As Ban Ki-moon Meets Uganda, ICP Ordered To Cut Periscope Even As UNTV Films

By Matthew Russell Lee

UNITED NATIONS, December 12 -- When amid Press questions about UN corruption Ban Ki-moon and his Communications chief Cristina Gallach evicted Inner City Press from its long time shared office, they not only began confining the Press to “minders” to cover any events on the UN's second floor, including of the UN Security Council.

Now Inner City Press has been prohibited from filming the run up to photo ops, even as UNTV films. Tweeted video here.

On December 12, Ban Ki-moon's schedule included a 3:30 pm photo op with Uganda's foreign minister Sam Kutesa. Uganda is the mediator on Burundi, which Inner City Press covers, so it arrived early to go cover the photo op. It stated in advance it would broadcast on Periscope. But once upstairs, even as UN Television filmed, Inner City Press was told by Ban's UN Security to stop.

No reasoning was given, that “state media” can film and the independent Press cannot. It is pure targeting - encouraged by Ban and Cristina Gallach, back to February when UN Security threw Inner City Press out onto First Avenue and then smashed its laptop on the sidewalk. The UN has hit a new low. We'll have more on this.

Now the Ban and Gallach censorship order has prevented Inner City Press from covering a session about the Syria General Assembly draft resolution it reported about on November 29.

On December 5 during the Security Council speeches, suddenly the door to the photo booth opened. Come out, a UN Security officer told Inner City Press, ignoring the other photographer in the booth. Out in the hall, missing the speeches, the officer said again and again, "You're not supposed to be in there... Close the door." Audio here.

  Out in the hall a second UN Security officer, who previously followed Inner City Press around saying its backpack was too big, also said to leave. Inner City Press said, “This is targeting” - and one of the officers said, “You're disturbing the meeting.” Who's disturbing the meeting? This is censorship.

   Ban's and Gallach's stripping Inner City Press of resident correspondent accreditation, which Gallach is quoted by other Under Secretaries General as saying would last “only” for four months but is now at nine months and counting, means that Inner City Press cannot enter the UN at all on Saturday, like December 3 when the Syria draft was negotiated. This is targeted censorship, and it must end.

By Matthew Russell Lee, Follow Up on Exclusive

UNITED NATIONS, December 25, more here -- Amid charges that the UN in Sudan, including Herve Ladsous' UN Peacekeeping in Darfur, has colluded with the authorities in Khartoum to cover up rapes and killing, now the UN's Resident Coordinator Ali Al Za'tari has been ordered to leave Sudan by January 2, Inner City Press first reported earlier today.

  On December 24, Inner City Press similarly exclusively reported and then asked UN Spokesman Stephane Dujarric about UNDP Country Director Yvonne Helle being ordered out of Sudan, citing her and Al-Za'tari's e-mails. Video here.

  A full day after that, Reuters reported on Helle's ouster -- typically, for Reuters, with no credit to the Press' prior exclusive story. (Reuters' UN bureau chief has said he has a policy of not crediting Inner City Press' exclusive, and has gone to far as to censor, Sudan-style, his "for the record" anti-Press complains to the UN, click here for that, via EFF's ChillingEffect.org).

 Now, after UN Spokesman Dujarric issued two statements on the afternoon and evening of December 25 responsive to the question Inner City Press asked at the December 24 noon briefing, Reuters has run a piece with no fewer than eight journalists listed, and of course no credit. This is policy, untransparenty (when Inner City Press asked top Reuters brass including Stephen J. Adler for Reuters policy on crediting, none was provided.)
 But eight journalists?

  The above-referenced Reuters UN bureau chief, it must be noted, under his own byline sought to exonerate Ladsous, reporting without context complaints made to Ladsous about another UN staff member, without mentioning Ladsous' own role in covering up rapes in the DR Congo and now Darfur. Reuters has not reported the complaints against Ladsous, even as a Permanent Three mission on the Security Council has confirmed to Inner City Press its receipt of the letter.

   On December 24, Inner City Press asked UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon's spokesman Stephane Dujarric about Sudan having just similarly "PNG-ed" or declared persona non-grata the Sudan Country Director of the UN Development Program Yvonne Helle, with Za'tari barely pushing back against the government.

  Dujarric said that host countries' ordered to PNG a UN staff member are treated seriously and should be sent to, and considered and acted on by, Ban's Secretariat in New York. But Dujarric in the 18 hours after Inner City Press asked about Helle has not returned with any information or answer. Then Reuters published its story, with no credit.

 Follow @innercitypress Follow @FUNCA_info