On
Silva,
Ambassadors
Meet With UN
Peacekeeping,
Rice Says
Concerned,
Immunity
Letter from
USUN Surfaces
By
Matthew
Russell Lee,
Exclusive
UNITED
NATIONS,
February 17, updated
-- Three
weeks ago
Inner City
Press began
asking
the UN and
then the US
Mission to the
UN how they
could accept
as a
UN "Senior
Adviser on
Peacekeeping
Operations"
General
Shavendra
Silva, whose
Division 58 is
repeatedly
named in
connection
with war
crimes in
Secretary
General Ban
Ki-moon's
Panel of
Experts
report on Sri
Lanka.
On
February
14,
Bangledesh's
Permanent
Representative
told Inner
City Press he, India
and Pakistan
were telling
Sri Lanka to
"fix it."
On
February
16, Pakistan's
Permanent
Representative
confirmed this
and
said there was
a meeting on
February 17 on
the topic.
That meeting,
of ambassadors
with the two
Under
Secretaries
General for
peacekeeping,
Inner City
Press
understands,
took place
Friday at 9:45
am.
At
10:30 am
Friday, Inner
City Press
asked US
Ambassador
Susan Rice
about a
letter
it found that
that Russell
F. Graham,
Minister
Counselor for
Host Country
Affairs at the
US Mission to
the UN,
provided to
Silva's
lawyers to
tell a US
Federal Court
that Silva, as
Sri Lanka's
Deputy
Permanent
Representative,
has diplomatic
immunity. On
that basis, this
case
against Silva
was dismissed.
Inner City
Press is
putting the
letter online,
here.
Ambassador
Rice
took the
question, some
from Inner
City Press on
Sudan, and
said,
"These are two
different
things. The
State
Department has
to
respond on
immunity. He
unfortunately
or fortunately
is an
accredited
diplomat."
Then,
more
generally on
Silva, Rice
told Inner
City Press,
"it's very
concerning
that someone
with his
background
would be
selected to
serve on this
advisory
group. We have
conveyed this
to member
states, as
well as to the
Secretariat.
There are a
lot of efforts
underway to
address
[this],
probably best
not to be
discussed
publicly."
Moments
later,
another
Security
Council
Permanent
Representative
approached
Inner
City Press and
said, "on the
Sri Lankan,
you have done
well." Inner
City Press has
sent questions
to USGs
Malcorra and
Ladsous:
"Hello.
Asking
for an answer
before noon: I
understand
that on the
matter of
Shavendra
Silva, who is
named in the
S-G's Panel of
Experts report
on
Sri Lanka as
in charge of
Division 48
which is
described
engaged in
war crimes,
ambassadors
met with UN
Peacekeeping
today. I am
asking you
directly to
confirm this,
and to state
the status of
Mr. Silva on
the
Senior
Advisory
Group, and at
this stage,
your view."
At
Friday's noon
briefing,
Inner City
Press asked
again, and Ban
Ki-moon's
Deputy
Spokesman
Eduardo Del
Buey said he
had no
information,
to "ask DPKO's
spokesman."
Update
of 6:34 pm:
DPKO's
spokesman has
written in to
note that in
response to
the request
for a
confirmation
before the
noon briefing,
he "visited"
and sent a
text message.
Noted. But the
request was
clear:
confirm, which
could be done
even in a 160
character text
message. The
problem here
is
substantive: a
UN Secretary
General and
Under
Secretaries
General who
"have nothing
to say" about
an alleged
war criminal
-- or a
commander of a
division
accused of war
crimes -
advising them.
Inner City
Press
reiterated, it
is a question
for Ban and
his
spokespeople,
including
because Ban's
own High
Commissioner
for Human
Rights wrote
him on this
topic - as she
told Inner
City Press at
the General
Assembly
stakeout on
February 13 --
and because
Silva is in
Ban's own
report.
We are still
awaiting an on
the record
response,
which has been
re-requested
from Ban's
office as well
as from USG
Malcorra and
her spokesman.
Update
of 2:20 pm,
Feb 17: Inner
City Press has
been sent this
by the DPKO
spokesman:
"I
can confirm
that DPKO-DFS
leadership
today
facilitated a
meeting with
some Member
States. As the
spokesperson's
office has
previously
said, the
selection for
this position
on the Special
Advisory Group
is for the
Member States.
Since the
selection has
become known
to the
Secretariat,
we have
actively
facilitated
Member States
in their
discussions to
consider this
matter. We
have nothing
to say at this
stage on our
views of the
membership of
the Special
Advisory
Group."
What
does it say
about Ban's UN
that it "has
nothing to
say" about the
nomination as
a "Senior
Adviser" on
Peacekeeping
of a military
commander
named in Ban's
own Panel of
Experts report
on Sri Lanka
as engaged in
the shelling
of hospitals
and
presumptive
execution of
those seeking
to surrender?
Prior to these
developments,
the Sri Lankan
Mission's
action was to
send a letter
of
complaint to
Inner City
Press, sending
a copy to
Ban's
spokesman
Martin Nesirky
as
well as to
some in the UN
press corps.
Inner City
Press in less
than 24 hours
published
and responded
to the letter,
citing only
some of the
many
references to
Silva's
Division 58 in
the report.
Watch
this site.
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