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As UN Bans Inner City Press E-Asks Spox Dujarric of UN Rape Darfur Cameroon Moz WEF Morocco Burundi Fleming Bans Press 1000+ UNanswered

By Matthew Russell Lee, CJR Letter PFT Q&A, NY Post

UN GATE, Jan 17 – Inner City Press on 5 July 2018 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' Department of Global Communication issued a letter banning Inner City Press from the UN - for life. With no due process.  

Guterres has put the UN in the US Press Freedom Tracker, here. The head of the UN Department of Global Communications said, again, that the UN would answer Press questions to the Spokesman Stephane Dujarric and his Office; Dujarric said the same on camera. On January 17 before a lame Q&A by Stephane "French Whine" Dujarric in which he again refused to answer on Guterres' statements in his closed meeting with UN staff in Geneva, audio now here, and delayed the promised January 20 "beginning of year" press conference, after the July 26 noon briefing had no questions at all, video here, Inner City Press submitted 1496 questions, including why it continues to be lawlessly banned from entering to ask questions in person: "There are more than 1000+ questions UNanswered. No answers at all during the four days of the US v Ho trial showing corruption in the UN says it all; no answers during the Honduras narco-president trial while UN bragged about taking his money, nor on OneCoin. 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.

January 17-1: Immediately provide the if-asked information for the report of UN rape in Darfur data dumped to Conduct and Discipline website this morning, or explain why you are covering up UN sex abuse even more than Ban Ki-moon (who did provide the Press with if-asked information) did, and see below. 

January 17-2: On Mozambique, what are the comments and actions if any of SG Guterres on that the Public Prosecutor's Office in Mozambique has opened a case against a former MP of the country's main opposition party Renamo, officials say.  Sandura Ambosio is accused of conspiring to set up a self-styled "Renamo Military Junta", a dissident group which denounces Renamo leader Ossufo Momade as a "traitor".  Mr Ambosio is currently in custody. He denies the charges.  Renamo and the Mozambican government fought a bitter 1975-1991 civil war, with renewed hostilities from 2013-16.  Mr Momade and the Mozambican government signed a peace deal in August - but the dissidents oppose it. 

January 17-3: On corporate domination of the UN under SG Guterres, what is his justification of the Strategic Partnership Agreement between WEF and the UN? Programmes Corporate Power Signed in June 2019, the agreement promises to ‘accelerate the implementation of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development’ by deepening institutional coordination and collaboration between the UN and the WEF. The agreement grants transnational corporations preferential and deferential access to the UN System at the expense of states and public interest actors. 

January 17-4: On Morocco, what are the comments and action if any of SG Guterres on that a man sentenced to life in prison in one of Morocco’s best-known trials for supposedly plotting terrorism, has been held in abusive solitary detention for more than three years. The mass trial in which he was convicted was marred by serious rights violations.  Abdelqader Belliraj, a dual Moroccan and Belgian citizen, is serving a life sentence largely based on his and co-defendants’ “confessions,” which they said were obtained under police torture. His wife told Human Rights Watch that Belliraj has been deprived of contact with inmates and confined to his cell 23 hours a day since 2016    

January 17-5: On Cameroon, what are the belated comments and actions if any of SG Guterres on the new threats by Paul Biya's long time government that it will deal "firmly" with those planning to disrupt the 9 February elections? There is already a heavy security in the Anglophone regions - with 800 more military police officers being sent to secure two towns in the North-West and South-West provinces. Cameroonians are due to elect MPs and municipal councillors.  Territorial Administration Minister Paul Atanga Nji urged people to vote and warned that the security agencies would deal firmly with those who sabotaged the polls... 

January 17-6: On "UN75," please immediately state how the UN selected Vox to partner with: "To inspire and inform the dialogues, the UN is also partnering with Vox Media’s brand studio, Vox Creative, to create a video informed by interviews with 38 people from around the world, sharing their experiences and opinions related to important global issues, to be launched on 6 January." See https://www.thedrum.com/creative-works/project/vox-creative-united-nations-shaping-our-future-together stating "Client: United Nations." 

