UNITED
NATIONS, June
1 -- The UN
brought
cholera to
Haiti, denied
all legal
claims and now
refuses
questions. On
May 29,
Secretary
General Ban
Ki-moon's
deputy
spokesperson
Eduardo Del
Buey told
Inner City
Press
that in Haiti
the UN is
doing
"yeoman's
work."
Minutes
before,
Ban's chief of
UN
Peacekeeping
Herve Ladsous
had explicitly
refused to
answer Inner
City Press'
questions
about the UN's
misdeeds, video here.
But Del
Buey insisted
that "the
media who have
been
briefed by [UN
envoy] Nigel
Fisher seem to
think that we
are doing
quite a bit."
And it's those
compliant
media whom
Ladsous
invites to
private
"conversation"
about
peacekeeping.
Now
19 members of
the US
Congress have
written to Ban
Ki-moon about
his
non-response
to the 5000
legal claims
by victims of
the UN
Peacekeeping
bringing
cholera into
Haiti.
Since
UN
Peacekeeping
boss
Ladsous, the
fourth
Frenchman in a
row to hold
the post,
won't
answer, we'll
have to ask
Ban's
spokesperson's
office. [We
have, watch
this site.] They
didn't
believe
Doctors
Without
Borders - but
will they
respond to
these US
Congress
members as
they jump to
the tune of
some others?
The
letter
concluded, "We
therefore urge
you to use
your office
and
your influence
to ensure that
the United
Nations takes
responsibility
for the
introduction
of cholera
into Haiti...
and we look
forward to
your
response."
Here's
from the UN's
May 29 noon
briefing
transcript:
Inner
City Press:
the
Secretary-General
announced this
big plan for
Haiti
for cholera,
Haiti and the
Dominican
Republic. And
recently,
Médecins Sans
Frontières, a
pretty
respected
medical group,
has
said that the
program has
had absolutely
no effect on
the ground,
they have been
very critical
of it. Mr.
McLean, on the
record, has
said he has
gone back and
forth and has
seen
absolutely
zero
follow-through
from the UN.
What’s the
UN’s response,
to the
legal claims
of the people
that got
cholera, and
that the other
programme that
was announced
has had no
effect? And, I
also wanted
to ask you,
you just
witnessed Mr.
Ladsous
refusing to
answer on the
Minova rape
follow-up. I
wanted to
know, is this
acceptable to
the
Secretary-General?
Deputy
Spokesperson:
Matthew, we’re
not going to
get involved
in your
particular
problem with
Ladsous.
Inner
City Press:
It’s not a
particular
problem; he
works for Ban
Ki-moon.
Deputy
Spokesperson:
With respect
to Haiti… with
respect to
Haiti,
MINUSTAH
[United
Nations
Stabilization
Mission in
Haiti] is
doing
yeoman’s work
in trying to
bring fresh
water, in
trying to
bring
new latrines
and trying to
bring water
purification
systems and
bringing
cholera
vaccinations
to people. I
have seen the
reports; we
don’t believe
the reports.
We believe our
people. And we
know
that Nigel
Fisher in
Haiti has been
briefing the
media, and
that the
media who have
been briefed
by Nigel
Fisher seem to
think that we
are
doing quite a
bit.
Inner
City Press:
MSF is just
wrong on this?
Deputy
Spokesperson:
Sorry?
Inner
City Press:
They, MSF,
Médecins Sans
Frontières, is
wrong? They
are just…?
Deputy
Spokesperson:
I’m not going
to comment on
what Médecins
Sans
Frontières
has; everyone
has their own
point of view,
and our point
of view, we’re
doing an awful
lot to
mitigate the
effects of
cholera in
Haiti.
Inner
City Press:
Will the
Secretary-General…?
Deputy
Spokesperson:
One more
question.
Inner
City Press:
Would
Secretary-General
accept Mr.
Ladsous not
answering
any questions
about Haiti?
Just for
example, I’m
asking you.
Deputy
Spokesperson:
Matthew, have
a good
afternoon,
thank you.
The
UN's Department
of Public
Information,
currently
intent along
with
some
of the
compliant
media cited
above on eliminating
media
workspace in
front of the
UN Security
Council that
has exists for
years,
in the
transcript
above
"cleaned up"
at least two
statements by
Ban's
spokesman Del
Buey.
Del
Buey called
the issue of
Ladsous
refusing to
answer
"personal,"
not
"particular"
as later
inserted. And
Del Buey
initially
called Nigel
Fischer Mr
Nigel
"Farmer." If
it's fine to
clean up the
second
mis-statement,
why
leave in all
kind of "ah's"
and pauses in
the questions,
to try to make
them
illegible?
This is
today's UN.
Watch this
site.
The
19 members of
Congress who
wrote to Ban
Ki-moon
include:
Maxine
Waters,
Barbara Lee,
Yvette D.
Clarke,
Frederica S.
Wilson, Jan
Schakowsky,
John Conyers,
Jr., Alcee L.
Hastings,
Charles B.
Rangel,
Corrine Brown,
Donald M.
Payne, Jr.,
Bobby L. Rush,
Wm. Lacy Clay,
Raúl M.
Grijalva,
Debbie
Wasserman
Schultz, John
Lewis, Gregory
W.
Meeks, Donna
F. Edwards,
Keith Ellison
and Carolyn B.
Maloney.
, 
