UNITED NATIONS
GATE, August 3 – 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's
$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
July 18, still banned from
entering the UN, Inner City
Press submitted five
questions before UN
Spokesman Farhan Haq's
near empty
briefing (at
which two
journalists
kindly asked
Haq for an
update on
the ban on
Inner City
Press, and Haq
said
the "investigation"
is ongoing
though Inner
City Press has
not been
contacted in
eight days,
that GAP's
letter was received
and that the
UN will simply
issue a
"decision.").
On August
2 before
a mere 18
minute briefing
by Deputy
Farhan Haq Inner
City Press
emailed in four
questions, one of
which will for
now be under
embargo,
including:
August 3-1:
On Cameroon,
please
immediately
confirm and
explain: “A
295-strong
Cameroonian
contingent
including four
doctors, will
be deployed in
the
intervening
weeks to the
Central
African
Republic
(CAR).They
will be part
of the United
Nations
Multidimensional
Integrated
Mission for
the
Stabilization
of CAR
(MINUSCA),
ministry of
Defense
sources in
Cameroon
disclosed on
Thursday.”
Given not only
this
military's
torching of
villages in
the Anglophone
areas but
summary
executions,
why is the UN
accepting this
deployment at
this time? How
much of the
money goes to
/ stays with
the Biya
government?
What vetting
has been done?
Does the UN
know the
identity of
the Cameroon
soldiers
recently shown
killing women
and children?
What assurance
does the UN
have these
soldiers will
not “serve”
the UN in CAR?
August 3-2:
On DRC, what
is the SG's
comment and
action on
this:
“Congolese
security
forces have
fired shots to
disperse the
several
thousand
followers of
opposition
leader Moïse
Katumbi who
are waiting to
welcome him as
he attempts to
cross the
border from
Zambia. Latest
reports
indicate that
Mr Katumbi is
currently at
immigration on
the Zambian
side of border
town
Kasumbalesa,
meanwhile his
supporters
have gathered
on the
Congolese
side”?
August 3-3:
[redacted,
for now]
August 3-4:
This is a
request to
belatedly be
informed of
the name of
the UN
Security
officer who,
accompanying
Lieutenant
Ronald E.
Dobbins on 3
July 2018,
tore my shirt
and twisted my
arm. Before I
was banned, I
was absurdly
told to “Ask
Security”
about being
improperly
ousted by
Security. But
USG Drennan
has not
answered or
even
acknowledged a
letter sent to
him (just as
USG Smale has
not responded
to GAP's near
immediate
reply to her
vague, even
the promise of
emailed
answers in
which is now
being
violated). So
what is the
name of
Dobbin's
“colleague” on
July 3, and
unnamed ERU
colleagues on
June 22?
(and
extremely
concerned that
of 11
questions
submitted
yesterday and
the day
before, only
half of ONE
was responded
to)
Still
waiting for
answer to July
21-1,
regarding
location of
SG. What are t
costs to the
UN budget and
public of him
taking UN
Security
wherever he
goes? Does he
reimburse the
Organization
for that?
USG Smale,
also now on
three week
vacation, has
claimed that
the SG's
spokesmen are
answering
Inner City
Press' email
questions.
First, for
example, none
of the four
questions
submitted
yesterday
morning, 24
hours ago, has
been answered.
Second, even
if these
e-mailed
questions were
all being
answered it
does not make
up for denying
Inner City
Press the
right not only
to attend the
noon briefing
and other
press
conferences,
but the
stakeouts at
the Security
Council and
elsewhere,
such as the
Budget
Committee
meeting
stakeout I was
physically
ousted from on
July 3. It's 31
days of
outright
censorship,
and counting."
From
August 2, no response to
any for 24
hours: "August
2-1: On
Cameroon and
refugees from
Cameroon in
Nigeria, what
is the
comment,
response and
action if any
of the
Secretargy
General to the
deaths of
eight
Cameroonian
refugees in
Ikom, Cross
River who died
of fumes from
a generator in
their room?
What has the
SG done about
the conflict
and crisis in
the Anglophone
areas of
Cameroon since
his visit to
Younde in
October 2017?
What has he
done in the
last 12 days?
August 2-2: On
the ICC, it is
reported that
“In a letter
circulated
Wednesday,
[Kenya PR]
Amayo asked
Secretary-General
Antonio
Guterres to
request that
the General
Assembly put
the African
request for an
advisory
opinion on
immunity on
the agenda of
its upcoming
session
starting in
September.”
Confirm or
deny the SG's
office has
received the
letter, and
state what the
SG will do,
which UN body
he may ask to
act on it, and
when and how.
August 2-3:
What is the
SG's comment
and action on
this [WSJ]
report from
Saudi Arabia
that “Those
rounded up in
recent days
include Samar
Badawi, who is
known for
having
challenged the
kingdom’s male
guardianship
rules and is
the sister of
one of Saudi
Arabia’s most
prominent
detainees,
liberal
blogger Raif
Badawi. Ms.
Badawi, who
was detained
Monday in her
hometown of
Jeddah, had
also
campaigned for
her brother’s
release”?
August 2-4: On
South Sudan,
what is the
SG's (and,
separately,
UNMISS')
comment and
action on the
detention of
South Sudanese
peace activist
Peter Biar
Ajak by South
Sudan’s
National
Security
Service after
his criticism
of the
direction of
the South
Sudanese peace
process?
August 2-5:
While the
“investigation”
for which I
gave an
interview to
DSS 23 days
ago is neither
speedy nor
transparent
(as the SG
purported to
call for in
Cameroon),
yesterday I
was informed
by staff that
my photo has
been placed in
an array that
they likened
to a
“terrorists
list.” Given
that I was the
one assault,
while covering
the Budget
Committee,
this is a
request to be
informed what
the procedure
is for putting
a person in
that array,
who made the
decision in my
case, and how
it is
consistent
with due
process and
the idea of an
impartial
investigation.
30 days of
censorship is
(way) too
long.
Still waiting
for answer to
July 21-1,
regarding
location of
SG. What are t
costs to the
UN budget and
public of him
taking UN
Security
wherever he
goes? Does he
reimburse the
Organization
for that?
USG Smale,
also now on
three week
vacation, has
claimed that
the SG's
spokesmen are
answering
Inner City
Press' email
questions.
First, for
example, none
of the four
questions
submitted
yesterday
morning, 24
hours ago, has
been answered.
Second, even
if these
e-mailed
questions were
all being
answered it
does not make
up for denying
Inner City
Press the
right not only
to attend the
noon briefing
and other
press
conferences,
but the
stakeouts at
the Security
Council and
elsewhere,
such as the
Budget
Committee
meeting
stakeout I was
physically
ousted from on
July 3. It's
30 days of
outright
censorship,
and
counting... (and
extremely
concerned that
of 5 questions
submitted
yesterday,
only half of
ONE was
responded to)"
On
August 1 before
a mere 15
minute briefing
by Deputy
Farhan Haq -
with only six
questions
asked - Inner
City Press
e-asked: "August
1-1: As “UN
Sex Abuse
Scandal” airs
today in the
UK, please
provide the
UN's comment
on /
explanation of
this:
“Francine, who
was 15 when
she started
working for a
UN contractor
as a
housekeeper.
She soon
learned that
sex was part
of the job and
she fell
pregnant.
Francine never
reported the
abuse, and her
son Alberto is
now five years
old. He has
never met his
father, who
Francine never
heard from
since.”
August 1-2: On
CAR, please
provide the
UN's account
of a reported
confrontation
between
MINUSCA's
Milan
Trojanovic and
local
authorities,
including
concerning the
motorcade of
the President.
August 1-3:
Also on CAR,
MINUSCA's
Vladimir
Monteiro has
been quoted,
"Of course we
will assist
national
authorities,
our police
will assist
national
police with
the
investigation.
The country
has its
police, but
they called
they don’t
have all the
capacity, so
we will for
sure assist
them... We
never said if
they were
journalists or
not, we just
collected the
bodies and
took them to
the hospital.”
Will the UN
now confirm
that the three
were
journalists?
Why this
equivocation?
What is the UN
doing to help
with the
investigation?
Update:
Haq merely
sent what he
told TASS in the
briefing: "On
the CAR
question, we
have the
following from
MINUSCA: Yesterday,
following
several
reports,
MINUSCA Force
found the
bodies of
three male
foreigners
with multiple
gunshot wounds
along with an
abandoned
vehicle 33km
north of
Sibut, in Kemo
Prefecture.
After
initially
being
transported to
the MINUSCA
Level 1
hospital in
Sibut, the
bodies have
now been
transferred by
national
authorities to
one of
Bangui’s local
hospitals. The
circumstances
of the
incident have
not yet been
established.
National
authorities,
with MINUSCA’s
support, are
investigating
the case.
Today, a team
of UN Police
travelled to
Sibut to
support the
national
police with
the
investigations."
August 1-4: On
retaliation
and
whistleblowers,
provide UN's
response to
the JUI para
10), the
report shows
that staff are
intimidated by
the prospect
of
retaliation,
and that this
fear
significantly
affects the
willingness of
staff members
to report
either
misconduct or
retaliation.
Isn’t it
likely, then,
that all
problems and
shortcomings
reported here
are
significantly
understated,
as many staff
members report
that they fear
retaliation
for exposing
institutional
shortcomings
to anyone
inside the
organization?
“
August 1-5: On
India, what is
the SG's
comment and
action, if
any, on this:
“Home Minister
Rajnath Singh
on Tuesday
informed the
Lok Sabha that
Rohingya
migrants will
be deported to
Myanmar and
asked the
State
Governments to
collect their
details and
confine them
to a single
place. “BSF
and Assam
Rifles
guarding
international
borders have
been
sensitised to
ensure that
Rohingyas do
not infiltrate
the country.”
