As Ban
Welcomes
Myanmar
Ceasefire,
Firing
Continues,
Don't Rely on
UN News?
By
Matthew
Russell Lee
UNITED
NATIONS, Jan
21, updated
Jan 23 -- The
UN through
Secretary
General Ban
Ki-moon
praised a
Myanmar
ceasefire that
was never
implemented.
On January
21 Inner
City Press asked
Ban's
spokesman:
Inner
City Press: a
UN
News Service
piece
yesterday,
in which the
Secretary-General,
welcomed the
ceasefire in
Kachin State
by Myanmar, it
seems like
there were
reports that
in fact
fighting
continues. Is
that, I’m
sorry, I see
you’re looking
puzzled, maybe
I am asking it
wrong --
Spokesperson
Martin
Nesirky: The
simple… Well,
finish your
question.
Inner
City Press: I
understand a
ceasefire
could be
announced and
not fully
implemented,
but what does
the UN say of
reports that
fighting and
death
continues? Is
it as some say
that the
Government
wants there to
be a ceasefire
and hasn’t
reached its
troops
somehow, or is
the UN
troubled by
the public
announcement
and the
continuing
fighting?
Spokesperson
Nesirky:
Well, a couple
of things: I
don’t think
you need to
look for a
statement by
the
Secretary-General
on the News
Centre, a fine
place though
that maybe.
The statement
was issued
last night and
you should
have received
it. If you
didn’t, let me
know, and we
will check to
make sure that
you do receive
the statements
in the future.
I
would draw
your attention
to the first
sentence of
that
statement,
which says:
The
Secretary-General
welcomed the
announcement
by the
Government of
Myanmar on
Friday of a
ceasefire in
Kachin and has
been following
the various
reports from
the ground on
its
implementation.
And then it
does say: He
calls upon
both sides to
make serious
effort to
create
conditions for
sustained
peace in
Kachin through
enhanced
confidence-building
measures and
political
dialogue. So,
also there is
the question
of access to
civilian
populations,
and we
continue to
call for that.
Mr.
Nambiar was,
as you saw
just last
week, in the
region, and
indeed not
just in
Myanmar, but
in Kachin. And
he did put out
a statement on
his return
that was quite
detailed, I
think.
But
the
reality on the
ground was
quite
different. As
recounted to
Inner City
Press by an
informed
observer:
It's
pretty clear
that the
government's
ceasefire
announcement
was a public
relations move
aimed to
please the
international
community and
perhaps Ban Ki
Moon
himself
While the army
has scaled
down its
attacks on
Laja Yang, a
key area less
than 6 miles
from Laiza
(KIO capital)
that had been
the focus of a
lot of
fighting over
the past three
weeks, heavy
fighting
continued not
very far away
over the
weekend and on
Monday.
For
the last 72
hours since
the
'ceasefire'
announcement
the army
continued to
hit KIO
position in
other areas
very close to
Laiza, to the
north and to
the
west.
The army has
also continued
to hit areas
near Mai Ja
Yang, the
KIO's second
largest town,
where the UN
teams
delivered
relief
supplies to
IDP camps from
April until
June when the
government
stopped them
from doing
this.
Why
Ban Ki Moon's
office chose
to release a
statement on
Jan 20
heralding the
ceasefire
announcement
when its
pretty obvious
there is no
ceasefire
raises a
number of
questions.
It
would be
interesting to
see what on
earth Nambiar
is doing about
this whole
thing.
As you know he
did little if
anything to
bring about a
peaceful
solution in
Sri Lanka and
facilitated
the dreadful
white flag
incident.
Nambiar's
statement
released last
week following
his trip to
Burma was
pretty bland
and didn't
mention him
meeting with
anybody other
than
government
officials. The
press release
did say he met
with the
President's
chief
negotiator
Aung Min, whom
the KIO have
repeatedly and
very publicly
said they that
no longer
trust.
But the
questions
raised... will
not be covered
in UN News
Service. Inner
City Press is
informed that
they and UN
Radio can only
rely on the
UN's own
statements,
facts on the
ground be
damned. We
will seek
answers,
including for
correspodents
not physically
present in the
UN
Headquarters,
from Nambiar
and beyond.
Watch this
site.
Update
of January 23,
2013: The
Office of the
Spokesperson
for the
Secretary
General has
written to
"clarify that
Vijay Nambiar
did not visit
Kachin on his
last visit to
Myanmar." Duly
noted.
, 
