Before
Sudan Ousted
UN's Za'tari,
They Froze UN
Staff's
Dollars in
UNFCU
By
Matthew
Russell Lee,
Exclusive
UNITED
NATIONS,
December 25, more
here --
Amid charges
that the UN in
Sudan,
including
Herve Ladsous'
UN
Peacekeeping
in Darfur, has
colluded with
the
authorities in
Khartoum to
cover up rapes
and killing,
now the UN's
Resident
Coordinator
Ali Al Za'tari
has been
ordered to
leave Sudan by
January 2,
Inner City
Press first
reported
earlier today.
Inner City
Press
similarly exclusively
reported,
and asked
the UN about,
Sudan's ouster
of UNDP
Country
Director
Yvonne Heller
on December
24.
But
there's yet
more.
UN staff in
Sudan have
complained to
Inner City
Press of what
they've called
collusion
between the
authorities in
Khartoum and
Za'tari,
including to
"steal" their
money.
Sudanese
nationals working
for the UN
have had part
of their
salaries paid
into UN Federal
Credit Union accounts,
in U.S.
dollars. Then
they were told
that these
dollar
accounts were
frozen, and could
only be
transferred to
the Bank of
Khartoum.
Blame was
initially put
on US
sanctions but
staffers'
inquiries with
UNFCU, they
exclusively
tell Inner
City Press, yielded
the answer
that this was
due to a new
regulation by
their employing
agency --
UNDP.
Staff wrote to
Ali Al-Za'tari
but were
ignored, even
after they
demonstrated,
pointing out
that other UN
system funds
and programs
found ways to
not freeze (or
"steal") their
national staff
members' US
dollar
accounts.
Inner
City Press has
asked four
UNDP
spokespeople
questions
including:
"please
deny or
confirm and
explain UNDP
national staff
in Sudan being
told they
cannot access
the U.S.
dollars in
their UNFCU
accounts,
except to
transfer them
to the Bank of
Khartoum.
Please respond
to criticism
that UNDP has
violated the
rights of its
national
staff, to the
benefit of the
authorities in
Khartoum. (By
the way, have
yet to receive
follow up from
UNDP about its
investigations
in/on
Afghanistan
and Rwanda)."
One
spokesperson
committed to
revert when
they have
information on
this, and
Helle and
Za'tari
(clearly they
have
information on
that, but none
has been
provided).
Ironically,
one of the
UNDP
spokespeople's
auto-responder
said "I am
away during
this period
and will have
limited access
to emails. For
urgent
matters,
kindly
contact:
Yvonne Helle."
Yvonne Helle,
the UNDP
Country
Director who
is being
thrown out of
Sudan...
Earlier this
Fall, Sudan's
security
agency NISS
ordered a UN
humanitarian
staffer to
leave El Fasher
in North
Darfur, Inner
City Press is
exclusively
informed.
She left, to
Khartoum --
where NISS
"harassed"
her, ordering
her to return
to El Fasher
and
"apologize" to
a NISS official
there.
Ultimately she
left Sudan.
Nothing was
said, as with
an earlier
case in April
(on which
we'll have
more;
questions are
pending to
spokespeople
who cite the
holiday). This
is today's UN,
under Ban
Ki-moon and
Herve Ladsous,
Helen Clark and,
until now, Ali
Al-Za'tari.
On December
24, Inner City
Press
similarly exclusively
reported
and then asked
the UN
Spokesman
about UNDP
Country
Director
Yvonne Helle
being ordered
out of Sudan,
citing her and
Al-Za'tari's
e-mails. Video
here.
A full day
after that,
Reuters
reported on
Helle's ouster
-- typically,
for Reuters, with
no credit
to the Press'
prior
exclusive
story.
(Reuters' UN
bureau chief
has said he
has a policy
of not
crediting
Inner City
Press'
exclusive, and
has gone to
far as to
censor,
Sudan-style,
his "for the
record"
anti-Press
complains to
the UN, click
here for that,
via EFF's
ChillingEffect.org).
On December
24, Inner City
Press asked UN
Secretary
General Ban
Ki-moon's
spokesman
Stephane
Dujarric about
Sudan
having just
similarly
"PNG-ed"
or declared
persona
non-grata the
Sudan Country
Director of
the UN
Development
Program Yvonne
Helle, with
Za'tari barely
pushing back
against the
government.
Dujarric said
that host
countries'
ordered to PNG
a UN staff
member are
treated
seriously and
should be sent
to, and
considered and
acted on by,
Ban's
Secretariat in
New York. But
Dujarric in
the 18 hours
after Inner
City Press
asked about
Helle has not
returned with
any
information or
answer. Then
Reuters
published its
story, with no
credit.
On the
Christmas
holiday in New
York and with
UN
Headquarters
and the UN
Security
Council
closed,
Za'tari has
sent out this
e-mail, which
Inner City
Press obtained
and published
here:
From:
Ali Al-Za'tari
[at] undp.org
Date: December
25, 2014 at
12:55:04 PM
GMT+3
To: UNCT1
Sudan, UNCT2
Sudan, UNCT3
Sudan, UNDP
Sudan
Subject: I am
Leaving
Dear
all,
I regret to
inform you
that the
government had
requested me
today to leave
Sudan. I will
do so on 2
January. Best.
ali
ali al-za'tari
UN RC/HC
UNDP RR
Khartoum -
SUDAN
UNCT is the UN
Country Team,
which as RC
(Resident
Coordinatory)
Za'tari is or
has been in
charge of.
Sudan PNG-ing
even Za'tari,
who has been
so
accommodating,
leads Inner
City Press'
sources in
Sudan to
surmise that
the government
of
International
Criminal Court
indictee Omar
al Bashir is
"just going
for it," after
having told UN
Peacekeeping
to start
preparing to
leave.
