Amid UN
Censorship, Lawyer's Letter to UN Trio and
UNCA Was A Litmus Test Failed
By Matthew
Russell Lee, Patreon
BBC
- Guardian
UK - Honduras
- ESPN
UN GATE, April 4
– Each day, the current United
Nations gets worse. Usually we
focus on Secretary General
Antonio Guterres moving from
concealing his links to UN
briber CEFC China Energy to
banning the Press that asks,
to failures on Sri Lanka,
Cameroon, Haiti, Honduras
(JOH) & Nigeria (Nnamdi
& Igboho).
The
insiders of
the UN
Correspondents
Association,
while
purporting to
praise this
journalist
among with UN
Spokesman
Stephane
Dujarric on
three week
vacation in
Greece, have
neither
responded to
or offered any
explanation
when a
lawyer's
letter - to
each UNCA
Executive
Committee
member - urged
them to have a
dialogue about
ending the
UN's banning
and censorship
of Inner City
Press.
The
letter was
received by
the UN's
Melissa
Fleming and
Tal Mekel and
to each UNCA
Executive
Board member,
to them citing
UNCA's stated
goals that it
has a charter
to supposedly
uphold.
They've
done nothing.
And they've
even sold out
all
non-resident
correspondents:
"Dear
colleagues,
I hope you are
well and ready
for warmer
spring
weather.
I was hoping
to give you a
more detailed
update on
access
restrictions
at UNHQ,
however it
seems this is
still being
evaluated.
I was recently
informed that
MALU,
Spokesperson's
Office and UN
Security will
review the
reopening to
non-resident
media, guests
and tours in
April.
In the
meantime, we
will continue
to keep close
contact with
UN offices on
the next
steps. I
hope to share
some positive
news shortly
and bring
in-person
activity back
to UNCA,
including the
launch
reception for
the annual
directory."
Yeah.
Right
after the
letter, Inner
City Press has
published
exclusive
stories not
only from the
U.S. court
systems but
about the
United
Nations,
including its
agencies UNOPS,
UNFPA,
UNITAR
and UNESCO.
(Also credited
in AP,
Daily
Mail, and
Nigeria's
Sahara
Reporters,
amid answers
from the IMF.)
But
none of its
written
questions have
been answered
by the UN
Spokespeople,
and it remains
banned from
entry to the
UN's
briefings.
This must
end.
Having
asked for a
colleagial
discussion,
and while
still offering
it, things
must turn to
the law. UNCA
is a New York
State
non-profit
which has not
only not
abided by its
stated goals -
it has
tortiously
interfered
with a
journalist's
right to cover
the United
Nations.
The United
Nations itself
propounds
Article 19 of
the Universal
Declaration of
Human Rights,
and has other
legal duties
that must be
addressed by
national
courts,
particularly
in the UN's
host
country...
Those
in receipt of
the first,
friendly
letter:
melissa.fleming@un.org,
marialuiza.viotti@un.org,
mekel@un.org,
malu@un.org,
and
UNCA
Valeria
Robecco, ANSA
News Agency,
Nabil Abi
Saab,
Al-Araby,
Jianguo Ma,
Xinhua News
Agency, Edith
Lederer,
Associated,
Giampaolo
Pioli,
Quotidiano,
Linda Fasulo,
Ibtisam Azem,
Al-Araby
Al-Jadeed
Newspaper, Ali
Barada, France
24, Asharq
Al-Awsat;
Oscar Bolanos,
OMB News,
Sherwin
Bryce-Pease,
SABC South
Africa -
Alexander
Hassanein, The
Tokyo Shimbun,
Maria
Khrenova,
TASS, Philippe
Rater, Agence
France-Presse,
Kaori Yoshida,
Nikkei, Betul
Yuruk, Anadolu
Agency at
president@unca.com,
valeria.robecco@gmail.com,
nabisaab@gmail.com,
mjg222888@gmail.com,
elederer@ap.org,
giampioli@aol.com,
lindafasulo@gmail.com,
ibtisam.azem@alaraby.co.uk,
abarada@hotmail.com,
ombyvozque@gmail.com,
s.brycepease@gmail.com,
alexander@tokyoshimbun.us,
khrenova_m@tass.ru,
philippe.rater@afp.com,
kaori.yoshida@nex.nikkei.com,
byuruk@aa.com.tr
We'll have
more on this.
Watch this
site.
***
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