August 1-6: To
be more
specific than
the entirely
unresponded to
July 31-4,
Given
Spokesman
Stephane
Dujarric's quotes
to Columbia
Journalism
Review that I
am uncivil,
please state
whether it is
his position
that the Al
Jazeera
representatives
heard anything
I said after I
entered and
closed the
door of the
focus booth,
or if they
(and he) only
heard what he
alleges
afterward, on
Periscope
archive. Also,
given his
quotes, please
explain
Dujarric own
use of the “F
word” in the
briefing room,
for example
here: https://vine.co/v/iPphHdXQxD2
(“Matthew
it's f*cking
Friday night,
I'm so f*cking
tired, I want
to go home,
just leave”).
How can a
journalist
legitimately
be targeted
and banned 29
days about
counting for
using the same
word the
Spokesperson
did, in a more
public
setting? Where
is this
investigation?
Still waiting
for answer to
July 21-1,
regarding
location of
SG. What are t
costs to the
UN budget and
public of him
taking UN
Security
wherever he
goes? Does he
reimburse the
Organization
for that?
USG Smale,
also now on
three week
vacation, has
claimed that
the SG's
spokesmen are
answering
Inner City
Press' email
questions.
First, for
example, none
of the four
questions
submitted
yesterday
morning, 24
hours ago, has
been answered.
Second, even
if these
e-mailed
questions were
all being
answered it
does not make
up for denying
Inner City
Press the
right not only
to attend the
noon briefing
and other
press
conferences,
but the
stakeouts at
the Security
Council and
elsewhere,
such as the
Budget
Committee
meeting
stakeout I was
physically
ousted from on
July 3. It's
29 days of
outright
censorship,
and counting."
On July
31
before a
delayed UN
noon briefing
by Guterres'
Associate Spokesperson
Eri Kaneko, Inner
City Press
submitted four
questions,
including:
"July 31-1: On
sexual abuse,
what is the
UN's response
to the
findings in
today's UK
report?
What is the
status of each
of the 70
accusees
listed
yesterday, in
particularly
those
involving the
18 underage
victims?
July 31-3: On
Burkina Faso,
what is the
SG's / DPA's
response to
the opposition
denouncing the
policy of
exclusion from
the new
electoral code
adopted for
the
presidential
elections of
2020. Only the
Burkinabe
national
identity card
or passport
will be the
documents
authorized for
Burkinabè
living abroad
to register on
the electoral
register?
July 31-4:
Given
Spokesman
Stephane
Dujarric's
quotes to Columbia
Journalism
Review, and
the moribund
nature of the
supposed
“investigation,”
please
describe all
instructions
given to UN
Security, Lt
Dobbins and
others, after
June 19
regarding
Inner City
Press, and
also state
whether any
personnel of
Al Jazeera or
[ ]
has been
interviewed
for the
investigation.
July 31-5:
Relatedly, I
am reiterating
my request for
SG (or now,
Dujarric)
comment on
Macron aide
Benalla having
reportedly
roughed up
protesters on
May Day in
France."
Guterres'
deputy
spokesman
Farhan Haq, about
the UK report
which only
came out at 7
pm New York
time on July
30, merely
repeated what
he'd said
hours before that:
non-responsive. He
did, however,
for the first
time admit that
Guterres'
trips, now to
Japan as well,
involve UN
Security costs
paid for by
the public. So
how much is
the public
paying for
Guterres' many
junkets and
vacations and
pretextual
trips to
Lisbon? From
July 30: "July
30-1: On
Cameroon, what
the the SG's
or his
representative
Francois
Fall's
response to
the Mayor of
Buea saying
that a planned
meeting of
Anglophone
leaders to
attempt
dialogue will
not be allowed
there? What is
DSG Amina J
Mohammed's
response,
since she is
reported in
charge of
environmental
issues for the
38th floor, to
the Biya
government's
destructive
rubber
concessions in
Southern
Cameroon?
July 30-2:
With “UN Sex
Abuse Scandal”
to which the
SG declined to
comment set to
air in the UK,
this is
request for
comment [embargoed
- now see
above]
July 30-3: On
the elections
in Mali, given
the SG's
statement in
advance, what
and from where
is his comment
on the rocket
fire and
irregularities?
In Cambodia,
on Hun Sen
claiming to
win all 125
seats? And in
advance on
Zimbabwe?
July 30-4:
Given that the
UN - seemingly
only DPI
despite my
“interview” by
DSS 20 days
ago - says I
am banned
pending an
investigation
of why I
covered SG
speech on June
22 (ousted)
and Budget
Committee
meetings July
3 (violently
ousted and
banned since),
please explain
why dozens of
non resident
correspondents
were allowed
to remain in
the UN past 7
pm on June 26,
2018 for an
irony SG “free
press” event
that was NOT
in the UN
Media Alert,
and for which
no list of
attendees
could have
been provided
to UN
Security,
given that my
RSVP was
ignored and I
was then told
by the
organizer that
no RSVP was
necessary?
What records
has the UN
kept about the
presence in
the UN after 7
pm of (all)
non resident
correspondents
and why am I
being denied
the ability to
ask questions
in person like
others, for 27
days and
counting?
Still waiting
for answer to
July 21-1,
regarding
location of
SG. On claim
of no public
costs does
that mean no
UN Security
accompanied
the SG? Or
that he is
personally
paying their
salaries and
accommodations?"
On July
27
Guterres lead
spokesman and
censor
Stephane
Dujarric which
Inner City Press covered
from the bus
stop by
the
Delegates Entrance
gate Inner
City Press
submitted four questions, which
after the
briefing Dujarric
returned with
responses IN
CAPS, on which
he then
refused follow
up questions
of the type he
would have had
to respond to
if Inner
City Press
weren't banned
from the
briefing:
"My answers
are in CAPS
after each
question.
July 27-1:
Given
yesterday's UN
Budget Note to
Correspondents,
please
immediately
confirm or
deny that the
amount short,
including
2017, is over
$1.2 billion
and separately
that the US
account for
over 70% as
reflected by
Status of
Contributions
print outs
provided to
Inner City
Press by
member states
who found
yesterday's
Note to
Correspondents
misleading at
best. THE NOTE
TO
CORRESPONDENTS
IN ADDITION TO
WHAT WAS SAID
AT THE
BRIEFING AND
AVAILABLE TO
THE PUBLIC
SHOULD BE
CLEAR.
July 27-2:
From Burundi,
it is reported
that earlier
this week,
Tanzanian
authorities
including the
Kigoma
Governor met
with Burundian
refugees in
the Nduta camp
and told them
that they have
to go back to
Burundi
whether they
want to or
not. OUR
PRINCIPAL
POSITION
REMAINS THAT
REFUGEES
SHOULD DECIDE
FOR THEMSELVES
WHEN TO GO
HOME. RETURNS
SHOULD ALWAYS
BE VOLUNTARY.
July 27-3: In
Mali, on 20
July, the
Union for the
Republic and
Democracy
(URD)
announced the
existence of a
parallel
electoral
register that
would include
nearly 1.2
million
fictitious
voters, out of
8 million
registered
voters. What
is the UN's
comment,
including
given its
MINUSMA
mission there?
PLEASE CONTACT
MINUSMA
DIRECTLY.
July 27-4:
Yesterday when
asked about my
“case” or the
“investigation”
previously
described,
during which I
have been
banned from
the UN and
briefing for
24 days and
counting, you
said “an issue
of press
accreditation,
and it is
being handled
by the
Department of
Public
Information.”
So who is
investigating
the actions of
UN Security
and Lt Dobbins
and his
colleagues -
refusing to
give names
while ousting
me during an
event in the
Media Alert on
June 22, then
after I wrote
to the SG, USG
DPI and others
on June 25 and
asked both of
you, tearing
my shift,
damaging my
laptop and
twisting my
arms on July 3
as I covered
the Fifth
Committee
meetings that
had been
advised to me?
Can DPI
investigate
DSS? Why was
my only
contact to
date - in 24
days - a
single
“interview” by
DSS? Where are
these
discussions
with various
parts of the
UN that you
mentioned?
When does this
outrage end,
and who will
be held
accountable?
THE PROCESS IS
ONGOING.
Still waiting
for answer to
July 21-1,
regarding
location of
SG. On claim
of no public
costs does
that mean no
UN Security
accompanied
the SG? Or
that he is
personally
paying their
salaries and
accommodations?
WHEN THE SG IS
ON PERSONAL
TRAVEL HE PAYS
HIS OWN WAY.
[So no
Security? And how
not say
were, as Mayor De
Blasio does,
and Trump does?]
USG Smale,
also now on
three week
vacation, has
claimed that
the SG's
spokesmen are
answering
Inner City
Press' email
questions.
First, for
example, none
of the four
questions
submitted
yesterday
morning, 24
hours ago, has
been answered.
Second, even
if these
e-mailed
questions were
all being
answered it
does not make
up for denying
Inner City
Press the
right not only
to attend the
noon briefing
and other
press
conferences,
but the
stakeouts at
the Security
Council and
elsewhere,
such as the
Budget
Committee
meeting
stakeout I was
physically
ousted from on
July 3. It's
19 days of
outright
censorship,
and counting.
THIS VERY
EMAIL PROVES
THAT WE ARE
ACTUALLY
ANSWERING YOUR
QUESTIONS.
WHETHER OR NOT
YOU FEEL THE
ANSWERS ARE
SUFFICIENT IS
UP TO YOU BUT
YOU CAN NOT
CLAIM IN ANY
WAY THAT WE
ARE NOT
ANSWERING YOUR
QUESTIONS OR
ENGAGING WITH
YOU IN REGARDS
TO NEWS
QUERIES." Well,
no. These
email answers
don't make
up for barring
Inner City
Press from
being able to
ask questions
at the Security
Council
stakeout -
censorship -
and being
able to ask
follow up
questions (one
of which, on what
member states
told Inner
City Press
were misrepresentations
in Dujarric's
July 26 Note
to
Correspondents,
he refused to
answer).
