On
Landmines,
Inner City
Press Asks UN
About Myanmar
& UNMAS
Contractor
Killed in S
Sudan
By
Matthew
Russell Lee, Photos
UNITED
NATIONS, April
4 --
When UN
Mine Action
Service held
its annual
press
conference on
April 4, Inner
City Press
asked UNMAS
Director Agnes
Marcaillou
about the
landmines
Myanmar is
laying on its
border with
Bangladesh,
and about an
UNMAS
contractor
killed last
month while
demining in
South Sudan. Marcaillou
said the
contractors
are hired
through the UN
Office of
Project
Services and
referred to a
fire-wall.
Knowing the
UN, which for
example cited
immunity for
bringing
cholera to
Haiti, one
wonders if
that's a
fire-wall
against
liability. How
much did the
family of the
killed "UN"
deminer get
paid? That
remained
unanswered.
Myanmar is not
a party to the
landmines ban,
and Secretary
General
Antonio
Guterres has
yet to name
the Myanmar
envoy mandated
last
September, and
funded in
December. Also
on the podium,
Germany's
Ambassador to
the UN
Christoph
Heusgen
disagreed with
a question
about Germany
exporting not
only weapons
but also
landmines;
Iraq's
Mohammed
Hussein Bahr
Aluloom
answered a
question in
Arabic, in
Arabic and
said his prime
minister is
working
against
corruption. It
was Mohammed
Hussein Bahr
Aluloom who
said that
those who give
their lives
demining will
not be
forgotten. But
is that true
for the UN in
South Sudan?
Back in 2015,
before the UN
evicted Inner
City Press for
pursuing
these UN
corruption
stories (it
remains
restricted),
when the UNMAS held
its annual
press
conference on
April 1, Inner
City Press
also asked
about Myanmar,
to 2018
Security
Council member
the
Netherlands,
and also
wanted to ask
UNMAS' Marcaillou
about landines
in South Sudan
and UNMAS'
promotion of
multiply-accused
deminer David
Bax from
Somalia to
Gaza.
But also at
the press
conference
were Japan's
Deputy
Permanent
Representative
and the Dutch
Permanent
Representative
Karel van
Oosterom, who
it was said
had to leave
early, to meet
with Secretary
General Ban
Ki-moon.
So Inner City
Press first
asked van
Oosterom if
Dutch Queen
Maxine, in
Myanmar, would
be raising the
landmine
issues in that
country.
No, van
Oosterom said,
the Queen is
in Myanmar in
her capacity
as UN Special
Advocate for
Inclusive
Finance for
Development.
But he (and
UNMAS'
Marcaillou)
assured that
she and other
Dutch official
raise the
landmine issue
wherever they
go.
Later, Inner
City Press
asked
Marcaillou
about the
reported use
of landmines
in South Sudan
and about the
disposition of
the
investigation(s)
into David
Bax, who
whistleblowers
in Somalia
alleged shared
DNA
information
about Somalia
bombers with
US
intelligence,
as well as
engaging in
conflicts of
interest. (Video and background
here.)
Marcaillou
spoke
passionately
about South
Sudan, where
UNMAS found
cluster bombs
were used but
could not find
by whom. She
said UNMAS
coordinated a
statement on
the landline
allegation, by
IGAD with the
UN Mission
UNMISS. Later
she said that
UNMAS dogs
were used to
check if
explosives
were being
brought into
UNMISS
protection of
civilians
site.
On Bax, the
answer was
less
convincing.
Marcaillou as
she did last
year
pointed to an
investigation
by the UN
Office of
Project
Services - but
this time
acknowledged
that she had
not seen the
whole UNOPS
report.
This
is the case
even though
Bax is a UNMAS
employee -
it's that
UNMAS
outsources its
human
resources
activities to
UNOPS. But
shouldn't
Marcaillou as
UNMAS director
have access to
investigative
reports about
UNMAS
staffers?
We'll have
more on this.
Footnote:
After the
briefing,
Inner City
Press mused
whether the
Netherlands,
running for
one of two
Western
European and
Other Group
seats on the
UN Security
Council
against Italy
and Sweden,
would be
upping its
contributions
to UNMAS.
Karel van
Oosterom replied
that
“currently,
tender process
under way for
for years
2016-20. Share
UNMAS will
depend on
quality its
proposals.”
This level of
detail is
appreciated.
And wouldn't
one think that
assessment
would include
UNMAS'
transparency,
including
whether it
demands and
gets access to
investigative
reports about
UNMAS staff
like Bax and
the issues
raised? We'll
have more on
this.
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