UN
Cites Right
Sector in
Odessa, Says
They Were
Provoked,
“Ended in
Fire”
By
Matthew
Russell Lee
UNITED
NATIONS, May
16 -- Of the
UN's Navi
Pillay and
Ivan Simonovic
report
on Ukraine,
much will be
said. But what
as released on
the morning of
May 16 has it
said about the
events of May
2 in Odessa?
“63.
On 2 May, a
national unity
rally gathered
around 1,500
people,
including many
fans from the
football clubs
of
Chornomorets
Odesa and
Metalist
Kharkiv, as
well as city
residents.
Among the
crowd there
were
reportedly
also some
radical
members of the
Right Sector
and
Maidan
self-defence
unit armed
with bats and
metal sticks.
Shortly
after the
rally began,
the latter
were provoked
by
approximately
300
well-organized
and armed
pro-federalism
activists; the
rally turning
into a mass
disorder,
which lasted
for several
hours. As a
result,
four
protesters in
support of
Ukraine were
killed by
gunshots (a
fifth died
later in the
hospital from
his injuries).
Many were
injured during
the afternoon
(mostly
protesters
supporting
federalism).
During the
evening,
violent
clashes
between the
two
sides
continued on
the main
square
(Kulikove
polje), which
ended in a
fire a at the
Trade Union
building where
protesters
supporting
federalism had
taken refuge.
As a result of
the events, 46
people
died of whom
30 (including
6 women) were
trapped and
unable to
leave
the burning
building and 8
(including one
woman) died
from jumping
out of the
windows. In
total, 38 died
at the scene
of the fire.
At
least 230 were
injured.”
While
not
attributing
the setting of
the fire which
targeted
“pro-federalism”
activists, the
UN report says
that these
“armed”
pro-federalism
activists
“provoked” the
Right Sector.
Ivan
Simonovic is
in Ukraine,
but will only
go to Odessa
AFTER today's
report
has been
released.
Inner City
Press has previously
reported on
what OHCHR
sources have
said are
Simonovic's
moved to try
to become
Pillay's
successor
(there are
other
candidates; more
on that soon).
Now sources
say with
Eastern Europe
in line to
pick the
successor to
Ban Ki-moon as
UN
Secretary
General,
Simonovic may
be vying for
the UN's top
post
alongside
Irina Bokova
and others,
including non
Eastern
Europeans
Helen Clark of
UNDP and Kevin
Rudd of, well,
Kevin Rudd,
who'd like
to compete
with Kamel
Morjane, long
time associate
of Ben Ali in
Tunisia, to
replace
Lakhdar
Brahimi on
Syria.
Ah,
politics.
Tellingly,
when
US Voice of
America wrote
up the UN
report, here,
it didn't even
mention Odessa
(or Odesa),
citing only
anti-government
groups. There
is legislation
pending in the
US Congress to
confirm that
Voice of
America must
follow the US
line -- but
isn't that
already the
case?
In full
disclosure,
Voice of
America along
with UN
Correspondents
Association
executive
committee
members from
Reuters and
Agence
France Presse
sought to get
Inner City
Press thrown
out of the
UN, as
documented by
Freedom of
Information
Act inquiries.
Click here (VOA letter to current UN spokesman),
here
(AFP) and
here
for VOA about
Reuters'
support,
here's
Reuters bureau
chief asking
Google to ban
from Search
his “for
the record”
complaint to
the UN
against Inner
City Press:
censorship.
As
a human rights
irony, these
same and UNCA's
executive
committee set
up a kangaroo
court to
prosecute
Inner City
Press for its
reporting
on
Sri Lanka war
criminals and
conflicts of
interest, here.
Ah,
human rights.
Watch this
site.
, 