So Inner City
Press -
before it learned
Dujarric
was heading
on vacation
like Guterres
for two weeks
and Alison
Smale for
three, send
him, them, and
Smale
fill-ins Hua Jiang
and Ramu
Damodaranthis:
"On Fri, Jul
27, 2018 at
12:46 PM,
Stephane
Dujarric De La
Riviere
<dujarric[at]un.org>
wrote: "YOU
CAN NOT CLAIM
IN ANY WAY
THAT WE ARE
NOT ANSWERING
YOUR QUESTIONS
OR ENGAGING
WITH YOU IN
REGARDS TO
NEWS
QUERIES."
I have tried
to avoid
e-mailing
follow up
questions, in
part because
they can be
evaded or
ignored just
like the
initial
questions. But
today's first
and last
responses,
particularly
together,
compel this
follow up:
USG Smale,
before going
on three week
vacation with
Inner City
Press already
banned from
the UN since
it on July 3
covered the
Budget
Committee in
the same way
it has for ten
years,
including the
last two as a
non-resident
correspondent,
wrote to the
Government
Accountability
Project that “
the Office of
the
Spokesperson
for the
Secretary
General has
continued to
answer Mr.
Lee's
questions and
requests for
information.
The United
Nations will
continue to
respect Mr.
Lee's ability
to freely
exercise his
journalistic
endeavors.”
But not only
banning me
from asking
questions at
the the
Security
Council
stakeout but
also from the
noon briefing
where I could
ask questions
and follow ups
in person is
no respect for
journalistic
endeavors.
The example
today is the
budget
shortfall
question.
After
yesterday's
Note to
Correspondents,
Inner City
Press was
contacted by
member states
(as well as
some UN Staff)
who said the
Note was
misleading. I
asked today in
writing if “
the amount
short,
including
2017, is over
$1.2 billion”
and the
question was
evaded by
simply
referring
again to the
2018 figure,
when it is a
biennial
budget. If not
banned from
the briefing,
I would have
followed up.
So I ask you
now to comment
on the
attached print
out from the
Status of
Contributions
website: why
report on only
one of a two
year budget?
And on the
Burundian
refugees,
beyond the
vague
“principal
position,”
what if
anything is
the UN doing
about it?
As to the
“investigation,”
it's been
three and a
half weeks,
and I have be
contacted
once, by DSS.
What could
possibly take
this long to
investigate?
Was I entitled
to cover the
Budget
Committee
meeting of
which I was
advised? Yes.
Was I
nevertheless
roughed up by
Lt Dobbins and
his colleague,
still UNnamed?
Yes. Did I say
“I am a
journalist”?
Yes. Had I
informed USG
Smale, and the
SG and Deputy,
that I was
targeted by
Dobbins on
June 22 and to
do something?
Yes. So why am
I still
banned, in
disrespect, as
USG Smale put
it, to my
journalistic
endeavors? As
GAP's July 23
letter to USG
Smale and the
cc-ed
Officer(s) in
charge put it,
"Finally, GAP
is aware you
are on
vacation for
three weeks,
but response
(and full
reinstatement)
should not and
cannot defer
to that
schedule."
Please state
any
information
needed from me
to complete
this
Kafkaesque 'investigation.'"
Hours later,
no reponse
at all. Watch
this site.
From
July 26: "July
26-1: Given
allegations of
nepotism and
corruption
made by UN
staff to Inner
City Press,
please confirm
and comment on
how John van
Rosendaal, the
husband of
Department of
Political
Affairs chief
of staff Kyoko
Shiotani,
became a UN
P5, how he was
given a role
in a DPA
website, who
else works on
it, whether it
is Dutch
funded, and
what the SG
has done about
this since I
wrote to
sgcentral[at]un.org
about it on
June 25, after
first
reporting it
in May.
July 26-2: In
Kenya, what is
the comment
and action of
the UN/SG and
his Resident
Coordinator on
this: “Kenya's
government is
violating the
rights of
nearly people
who have been
evicted from
their homes in
the last two
weeks to
protect a
forest and
construct a
road.... at
least 10 000
people were
left homeless
when they were
evicted from
Nairobi's
Kibera slum
where the
government
plans to build
a road. They
accused the
authorities of
going against
a court order
prohibiting
government
from evicting
residents from
the area
without a
resettlement
plan.In
western Kenya,
at least 7 888
people have
been evicted
to preserve a
critical water
catchment
area, the Mau
Forest
Complex, from
destruction.
Rights groups
say the
evictions
violate the
rights of the
people
affected.”
July 26-3:
What is the UN
/ SG's comment
/ action on
Sierra Leone's
warning to
media: “Sierra
Leone police
has warned
journalists
and media
organisations
against
broadcast of
‘misleading,
disrespectful
and inciting’
statements,
which it says
have the
potential to
cause
insecurity,
instability
and fear in
the minds of
the people. In
a statement
issued over
the weekend,
the police
force
specifically
called out FM
98.1 and AYV
television for
broadcasts
that it says
were made
against
President
Julius Maada
Bio’s
executive
orders, the
governance
transition
team report
and the
controversial
of the fuel
subsidy that
caused the
first
demonstration
in Bio’s
presidency.
‘‘In as much
as people have
the right to
discuss
issues, yet
this should be
done within
the confines
of the law and
should be done
responsibly
and
factually,’‘
read part of
the
statement.”
July 26-4: On
UN Sex Abuse,
confirm or
deny and state
what the UN is
doing about
“11 alleged
victims of
sexual abuse,
four of whom
came forward
for the first
time and seven
who MINUSCA
confirmed it
was aware of
and
supporting.Of
the seven,
none said they
had received
regular,
individual
counselling
and just one
of the women –
who are now
aged between
15 and 23 –
said she had
received
support for
school fees...
the original
investigation
into the Dekoa
allegations,
which began in
mid-2016 and
was conducted
by Gabonese
and Burundian
investigators
together with
the UN’s
Office of
Internal
Oversight
(OIOS). The
probe, which
remains
unfinished,
was supposed
to identify
victims and
perpetrators
of sexual
abuse. But a
former UN
investigator
with
first-hand
knowledge of
the Dekoa
investigation
said DNA
evidence was
mishandled and
interviews
were conducted
in ways that
may have
jeopardised
the wellbeing
of victims and
adversely
impacted their
cases.” What
is the SG's
comment, and
action, on
this?
From
July 25:
"July 25-2: On
Cameroon, now
that Prince
Zeid has
belatedly
spoken, what
is the SG
DOING about
Biya's forces'
killings? Has
he requested
that the UNSC,
soon to be
under the
presidency of
a country
which bragged
about its
company's
natural gas
deal with the
Biya
government, be
briefed under
Article 99 and
if not, why
not?
July 25-3: In
terms of
belatedly
nominating a
successor for
Zeid, please
confirm or
deny that the
SG interviewed
Korean FM
Kyung Wha Kang
for the
position,
state who else
has been
interviewed
and if not,
why not.
July 25-4: In
PBS
Frontline's
“UN Sex Abuse
Scandal” 1
hour
documentary,
please state
why the SG, as
head of the
organization,
declined to be
interviewed
and separately
why he put
forward part
time Jane Holl
Lute and not
Jane Connors.
Also, why was
the victim of
the
Mauritanian
contingents
not contacted
as promised by
the UN?
Still waiting
for answer to
July 21-1,
regarding
location of
SG. On claim
of no public
costs does
that mean no
UN Security
accompanied
the SG? Or
that he is
personally
paying their
salaries and
accommodations?"
Only one, so not
listed here,
has been responded
to. If
they have an
if-asked, they
email it. This
is Smale's
definition of
supporting
journalistic
endeavors.
From
July 24: "In
Cameroon what
are the UN's /
SG's comment
on and
response to
continued and
increasing
abuses such as
this woman's
account of
being raped by
Biya's
security
forces in
Bamenda?
https://twitter.com/GilEkane/status/1021509010674147328
July 24-3:
What have been
the SG's
inquiries and
actions on the
sexual
harassment /
cover up
scandal at
UNAIDS, today
in light of
yesterday's
walk out by
hundreds of
delegates from
the opening of
the
International
AIDS
Conference o
in protest
when UNAIDS
Executive
Director
Michel Sidibe
took the
stage. Before
the walkout, a
group of
African women
read out a
statement in
protest
against
Sidibe’s
mishandling of
a sexual
assault case
against his
former deputy,
Luiz Loures.
The women read
out a
statement
calling for
Sidibe to step
down for what
they say was a
cover-up then
walked out,
followed by a
large number
of delegates.
What is the SG
doing? Where
IS the SG?
July 24-5:
What is the
UN's / SG's
comment on the
scandal in
France
involving
Macron aide
Benalla posing
as a policeman
and roughing
up protesters
on May Day?
On July 23
Dujarric faced
only 5
questions total; Inner
City Press
itself submitted
five
questions only
one half of
one was
answered a day
later: "July
23-1: In
Cambodia on
threat of
fines and
intimidation
for those who
boycott
Sunday’s
general
election, what
is the SG's
comment and
action?
July 23-2: In
Burundi,
journalist
Jean
Bigirimana has
been missing
for two years
now. He was
kidnapped by
agents of the
National
Intelligence
Service, and
the
investigation
has led
nowhere. What
is the comment
/ action of
the UN/ SG /
SRSG Kafando
on this?
July 23-3: In
Comoros
there's been
an
assassination
attempt on VP
Moustoidrane
Abdou days
before a
referendum on
constitutional
reform. What
is the UN's /
SG's comment,
and what is
the UN's
involvement,
if any, in
elections in
Comoros?
