quintana into the
country, which they've blocked.
Secretary
General
Ban Ki-moon's spokesman Martin Nesirky told Inner City Press he'd
look into it -- presumably, ask Nambiar about it -- and if this issue
was raised to the authorities, as not mentioned in last week's
readout, would tell Inner City Press about it.
Nambiar last time, Press excluded, new request not shown
Inner
City Press
asked, Why not just make Nambiar available to take a few questions,
like other UN envoys do?
“The read out
does the trick in this case,” Nesirky said, after just admitting
that the question of Quintana and assess was not addressed in the
read out. The UN correspondents' association as a whole has now asked
for a briefing by Nambiar, and his refusal to do it because more and
more difficult to understand, or justify. Watch this site.
* * *
On
Myanmar,
Ban “Notes” Calls to Replace UN Envoy Nambiar, Rohingya
on Margins
By
Matthew
Russell Lee
UNITED
NATIONS,
May 20 -- With the UN's envoy to Myanmar Vijay Nambiar
openly refusing to speak with the press, despite a formal request
from the UN correspondents' association, the only way to learn the
specifics of his recent visit is to ask the Security Council
diplomats he spoke to, then ask the UN to confirm.
Inner
City Press
on May 20 asked
UN spokesman Martin Nesirky why Secretary General Ban
Ki-moon has not acted on what even Nambiar on May 20 reported to the
Council Aung San Suu Kyi has asked for: a full time replacement to
Nambiar as envoy.
Nesirky
replied
that “the Secretary-General takes note of these suggestions, and
we’ll look at them in due course.” Some wonder when the course
will be considered due, given that replacement of Nambiar has been
suggested for months.
On
May 19 the
Assistant chief of the UN refugee agency UNHCR told Inner City Press
about the plight of the Rohnigya people left stateless by Myanmar.
Inner City Press asked her if Nambiar, Ban's envoy to Myanmar, does
anything on this issue. This she did not answer.
Inner
City Press
on May 20 asked Nesirky if Nambiar works at all on the issue. Without
providing any specifics, Nesirky said that “obviously we would have
concern for the treatment and position of any ethnic group.”
But
why then did
Nambiar not meet with ethnic minorities, nor speak about the
violations and ending of ceasefires in their areas by the government?
These are questions that Nambiar should take and answer, in the
press availability now requested by the UN correspondents'
association.
From
the
UN's
May 20 transcript:
Inner
City
Press: I wanted to ask about Myanmar as well. Yesterday, Mr.
[Vijay] Nambiar didn’t end up taking any questions, but a member of
the Council of the United Kingdom, on the record, said that he
recorded that Daw Aung San Suu Kyi told him that she would like to
see a full-time envoy, and the United Kingdom, as some other
countries have in the past, said they too would like to see a
full-time envoy, i.e., not Mr. Nambiar, who would be a part-time
envoy. So I wonder, one, can you confirm that that’s what Mr.
Nambiar said in the Council, given that a Council member said it? And
two, what’s the Secretariat’s response to the request by the
main democracy leader in Myanmar, that a full-time envoy be chosen,
selected and sent?
Inner
City
Press: Well, Mr. Vijay Nambiar conveyed to the Security Council
the gist of his conversations with Daw Aung San Suu Kyi and the NLD
[National League for Democracy], and also conversations he had with
Myanmar's other political opposition groups, ethnic nationality
groups and representatives of civil society in Myanmar. And he has
also said — because I know that you’ve asked a number of
questions related to this, including the prisoner release — he also
said that, while the initial sentence reductions and resulting
release of some political prisoners is a small step in the right
direction, it has been short of expectations and is insufficient. And,
again, just to reiterate, during the visit, the United Nations
reiterated its call for the urgent release of all political
prisoners.
And
also,
I think it is important to note that the real test would be
whether — or how quickly — the new climate can translate into a
change in content in Myanmar. And it would also be important to see
how the authorities concretely hold up to their own commitments and
respond to the United Nations’ various suggestions over the next
coming months.
Inner
City
Press: there was a press conference here yesterday afternoon,
where an official of UNHCR was talking about stateless people and the
Convention on Refugees. And she spoke about the Rohingya being
repatriated to Myanmar, not being given citizenship papers. So, I
wanted to, it wasn’t clear to me, maybe you’re always… you said
that if something wasn’t in the statement, it doesn’t mean he
didn’t work on it or didn’t discuss it, but is… does he view
this problem of the… she says there is a million of them, stateless
Rohingya people in Myanmar; is part of this in any way related to his
mandate of good offices and if so, what does he think of the
Government’s treatment of them?
Spokesperson:
Well, obviously we would have concern for the treatment and position
of any ethnic group. And as I mentioned, Mr. Nambiar did convey to
the Security Council and outlined the conversations that he had with
the various groups and individuals, including ethnic nationality
groups, and of course with the authorities themselves.
Inner
City
Press: On this idea that both Daw Aung San Suu Kyi, the United
Kingdom and others have said that a full-time, without… that a
full-time envoy would be better suited for the job…
Spokesperson:
Well, we’ve said before, because the last time there was a Group
of Friends meeting, a similar suggestion was made, and we’ve said
before that the Secretary-General takes note of these ideas,
proposals, suggestions, and we’ll look at them in due course.
Again,
some wonder
when the course will be considered due, given that replacement of
Nambiar has been suggested for months. Watch this site.
* * *
