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Asked if UN Set Suu Kyi Up, UN
Remains Silent, Burma Under the Shroud of Turin
Byline: Matthew Russell Lee of
Inner City Press at the UN: News Analysis
UNITED
NATIONS, August 28 -- In
the UN's continued paralysis about Myanmar, on Wednesday Ban Ki-moon's
spokesperson refused to confirm or deny that his envoy Ibrahim Gambari
had
taken steps to ensure that his ham-handed loudspeaker outreach would
not simply
subject Aung San Suu Kyi to further house arrest. From
the transcript
of Wednesday's UN noon
briefing
Inner
City Press: Even in the absence of Mr. Gambari, I wanted to ask, there
are
these reports that under the restrictions imposed on Daw
Aung San Suu Kyi in Myanmar that had she accepted Mr. Gambari's
invitation to
meet, which was apparently delivered by a loudspeaker from outside her
house,
she would have subjected herself to a longer house arrest.
Did Mr. Gambari check with the Government? Because it was said from this podium that the
Government facilitated; that they could have met, but now the NLD and
others
are saying that it was all kind of a set up.
How did Mr. Gambari reach out to Aung San Suu Kyi
and is it his
understanding that he didn't put her in greater jeopardy?
Spokesperson
Montas: At this point, the
Secretary-General is expecting to meet with Mr. Gambari.
He is going to do so in Turin in the next
three days and we should know more about what happened when we get the
report
from Mr. Gambari.
Aung San Suu Kyi in locked-down compound,
UN's bullhorn not shown
Question: I mean, I understand
that, it's just that,
yesterday,
at the stakeout, the Ambassador of the United Kingdom said it was a
disappointing trip. Various
people have been reacting to it; I
know he is not a fast reactor, but is he happy thus far with the
outcome of his
trip?
Spokesperson
Montas: I don't have his reaction at
this point. As I said, he has not spoken
to the Secretary-General for a full debriefing of his trip. And he will be doing so in the next three
days.
The reference to "he's not a fast
reactor" was to Ban Ki-moon, not Gambari. But when will Gambari
or Ban be saying anything about the so-called
"good offices" mandate?
Watch
this
site. And this (on
South Ossetia),
this, on
Russia-Georgia,
and
this --
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