UNITED
NATIONS, June
6 -- While the
UK now takes
the lead on
Somalia,
getting
Nicholas Kay
appointed UN
envoy and
chairing
today's
Security
Council debate
about the
country, it
does not seem
to take
seriously
the arguments
for
independence
of Somaliland,
as well as
Puntland and
Jubaland.
Click here and
here for
previous Inner
City Press
stories
on this.
Meanwhile,
in
the midst of
the Somalia
debate in the
Security
Council, UK
Ambassador
Mark Lyall
Grant
re-tweeted
about the
right of
self-determination
of people in
the Falkland
Islands. What
about
self-determination
in Hargeisa?
There
are questions,
too, about the
UN system
handing
Somaliland's
airspace
to Mogadishu,
and the role
of a UK DFID
funded
airline. A
journalist
in the region
got the
run-around
from UN OCHA
(the type of
UN
systemwide
stonewalling
the Free
UN Coalition
for Access
is trying to
counter-act)
and requested
that this be
asked:
“Is
it true, USAID
and DIFD
yearly cover
overall
expenses
incurring
UNHAS
running cost
in Somalia? If
yes, why UNDP
staff paid
expenses on
flight and
persuaded to
use UNHAS
instead of EU
chartered
airlines
which is
free?"
The
answer
provided by a
"UN
spokesperson
in Somalia"
was this:
“Following
notification
by authorities
in Somaliland,
all UN flights
to and from
Somaliland
have been
suspended with
effect from
yesterday at
6pm. The
United Nations
and its
agencies are
taking this
transportation
issue
seriously and
are in
discussions
with the
relevant
authorities
to bring about
a resolution
as quickly as
possible.
There has been
no
impact on
ongoing UN
programmes and
it is our
priority to
ensure no
interruption
of support or
activities.
The UN
welcomes the
ongoing
efforts to
resolve this
quickly.”
If
that were the
focus, why
hand over the
airspace?
Here's what
Lyall
Grant said on
Thursday:
"One
of the very
important
roles that
needs to take
place in
parallel with
the security
and stability
aspect is the
formulation
and agreement
of
the
constitutional
relationship
that will
exist between
the Federal
Government of
Somalia and
some of the
Somali
regions, so
Somaliland,
Puntland and
Jubaland and
other regions.
And one of the
important
roles that the
Federal
government of
Somalia and
the
representatives
of those
regions have
in the
immediate
future is to
begin the
process
of dialogue to
make sure that
a
constitutional
settlement can
be
reached."
What
was that
again, about
self-determination?
As
we've inquired
into May 21
and reported
on since, one
or more times
a
day, the UK is
presiding over
the roll-back
in (new) media
access to
the Security
Council from
what existed
not only
during the
Council's
renovation
relocation but
also before
it.
When
Inner City
Press for
FUNCA asked UK
Ambassador
Mark Lyall
Grant if he
supported
continued
media
workspace at
the Council
and if so what
he would do
about it,
Lyall Grant
said this is a
matter for the
UN Department
of Public
Information
and "the
journalists"
-- it's
becoming clear
which
journalists.
See UK
Mission "World
Press Freedom
Day"
video, here.
Even
the UK's
transcript of
Lyall Grant's
press
conference
mis-represents
the questions.
It's
always easier
to dodge a
question other
than the one
asked. Compare
UN
web cast video
here, from
Minute 17:32,
to this (mis)
transcription:
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