As
UN Called
"Immoral" on
Yida in South
Sudan, UN
Denies,
Stonewalls on
Syria
By
Matthew
Russell Lee
UNITED
NATIONS,
March 19 --
There there's
a lack of
necessary
services in
the Yida
refugee camp
in South Sudan
is said not
only by George
Clooney but by
Dr. Mukesh
Kapila, the
UN's former
top
humanitarian
official in
Sudan.
Kapila
said that
the UN's
"humanitarian
policy led by
UNHCR is to
severely
restrict aid
going in to
needy
civilians in
Yida,
pressurizing
them
to move by not
giving them
enough food,
water, and
other needs."
He called it
"immoral,
unethical and
anti-humanitarian."
And
he should
know.
Inner
City Press
asked UN
Secretary
General Ban
Ki-moon's lead
spokesman
Martin
Nesirky about
it on March
16:
Inner
City
Press: Mukesh
Kapila, who
used to be the
head aid
official for
Sudan, has
gone public
and said that
the UN system
is choosing to
not
serve refugees
that are in
the Yida camp
in Unity State
in South
Sudan. These
are people
that fled
Southern
Kordofan, that
they
choose to
remain as
close to their
homes as they
can, but that
the UN
has chosen not
to fund NGOs,
schools and
other services
in that camp.
Is that in
fact the case,
and if so, why
would the UN
not be serving
the refugees
where they
want to
remain?
Spokesperson
Neskiry:
I think we’ll
start with the
first part of
the question
and see what
we can find
out, Matthew.
In other
words, is it
the
case or not?
Inner
City
Press: He said
it seems like
[inaudible]
Spokesperson
Nesirky:
That may well
be the case,
Matthew, but
let’s check.
Three
days later,
not having
gotten any
answer from
Nesirky, Inner
City Press
asked his
deputy,
Eduardo Del
Buey:
Inner
City
Press: I
wanted to ask
--
Deputy
Spokesperson:
One more
question.
Inner
City
Press: Martin
said he would
look into this
allegation by
a
former UN
official that
the UN system
is not
providing aid
to the
Yida refugee
camp in South
Sudan…
Deputy
Spokesperson:
Yes, we are
exploring
that, and when
we have an
answer
we will get
back to you.
Later
on Monday
the following
arrived:
Subject:
Your
question on
Yida refugee
camp
From: UN
Spokesperson -
Do Not
Reply [at]
un.org
Date: Mon, Mar
19, 2012 at
3:06 PM
To:
Matthew.Lee
[at]
innercitypress.com
UNHCR
has
informed us of
the following:
UNHCR and
partners
continues to
assist
refugees in
Yida. UNHCR
has been
working with
various
partners
to provide
basic
life-sustaining
assistance to
refugees in
Yida,
including
protection
monitoring,
community
services and
food.
Moreover,
UNHCR is
providing
funding
support to one
of two health
clinics in
Yida as well
as two
protection NGO
partners.
UNHCR has
also recently
completed a
full
registration
of the refugee
population
which helps
identify
persons with
specific needs
and tailor
protection and
assistance
interventions
that respond
to the broader
needs of the
refugee
population.
That
is, the UN
and UNHCR deny
entirely what
the UN's own
former top aid
official in
Sudan, among
others, is
saying --
without even
directly
addressing
what the
official has
said.
This
while the
current UN of
Ban Ki-moon is
relying almost
entirely on
former and
retired UN
officials of
the Kofi Annan
era to try to
mediate in
Syria:
Nicholas
Michel, Jean
Marie
Guehenno, Alan
Doss, Lamine
Cisse.
Inner City
Press asked
Nesirky on
March 16:
Inner
City
Press: is this
now the time
that you can
say who is
working with
Kofi Annan on
his team? Is
it possible to
say if Mr.
Guéhenno
is a
deputy, if
Nasser
Al-Kidwa will
be going
Sunday and
what the UN
role
will be in
this technical
negotiation
team.
Spokesperson:
If I have
anything
Matthew, I’ll
let you know
on that. The
most
important
thing is that
they have a
job to do and,
as you heard
Mr.
Annan say just
a few moments
ago, which was
why I delayed
the start
of the
briefing, that
team is
scheduled to
go in as a
technical team
to continue
those
discussions
that the Joint
Special Envoy
mentioned.
Inner
City
Press: I have
tried to get
the names, so
I just want to
ask you
for a comment
on this. Some
are saying
that because
Kofi Annan’s
team, at least
visually as
seen on
television,
not as
provided by
your Office,
consists of so
many former UN
officials,
many retired
officials like
Alan Doss,
Guéhenno,
Nicolas
Michel, that
somehow it
either shows a
kind of a lack
of a new
generation of
UN people, or
somehow
reflects
strangely on
the current
UN, that in
fact all these
retired UN
former people
have to be
called in.
What would be
your
response to
that?
Spokesperson:
None
whatsoever at
this point,
Matthew.
And
there has been
no response in
the three days
since. Watch
this site.
, 
