UNITED
NATIONS, May
21 -- After
whistleblower
James
Wasserstrom harshly
criticized UN
Secretary
General Ban
Ki-moon last
month,
after winning
a ruling of
retaliation
but with a
financial
award that did
not even
cover his
legal fees,
Ban announced
that an
outside
consultant
would
advise him on
the issue of
whistleblower
protection.
Then
last week Ban
filed an
appeal even to
the small
award to
Wasserstrom.
On
May 21 Inner
City Press
asked Ban's
deputy
spokesman
Eduardo Del
Buey
to explain why
the appeal
shouldn't be
viewed as discouraging
future
UN
whistleblowers,
and about the
consultant.
Del
Buey said he
would not
comment on the
appeal.
Minutes after
the
(very short)
noon briefing,
Inner City
Press was sent
this response:
Subject:
Re:
Your question
at the noon
briefing
From: UN
Spokesperson -
Do
Not Reply [at]
un.org
Date: Tue, May
21, 2013 at
12:27 PM
To:
Matthew.Lee
[at]
innercitypress.com
The
UN Secretariat
has engaged
Justice Louise
Otis of Canada
to conduct
an independent
review of the
Organization's
protection
against
retaliation
policy for the
purpose of
issuing
recommendations
to the
Secretary-General
to enhance
policy
effectiveness.
Justice Otis
is an
expert in
international
administrative
law, and
formally
served on
the Redesign
Panel on the
United Nations
Administration
of Justice
System.
Justice
Otis'
review is
currently
underway, and
her final
report is
expected
to be
delivered to
the
Secretary-General
later in the
year.
While
the response
is
appreciated,
even though
the terms of
Justice Otis'
"engagement"
and how she
was selected
are not
disclosed,
there is still
the matter of
what message
the appeal
sends. Does
Ban
just
automatically
appeal any
ruling against
his UN, no
matter how
well reasoned?
Watch this
site.
, 
