By
Matthew
Russell Lee
UNITED
NATIONS,
September 11
-- When the UN
reported on
Migrants by
Origin and
Destination on
Wednesday,
they listed
Puerto Rico to
the US among
the Top ten
country-specific
corridors,
2013.
Inner
City Press
asked John
Wilmoth, the
director of
UN-DESA's
Population
Division, how
the decision
was made to
list Puerto
Rico as a
country --
noting that
some there
certainly want
that -- and
whether for
example Somaliland
or Puntland
have such
designation.
Wilmoth
said
that there are
232 "countries
or areas."
Inner City
Press asked
who decides
which areas
get separately
listed -- the
UN Department
of Political
Affairs?
Wilmoth
indicated the
Statistics
Division;
afterward his
colleague Bela
Hovy told
Inner City
Press to just
look at the
glossy poster
distributed as
it lists the
232 countries
and areas.
But
who decides?
The UN
has for
example tried
to dismiss Somaliland,
unilaterally
giving its
airspace to
Mogadishu
until, after
protest, the decision
was reversed.
Which area has
more of the
indicia of
separateness?
Or how is the
decision made?
Inner
City Press
asked asked
about
Australia's
policy,
announced by
the just-lost
Kevin Rudd, of
sending all
refugees and
asylum seeks
to Papau New
Guinea. Inner
City Press
previously asked
UN Secretary
General Ban
Ki-moon's
spokesperson
if Ban had any
comment,
having taken
Rudd's
ground-cover
or blue-wash
telephone call
about it.
No, there was
no Ban
comment.
And
perhaps UN
Secretariat
comments have
been Banned --
Wilmoth and
Hovy sure had
none.
Footnote:
The
moderator
automatically
gave the first
question to
Pamela Falk of
CBS as UNCA's
2013
president.
Falk began by
saying she
hadn't read
the study,
then asked if
there was any
Syria
connection. It
has become
clear that she
goes only in
order to get
or take the
first
question, even
when this
makes it
impossible for
other
journalist who
actually have
questions to
get called on.
Combined
with
the stealth
trolling, work
stealing and
attempts to
destroy
others'
business
pattern of
Falk's UNCA in
2013, this
continued UNCA
first question
is
UNacceptable.
Watch the Free UN Coalition for Access @FUNCA_info.
Watch this
site.
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