UNITED NATIONS
GATE, March 26
– 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 26 three
hour
before a
UN noon briefing by
Dujarric
in
which when told
"I am asking
this question
for a
colleague" he
said, You must
say which
colleague, Inner
City Press submitted 664 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 1-25 (!)
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
26-1: On South
Sudan, what is
the comment and
action if any of
Antonio Guterres
on that a former
World Bank
economist whose
detention in
South Sudan has
caused an
international
outcry was one
of seven men
charged on
Monday with
insurgency and
sabotage, more
than seven
months after his
arrest. Peter
Biar Ajak, who
is country
director for his
native South
Sudan for the
International
Growth Centre
which studies
emerging
economies at the
London School of
Economics, had
been held since
last July?
March
26-2: On
"reform," on
March 15 it was
said that 27 new
Resident
Coordinators are
being recruited.
Since these are
not on the SG's
webpage, not
this specific
question:
Renaud Meyer has
announced
himself as the
new
Thailand RR
-- -
is/was this one
of the 27 posts
the SG and DSG
are recruiting
for? Where are
these
recruitment
notices? Again,
please
immediately
state which 27
RC positions are
being recruited
for, and how
much it will
cost the UN and
the
public.
March
26-3: On UN
sexual abuse and
exploitation,
please
immediately
provide until
now withheld
specifics on
this: " A Fijian
UN peacekeeper
was dismissed
from duty last
year after
engaging in
sexual
exploitation
while stationed
in Lebanon,
official records
show. The
incident...
has not
previously been
reported."
Again, 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? (b)
four allegations
involved sexual
harassment,
physical assault
and paternity
claims, which
were considered
not to contain
indications of
sexual
exploitation and
abuse -
question: isn't
fathering a
child with a
beneficiary of
UN "assistance"
per se
exploitation?
(c) three
allegations
involved sexual
assaults between
United Nations
personnel, but
not with
beneficiaries of
assistance -
question:
confirm this was
"blue on blue,"
on which the UN
has previously
refused to
answer Inner
City Press; (d)
one allegation
involved a
member of United
Nations
personnel not
associated with
a peacekeeping
mission; one
allegation did
not involve
sexual
exploitation and
abuse - question
- what are the
bases of these
statement?; and
one allegation
was received by
OIOS in 2018 but
will be recorded
in 2019, once it
is referred to
the Member State
concerned -
question: what
is the member
state concerned
and what have
they done, as of
18 March
2019?
March
26-4: On
Cameroon, what
is the SG's
comment and
action on that "
In an open
letter addressed
to President
Paul Biya, the
chairman of the
National
Commission on
Human Rights and
Freedoms says
the commission
is ready to
reverse the
situation in the
two English
speaking Regions
of Cameroon, if
President Biya
accepts.
Mentioning the
safe role played
by the
commission in
the release of
the 20 students
from the
University of
Buea kidnaped on
March 21st by
armed
separatists, Dr
Divine Banda,
chairman of the
commission said
a peaceful
approach remains
the best option
to put an end to
the
crisis.
“When the
regional
secretary of the
NCHRF of the
South West
Region informed
us that he had
been contacted
yesterday the
21st of March by
those who
kidnapped the
students of the
University of
Buea (…) we
instructed him
to try to use
peaceful means
to secure their
release. Late in
the night, he
sent information
indicating that
he had succeeded
to obtain the
release of the
students (…) the
kidnappers knew
that we have
stood and
continue to
stand for a
peaceful
approach to the
solution to the
crisis” part of
the letter
reads. The
open letter made
public on March
22, 2019 doubts
the effective
presence of the
defence and
security forces
on the field
amidst all the
kidnappings and
inhuman acts
perpetrated by
armed
separatists.
As such, the
commission
demands the
permission and
support of
President Biya
to resolve the
crises." What
type of Human
Rights
Commission needs
an autocrat's
permission?
March
26-5: On UN
bribery,
yesterday
Patrick Ho of
the China Energy
Fund Committee
was sentenced to
36 months in
prison and a
$400,000 fine
for his UN
bribery; in
today's
proceeding Ho
was described as
using a UN NGO
to "sell weapons
enthusiastically."
What now is SG
Antonio
Guterres'
comment and
action? Will he
now begin an
audit of CEFC in
the UN?
What is the SG's
comment and
response to this 22 minute
documentary
about Patrick Ho
and CEFC's
bribes through
the UN including
Mr. Guterres'
refusal to
answer Inner
City Press'
question on it
on 5 December
2018 at Min
17 Again,
the
sentencing
memorandum
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
26-6: On Hong
Kong and press
freedom, what is
the SG's comment
and action is
any on the the
charges against
the nine leaders
of the 2014
Umbrella
Movement, as
they “stem
solely from the
peaceful
exercise of
their rights to
freedom of
expression and
peaceful
assembly.”
The nine
activists stood
trial late last
year and a
verdict is
expected on
April 9. Critics
have said that
the Department
of Justice
unfairly chose
its charges
against the
defendants,
including an
“incitement to
incite” charge?
On outlawing the
pro-independence
Hong Kong
National Party,
banning lawmaker
Eddie Chu from a
village
representative
election and
refusing to
renew the visa
of journalist
Victor
Mallet?
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
25-3: On
environmental
scams, China and
Africa, what are
the comments and
actions if any
of the SG and
separately DSG
Amina J.
Mohammed on that
A new report
from the
Environmental
Investigation
Agency (EIA) –
Toxic Trade:
Forest Crime in
Gabon and the
Republic of
Congo and the
Contamination of
the US
Market
–
documents how
illegally
extracted
African timber
emerges as
“eco-friendly”-marketed
products in
America,
deceiving
unsuspecting US
consumers.
During a 4-year
undercover
investigation,
EIA uncovered
the inner
workings of one
of Africa’s most
influential
timber
conglomerates –
the “Dejia
Group” –
controlled by
Chinese mogul Xu
Gong De? What
was ever done by
the UN on the
rosewood scandal
and DSG's role
in Nigeria and
Cameroon?
March
25-4: On Sri
Lanka, what is
the SG's comment
and action if
any on this
footage of a non
violent protest
by Puttalam
villagers
protesting
against a
proposed garbage
landfill in
Aruwakkalu being
cracked down on
by police?
March
25-5: On your /
Spokesperson
Dujarric's
recent podcast
interview,
please
immediately
explain what was
meant by a
relationship
with journalists
of "mutually
assured
destruction" -
and why the
podcast links
are mostly
404/no longer
online.
March
25-8: On the
SG's March 22
appearance on
96th Street,
please
immediately
provide the name
of the UN DSS
officer who
spoke to NYPD on
96th Street to
get them to
restraint in
advance Inner
City Press while
UN Photo and
others like AP
walked freely,
the basis for
this censorship
and any and all
records
regarding
it.
March
18-2: On Kenya,
what is the SG's
comment and the
UN's action on
the starvation
in
Turkana?
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
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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