UN
Peacekeeping
under Herve
Ladsous has
helped cover
up rapes in
Darfur;
Ladsous met
with Bashir
without ever
explaining or
answering
Press
questions why.
Now what will
Ban and
Ladsous, who 123
non-government
organizations
and Sudan
experts have
asked Ban to
fire, do?
What will the
UN Security
Council, of
which a
Permanent
Member has
confirmed to
Inner City
Press having
received the
"fire Ladsous"
letter from
the NGOs, do?
Watch this
site.
Here is what
Inner City
Press asked
Ban's
spokessman
Dujarric on
December 24,
as transcribed
by the UN:
Inner
City Press: I
wanted to ask
you to confirm
and comment on
the Government
of Sudan
ordering the
UNDP country
representative
Yvonne Helle
to leave the
country by
Monday.
There is
already an
e-mail by Ali
Al-Za’tari,
the Resident
Coordinator,
saying
essentially
she is gone,
she will be
missed.
So I wanted to
know... what
is the UN's
policy when
the Government
orders
somebody
out? Is
it common to
immediately
accept it or
is it sent to
Headquarters
to decide
whether to
combat it and
fight it or
oppose it?
Spokesman
Dujarric:
As you
profiled, I'm
not aware of
this
particular
case.
Obviously,
declaring a
person PNG, to
be asked to
leave is a
serious issue,
which is
discussed at
Headquarters —
but I will
find out.
Inner City
Press: I've
seen the
e-mails and
there is
basically a
one-hour gap
between her
e-mail to
staff saying
“I have to
leave by
Monday”, and
Mr. Ali
Al-Za’tari
saying “not
nice to see
you go” but
essentially,
“sorry”.
I'm wondering,
can you
confirm that
there is a
protocol?
Spokesman
Dujarric:
As I said,
these things
are taken very
seriously.
Really?
On
December 24
Yvonne Helle
said, in an
e-mail
obtained by
Inner City
Press, "The
Government of
Sudan has
informed Ali
[Al-Za'tari]
that I am no
longer welcome
in Sudan and
have been
asked to leave
by Monday. You
can imagine
the state of
shock I am
in... As you
all know, I
loved working
and living in
Sudan. Given
the timing it
will be
impossible to
say goodbye to
alll of you in
person, so
herewith my
heartfelt
goodbye to you
in writing."
Ali Al-Za'tari
is the UN's
"Resident
Coordinator"
in Sudan;
whistleblowers
tell Inner
City Press he
has "simply
accepted this
as usual... It
will become a
regular thing
as long as he
is so
concerned to
please
internal
security
instead of
standing up
for the
Sudanese
people."
An hour after
Yvonne Helle's
message,
Al-Za'tari
wrote, "As you
have read in
Yvonne's
message, a
government
decision was
made and
formally
delivered
regarding
Yvonne's stay
in Sudan... I
will miss
Yvonne as a
leader of
thought and
creativity."
It is not only
UNDP that
gives in so
easily to the
authorities in
Khartoum.
Amid the cover
up of rapes in
Darfur by UN
Peacekeeping,
whose chief
Herve Ladsous
met with
Sudan's
International
Criminal Court
- indicted
president Omar
al Bashir
without ever
explaining
why, 123
non-governmental
organizations
and human
rights experts
and activists
have called
for Ladsous to
be fired. Ladsous video here, Vine
here.
Inner City
Press has
obtained the
letter and
published it.
The
above-referenced
Reuters UN
bureau chief,
it must be
noted, under
his own byline
sought to
exonerate
Ladsous,
reporting
without
context
complaints
made to
Ladsous about
another UN
staff member,
without
mentioning
Ladsous' own
role in
covering up
rapes in the
DR Congo and
now Darfur.
Reuters has
not reported
the complaints
against
Ladsous, even
as a Permanent
Three mission
on the
Security
Council has
confirmed to
Inner City
Press its
receipt of the
letter.
At the UN's
December 22
noon briefing,
Inner City
Press asked
Secretary
General Ban
Ki-moon's
spokesman
Stephane
Dujarric to
confirm
receiving and
then provide
responsive
comment on the
letter. Video
here,
including
sample Ladsous
"walk away" on
April 23, 2014
about his
cover up in
South Sudan.
This follows
UN Secretary
General Ban
Ki-moon taking
no questions
about Darfur
or Sudan
during his
December 17
press
conference (at
which, as
noted by the Free UN Coalition for Access, Ban seemed
to have the
content of
questions in
advance.)
Nor did Ban
answer Inner
City Press'
request for an
update at the
Darfur rapes
at the end of
his December
22 media
stake-out.
The letter is
copied to the
presidents /
prime
minister,
foreign
ministers and
UN ambassadors
of the US, UK
and France.
How will they
respond,
particularly
France which
installed
Ladsous atop
UN
Peacekeeping
after their
first
selection,
Jerome
Bonnafont, was
rejected at
the last
minute by the
UN? And how
might this new
outspokenness
of NGOs impact
attempts to
install Andrew
Lansley atop
the UN Office
for the
Coordination
of
Humanitarian
Affairs?
The letter
says, "The
result has
been a vastly
expensive and
discredited UN
mission, led
by Herve
Ladsous, who
consistently
and
deliberately
diminishes the
scale of the
conflict in
Darfur,
thereby
enabling
Khartoum’s
crimes to
flourish,
whilst the
international
community
congratulates
itself on
improved
circumstances
in Darfur."
The letter's
final
paragraph
begins, "At the
very least
Herve Ladsous
should not
continue his
role at the UN
DPKO."
Watch this
site.
, 
