In
Nigeria Buhari Trashes Rule of
Law While His UN DSG Silent As
Guterres Bans Press For Life
By Matthew
Russell Lee, CJR
Letter
PFTracker
UNITED NATIONS
GATE, August 28 –
Nigeria under Buhari has not
only violated international
law by refoulement of 47 to
Nigeria - it is also violated
basic principles of freedom of
the press. Back on 20 June
2018 Inner City Press reported
how journalist Jones Abiri had
been held by Buhari's
Department of State Security
for nearly two years. Then on
June 22, UN Security under
Secretary General Antonio
Guterres - and his Deputy
Amina J. Mohammed -- pushed
Inner City Press out of the UN
lobby during a speech by
Guterres. Video
here. On July 3 they
went further, violently ousted
Inner City Press from covering
the UN Budget Committee
meeting, see video
via UK Independent;
Guterres and USG Alison Smale
has now banned Inner City
Press for life, letter here.
(Now covered by the Press
Freedom Tracker dot us, here).
This as in Nigeria President
Muhammadu Buhari rightly came
under fire on August 28 for
placing national security
above the rule of law - but
not, it seems, from Deputy
UNSG Amina J. Mohammed, who
openly called Buhari "my
president" in a speech as UN
DSG. Buhari, a former
military dictator in the 1980s
but who is seeking re-election
in February, said the "rule of
law must be subject to the
supremacy of the nation's
security and national
interest." The
75-year-old (younger than
Guterres' - and Mohammed's? -
86 year old frient Paul Biya)
said, "Where national security
and (the) public interest are
threatened or there is a
likelihood of their being
threatened, the individual
rights.. must take second
place, in favour of the
greater good of society."
Waiting to hear from Amina J.
Mohammed and Guterres, who
have banned Inner City Press
now 56 days from entering the
UN. Earlier in Nigeria, the
security forces were "forcing
a PREMIUM TIMES journalist to
disclose his source.The
Nigerian police, through the
Special Anti-Robbery Squad
(SARS) on Tuesday arrested and
detained Samuel Ogundipe, who
covers the security sector.
Apart from Mr Ogundipe, this
newspaper’s editor-in-chief,
Musikilu Mojeed, and its
education correspondent,
Azeezat Adedigba, were also
briefly detained and
manhandled by the police at
the SARS headquarters in
Abuja. Ms Adedigba was later
released after about three
hours of detention. Mr Mojeed
and Mr Ogundipe were driven
from the SARS headquarters in
Abuja to the IGP Monitoring
Unit at Force Headquarters
where Mr Ogundipe was made to
write a statement. The story,
also published by other media,
revealed a letter written by
the Inspector General of
Police, Ibrahim Idris, to
Acting President Yemi Osinbajo
on last week’s siege to the
National Assembly by security
officials." And from Amina
Mohammed? Nothing. She is
responsible for censorship in
the UN as well. The UN's
spokesman Dujarric has refused
to answer if she was in on
Guterres' July 11 meeting with
Cameroon lobbyists. She has
been cc-ed on every complaint.
Now that the UN is saying the
ban is about making people
"uncomfortable," could that be
her, in the rosewood matter on
which she never answered the
Press? See below. On August 20
Guterres had a comment on
Nigeria - nothing on press
freedom, not surprisingly:
"The Secretary-General
condemns the killing of dozens
of people in violence in Borno
State, northeastern Nigeria,
on 19 August.
The Secretary-General
expresses his deepest
condolences to the bereaved
families and to the Government
and people of Nigeria and
wishes a speedy recovery to
the injured. He calls for
those responsible for the
violence to be swiftly brought
to justice.
The Secretary-General remains
deeply concerned about the
persisting violence in the
Lake Chad Basin region. He
commends national and regional
initiatives to bring peace and
stability to the area and to
address the root causes of the
conflict. He also reiterates
his calls on the international
community to increase support
to regional efforts in the
fight against Boko Haram in
the Lake Chad Basin." Yeah,
deeply concerned. In
February and March 2018, the
DSS also arrested Tony
Ezimakor, the Abuja bureau
chief of the privately owned
Daily Independent
newspaper. Nigeria will
hold elections in February
2019. Where is Amina J.
Mohammed? Her spokesman
Stephane Dujarric continues to
restrict Inner City Press
after evicting it. And some of
those virtue signaling on
press freedom have done
nothing, about the UN.
