By
Matthew
Russell Lee
UNITED
NATIONS,
December 10 --
There should
be no more
than five
years at any
one UN
position,
Secretary
General Ban
Ki-moon
announced.
But
Inner City
Press reported
on October 7
that the head
of the
Bangkok-based
Economic and
Social
Commission for
Asia and the
Pacific (ESCAP),
Noeleen Heyzer
of Singapore,
had
been in place
more than SIX
years now. She
was put into
the position
in August 2007.
On
December 10,
the UN
announced that
Heyzer is
being replaced
at ESCAP by
Shamshad
Akhtar of
Pakistan.
Back
in October,
Inner City
Press noted
that Singapore
is a serious
UN country, so
another USG
post would
have to be
identified and
given to
Heyzer or
another
Singaporean.
The UN's December
10 announced
slipped in
that Heyzer
will stay on,
as a Special
Adviser on
Timor Leste.
Is that a USG
position? And
what about
other UN
officials with
more than five
years in their
position?
Beyond
this finessing
of Ban's five
year rule, it
brings to mind
again the need
for a more
meaningful
reform: no
COUNTRY should
be able to
control a UN
department for
more than five
years. France
has held onto
Peacekeeping,
even since
demanding it
in exchange
for not
vetoing Kofi
Annan becoming
Secretary
General. Here
they are:
Secrétaires
généraux
adjoints des
Nations Unis
aux Opérations
de Maintien de
la Paix :
Kofi
Annan : de
mars 1993 à
décembre 1996
Bernard
Miyet
: de janvier
1997 à octobre
2000
Jean-Marie
Guéhenno
: d'octobre
2000 à juillet
2008
Alain
Le Roy : du 30
juin 2008 au 2
septembre 2011
Hervé
Ladsous : à
compter du 2
septembre 2011
This
is
UNacceptable:
over 16 years,
10 months. It
should end.
Meanwhile
the Department
of Safety and
Security now
says that of
the 10
staffers given
lay off
letters
earlier this
month, only
six are now at
risk.
Earlier, more
security was
been gained,
commitments
from acting
Under
Secretary
General Kevin
Kennedy. This
emerged at the
best "End of
General
Debate" party
of the season,
under the
(broken)
satellite dish
over the East
River in
October.
Compared to
the faux
ceremony
of
the UN
Correspondents
Association
Executive
Committee,
which after spying
for the UN
through its
first vice
president
had to beg
interns to
come via a
rare flyer,
and now
solicits a
donated
Samsung TV,
DSS had steak
and an open
bar and plenty
of good vibes.
There will be
another one
soon.
UNCA
is given its
clubhouse, in
which it held
a
faux
UN
briefing
by
Gulf-supported
Syria rebel
boos Jarba
(a/k/a
Jarbucks),
by the UN; Ban
will help them
raise $250 a
plate in
Cipriani's
next
week. Of
the Samsung TV
to UNCA, we
have publicly
requested an
explanation.
The new Free
UN Coalition
for Access
holds, if the
explanation
makes sense,
fine; either
way it will be
published.
And now
it has, here:
UNCA misspoke
that no
mission was
involved in
the donation
of the Samsung
equipment.
Watch this
site.
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