UNITED NATIONS
GATE, February 11
– Inner City Press on July 5
was banned from entering the
UN, the day after it filed a
criminal complaint against
UN Security for physically
removing it from covering
the meeting about the UN
Secretary General Antonio
Guterres' $6.7 billion
peacekeeping budget, as
witnessed and essentially
cheered on by senior UN
official Christian Saunders,
tearing its reporter's
shirt, painfully and
intentionally twisting his
arm and slamming shut and
damaging his laptop. On
August 17, Guterres' Global
Communicator Alison Smale
issued a letter banning
Inner City Press from the UN
- for life. With no due
process. She and Guterres
have put the UN in the US
Press Freedom Tracker, here.
Smale said,
again, that the UN would
answer Press questions to
the Spokesman Stephane
Dujarric and his Office; Dujarric said the same on
camera.
On February 11,
before a Deputy Farhan Haq
briefing in which
he announced
that
Guterres would
meet Maduro's
foreign
minister in
the UN mansion
later,
days
after Dujarric took a question
on Cameroon
from the
correspondent
who previously said "the Anglophones did some
shooting today,"
still
on "mission,"
Inner
City Press submitted 503 questions
"There are more than 300+
questions UNanswered.
While appreciating
and using what was sent on
January 29 after it was
read out in the briefing
room, no answers on Dec 17
or 18 or 19 or 20 or 21 -
another FIVE days in a
row, even as SG's direct
conflicts of interest and
failure to disclose
emerge, and a newest low.
While
appreciating the
lone partial
response to Question
Feb 8-8, nothing on
Dec 24 or Dec 26 or
Dec 27 or Dec 28, or
January 2, 3 or 4 or
8 or 9 or 10 or 11
or 14 or 15 or 16 or
17 or 18 or 21 or 22
or 23 or 24 or 25 or
28 - that was
FIFTEEN week-days in
a row, apparently
under orders, then a
simple post-facto
answer. Now what? No
answers on January
30 nor 31 nor
February 1 nor 4 nor
5 nor 6 nor 7. No
answers at all
during those four
days of the US v Ho
trial showing
corruption in the UN
says it all. This
ban is just
censorship - and
Inner City Press
must be allowed back
into the noon
briefing to ask its
questions in person
and follow up on
them.
February
11-1: On Cameroon,
what is the SG's
comment and action
on the deadly
burning down of the
hospital in Kumba in
the Anglophone
Southwest Region,
and on the
imprisonment of
nurse Njongwan
Emeline for
"unauthorized"
filming the
authorities mass
arrests in Buea? In
this context, please
immediately specify
the SG's statement
on "dialogue avec le
Premier Ministre [du
Cameroun] et il nous
a promis que tout ce
fait pour créer des
conditions de
respect des droits
de l’homme et de
dialogue pour que la
situation puisse se
normaliser"?
February
11-2: On Haiti,
please specify the
UN's knowledge of
and action on those
killed and injured
by its APC, what
will be done to the
driver and for the
victims.
February
11-3: In Iraq, what
is the SG's comment
and action on his
envoy Jeanine
Hennis-Plasschaert
entirely covering
herself to meet with
Ayatollah Sistani? [Inner
City Press
tweeted photo here.]
February
11-4: On Sri Lanka,
please confirm that
the SG and USG
Lacroix are, even
after Shavendra
Silva was named army
chief of staff,
urging the fast
review and
deployment of his
soldiers to South
Sudan.
February
11-5: On South
Sudan, again, please
immediately confirm
and explain the
departure of
Olayinka Adeyemi
from UNMISS and
separately the order
to staff NOT to
communicate their
complaints to UNHQ,
leaked to Inner City
Press: "Dear
Colleagues, It has
been noted that
security officers
continue to
communicate directly
with DSS HQ on
policies and other
official issues in
spite of the fact
that you have been
advised not to do
so. Worst of
all, these
correspondences are
done without
copying the
PSA or
security management
in Juba. This
is against best
practices and
should be
stopped. Once
again please be
reminded to direct
all your concerns
regarding security
policies and other
official issues
to security
management in Juba.
Where it is deemed
that UNDSS HQ’s
input is
required,
management in Juba
will do so.
Kind regards, Thomas
Acheampong." Is this
USG Drennan's
policy? Again, what
is USG Drennan's
response to Inner
City Press' month
ago letter to him,
receipt confirmed,
about being roughed
up by UN DSS Lt
Ronald E. Dobbins?
And AGAIN, please
immediately explain
how it is legitimate
to ban from enter
into the UN the
media that has been
asking about these
and other questions,
with no hearing or
appeal.
February 8-1:
On Nigeria, what is
the comment of the SG
and separately DSG on
that Governor Nasir
el-Rufai of Kaduna
State yesterday
threatened that
foreign nationals who
interfere in the
forthcoming general
elections would be
given a “body bags
treatment"?
February 8-2:
On CAR and impunity,
what is the comment
and action of the SG,
and separately the new
SRSG, on opposition
to a clause in
the "peace" agreement
that reportedly calls
for the suspension of
prosecutions of those
accused of abuses
during the
conflict?
