For
UNSC,
Luxembourg
Portends
Openness, Somalia
& Child
Soldiers
Debate
By
Matthew
Russell Lee
UNITED
NATIONS, March
4 -- As
Luxembourg
takes over
presidency of
the UN
Security
Council for
March, they've
set a debate
on March 7 on
Children and
Armed
Conflict.
Ambassador
Sylvie Lucas
is chair of
the
Working Group
on the topic.
Inner
City Press on
March 4 asked
her about a
UN-listed
child soldier
recruiter,
Chad, being
part of the UN
peacekeeping
mission in
Mali,
MINUSMA.
Lucas
replied that
it is really a
question for
Under
Secretary
General
Herve Ladsous,
and that he
had addressed
it "at another
event."
While Lucas is
open with the
press, for
example after
closed door
meetings of
the Democratic
People's
Republic of
Korea
sanctions
committee
which she also
chairs,
Ladsous
refuses to
answer Press
questions in
the UN.
After at the
"other event,"
at IPI
across
First Avenue
from the UN,
Ladsous left
early after
only nine
minutes of
questions.
So we will
keep asking.
On
Somalia, Inner
City Press
asked Lucas
about the
controversy in
which
Uganda says it
will send the
410 soldiers
for a UN Guard
Unit, but
not through
the African
Union's AMISOM
mission.
AMISOM
has
complained,
and cited
"secret" talks
between Uganda
and
"the UN."
Inner City
Press asked
Lucas if the
Security
Council has a
role in
resolving
this.
PR
Sylvie Lucas
at March 4,
2014 briefing,
photo by
Matthew
Russell Lee
Lucas
cited the
upcoming
interactive
dialogue on
Somalia. We
will be there.
Footnote:
On
behalf of the
new Free
UN Coalition
for Access,
Inner City
Press
also asked
Lucas to do
question and
answer
stakeouts
after Council
meetings,
particularly
closed
consultations.
She noted that
she
did a
stakeout after
the Ukraine
consultations
on Saturday,
March 1,
but
thought it was
not necessary
after the
March 3 open
meeting. That
seems
reasonable.
This month has
a lot of
consultations;
we'll be
there. Watch
this site.
, 