July 23-4:
Confirm or
deny what USG
Khare told
journalists
after a
closed-door
meeting with
the Prime
Minister, Dr
Ruhakana
Rugunda, that
“there is no
decision yet”
following the
July 5
resolution by
the UN’s 5th
Committee
which rejected
the proposal.
“No decision
has been taken
yet, and all
contracts of
local and
international
staff were
extended for
one year until
June 2019.”
[Quote
confirmed by
Haq after
Dujarric's
briefing.
Still
unanswered:]
Has this
extension been
done elsewhere
in the UN
system? Where?
Under what
authority?
July 23-5: You
have said in
the noon
briefing last
week that the
UN would
respond to the
Government
Accountability
Project's
letter to USG
Smale. She
did, but GAP
has today
called the
response
grossly
inadequate.
Now with Ms
Smale off on a
three week
vacation, this
is request for
the UN's /
SG's response
to / comment
on GAP's
reply, pasted
below but also
sent the the
OIC of DPI,
the DSG, etc
Still
waiting for
answer to July
21-1,
regarding
location of SG
and public
costs.
USG Smale,
also now on
three week
vacation, has
claimed that
the SG's
spokesmen are
answering
Inner City
Press' email
questions.
First, for
example, none
of the four
questions
submitted
yesterday
morning, 24
hours ago, has
been answered.
Second, even
if these
e-mailed
questions were
all being
answered it
does not make
up for denying
Inner City
Press the
right not only
to attend the
noon briefing
and other
press
conferences,
but the
stakeouts at
the Security
Council and
elsewhere,
such as the
Budget
Committee
meeting
stakeout I was
physically
ousted from on
July 3. It's
19 days of
outright
censorship,
and counting.
July
23, 2017
Alison Smale,
Under
Secretary
General for
Global
Communications
United Nations
New York, New
York
10017
Dear Ms.
Smale:
Thank you for
your letter of
July 19th
concerning the
actions of the
United Nations
with respect
to
Matthew
Russell Lee, a
US journalist
who has been
covering the
UN since 2006.
Unfortunately,
it is not
possible to
determine from
your response
what guideline
or regulation
Mr. Lee
violated that
resulted in
his expulsion
from the
premises.
First, your
letter tells
us that you
consider the
withdrawal of
Mr. Lee’s
accreditation
as a resident
correspondent
closed because
the US
government was
informed of
the
circumstances
concerning
this
action. Mr.
Lee tells GAP
that he has
not been
informed and
was not
consulted
about this
decision.
Was there some
form of due
process
surrounding
the decision
to withdraw
Mr. Lee’s
resident
correspondent
credentials in
2016, and if
so, who
participated
and of what
did it
consist?
Second, you
explain Mr.
Lee’s two
expulsions by
dispositive
statements
asserting that
he violated
the
scope of his
permissions.
Ms. Smale, the
operative
question is
which of the
media
guidelines did
Mr.
Lee violate,
and what
action was in
violation of
the
guidelines? If
you cannot
identify the
specific
regulation
broken, we
cannot address
your response.
Mr. Lee tells
GAP that UN
Security
officials
accused him of
exceeding the
time limits
allowing a
non-resident
correspondent
to access the
UN
premises, but
he presents
evidence
clearly
demonstrating
that the
meeting he was
covering was
still in
session when
he was
evicted.
According to
the
guidelines,
non-resident
correspondents
may access the
premises for
two hours
after the
adjournment of
the event they
are covering.
Third,
according to
your letter,
Mr. Lee
behaved in a
confrontational
manner when
approached by
United Nations
Security
officials, who
were therefore
entitled to
expel him.
However, it
was Mr. Lee’s
shirt that was
torn and it
was his laptop
that was
damaged by the
UN officials.
Mr. Lee
asserts that
it
was the
officials who
behaved
uncivilly, and
the videos he
recorded
illustrate
this fact.
Fourth, your
letter informs
us that the
matter is
under review,
but prior to
the release of
conclusions of
the review,
you inform us
of what this
exercise will
find: “As a
result of Mr.
Lee’s recent
actions in
violation of
the Media
Guidelines and
his
unacceptable
comportment
when dealing
with United
Nations
Safety and
Security
officials, Mr.
Lee’s
privileges of
access to the
premises of
the United
Nations as a
non-resident
correspondent
have been
suspended.
Those
privileges of
access will
remain
suspended
pending a
review of this
matter to
determine what
further
actions, if
any, should be
taken with
respect
to such
privileges.”
In other
words, the
review is not
a process to
determine what
actually
happened on the
dates in
question. It
is instead an
exercise to
determine what
further
actions can be
taken against Mr.
Lee. Our
question is,
why is this
matter under
review? Are
you not
enfranchised
to decide what actions
shall be taken
against a
journalist who
has violated
the terms of
his
privileges? A
more basic question
is, why is
there no due
process to
consider a
violation and
evidence
regarding what
actually
happened in
Mr. Lee’s case
(and more
generally)?
Ms. Smale, if
we are allowed
to argue this
dispute before
an objective
decision-maker,
in reference
to
specific
guidelines,
allegations of
violations and
production of
evidence, we
can
demonstrate
that Mr.
Lee’s
expulsion from
UN premises
was
unprovoked,
and most
likely
retaliatory
for articles
he has written
critical of UN
operations.
If, however,
we are subject
to an exchange
of letters, in
which you
respond to
us and to Mr.
Lee with
dispositive
statements,
without
reference to
specific
guidelines
violated or
evidence of
the violation
cited, we
cannot
prevail.
In short, the
United
Nations, and
in particular
your office,
is deciding
who will be
accredited to
inform
the public
about the
operations of
the United
Nations. This
practice, in
itself, is a
violation of
Article 19
of the
Universal
Declaration of
Human Rights,
which the UN
was
established to
uphold.
Once again,
GAP is
requesting
information
about the
specific
guidelines
that Mr. Lee
violated on
June
22nd
and on July
3rd of this
year that
caused his
eviction from
the premises
of the UN. And
most urgently,
we
respectfully
request
immediate
access to the
premises, so
that Mr. Lee
can do his
job. Today, we
are
informed that
the UN
Security
Council is
meeting about
Afghanistan,
Lebanon,
Eritrea,
Ethiopia and
Myanmar, and
Mr. Lee cannot
access any of
those meetings
or the
stakeouts.
Please respond
by e-mail
this
afternoon, if
possible.
Finally, GAP
is aware you
are on
vacation for
three weeks,
but response
(and full
reinstatement)
should
not and cannot
defer to that
schedule...
Cc: Officer in
Charge,
Department of
Global
Communications
Matthew
Russell Lee,
Inner City
Press
US Senator
Patrick Leahy
US
Representative
Chris Smith
US
Representative
James McGovern
David Banisar,
Article
19"
Dujarric
called on his
stooges;
we'll have
more on that. And still
these
from July 20,
when Guterres
refused to
answer on his
censorship: "July
20-1: On
Western
Sahara, what
is the comment
of the SG and
separately his
envoy /
adviser Kohler
on “Morocco
and the
European Union
concluded on
Thursday
negotiations
held to renew
the 2014
fisheries
agreement, a
diplomatic
source told
Yabiladi. The
treaty
includes the
Western Sahara
waters.”
July 20-2:
Yesterday in
SDNY court,
Patrick Ho who
is charged
with using UN
NGO CEFC for
bribing then
PGA Sam Kutesa
failed in
getting any of
the
indictement
counts against
him dismissed,
and failed in
suppressing or
excluding from
the case his
texts and
emails. What
is the SG's
comment, why
hasn't the SG
called for or
commissioned
an OIOS audit
as even his
predecessor
did, and who
in the UN
system is the
UN aware of as
being in Ho's
seized
messages?
July 20-3:
Please confirm
or deny that
“Atul Khare,
while meeting
with the Prime
Minister Dr.
Ruhakana
Rugunda in
Kampala, said
evaluations
carried out by
the UN did not
show cause for
an urgent move
of the base to
Kenya as
earlier
reported.”
July 20-4:
What is the
SG's comment
on the already
completed
Frontline
documentary
S36 E11: "UN
Sex Abuse
Scandal" - “An
investigation
of sex abuse
by United
Nations
peacekeepers
in the world's
conflict
zones. The
film traces
allegations
from Boston to
Congo to the
Central
African
Republic, with
firsthand
accounts from
survivors,
witnesses, and
officials.”"
Nothing. On July
19 when the
UN Webcast of
which had no
audio, nearing the
very
definition of
censorship,
Inner City
Press asked
Haq questions
including: "July
19-2: I saw
that at the
July 18 noon
briefing when
asked if there
is a deadline
or timeline to
complete this
supposed
investigation
of July 3
(when I was
physically
roughed up and
ousted from
covering the
5th Committee
meetings as I
have the last
ten years
including the
last two as a
non resident
correspondent,
under the MALU
Access
Guidelines).
How is that
lack of
timelines - 16
days and
counting -
consistent
with your call
for “swift and
transparent”
investigations,
for example in
Cameroon? What
is the
timeline?
Given that I
have not been
contacted in 9
days, what is
the delay? Why
was I not
allowed to
speak, 9 days
ago, about the
June 22 ouster
and my June 25
email to the
SG, USG Smale
and others?
July 19-3:
Also on
Cameroon,
you've told me
this morning
“Regarding
your Cameroon
questions and
the briefing
by Mohammed
ibn Chambas,
please note
that Cameroon
does not fall
under the
purview of
UNOWA. In his
briefing, SRSG
Chambas
referred to
the border
demarcation
activities of
the
Cameroon-Nigeria
Mixed
Commission, of
which he is
Chairman."
But SRSG
Chambas told
the UNSC,
“"The
demarcation of
the
Cameroon-Nigeria
border and the
pillar
construction
continue to
face
challenges due
to insecurity
in areas
affected by
the presence
of Boko Haram
and unrest in
the
English-speaking
regions of
Cameroon.
