UNITED NATIONS
GATE, March 20 –
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 March
20
three
hours before a
UN noon briefing where
Dujarric's
Deputy Farhan
Haq who did not
answer a single
question from
Inner City Press
but had a faux
colloquy with
his colleague a day
after he referred to
the "Dominican
Republic of the
Congo," Inner
City Press submitted 639 questions: "There
are more than 400+
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 28-3,
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 nor 11 nor 12
nor 13 nor 14 or
15 nor 18 nor 19
nor 20 nor 21
nor 22 nor 25
nor 26 nor 27
nor March 1-17 (!)
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.
March
20-1: On
Uganda, what
is the SG's
comment and
action if any
on reports
that more than
250 people
have fallen
ill in Uganda
linked to a
fortified
blended food
distributed by
the United
Nations World
Food Programme
(WFP) for
prevention of
malnutrition.
Officials urge
people to stop
eating the
food until
further
notice.
A total of 262
people have
been affected
since March
12, with
symptoms of
mental
confusion,
vomiting,
headache, high
fever and
abdominal
pain. There
are reports
three people
have died, one
of them at
Matany
Hospital,
Napak
District, and
two others.
One male died
in
Lorengechora,
Lookit
village, Napak
district, and
a female died
in Amuna
village in
Karita Sub
County, Amudat
district. All
the deaths
occurred on
March
16?
March
20-2: On
bribery in the
UN, a just
filed
sentencing
memorandum
seeking a five
year jail term
for Patrick Ho
of CEFC China
Energy
includes
quotes from
his e-mails
regarding
aiming to
violate
sanctions and
deal in arms
not only to
Chad but also
South Sudan,
Libya &
Qatar. What is
the SG's
comment and
action? Again,
why has no
audit even
been begun of
CEFC, at least
like the one
Mr. Guterres'
predecessor
did of Ng Lap
Seng's Sun
Kian Ip
Foundation?
Why did Mr
Guterres omit
payments from
Gulbenkian
Foundation,
which sought
to sell its
oil company
Partex to CEFC
China Energy,
from his
public
financial
disclosure
covering 2016?
Where are the
more recent
public
financial
disclosures -
has Mr.
Guterres ended
that program?
Why?
March
20-3: On
Haiti, what is
the SG's
comment and
action, and
separately the
UN mission's,
on that
Haiti’s Lower
Chamber of
Deputies fired
Prime Minister
Jean Henry
Céant and his
government on
Monday,
deepening
uncertainty
amid a
political and
economic
crisis that
led to violent
protests last
month and the
U.S. and
Canada warning
citizens not
to travel to
the country.
The swift
no-confidence
vote came with
hardly any
debate and
after Lower
Chamber
President Gary
Bodeau noted
that neither
Céant nor any
of his cabinet
ministers were
present?
March
20-4: On
Tajikistan,
what is the
SG's comment
and action if
any on the
Tajik
government
jailing a
seriously ill
political
activist who
says he has
been tortured:
Mahmadali
Hayit, is
deputy head of
the Islamic
Renaissance
Party of
Tajikistan
(IRPT), the
country’s
largest
opposition
party, which
was banned by
the government
in late
2015.
During a visit
on March 9,
2019, Hayit
showed his
wife,
Savrinisso
Jurabekova,
injuries on
his forehead
and stomach
that he said
were caused by
beatings from
prison
officials to
punish him for
refusing to
record videos
denouncing
Tajik
opposition
figures
abroad.
Jurabekova
said that her
husband said
he was not
getting
adequate
medical care,
and they both
fear he may
die in prison
as a result of
the beatings.
Hayit has
spent more
than three
years in
prison and is
currently
being held at
detention
center (SIZO)
number 1 in
Dushanbe.
March
20-5: How did
the SG fly to
Argentina -
business
class? How
many
accompanied
him? How much
has it cost?
As asked (but
not answered)
" February
25-2: On UN
spending,
DGACM and
OSSC, please
confirm or
deny that
Argentina
informed DGACM
is would /
could not pay
to fly UN
interpreters
business class
to the
upcoming OSSC
meeting there,
and that
interpreters
have been
cajoled to
"volunteer" to
fly economy by
being given
additional
time off, to
be paid for by
all member
states. Also,
is USG Pollard
flying economy
- or business
class?
