UN
Spokesman Cuts
Off Press Q on
Ross, Says
He'll
Speak to
Accreditation
By
Matthew
Russell Lee
UNITED
NATIONS,
July 11 --
After UN
Secretary
General Ban
Ki-moon and
his
Peacekeeping
chief Herve
Ladsous
allowed the
UN's Western
Sahara
report to be
watered down
omitted
restrictions
impermissibly
placed
on MINURSO
personnel,
public doubts
have grown if
Ban is seeking
a
replacement
for envoy
Christopher
Ross, of whom
Morocco has
complained.
And
so
on July 11,
even as the UN
Security
Council heard
a video
briefing
from Kofi
Annan, Inner
City Press
left the
Council
stakeout to
run to
the UN's noon
briefing to
ask Ban's
spokesman
Martin
Nesirky, on
camera, to
respond to
reports in Al
Quds Al Arabi
that Ban's UN
is
doing some
quiet sounding
out of
possible
replacements
for Ross.
Nesirky
began with a
number of
statements,
then took
questions from
journalists on
topics
ranging from
Egypt (where
the UN is
going
virtually
nothing) to
the
death of
refugees from
Libya on their
way to Italy.
He called on
one
journalist two
separate
times, with
another's
question in
between. Then
he called on
Inner City
Press.
Because
of question
that arose at
the previous
day's Syria
Troop
Contributing
Countries'
meeting, Inner
City Press
began with
that, asking
how Ladsous,
even
before the
Security
Council met on
and decided
it, could tell
TCCs
that the Syria
Mission's
military
component will
be reduced by
50%,
and why
Department of
Field Support
chief Amira
Haq did not
attend.
Nesirky
said, as to
the 50%, that
one must plan
in advance,
and that DFS
is working on
other issues
like the
mutiny in the
Congo.
(Actually, as
Inner City
Press reported
yesterday, Ms.
Haq was seen
by the Vienna
cafe with
Ban's chief of
staff Susana
Malcorra,
until recently
the chief of
DFS).
Then
Inner
City Press
tried to ask
the question
of if Ban
stands behind
Ross, and for
UN response to
Al Quds Al
Arabi. But
Nesirky said,
the
briefing is
over.
Inner City
Press repeated
its question,
since on
this an on
camera answer
carries most
weight. But
Nesirky was
walking out of
the
room. Video
here, at end.
In
the
hall, Nesirky
approached
Inner City
Press and
said, "When I
say it's over,
it's over."
Inner
City
Press pointed
out that
Nesirsky
called on
another
journalist two
separate
times, and
that an on
camera answer
on Ross was
the reason
Inner City
Press ran from
the Syria
stakeout.
Nesirky
called this
rude, and then
said, "I'm
gong to have
another word
with
Stephane
Dujarric about
this."
Dujarric is
the
official to
whom Voice of
America
recently
complained
asking the UN
to review
Inner City
Press' accreditation
status --
questioned
as content
based by the
NY Civil
Liberties
Union.
It
is in this
context, and
atmosphere,
that Nesirky
is being
quoted.
For
the
record, in the
hall, Nesirky
added, "The
Secretary
General
has full
confidence in
Christopher
Ross."
And after
publication of
the above,
this:
From:
UN
Spokesperson -
Do Not Reply
[at]
un.org>
Date: Wed, Jul
11, 2012 at
12:43 PM
Subject: Your
question on
Christopher
Ross
To:
Matthew.Lee
[at]
innercitypress.com
Cc: Martin
Nesirky [at]
un.org
We simply
would like to
reiterate what
has been said
before: the
Secretary-General
has full
confidence in
Christopher
Ross.
So
it goes at the
UN.
, 