Mohammed, who while she was
the Buhari Government's
Environmental Minister signed
some 4000 certificates for
endangered rosewood already
exported to China from Nigeria
and Cameroon, was in Abuja
when dozens of Cameroonians
were refouled to Yaounde, and
has yet to speak out. On May
7, Inner City Press asked UN
Spokesman Stephane Dujarric
about Nigeria, from the UN
transcript: Inner City Press:
letter from Nigeria from the
People's Democratic Party and
its Chairman, Uche Secondus,
describing what they describe
as violations by President
[Muhammadu] Buhari of the
rights of journalists and of
opponents. And I wanted
to know, has that one been
received and what's the…
Spokesman: I will
check. I'm not aware
that it has.
Inner City Press: And is
the DSG (Deputy
Secretary-General) going to
have any involvement in
responding?
Spokesman: Let's see if
the letter's been received,
and then we'll see the
response." A full day later,
nothing from Dujarric, nor
from Mohammed, under whom
Inner City Press remains
restricted to minders, and
less access than state media
from Egypt and elsewhere. So
on May 8 Inner City Press
asked Dujarric again - and he
still wouldn't confirm receipt
of this widely reported
letter. Nor would he explain
the non-availability of the
UN's May 8 transcript even by
7 pm. So, video of his denial,
here.
[Later, the transcript became
available, here:
Inner City Press: I'm going to
ask you again about can you
announce the receipt of a
letter from the People's
Democratic Party of Nigeria
that they say was sent to the
Secretary-General, complaining
about human rights abuses by
[Muhammadu] Buhari?
Spokesman: No, I have
not had a confirmation of
that."] Amid the worsening
crackdown by the army of
36-year Cameroon president
Paul Biya in the country's
Anglophone areas, a video has
circulated depicting soldiers
burning down homes. Click here
for one upload of it. Noted by
many residents and activists:
blue helmet of the type used
by UN peacekeepers. On April
30 Inner City Press asked UN
Secretary General Antonio
Guterres' spokesman Stephane
Dujarric about the video, the
day after publishing a story
about it, in Google News.
Dujarric said he hadn't seen
the video but militaries
should to use UN equipment or
colors, presumably when
burning civilians homes down.
Video here;
from the UN transcript:
Inner City Press: a video
emerged over the weekend from
Cameroon showing or depicting
soldiers burning people's
homes in the Anglophone areas,
and what… what a lot of people
focused on is that one of
them, at least, is wearing a
blue helmet. I don't
think it means the UN is doing
it, but I do wonder, what are
the rules? I wanted to
ask you, what are the rules if
people have served in UN
peacekeeping missions… have
you seen the video?
Spokesman: "I haven't
seen that particular video, so
I can't comment on the
particular helmet, whether it
was just blue or a UN
helmet. We have seen, in
different parts of the world,
various security forces and
army… we've seen reports of
them using equipment that they
own, which had been painted
white or blue and reused
domestically. It is a
responsibility to ensure that
no equipment that has UN
markings is ever used in any
domestic operation. But,
again, I'm not… that's a
matter… that's an issue of
principle. I haven't… I
can't comment on that specific
report." Hours later, still
nothing.
The lack
of confidence in the UN in
these areas, and on this
issue, was inflamed as UN
Secretary General Antonio
Guterres in October 2017
stopped by Yaounde on his way
from the Central African
Republic (where the UN pays
Biya's government for
peacekeepers who have been
charged with sexual abuse).
Guterres did not meet with any
opposition figures, and
accepted a golden statue from
Biya.
Guterres'
envoy Francois Lounceny Fall
has publicly said that
secessionist are extremists,
the word used by Biya to
justify the scorched earth
strategy exemplified by the
video. Inner City Press asked
UN High Commissioner for Human
Rights Prince Zaid why his
Office hasn't updated the
death figures and he claimed
it was because the UN has no
access.
Guterres'
humanitarian Assistant
Secretary General Ursula
Mueller visited Cameroon, but
not the Anglophone areas.
(Inner City Press asked her
why, here).
Human Rights Watch didn't even
include Cameroon in its 2018
“World Report,” and told
Inner City Press this is
because it does not view it as
among the 90 most serious
problems in the world.
Guterres' Deputy Secretary
General Amina J. Mohammed as
in Abuja in her native Nigeria
when 47 Cameroonians were
illegally sent back by the
Buhari government. Buhari will
be in Washington on April 30
and a protest of Ambazonians
is planned. Earlier in April,
Inner City Press asked
the US State Department about
the refoulement to Cameroon
and received a day later a
statement. But what will
happen on this video, and on
the underlying issues? Watch
this site.
***
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