Why?
March
20-6: On
Burundi and
freedom of
expression,
what is the
SG's comment
and action if
any on that
arresting
seven
schoolchildren
last week. The
children were
accused of
having
scribbled on
Nkurunziza's
photo in their
school
books.
Six girls were
taken to the
local police
station jail.
Three were
later
released, but
the three
others, all
teenagers
under the age
of 18,
remained in
jail over the
weekend. They
were charged
on Monday with
insulting the
head of state,
and could
spend up to
five years in
prison if
found guilty.
AGAIN,
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.
March
19-4: On press
freedom and
Venezuela, what
is the SG's
comment and
action if any on
that " In a
report this
month, the
Caracas-based
Institute for
Press and
Society (IPYS)
said that so far
this year, 25
websites have
been blocked
during events of
public interest,
such as last
month's
Venezuela aid
concert on the
Colombian side
of the border
and efforts by
opposition
leaders to move
humanitarian
supplies into
the
country.
Blocked domains
included widely
read independent
news websites
such as Efecto
Cocuyo, El
Pitazo, and
Caraota Digital,
as well as
YouTube and
Instagram.
"Most websites
with anything
valuable to read
get blocked,"
Azpúrua said.
"Live coverage
of anything that
is newsworthy is
censored'"?
AGAIN,
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.
March
18-1: On the SEA
report which was
not sent to
Inner City Press
by the UN but by
others, and
which Inner City
Press
voluntarily
refrained from
reporting on
until the 10 am
deadline, please
before 10 am
explain (a) six
allegations were
considered
conduct in
violation of
non-fraternization
policies and not
to contain
indications of
sexual
exploitation or
abuse -
question: did
these cases not
involve sex?
March
18-2: On Kenya,
what is the SG's
comment and the
UN's action on
the starvation
in
Turkana?
March
18-3: On
"reform," on
Friday it was
said that 27 new
Resident
Coordinators are
being recruited.
Since these are
not on the SG's
webpage, please
immediately
state which 27
RC positions are
being recruited
for, and how
much it will
cost the UN and
the
public.
March
18-6: What is
the SG's comment
and action on
this, copied to
Inner City
Press, on a
"possible FCPA
violation may
have occurred
between
Microsoft
Corporation and
the United
Nations [now
see here.]
March
15-1: On
Cameroon, what
is the SG's
comment and
action if any on
that 26 people
who were
arrested in
Cameroon in
January during
protests called
by opposition
leader Maurice
Kamto have been
given one-year
jail terms for
“illegal
gathering and
demonstration”
or just planning
to take part in
a non-political
demonstration?
What does the UN
say about the
reported murder
of civilians by
Biya's forces
yesterday in Sop
and Melim?
March
15-5: Please
explain the
basis of Inner
City Press
yesterday
afternoon being
singled out and
pushed out of
the metal
detector line at
the Visitors
Entrance of the
UN despite
being
invited and with
a ticket to the
press freedom /
CSW event
"Journalism and
the Empowerment
of Women: New
Challenges in
the Digital
World." The DSS
officers said it
was based on a
"barred" list
and that they
would show me
the list once I
left. But they
never did. This
is a request to
see this barred
list, and
separately to be
informed how
people are put
on it, what due
process if any
is afford, and
how a person put
on the list can
appeal. In my
case this is a
request to be
informed what
person or
persons put me
on the list, and
why.
March
8-2: On UN
corruption and
bribery,
yesterday
evening Inner
City Press saw
in front of the
UN and
questioned
Francis Lorenzo,
who pleaded
guilty to UN
bribery. Please
immediately
state the last
time convicted
UN bribery felon
Francis Lorenzo
entered the UN
(same for former
El Salvador
Ambassador
Carlos Garcia,
who it was shown
facilitied
Lorenzo's
illegal acts,
and for Patrick
Ho), and state
whether Lorenzo
is affiliated in
any way to the
Dominican
Republic mission
to the UN.
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