As
UN
Won't Answer
on Monitor
Banned from
Kenya, Ban's
Son in Law
Banned?
By
Matthew
Russell Lee
UNITED
NATIONS,
December 3 --
How are the
relations
between Kenya
and the
UN, not only
the Abstaining
Eight members
of its
Security
Council but
also its
Secretary
General Ban
Ki-moon,
following the
lobbying and
decision
against
deferring for
one year the
International
Criminal
Court's
proceedings
against
President
Uhuru Kenyatta
and Deputy
President
William Ruto?
Last
week Inner
City Press
exclusively
reported that
at least one
member
of the UN's
Somalia and
Eritrea
Monitoring
Group was
removed from
Kenya. See short
form here,
and updated
longer form on
Beacon Reader
site, here.
On
November 29
after hearing
more, Inner
City Press put
in a question
to
Ban's
spokespeople,
in writing
because there
was no UN noon
briefing
that day:
"Please
confirm or
deny that one
or more
members of
the UN's
Somalia and
Eritrea
Monitoring
Group was /
were removed
or
expelled from
Kenya and
explain why,
and the impact
on the SMEG's
work."
Four
days later
there is still
no answer to
this question,
nor for
example
to another
about
corruption in
the UN's UMOJA
program
alleged to
Inner City
Press by
whistleblowers.
Today
the Kenya
Star
ha has
a story
referencing
Inner City
Press' earlier
reporting on
the UN's lack
of protections
against
nepotism
including
regarding the
Secretary
General son in
law, hired
successively
by Staffan
de
Mistura
then UNOPS
in Denmark,
then the
International
Federation of
the Red Cross
- and now back
to the UN
system. The
links above
are Inner City
Press'
reporting:
there's
nothing
personal, just
the question
of if it's
good for the
UN.
Now
the Star
says the
the UN
Population
Fund UNFPA
wants to send
Ban's
son in law
Siddharth
Chatterjee to
Nairobi as its
Kenya
representative
-- but that
the government
has not given
in right
away.
The
Star cites not
only the ICC
-- regarding
which Ban made
calls to
African Union
heads of state
-- but also
Ban not
confirming
an appearance
at the
December 12
50th Jamhuri
Day
celebration.
While
we'll have
more on this,
having the UN
chief's son in
law in such
positions --
not only how
they are
obtained, but
how it then
works --
may show
another reason
for rules on
the hiring of
relatives of
high
officials in
the UN system.
, 