Nevertheless,
pillar
construction
is expected to
resume at the
end of the
rainy season."
So he
referenced
“unrest” in
Anglophone
Cameroon, and
expressed an
expectation
about how it
would develop
/ allow pillar
construction.
And so again:
What is the
basis of the
SRSG's
“expectation”?
Statements by
the government
of Paul Biya?
Is the problem
in the
“English
speaking
regions” one
of unrest, or
of targeting
killings and
the burning
and looting of
villages by
Paul Biya's
forces?
What inquiry
had Chambas or
his colleagues
in the UN
system made
into the fate
of the 47
people
illegally
refouled from
Nigeria to
Cameroon?
July 19-4:
Also on
transparency,
it is reported
that “Airbus
has signed a
memorandum of
understanding
with the
United
Nations.”
Please provide
a copy of that
MOU, and of
the Myanmar -
Rohingya MOU,
or state why
and on what
basis for a
public
institution
these are not
released."
Nothing - except
these notes,
which we
publish in
full: "**SYRIA
As of today,
the entire
population of
the besieged
Syrian towns
of Foah and
Kafraya has
reportedly
been evacuated
following a
local
agreement
between
parties to the
conflict. The
two towns had
been besieged
by non-state
armed groups
since October
2015. The
United Nations
last provided
humanitarian
assistance to
the besieged
areas in
September
2017.
An estimated
6,900 people
were
reportedly
escorted by
the Syrian
Arab Red
Crescent to
the Al-Eiss
crossing in
southern rural
Aleppo
Governorate.
In addition,
17 medical
cases,
accompanied by
21 family
members, were
brought to
hospitals in
Aleppo city.
The United
Nations was
not party to
the negotiated
agreement or
its
implementation,
but stands
ready to
provide all
people in need
with
humanitarian
assistance
wherever they
are. The
United Nations
underlines
that any
evacuation of
civilians
should be
safe,
voluntary,
well-informed
and to a place
of their own
choosing. All
people
displaced
through such
agreements
must retain
the right of
return as soon
as the
situation
allows.
Also today, a
United
Nations/Syrian
Arab Red
Crescent
inter-agency
convoy
delivered
food,
nutrition,
health,
education,
water and
other
humanitarian
supplies for
19,500 people
in need to
Beit Jan and
surrounding
areas, in
southwest of
the Rural
Damascus
governorate.
This is the
first
humanitarian
convoy to
reach the
formerly
besieged area
since 2013. In
addition, the
team conducted
a needs
assessment
during the
delivery.
**IRAQ
The World
Health
Organization
announced
recently that
38 per cent of
health
facilities in
Iraq supported
by nine Health
Cluster
partners are
at risk of
closure by the
end of July
2018, due to
funding
shortages,
affecting more
than 900,000
people.
Health
partners
urgently
require $54
million under
the 2018
Humanitarian
Response Plan
to ensure
continuation
of health
services in
conflict-affected
and newly
accessible
areas.
Meanwhile, the
Iraq
Humanitarian
Fund has
completed the
allocation of
some $34
million to
support NGOs,
UN agencies
and Red
Cross/Red
Crescent
partners
providing
crucial
humanitarian
assistance in
Iraq.
**DSG TRAVEL
The
Deputy
Secretary-General
will travel to
the United
Kingdom from
22 to 25 July
to participate
at the first
Global
Disability
Summit and to
engage in
high-level
meetings on
reforms of the
United Nations
development
system.
She will
return to New
York on
Wednesday, 25
July.
**EL SALVADOR
In a statement
we issued last
night, the
Secretary-General
welcomed the
decision by
political
parties in El
Salvador to
establish a
negotiating
framework to
reach medium
and long-term
agreements for
the benefit of
the country.
He
congratulated
the members of
civil society,
constituted in
a
UN-facilitated
Group in
Support of
Political
Dialogue, who
have helped
bring into
being the
commitment of
political
parties.
The
Secretary-General
hopes that the
political
parties will
now join their
efforts in
translating
their
commitment
into concrete
agreements
that will
benefit all
Salvadorans.
**MIGRATION
The UN Refugee
Agency (UNHCR)
today welcomed
recent actions
taken by
several
European
countries to
collectively
end a standoff
on the
Mediterranean
where some 450
refugees and
migrants had
been stranded
at sea amid a
battle over
disembarkation.
Since
Saturday, the
governments of
France,
Germany,
Italy, Malta,
Spain and
Portugal have
agreed to land
the ships and
share the
processing,
including any
potential
asylum claims,
of these
people.
The High
Commissioner
for Refugees,
Filippo
Grandi, said
that this sets
a positive
example of
how, by
working
together,
countries can
uphold sea
rescue and
manage borders
while
simultaneously
meeting
international
asylum
obligations.
However, he
cautioned,
solutions that
go beyond
piecemeal or
“ship-by-ship”
arrangements
are needed.
You can read
more on
UNHCR’s
website.
**ECOSOC
The Economic
and Social
Council is
holding a
high-level
policy
dialogue with
International
Financial and
Trade
Institutions
today,
focusing on
trends in the
global economy
and
international
trade in the
context of
sustainable
development.
Representatives
of the
International
Monetary Fund
(IMF), the
World Bank
Group, the
World Trade
Organization
(WTO), the
United Nations
Conference on
Trade and
Development
(UNCTAD) and
the Department
of Economic
and Social
Affairs
(UNDESA)
offered their
projections
for economic
growth,
international
trade and
other trends
and
challenges.
And in the
afternoon, a
thematic
discussion on
“Leveraging
new
technologies
for the
Sustainable
Development
Goals” will
take place.
**HONOUR ROLL
For the Honour
Roll, I am
delighted to
welcome
Lithuania to
the Honour
Roll! Our
friends in
Vilnius have
paid their
regular budget
dues in full,
making
Lithuania the
111th Member
State to do
so.
**PRESS
ENCOUNTERS
TODAY
This evening,
at around 6:30
p.m., there
will be
stakeout by
the President
of the
Security
Council,
Ambassador
Olof Skoog of
Sweden, along
with the
Chairperson of
the African
Union (AU)
Peace and
Security
Council,
Ambassador
Sebade Toba of
Togo, at the
Security
Council
Stakeout.
They will
brief in their
capacity as
Co-Chairs of
the 12th
Annual Joint
Consultative
Meeting
between the
members of the
Security
Council and
the AU Peace
and Security
Council,
following the
conclusion of
the meeting."
Inner City
Press will, of
course, be
banned from
that as well.
Thanks,
Guterres,
Smale and
Sweden.... From the
July 18
questions
Inner City
Press
submitted,
UNanswered like
those below: "Is the
Secretary
General
meeting today
with the Club
of Madrid or
any of its
members? If
so, why is
this not in
his public
schedule? And
please list
the purposes
and issues of
his most
recent two
meetings
involving the
Club of
Madrid... Regarding
the next
Administrative
Instruction
ST/AI/2018/8
signed on July
9 by USG
Beagle
https://undocs.org/ST/AI/2018/8
about the use
of force by UN
Security,
please explain
the meaning of
“Security
officers are
expected to
exercise their
functions with
courtesy and
in co nformity
with
established
rules and
regulations,
including
applicable
local law.”
Since NYPD
officers are
required to
give their
names, does
this mean that
the UN ERU
officers who
refused to
give their
names on June
22, and Lt
Dobbins who
told them not
to give there
names, do not
comply with
this?" What is
the UN
deciding on -
suspending Lt
Dobbins and
the other rogue
officer who
tore Inner
City Press'
shirt and
twisted its
reporter's arm
for covering
Guterres' $6.7
billion budget
committee
meeting?
From
the day
before: "July
17-1: Confirm
or deny that
the Indian
army unit
based in Uri
that was
struck and
struck Kashmir
is no longer
being deployed
to MONUSCO,
and the UN's
reasoning.
July 17-2:
Relatedly,
please provide
an update on
the (second
tier of)
vetting of Sri
Lanka troops
whose
deployment was
reportedly
deployed.
July 17-3:
“Egypt's
parliament has
approved a
tough new law
to regulate
social media,
raising fears
that it could
curb dissent
against
President
Abdul Fattah
al-Sisi's
regime. The
law states
that social
media users
who have more
than 5,000
followers
could be
placed under
the
supervision of
Egypt's
Supreme
Council for
Media
Regulations.
The council
would be
authorised to
suspend or
block any
personal
account which
"publishes or
broadcasts
fake news” -
what is the
comment of the
SG / UN?
July 17-4:
What is the
SG's or UN's
comment on the
physical
removal of
journalist Sam
Husseini from
yesterday's
US-Russia
press
conference in
Helsinki?
July 17-5:
Since you and
USG Smale have
refused to
answer Inner
City Press'
questions on
why it remains
banned, and
unable to
attend and ask
questions at
the noon
briefing and
elsewhere in
the UN (and
even to WIPO
in the Pierre
Hotel), please
provide the
UN's responses
on deadline to
the letter to
USG Smale and
others
(including
chief of staff
Viotti and ASG
Christian
Saunders) from
the Government
Accountability
Project." No
answers,
repeat
questioners,
only one to
PGA Lajcak's
spokesman. On
July 16,
Inner City Press
submitted seven
questions,
only one of
which, on Haiti, was even partially
answered, on
this web site.
The July 16
questions:
"Still
banned from
UN, for being
roughed up
while covering
the UN Budget
Committee
meetings I am
entitled to
cover under
MALU Access
Guidelines and
as applied to
all other non
resident
correspondents)
I was
belatedly
“interviewed”
by UN Security
in the
basement of
the UNITAR
building on
July 10 from
10:45 to 12:05
and *nothing*
since. I have
questions on
that; as I've
told you, DPI
has not
responded to a
single one of
my seven
emails so I am
asking you:
July 16-1: On
Cameroon,
Inner City
Press is still
awaiting your
response to
question I
posed two days
ago: there are
newleaked
videos of
abuse by
Cameroon
security
forces. Since
there's not
yet even a
promise of
self-investigation,
what is the
UN's comment?