February 8-3:
On Guatemala, what is
the SG's comment and
action on that war
criminals convicted of
extrajudicial
killings, torture and
sexual slavery could
soon walk free if
Guatemalan lawmakers
sanction a blanket
amnesty for crimes
committed during the
36-year armed conflict
which left 200,000
people dead or
disappeared. Congress
will vote this week to
reform the national
reconciliation law and
give absolute impunity
for crimes against
humanity including
genocide, rape and
forced
disappearance?
February 8-4:
On DRC, what is the
SG's response to
Martin Fayulu taking
issue with the SG's
statements to RFI -
Fayulu has said, among
other things, " I note
that the
Secretary-General of
the United Nations
does not forget what
happened in the DRC,
that is to say, the
electoral hold-up. But
my reaction is that it
is as if the Congo was
an exceptional country
compared to what is
happening in Venezuela
for example where the
international
community seems to opt
for the organization
of new elections. The
problem today is to
make Congolese, and
indeed the whole
world, accept that
someone who has had
less than 17% is
President of the
Republic, whereas
someone who has more
than 62% can not be
President of the
Republic. exercise
power. If the
international
community wants to
kill democracy in the
Congo, let us know,
who is this Congolese
who will still be able
to trust the elections
tomorrow?"
February 8-5:
On Chad and France,
including in light of
evidence UN NGO China
Energy Fund Committee
offered weapons for
oil to Idriss Deby,
what is the SG's
comment and action on
the now second set of
French airstrikes on
Chad?
February 8-6:
Cameroon, now that
even the US is cutting
military aid due to
human rights
violations / comments,
what is the SG's
comment on France
reiterating its
unequivocal continued
material support to
Biya's army despite
its violations and his
action, if any, on
that 14 people have
been shot dead at Bole
Market this morning,
20km away from Kumba,
on the Kumba-Ekondo
Titi road. "The
soldiers arrived using
live bullets and many
had to escape for
safety" and that
dozens of youths
arrested in Buea today
by security
forces?
February 8-7:
On Iran and
imprisonment of former
UN system staff, what
is the SG's comment
and action if any on
Iran's prosecution on
environmentalists
including McGill
University graduate
Niloufar Bayani. She
worked for UNEP,
plagued by Erik
Solheim's travel waste
no worse than
Guterres', rebranded
UN Environment:
"Niloufar Bayani is
currently a Project
Advisor under the
Disaster Risk
Reduction portfolio of
the United Nations
Environment Programme
(UNEP), being managed
by the Post-Conflict
and Disaster
Management Branch
(PCDMB) based in
Geneva, Switzerland.
She has expertise in
ecosystem-based
approaches for
disaster risk
reduction and climate
change adaptation. For
the past four years
she has worked on UNEP
projects in
Afghanistan, DRC,
Sudan and Haiti. She
also has previous
experience as a
research fellow with
the Wildlife
Conservation Society
(WCS) and has
consulted numerous
local NGOs and
universities. Ms.
Bayani was born and
raised in Iran. She
holds a BSc in Biology
from McGill University
in Canada."
February 8-8:
On Uganda and press
(UN) freedom, what is
the SG's comment and
action on that Uganda
has ordered the shut
down of the the Daily
Monitor website ... ?
And AGAIN, please
immediately explain
how it is legitimate
to ban from enter into
the UN the media that
has been asking about
these and other
questions, with no
hearing or appeal. [Of
the eight
questions
submitted on
February 8, only
part of this 8th one
was answered,
here.
It's
appreciated
but the
batting
average is
near zero,
below zero for
Dujarric.]
February 7-1:
On UN Sexual
Exploitation and
Abuse, please
immediately provide
the additional
if-asked information
about the new case(s)
in CAR by the Serbian
peacekeeper - and the
long requested
information about the
Cameroonian
peacekeepers' alleged
rapes in CAR and
explain why this has
not been provided for
eight weeks. Please
now provide on the new
South Sudan and
3-month old Cameroon
rape cases all further
if-asked information
about these abuses, as
for example you did
when asked in person
by those not banned
from the previous
briefing about the
Nigerian
peacekeeper(s).
February 7-2:
On Cameroon, now that
even the US is cutting
military aid due to
human rights
violations / comments,
what is the SG's
comment action on that
14 people have been
shot dead at Bole
Market this morning,
20km away from Kumba,
on the Kumba-Ekondo
Titi road. "The
soldiers arrived using
live bullets and many
had to escape for
safety" and that
dozens of youths
arrested in Buea today
by security forces?
Also SG's comment if
any on today's
protests / press
conferences on
Cameroon by the
UN?
February 7-3:
On Sri Lanka and the
death penalty what is
the SG's comment and
action on President
Sirisena saying that
starting in 3 months
drug dealers will be
executed by
hanging.
February 7-4:
On press freedom what
is the SG's comment
and action if any on
that Mozambican
journalist Amade
Abubacar was arrested
on January 5, while
reporting on a trend
of violent attacks on
small villages in
Mozambique's province
of Cabo Delgado? And
AGAIN, please
immediately explain
how it is legitimate
to ban from enter into
the UN the media that
has been asking about
these and other
questions, with no
hearing or appeal.
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