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By Matthew Russell Lee, Patreon Periscope
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UN GATE, Sept 28 – While the United Nations speaks about press freedom and the current UN General Assembly week under new President Zolkan Bozkir of Turkey, UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres has banned Inner City Press amid its questions about his finances and failures on Cameroon and in combating or even just disclosing UN sexual abuse. 

 On September 28 as Inner City Press biked past the UN on the way to cover cases at the SDNY courthouse, it spotted Guterres' spokesman Stephane Dujarric getting out of a 4 by 4, not unlike the one used for UNsexploitation in Tel Aviv as exclusively reported by Inner City Press, on First Avenue by 50th Street.

The 4 by 4, with a Georgetown sticker and a Main Beach sign on the roof rack, parked on First Avenue. Then, when Dujarric saw Inner City Press, whose questions he has refuse for months to answer despite an on-camera commitment to, it sped around the corner.

  But Dujarric came back, Periscope video here. He bought a pastry and, looking over his shoulder, walked south on First Avenue. Inner City Press, seeking an answer to its unanswered questions, stopped filming and bicycled alongside Dujarric, asking questions.

 For example, how it is acceptable for Dujarric to lie about the Tel Aviv case(s)? First he refused to answer Inner City Press' written questions, despite an on camera promise to do so, here.

 Then he told those scribes he allows in that the men were put on leave without pay. But that is no longer true, as Inner City Press has reported. Doesn't a spokesperson have a duty to correct something false he said? Dujarric didn't answer.

 A case in Syria, where UNICEF and UNHCR staff had sex in front of a window of the Four Seasons Hotel, which Dujarric has refused to answer on even as Syrian express outrage and Inner City Press after asking Dujarric in writing without answer published it - what of it? One of the participants has begged Dujarric to answer the Press questions, for safety's sake if nothing else. But he has refused. No answers. We'll have more on this.

 Dujarric walked eating his pastry from 48th Street to the 46th Street entrance, then further south to 43rd Street, refusing to answer even why he had Inner City Press' IP address blocked from UN websites after his own Department committed spokesperson negligence or malpractice during the briefing by Guterre's Volker Turk. No answers at all.

But after Inner City Press told Dujarric that the Turk briefing was shown on UNTV, we in fairness report that hours later, suddenly Inner City Press' IP address was able once again to access UN websites. OK. But this shows that Dujarric thinks it's fine to block a media from the UN if, for example, one of his scribes sent it the sign in to a briefing it had not agreed to an embargo about (the NYT would do just this).

 Since Dujarric can reverse (his) IP address block, he could easily reverse banning Inner City Press from his briefing so it can participate as it does at the IMF. Video, as provided to the UN, here. So why not? We will stay on this.

 On September 17, Dujarric was publicly asked about Guterres' ban on Inner City Press, and said "Mr. Lee's status remains uncharged. Video here.

  But then something changed. On September 19 and still as of this writing on September 20, the IP address Inner City Press uses was blocked from the UN's website. Video here. The UN sites worked when checked from another's laptop. So can the UN use public money to block Internet access to their "transparency" page by media which ask and criticize them about it?

   On September 23, the UN Corrrespondents Assocation Executive Committee of Reuters, France 24, Xinhua, AFP and others -- list of those most responsible for this censorship of Press here -- issued this, forwarded to Inner City Press by several of their disgusted members: "Dear colleagues,   The UNCA Executive Committee deplores the situation that transpired in reference to the email from U.N. spokesman Stephane Dujarric on the background briefing by Assistant Secretary-General Volker Turk on the Secretary-General’s upcoming speeches that was sent last Friday.   This behavior directly compromises the work of colleagues who respect and abide by the code of conduct outlined in the media guidelines when receiving accreditation as a United Nations Correspondent and will inevitably affect access to such briefings for all of us moving forward.   We strongly advise that all colleagues reporting at the United Nations continue to conduct themselves in a professional manner and adhere to the ethical standards and the code of conduct as expected.   Thank you for your attention and cooperation.   On behalf of the UNCA Executive Committee,   Valeria Robecco President, United Nations Correspondents Association."

[Note: This seems to obliquely refer to this video

  Let's review: first this UN Censorship Alliance tried to suck up to Guterres by supporting the ouster of independent Press. Then after Dujarric's office commits spokesperson negligence or malpractices, at Dujarric's request they issue a statement, false like his, support blocking Press access to the UN's websites. This organization is a travesty.

Also: Inner City Press deals with and respects embargoes all the time - at the IMF, State Department, in the courts. But even organizations with lame representatives on the UNCA board agree, when one is not party to an embargo agreement, one is not bound. UNCA has supported ouster of media that actually covers the UN, in favor of retirees and state media.

On September 20, as Guterres' UN blocks Inner City Press not only on Twitter but from its publicly funded websites, a strange message from UNCA bigwig Ali Barada of whom we've previously reported " Ali Barada of An-Nahar,  filed a complaint against Inner City Press with the "Special Investigations Unit" of the UN Department of Safety and Security.    The only basis? What Inner City Press said when Barada bragged that he immediately deleted without opening Inner City Press' email requesting to see the "information available on request" listed in the report Barada signed off on - and which was then sent anonymously to the government against Inner City Press.    In fact, while all Inner City Press responded with was a run of the mill host country insult, Barada cited his involvement with a "terrorist" group, as a reason Inner City Press shouldn't express its opinion.  Update: And on Friday, July 6, Inner City Press had to spend two and a half hours with UN Security responding to Barada's frivolous and pretextual complaint."
 
  There's been more since - watch this site.

Watch this site.

Brenden Varma, for PGA Bozkir, has refused to answer Inner City Press' questions about his backsliding on the one reform from the UN corruption scandal Inner City Press reported on, often exclusively, about PGAs Ashe and Kutesa; Bozkir has an empty "Ethics" page.

Varma then blocked Inner City Press on Twitter. This is today's UN - we'll have more on this issue. Inner City Press should be given the codes to access and ask questions at briefings immediately, like the state media and retirees Guterres and Melissa Fleming prefer and favor.

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