On
Cote d'Ivoire,
Ladsous' DPKO
Stonewalls,
Araud Says New
Situation
By
Matthew
Russell Lee
UNITED
NATIONS,
August 10 --
When the UN's
envoy to Cote
d'Ivoire Bert
Koenders
came to the UN
on July 18,
his proposal
and that of
the
Department of
Peacekeeping
Operations
under Herve
Ladsous was to
cut
costs by
removing a
battalion from
Abidjan.
Then
an attack on a
base there on
the Ivorian
National Day
resulted
in
at least seven
soldiers
killed,
while separate
sources
tell Inner
City Press
that the
Beninois UN
Peacekeepers
in the base
did nothing.
Ivorian source
have blamed it
on the mandate.
Inner City
Press asked
the
UN on August 8:
Inner
City Press:
This attack
that took
place in
Abidjan, on an
army base,
killed seven
soldiers. From
what I learned
yesterday,
there seems to
also be a UN
peacekeeping
base inside
that base,
with Beninois
peacekeepers.
A question
arisen of why
didn’t they
take action,
they were
there but they
didn’t act,
and a UN News
Service press
release says
that the
attackers took
ammunition and
weapons from
the
base. So is it
possible to
know what are
the terms of
engagement of
UN
peacekeepers
there? Why are
they situated
inside the
Ivorian
military base
and why did
they not act
when the base
was attacked?
Spokesperson
Martin
Nesirky: I
will check
with our
colleagues in
DPKO.
But
more than two
days later, no
answers have
been provided.
DPKO chief
Ladsous is on
record
that he will
not answer
any Inner
City Press
questions.
And
so when on
August 10 on
little notice
French
Ambassador
Gerard Araud
did a stakeout
and took
questions from
those who
knew, Inner
City
Press learned
of it late and
ran there and
asked about
Cote d'Ivoire,
if a battalion
would still be
cut after the
attack in
Abidjan and
the
destruction of
the camp near
Duekoue.
Araud
answered,
although it is
not clear if
he was
referring to
the attack
on the refugee
camp of
presumed
supporters of
Laurent Gbagbo
when he
referred to a
"village" in
the west.
Araud said:
First
I think, the
first attack
was against a
village in the
west of the
country. Mr.
Koender came
afterward, he
told us, it's
not an
isolated
incident, we
know that
there are
people
preparing a
sort of
destabilization
of Cote
d'Ivoire. So
there is, a
change of
posturing,
deploy in a
different
manner.
Araud
continued
that, "We
thought the
threat was out
of Abidjan,
now
we have seen
what happened
in Abidjan. In
coming days
we'll see if
it's possible
to reduce the
force in
Abidjan, or if
it's not
possible."
It
would be good,
now after more
than two days,
to get an
answer from
Ladsous' DPKO.
Watch this
site.
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