UNITED
NATIONS, May
22 -- On what
continuing
basis does the
UN, after
cutting
off the UN
Television
broadcast of a
May 20 speech
by
Palestine's
negotiator
Saeb Erakat
but saying the
video would be
put
online on May
21, not follow
through or
explain by the
end of May 22?
Inner
City Press
asked the
first question
on May 20
right after
the
cut-off, and
seven and a
half hour
later was told by
the chief of
UNTV Stephane
Dujarric, "Due
to a clerical
error the
meeting was
listed as
closed and not
available to
UNTV. However,
we will have a
recording made
available to
us tomorrow.
It will then
be posted on
the UN webcast
page."
In
its second
story on the
UN black-out
of Erekat,
Inner City
Press
published that
response and
concluded,
"We'll have
more on this
tomorrow."
That was
supposed to
mean, about
the substance
of
what Erakat
said.
But
now 46 hours
later, the Erekat
video is still
not on the
UN's website.
At a Tuesday
evening event
of the
Permanent
Forum on
Indigenous
Issues in the
General
Assembly
lobby, another
delegation --
not Palestine
-- expressed
outrage of the
blackout,
saying "you
know who's
behind it."
Actually,
we
don't.
But the UN
should take
this more
seriously.
Dujarric has
provided no
update after
saying the
video would go
online on May
21.
Notably, an
anonymous
social media
account which
has previously
re-tweeted
Dujarric on
May 21
troll-mocked
Inner City
Press for
pursuing the
issue, saying
that "real
journalists"
were in
the conference
room.
Perhaps
-
actually, some
of those there
are mere
typists -- but
there are
people all
over the world
who want and
have the right
to see such a
speech given
at the UN.
What is
Dujarric's
role with
these troll
social media
accounts? He
has done
nothing to
stop them.
Inner
City Press,
pursuing the
issue further
on May 22, now
understands
that Dujarric
while
providing no
press update
told a mission
that the
video was
"encrypted"
and now need
to be
un-encrypted.
This
is more than a
little
strange, and
should be
explained.
Footnote:
we
note because
we must that
this same
Stephane
Dujarric is
involved
in a proposal,
apparently
agreed to by
the old UN
Correspondents
Association,
to try to ban
the press from
using the
Security
Council
stakeout as a
workspace,
as was allowed
in front of
the old
(pre-renovation)
Security
Council, and
in front of
the interim
Security
Council in the
basement under
the General
Assembly.
It
is there, as
the workspace,
that the
Observer
Mission of the
State of
Palestine and
others often
delivered its
news, which is
now being
blacked-out
for whatever
reason by UN
DPI. Ban the
press from
using
the stakeout
as a
workspace?
Especially in
this context,
we (and the
Free UN
Coalition for
Access) think
not.
The
implementation
-- again,
not disclosed
by Dujarric --
of the
Guidelines is
tied to the
move of
the Security
Council, which
Inner City
Press had
confirmed on
May 22
to be on
May 24.
Watch this
site.
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