July 16-2:
Given your
belated call
last week for
a “swift and
transparent”
investigation
of the earlier
verified
footage,
please live up
to “swift and
transparent” -
how long can
an
investigation
(of me being
roughed up and
wrongfully
ousted from
covering
Budget
Committee
meeting on
July 3) take?
It's been 13
(or at least
11) days.
On
transparency,
again, WHO
decided,
between July 3
and July 5 945
am, to ban me?
And on what
basis?
July 16-3:
Thousands took
part yesterday
in Rabat in a
march called
by Human
rights
associations
and unions to
call for the
liberation of
the “Hirak El
Rif” detainees
and answer the
socioeconomic
requests of
the
inhabitants of
Al Hoceima.
For the
upteenth time,
what is the
UN's comment
on this
ongoing unrest
and injustice,
given the SG's
“conflict
prevention”
and human
rights claims?
July 16-4: In
DRC President
Joseph Kabila
replaced the
country´s army
chief in a
military
shake-up at
the weekend
that included
the promotion
of two leaders
accused of
human rights
violations.
what is the
UN's comment
on this
ongoing unrest
and injustice,
given the SG's
“conflict
prevention”
and human
rights claims?
July 16-5: In
a letter to
the UN,
Turkish-Cypriot
leader Mustafa
Akinci has
called for a
reassessment
of the UN
peacekeeping
force’s
(UNFICYP)
mandate on the
island. What
is the SG's
thinking /
response?
July 16-6:
Haitian Prime
Minister Jack
Guy Lafontant
resigned,
after
civilians were
killed
protesting
fuel price
subsidy cuts.
Again, that is
the comment of
UNSG and the
UN Mission,
given what the
UN has done
there
including by
introducing
cholera and
not paying
reparations of
any kind?" No
answers. On
June 13 another
empty
briefing, after
which Haq
answered only
one of the
questions,
which included:
"Still banned
from UN, I was
belatedly
“interviewed”
by UN Security
in the
basement of
the UNITAR
building on
July 10 from
10:45 to
12:05. I have
two more
questions on
that; as I've
told you, DPI
has not
responded to a
single one of
my seven
emails so I am
asking you:
1) who is
responsible
for deciding,
between 10 pm
July 3 when I
was assaulted
by UN DSS Lt
Dobbins and
another
UNnamed, and
10 am on July
5, that I was
and am banned
from entering
the UN? Who
participated
in this
decision?
2) Your office
yesterday told
The
Independent
(UK) that “a
review ha[s]
been launched
into the
manner in
which Mr Lee
had been
removed and
his future
accreditation.”
How my
accreditation
should suffer
for having
been assaulted
by Lt Dobbins
and unnamed
colleagues,
for the second
time in 11
days, is a
mystery or
worse. But
please state
how it is
possible for
DSS to
investigate
itself in this
matter. What
provisions
does the UN
have when
abuse BY UN
Security
officers is
alleged, and
how does it
impact for
example their
New York and
other gun
permits?
July 13-1: Two
full days ago
I asked your
Office about
the video of
Cameroon
soldiers
executing
women and
infants. You
have still not
answered. Now
that Amnesty
International
has verified
the video,
what has the
UN done about
it? What will
the UN do?
Relatedly,
what is the
UN's comment
on “Cameroon's
President Paul
Biya has
announced that
he will be a
candidate in
the 7 October
presidential
election that
would, if he
wins, extend
his
35-year-rule.
Biya tweeted
'I am willing
to respond
positively to
your
overwhelming
calls. I will
stand as your
candidate in
the upcoming
presidential
election'”
UPDATE:
After
the briefing,
Haq sent Inner
City Press
this: "On
Cameroon, we
can say the
following now: We
are aware of
the video
circulating on
social media
and welcome
the
announcement
by the
Government of
Cameroon to
open an
investigation
into the
matter. We
urge the
Government to
swiftly and
transparently
conduct the
announced
investigation." While
different in
kind, this echoes
UN Security
"investigating" its
own
personnel's
assault on the
Press. It is a bad
joke.
July 13-2:
Saudi King
Salman has
‘pre-exonerated’
all troops
fighting in
Yemen from any
accountability
issues they
may face over
their conduct
in the war, in
which
thousands of
civilians have
been killed
and wounded. A
statement
announcing the
early pardon,
released by
Saudi Arabia's
state news
agency SPA,
said the
pardon extends
to “all
military men
across the
armed forces”
taking part in
Operation
Restoring
Hope.” Given
that the SG
accepted
Saudi's $930
Million check,
what is his
comment?
July 13-3: In
Spain El Pais
reports that
Equatorial
Guinea
protects
President
Teodoro Obiang
from coups by
hiring combat
pilots and
commanders of
warships from
Russia,
Ukraine and
Lithuania in a
"flagrant
regime of
illegality"
and violating
international
regulations,
according to a
report of the
Spanish
police. What
is the UN's
comment and
action?
July 13-4:
Before being
ousted and now
banned, I had
asked at the
noon briefing
about the
status /
absence of USG
Heidi Mendoza
from OIOS.
While that was
not answered,
having now
learned more,
this is a
written
request that
you confirm
that USG
Mendoza has
been on leave
for
approximate
six months,
that you state
(as I
requested) who
is the Officer
in Charge,
that you state
the current
role in OIOS
of Michael
Dudley, and
that you
provide the
SGs comments
on and
response to
the decision
in [ ]
July 13-5:
With the Fifth
Committee's
rejection of
SG Guterres'
GSDM proposal
in the process
from which I
was ousted and
banned from
covering, what
is SG
Guterres'
plan?
Relately, on
the
“reconfiguring
of the
development
system,” how
much money has
been raised
and when will
SG Guterres
file the
required
Program Budget
Implication?"
No answers.
But a tape
recorder
holder for a
Japanese media
that reports
more, in a
racist
fashion, on US
rappers
finally asked
a (lame)
question.
We'll have
more on this.
On July 9,
while Haq
claimed that this one-way
assault was an "altercation"
justifying the ban of the
journalist improperly ousted
and assaulted, Haq did not
by 1 pm answer a single one
of these questions then
making him one for six and
trying to keep Inner City
Press out from Guterres'
long delayed July 12 press
conference (a subsequent
answer, published in full
below, claims that Guterres
is committed to press
freedom in Myanmar and
Sudan). Later on July 9, Haq
belatedly answered Inner
City Press' July 6 question
about Canada in Mali, below,
with this: "Regarding your
earlier question on Mali, we
have the following to say:
We can confirm that an
advance party of 25 Canadian
military troops have so far
been deployed to MINUSMA as
part of the 136-strong
aviation unit to be deployed
to UN peacekeeping by the
Government of Canada,
according to our memorandum
of understanding (MOU) with
this troop-contributing
country. Canada has not
submitted any nominations
for Police contingent
members to MINUSMA to date."
No police, 25 out of 136.
The July 9 questions: "Since
I am still, for a third
business day, banned from
the UN without due process
(see below), here are three
question for answer before
or at the noon briefing:
July 9-1: In South Sudan,
the opposition has
reportedly rejected a peace
plan under which Riek Machar
would be reinstated as vice
president. What is the SG's
(and separately UNMISS')
comment and role if any in
the process?
July 9-2: What is the
Secretary General's response
to the demand by
Transparency International
and others that its MOU on
the return of Rohingya
refugees from Bangladesh to
Myanmar be made public? And
please explain what part of
Bangladesh's plan for a
distant island for Rohingya
the SG finds or found
interesting. And what is the
SG's comment (and action) on
the charged now announced by
Myanmar against journalists
Wa Lone and Kyaw Soe Oo?
July 9-3: “Sudan’s National
Intelligence and Security
Services (NISS) on Sunday
seized copies of Al-Jareeda
and Akhir Lahza newspapers
without stating reasons” --
what is the SG's comment,
and separately his country
team's action?
On the “ban” -- Fox News
reported this ban is pending
a review. I have not been
contacted concerning any
review. Despite DSS and DPI
not have spokespeople, on
July 6 I was told to contact
them. I wrote to DPI's USG
Smale, again - without any
response. So I ask again:
who is conducting the review
your Office told Fox News
about? When does it end? How
does it not involve Inner
City Press, which is now
banned for a third business
day?
What is the Secretariat's
comment on/ response to
this?
July 6, 2018, “Harassment of
US Journalist Intensifies at
the UN,”
https://www.whistleblower.org/blog/103306-harassment-us-journalist-intensifies-un
To whom in the UN do I
submit my evidence for this
“review”?" After 1 pm, Haq
replied with this:
"Regarding South Sudan, the
UN Mission in South Sudan
welcomes the apparent
progress being made in the
peace process as talks
between the South Sudanese
parties continue in
Khartoum. It is encouraging
that there appears to be
fresh momentum and that all
the various stakeholders are
actively engaged in the
discussions. The Mission
also acknowledges and
appreciates the strong lead
role of sub-regional actors
in facilitating the
discussions.
On Myanmar, we remain
concerned at the arrest and
continued detention of Wa
Lone and Kyaw Soe Oo.
The Secretary-General has
repeatedly urged for
the release of the
journalists and for the
authorities to respect the
right to freedom of
expression and
information. We will
continue to raise the issue
as a high priority at every
possible opportunity.