January 17-7: On UN sexual exploitation and abuse - alleged - as Inner City press asked in writing in 2019 without response, this is a request that you immediately provide the if-asked information for the report of UN rape in Darfur data dumped to Conduct and Discipline website on the morning of January 17 and the "if asked" information about the two new cases of sexual exploitation in CAR by Cameroonian UN "Police" that were put online after 5 pm on December 30 (a day when you refused to answer 7 questions including on previous UN rapes), and the (Dec 19) rape case by a UN Volunteer in DRC in June 2019 - what nationality? What's been done for the victim(s)? and the Dec 9 sex abuse cases in CAR by Gabon, DRC and Morocco UN "peacekeepers, and the Dec g  about the Office of the Special Envoy for the Sahel, and the two more November 26, 3 pm cases of sexual exploitation in CAR by Cameroon troops in September 2019 (!)

January 17-8: On SG Guterres' Town Hall in Geneva, on which you refused Inner City Press' Dec 20 question, what is your summary of what SG Guterres said given that Inner City Press has now publishing more of it? Please explain SG Guterres' statement that interns should not (ever) be paid, and how this is not create unfair advantage for the most affluent?

January 17-9: As previously and repeated asked, where has UNSG Antonio Guterres been for the past week(s), and how much public money has he spent? 

January 17-10: On press freedom and Burundi, what are the comments and actions if any of SG Guterres and separately USG Melissa Fleming on that a Burundian radio journalist, who reported on misuse of public funds in the country. has been arrested.  Blaise Pascal Kararumiye was arrested on Thursday, his employer Radio Isanganiro told the BBC.  The authorities have not disclosed the charges against the journalist and he was interrogated without a lawyer, station director Sylvere Ntakarutimana added.

September 4-8: Immediately explain the single lawless line from MALU on 30 August 2019: "Greetings Matthew Lee from Inner City Press, Your media accreditation request, with reference no: M5413398, has been declined for the following reason: Media accreditation was withdrawn on 17 August 2018." This is a formal request for the UN's explanation of grounds for this denial. And a demand for answer to these questions, which MALU has declined to answer:  Who made the decision?  Where is the list of those accredited by [MALU]?  What and to whom is the process of appeal? 

September 3-19: On press freedom and Cameroon, on which you refused to answer on August 13 despite saying the office was staffed and answering, now more specific: what is the SG's comment and action if any, post golden statue, to that Paul Atanga Nji, territorial administration minister, says Cameroon's journalists are becoming highly unpatriotic.  "They have one main objective, just to sabotage government action, to promote secessionist tendencies," said Nji. "I urge them to be responsible. Those who do not want to respect the laws will be booked as being recalcitrant and will be treated as such"... Now that the US Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit has ruled against public officials blocking critics on Twitter even if the official claims their account is private [and AOC unblocking Dov Hikind], what is the justification for UNSG Spokesperson Stephane Dujarric, with the UN flag in his profile photo and Guterres promoting content, blocking Inner City Press? What is SG Guterres' response / reaction to UN DSS and Guterres' actions on Inner City Press being listed in the U.S. Press Freedom Tracker, here.  In the UN, what has the accountability been for Lt Ronald E. Dobbins and those those refused on camera to give their names? What is each of yours - particularly the SG's - response to the letter written and sent by Burundi activist Manisha Lievin? Immediately explain the single lawless line from MALU on 30 August 2019: "Greetings Matthew Lee from Inner City Press, Your media accreditation request, with reference no: M5413398, has been declined for the following reason: Media accreditation was withdrawn on 17 August 2018." This is a formal request for the UN's explanation of grounds for this denied, and since SGcentral, the SG's chief of staff and Deputy SG and USG Fleming have not even responded... 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 - and respond that Inner City Press on August 24 applied like 100s or 1000s of others to cover the upcoming UNGA high level week, including now formally offering to answer any quesions the UN / DSS might have, having been vetted and accredited elsewhere since, as both USG DSS Michaud and MALU have formally been timely informed -- and how it is possible that a media that closely covers and uncovers the UN could be denied entry, other than (SG) censorship.

More here.

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