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By Matthew Russell Lee, Patreon Maxwell book
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UN GATE, Nov 22 – For the FIFA World Cup that Qatar paid bribes to get, it issued restrictions on the media that go to cover it, including that journalists will not be allowed to film or photograph in "residential properties, private businesses and industrial zones."

  Reporting on the deaths of migrant workers is not permitted.

  When the Cup began on Nov 20, Qatar was listless against Ecuador, and its "fans" left early. On Nov 19, England blew out Iran as the Netherlands did Senegal. But the US was tied by Wales - and UN Sec-Gen Antonio Guterres slipped in, even more quiet than his visit to China's Genocide Games at the beginning of the year. He said nothing, and the UN Correspondents he lets into "his" briefing asked nothing.

Instead, the UN pretended Guterres went straight from Egypt to Morocco, where he gushed more vacuities: "Trust – in political leadership and in one another – is crumbling.       This breakdown in trust is leading to a breakdown in values.      Human rights and the rule of law are either neglected – or attacked outright.       Hate speech, disinformation, and abuse are proliferating, targeting especially women and vulnerable groups.      Intolerance and irrationality are running rampant.       And old evils – antisemitism, anti-Muslim bigotry, persecution of Christians, xenophobia, and racism – are receiving new leases on life."

Guterres had just left Qatar where Kosher foods have been outlawed, and rainbow clothing banned. Guterres is a censor and a hypocrite. Where will be go next?

Qatar also bans filming in “restricted areas where filming requires prior permission” and at “any site with signage or security advising of no photography/videography."   

Some who are criticizing these restrictions, however, say nothing when the United Nations does the same. Consider the reasons given by UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres' spokesman Stephane Dujarric for having Inner City Press roughed up and banned from the UN, for three years and counting, from CJR:

"access is not a right, it’s a privilege,” Dujarric says. “None of this is happening now because of what he writes.” Dujarric says that Lee is often critical of fellow journalists; walking the halls in the evenings, he’ll live-stream running commentary criticizing other reporters. Not long ago, encountering a crew from Al Jazeera—which Lee believes has misled viewers about its connection to the Qatari government—Dujarric says that Lee Periscoped while shouting, “Fuck you!” repeatedly. (Lee says he was complaining that Dujarric had given the Al Jazeera crew a private interview, and excluded him.) “He creates an atmosphere of incivility within our working environment,” Dujarric says."  

So Inner City Press is banned by MALU's Melissa Fleming because it filmed on the fourth (media) floor, and for what it said? Or for criticizing his and Guterres' relations with Qatar's Al Jazeera, which got the exclusive to Guterres' two stolen UNSG elections?  

 We'll have more on this. 

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