On Sudan, we continue to
call for freedom of
expression, including the
rights of the media." Oh
really. On July 6, when
Inner City Press went to the
gate to ask politely if it
could as before enter to
attend the noon briefing and
ask questions, it was told
"No." Inner City Press
reiterated its concern about
censorship to Darrin
Farrant, a staff member of
Alison Smale of DPI who has
not answered Inner City
Press' six emails and
petition; he said he would
pass the concern along. We
are waiting, in the rain,
for an answer. At the day's
noon briefing, the UN's
deputy spokesman Farhan Haq
took questions from France
24, Moroccan state media,
Reuters and quickly turned
over the podium to the PGA's
spokesman. Inner City Press
had asked Haq: "Since Inner
City Press' six inquiries
with the head of DPI Alison
Smale have gone unanswered,
and I am as you know banned
from entering the building,
who are you telling me to
contact in Security and DPI?
Aren't you the spokesperson
for the Secretariat? Need
answer immediately. For now,
for noon, three questions:
In Tanzania, Julius Mtatiro
asenior leader of a
Tanzanian opposition party
has been arrested for
insulting President John
Magufuli by asking“Who is
the President, really?”
Police detained him “as they
found this phrase offensive
to the president. They went
on to search Mr Mtatiro’s
home for the device used to
post on social media.” What
is the Secretary General's
comment - and his / Country
Team's action?
It is reported that Canada
will deploy up to 20
civilian police officers to
support both the United
Nations peacekeeping mission
and the EU training mission
in Mali. So, will they be
part of MINUSMA? How many
Canadian personnel are
currently part of MINUSMA,
and what is the plan and
timetable for additional
Canadian joining of MINUSMA?
Will Canadian troops have
different (and
significantly, better)
security equipment that
other countries' troops in
MINUSMA?
On the deadly class between
DRC's and Uganda's
militaries on Lake Edward,
what is the SG's comment and
what is MONUSCO's action?"
So far, even after the
briefing, only this:
"Regarding your question on
Lake Edward, there is no
comment or response from
MONUSCO." We'll have more on
this.
Haq told Fox
News "Matthew Lee [i]s a
repeat offender, having been
similarly removed from the
building on 22 June 2018,
Matthew Lee has been
temporarily barred from the
premises pending a full
review of this incident."
There is no offense by Inner
City Press: the rules permit
Inner City Press to cover
meetings after 7 pm, on June
22 a speech by Secretary
General Antonio Guterres and
on July 3 a meeting about
Guterres' $6.7 billion
budget. So since no one from
the UN contacted Inner City
Press on July 5 about any
review, Inner City Press
wrote to Haq and his boss
Stephane Dujarric (out of
the office again). Haq
replied, "Receipt is
confirmed. For questions
about security issues, you
will need to be in touch
with security and with DPI."
But neither Department has a
spokesperson - Haq is the
spokesperson for the
Secretariat -- and Inner
City Press has written six
times to the head of DPI
without a single response.
The head of DPI ordered an
investigation of him own
staff after Inner City Press
published a leaked email
about him "burying" a threat
to another UN system
official, Irina Bokova (who
may, some say, become High
Commissioner for Human
Rights). So Haq's "answer"
is Orwellian. We will have
more on this. Guterres was
informed on June 25 by Inner
City Press of the escalating
targeting by his UN Security
Lieutenant Ronald E.
Dobbins. In fact, Guterres
deputy spokesman Farhan Haq
on July 3 essentially gave
the green light for that
evening's Security violence.
On July 5, Guterres' lead
spokesman Stephane Dujarric
refused to answer press
questions about the ouster
before "his" noon briefing.
Afterward, when Saunders
sauntered out of the UN in
black sunglasses and was
informed that Inner City
Press was now banned, his
response was to complain
about some of the written
coverage of him. Video here.
So is that why he cheered on
the twisting of the Press'
arm? Will this obviously
biased official be witness
in the "full review of the
incident" pending which
Inner City Press is
indefinitely banned? Brenden
Varma the Spokesperson for
the President of the General
Assembly Miroslav Lajcak
(whose chief of staff and
under-staffer were also
informed of the Press ban)
said, as his office
summarized, "This afternoon
at 3:00, the General
Assembly’s Fifth Committee,
which handles administrative
and budgetary matters, will
formally take action on all
outstanding issues,
including United Nations
peacekeeping budgets and the
Secretary-General’s
management reform and peace
and security architecture
reform proposals.
It will then close the
second part of its resumed
session.
Following that, the General
Assembly plenary will meet
to consider the report of
the Fifth Committee." Inner
City Press was banned from
this meeting and vote. While
the UN has told Inner City
Press nothing, Guterres
spokesman Farhan Haq told FOX
News' Adam Shaw that
"security followed up, they
found Matthew Lee to be in
the building past 9 p.m.,
well after the hours for a
non-resident correspondent,
and they informed him that
he was not allowed to roam
around the UN compound at
that hour. They informed him
that he would be required to
leave the premises. At that
point, Mr. Lee became loud
and belligerent, and
resisted the instructions of
UN security officers. He was
then escorted outside the
building, along with his
laptop and backpack. Based
on his unacceptable
behavior, and the fact that
he was a repeat offender,
having been similarly
removed from the building on
22 June 2018, Matthew Lee
has been temporarily barred
from the premises pending a
full review of this
incident." But Inner City
Press has not been contacted
for any review, which would
have to include UN Security
twisting its reporter's arm
before any volume, and the
MALU rule permitted coverage
of meetings after 7 pm, and
for an hour after then end.
This was pure targeting, and
Guterres and his team are
responsible. Eleven
days after UN Security
officers led by UN
Lieutenant Ronald E. Dobbin
and four others who refused
to give their names pushed
Inner City Press' reporter out of the UN during a speech by
Secretary General Antonio
Guterres, on July 3 just
after Inner City Press
interviewed the chairman of
the UN Budget Committee,
Dobbins and another UN
Security officer even more
physically removed Inner
City Press from the UN. Video
here,
tweeted here.
Hours later as diplomats and
Guterres officials who
witnessed it left the UN,
Inner City Press asked
Guterres' Under Secretary
General for Field Support
Atul Khare about the
process. He admitted,
contrary to Guterres'
spokesman, that the Support
Account was still not
agreed. Shown the shirt that
UN Security officers Dobbins
and his thus far UNnamed
partner tore, he said, "I'll
talk to DPI." While
appreciated, Inner City
Press already six times
wrote to DPI's Alison Smale,
and last week spoke directly
to her and her piano playing
husband Sergei Dreznin at
the End of UNSC Presidency
reception. Inner City Press
told Smale, and an hour
later emailed her, that her
continued disparate
treatment of active Inner
City Press as a non -
resident correspondent would
allow further targeting like
that of Lieutenant Dobbins
and four unnamed Emergency
Response Unit officers on
June 22. Smale didn't even
confirm receipt of the email
as requested. And on July 3
a new officer got involved
as Inner City Press covered
the UN budget, breaking
Inner City Press' laptop,
tearing its shirt and
twisting its arm. Smale and
Guterres are responsible.
This all happened as Inner
City Press was actively
writing about the UN's murky
$6.7 billion peacekeeping
budget and questionable
reforms by Guterres. It
happened directly in front
of, and ultimately at the
order of, a Guterres
Assistant Secretary General,
Christian Saunders. A number
of diplomats stood and took
pictures and videos. Here as
the interview, pre-ouster,
with the Budget Committee
chairman Tommo Monthe of
Cameroon, video here.
Guterres' spokesman Farhan
on both July 2 and July 3
insisted to Inner City Press
that the budget was agreed
to in a closed session on
Sunay, when clearly it has
not been approved. While we
will have more on the other
UN Security Officer, Inner
City Press has previously
reported on issues with
Saunders, from education to
the cover up of sexual
harassment and abuse in the
UN. The fact that Antonio
Guterres allows this to go
on in his UN should
disqualify him. The UN had
at least 11 days to deal
with this - Inner City Press
repeatedly at the noon
briefing asked about the
rules, and the budget - and
this was their response.
Significantly, on July 3 the
Government Accountability
Project has criticized
the ouster and called for
Inner City Press to be
reinstated as a UN Resident
Correspondent. Inner City
Press asked Guterres' Deputy
Spokesman Farhan Haq, video
here,
UN transcript here:
Inner City Press: I'd asked
you, a week ago, about the
UN policy of UN security
ousting the non-resident
correspondent during a
meeting to be covered and
refusing to give their
names, and now the
Government Accountability
Project has asked
the same question. So
I'm wondering, you didn't
ask me when I answered it
[sic], what is the policy of
the UN on something as
fundamental as security
officers giving their names,
and also can they oust
journalists during a meeting
such as a budget meeting
that will be upcoming, I
would believe, in upcoming
days?
Deputy Spokesman: As
far as I'm aware, the
security officers were
enforcing the appropriate
rules. Any problems
that you have with them are
questions that you need to
address with our colleagues
in UN security and with
Media Accreditation." But as
GAP notes, the boss of Media
Accreditation Alison Smale
has refused to answer
anything in eight months.
GAP writes:
"as security expelled Mr.
Lee from the building, he
encountered Catherine
Pollard, the UN’s
Under-Secretary General
(USG) for General Assembly
and Conference Management,
who pointedly ignored his
plight and simply stayed her
course, despite his plea for
her intervention. Along the
way, Mr. Lee also asked the
guards for their names,
which they refused to
provide. This most recent
incident is the latest in a
long history of harassment
directed at a journalist who
has been critical of UN
management and operations
over the years. Mr. Lee’s
investigative reporting has
broken stories concerning
sexual abuses committed by
peacekeepers in Africa, the
role of UN peacekeepers in
bringing cholera to Haiti,
and war crimes in Sri Lanka,
Burundi and Sudan [and
Cameroon]. Mr. Lee’s
reporting has also helped to
expose corruption at the
Headquarters of the United
Nations, including the
current bribery scandals
surrounding former General
Assembly President [Sam
Kutesa and] John Ashe."
In the
eleven days since the
ouster, live-streamed on
Periscope and then put on YouTube, the UN of Antonio
Guterres has not responded
in any way. Inner City Press
was first told to "Ask
Security" then to "Ask DPI"
or as it now absurdly wants
to be known, the UN
Department of Global
Communications. But as GAP
continues, "Like USG
Pollard, the Under-Secretary
for Global Communications,
Alison Smale, seems deaf to
Mr. Lee’s distress; she has
refused for eight months to
answer e-mails or respond to
a petition to restore his
credentials as a resident
correspondent." Inner City
Press since the ouster has
raised it to Smale not only
in writing (again) but also
in person - with no
response. Global
Communications, indeed. GAP
concludes: The Government
Accountability Project
therefore urges the Member
States of the United Nations
to combat the silencing of a
journalist by taking action
at the offices of the
self-appointed guardian of
free speech, itself: the
United Nations. Matthew Lee
should be: Reinstated as a
resident correspondent with
appropriate access to
facilities and events, and
Issued a public apology for
the improper expulsion that
occurred on June 22nd." To
Inner City Press, it is the
first of these, restoration
to its long time work space
S-303 which sits empty every
day, assigned to an Egypt
state media Akhbar al Yom
whose Sanaa Youssef, while a
former president of the UN
Correspondents Association
(1984) has not asked the
UN a question in a
decade. As to apologies from
today's UN, the disingenuous
apology in Haiti for example
shows how much those are
worth. We'll have more on
this. Guterres' lead
spokesman Stephane Dujarric
evaded Inner City Press'
questions then ran off the
podium. Video here.
Despite the fact that
Guterres' armed guards
ousted Inner City Press and
that the UN Department of
Public Information under
Alison Smale did nothing,
Dujarric babbled that Inner
City Press should "ask DPI"
then ran off the podium.
Video here.
From the UN (controlled) transcript:
Inner City Press: Farhan
[Haq], on Monday, when I
informed him that on Friday
I had been, during an event
in which the
Secretary-General was giving
a speech, made to leave by
UN Security while other
non-resident correspondents,
a distinction you just
cited, were still in
attendance, he said to talk
to security. And that
seems strange to me, because
it seems to me that the
Secretariat, like civilian…
Spokesman: I think if
there are any issues that
you have…
Inner
City Press: My
issue…
Spokesman: If you have
any issues with your access,
you should take them up with
DPI [Department of Public
Information] and the people
who actually issue the
accreditation.
Inner City Press: They
came… they came and they
said there was nothing they
could do…
Spokesman: "Thank you
very much. Brenden."
The UN transcript
omitted the audible
question, "So can Security
just at will bar
journalists?" Video here.
The UN of Guterres, Dujarric
and Smale is a place of
corruption and censorship,
and self-serving erasure
even of the questions asked,
with the public's money. The
day before, after cutting
off Inner City Press'
question about protests of
Guterres' inaction on sexual
harassment cover-ups at
UNAIDS, Dujarric called on a
correspondent for a
London-based Arabic daily.
Then he called on that same
correspondent again before
returning to Inner City
Press. Sensing this second
round might be cut off,
Inner City Press began
asking about Guterres
inaction on Cameroon then on
his Security's ouster of the
Press which asks. But
Dujarric after evading the
Cameroon question turned to
Al Jazeera which asked what
even it called a light
question about the French
label pin on Dujarric's
sear-sucker jacket. Then
Dujarric simply left the
room, so that Inner City
Press' question about
Guterres' use of his
Security to target the Press
could not be asked. On June
22 Inner City Press was
live-streaming Periscope and
preparing to write about
Secretary General Antonio
Guterres' claims about his
visit to Mali, where he
didn't even inquire into a
recent case child rape by a
UN Peacekeeper. With the
event still ongoing, Inner
City Press was approached by
Lieutenant Dobbins and told
that since it was just past
7 pm it had to leave the
building. Video here.
That is
not the rule, nor the
practice. But Inner City
Press under Guterres and his
head of Global
Communications Alison Smale
has inexplicable been at the
"non-resident correspondent"
level lowered from that of
no-show state media like
Akbhar al Yom's Sanaa
Youssef, assigned Inner City
Press' long time office
despite rarely coming in and
not asking a question in ten
years.
While
Guterres and Smale have
created and encourage the
atmosphere for targeting the
Press, Dobbins had and has
his own reasons. Inner City
Press previously exclusively
reported on fraudulent
promotions in the UN
Department of Safety and
Security, beginning of
series here
with a leaked document
with Dobbins own name on it,
under the heading "Possible
Promotions... if Dobbins
does not want Canine / ERU."
Document here.
Since the publication,
Dobbins and a number of UN
Security officers have
openly targeted Inner City
Press. This has been raised
in writing to Smale (for
eight months), for almost 18
months to Guterres and his
deputy Amina J. Mohammed,
whose response has been to
evade questions on Cameroon
and now an ambiguous smile
while surrounded by UN
Security. On June 25 Inner
City Press asked Guterres'
Deputy Spokesman Farhan Haq
about it, video here,
UN transcript here:
Inner City Press:
on Friday there was the Eid
event in which António
Guterres gave a speech, and
I… I want… I guess I want to
put this in a general way
because I don't understand
it. During the event,
as the event went on, I was
required to leave by a
Lieutenant Dobbins and the
emergency response
unit. And it seemed
strange, because there were
many other non-resident
correspondents at the
event. So, I wanted to
know… to know, one, what are
the rules? Number two,
is it acceptable for a… a…
UN Security to… to single
out and target a specific
journalist? And I did…
and I ask this because I've
previously written a story
about promotions in DSS
[Department of Safety and
Security], including Mr.
Dobbins, and whatever that
is, what are the provisions
in the UN to make sure that
security cannot abuse its
powers? So those are…
I… I… I'd like you to answer
that, and also they didn't
give their names. The
other individuals refused to
give their names. Is
that UN policy?
Deputy Spokesman: UN
Security has their
policies. Your
concerns with them need to
be addressed to UN
Security. I'm not
going to comment on your own
problems with UN
Security. Brenden,
come on up.
Inner
City Press: I
don't understand. This
happened at a speech by the
Secretary-General.
Deputy Spokesman: No,
I'm sorry, your security
issues are things you're
going to have to deal with.
Inner City Press: It's not a
security issue. It was
done in the name of the
Secretary-General. Is
he speaking tomorrow at 6
p.m. somewhere? Can
you say where
the Secretary-General is
speaking tomorrow at 6 p.m.?
Deputy Spokesman: I’m
not going to argue with you
on this." There was more -
video
here.
Even if
Lt Dobbins and his team and
commanders wanted to
interpret and twist the
existing rules in a way they
are not enforced against any
other non-resident
correspondent at the UN, the
Guterres Eid al -Fitr event
listed in the UN Department
of Public Information was
still ongoing, making it
unquestionable that Inner
City Press had a right to be
in the UN and cover it.
But even as Inner City Press
dialed DPI's Media
Accreditation and Liaison
Unit, getting only voice
mail, Dobbins made a call
and UN “Emergency Response
Unit” officers arrived, with
barely concealed automatic
weapons. One of them
repeatedly pushed Inner City
Press' reporter in the back,
forcing him through the
General Assembly lobby
toward the exit. Video here.
UN
Under Secretary General
Catherine Pollard was told
the ouster and did nothing,
as was a Moroccan diplomat.
The heavily armed UN
Security officers refused to
give their names when asked.
Lieutenant Dobbins, with no
name plate on his uniform,
refused to spell his name.
He said, I have my orders.
From who - Guterres? His
Deputy SG or chief of staff,
both of whom were at the
event? DSS chief Drennan?
DPI chief Alison Smale?
Inner City Press repeatedly
asked to be able to get its
laptop computer, which was
upstairs - there was no way
to have known it would be
ousted during Guterres'
event.
But
Dobbins and the others
refused, as did the UN
Security officers at the
gate. Inner City Press
remained there, with
dwindling cell phone
battery, raising the issue
online to Smale, under whose
watch Inner City Press has
remained in the non-resident
correspondent status it was
reduced to for pursuing the
Ng Lp Seng UN bribery case
into the UN press briefing
room where Guterres'
spokesman Stephane Dujarric
ordered it out, then had it
evicted. A DPI
representative, whom Inner
City Press asked to call
Smale, was unable or
unwilling to even let Inner
City Press go in escorted to
get its laptop.
Just in the past week, when
Inner City Press complained
of Dujarric providing only
to Al Jazeera the response
of Antonio Guterres to the
US leaving the UN Human
Rights Council, Dujarric and
the Al Jazeera trio claimed
to MALU that the coverage
was “too aggressive.”
Journalism is not a crime?
Next week, Antonio Guterres
is set to give remarks, to
which Inner City Press has
requested the right to cover
response, to the UN
Correspondents Association,
which not only has not acted
on this censorship, but has
fueled it.
Inside
the UN the Eid event
continued, alongside a
liquor fueled barbeque
thrown by UN Security. This
DSS sold tickets to non
resident correspondents, and
allowed in people who had
nothing to do with the UN,
including some seeming
underage. When Inner City
Press audibly raised the
issue to UN Safety and
Security Service chief Mick
Brown, he did nothing.
The Moroccan diplomat
emerged and chided Inner
City Press for even telling
him of the ouster, claiming
that “25% of what you write
is about Morocco.” Some
Periscope video here.
Pakistan's Permanent
Representative, who hosted
the Eid event, said she
would look into it. Sweden's
spokesperson asked whom to
call in DPI and when Inner
City Press said, Alison
Smale, responded, Who is
Alison Smale? Indeed.
Smale
has refused to respond in
any way, in the eight months
she has been Guterres'
“Global Communications”
chief, to a 5000 signature
petition to restore Inner
City Press to its unused
office S-303 and to adopt
content neutral media access
rules going forward. That,
and appropriate action on
Lt. Dobbins and the others,
must be among the next
steps. Watch this site.
***
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