By
Matthew
Russell Lee
UNITED
NATIONS, April
2 -- Amid
worldwide news
of Palestine
signing 15
"UN" treaties,
Inner City
Press on April
2 asked UN
deputy
spokesperson
Farhan Haq to
confirm that
documents of
accession had
been filed
with the UN.
Haq
replied that,
yes, 13 such
documents had
been given to
UN envoy
Robert Serry,
who will meet
with (and pass
them on to)
Secretary
General Ban
Ki-moon in
Brussels
tomorrow.
Video
here.
For the Fourth
Geneva
Convention,
Palestine
filed with
Switzterland,
and for "The
Hague
Convention
(IV)
respecting the
Laws and
Customs of War
on Land and
its annex:
Regulations
Concerning the
Laws and
Customs of War
on Land,"
Palestine
filed with the
Dutch. The
full list
is now here.
After
that came an
e-mail from
the Observer
State of
Palestine's
Mission to the
UN, that
Permanent
Observer Riyad
Mansour was
handing copies
of the letters
to Ban's chief
of staff
Susana
Malcorra and
would take
questions at
the Security
Council
stakeout
afterward.
But
there, no UN
Television
camera
awaited, as noted
here by
the Free
UN Coalition
for Access.
A solution was
found (and
videoed) -- to
move the event
into the UN
Press Briefing
Room. After a
five minute
delay, it
began.
In the
Q&A, Inner
City Press for
the Free
UN Coalition
for Access
thanked
Mansour for
what was his
first (but
surely not
last) briefing
in PBR Room
237, and asked
of the impact
of acceding to
the Fourth
Geneva
Convention,
the the Vienna
Conventions on
Diplomatic and
Consular
Relations.
Mansour
replied
that while
Palestine has
diplomatic
presence all
over the
world, now
these
conventions
apply. He said
that while the
other
accessions
become
effective in
30 days, the
Fourth Geneva
Convention
provides for
immediate
joining by
those under
occupation. He
said now all
High
Contracting
Parties must
respect and
ensure respect
of
Palestinians'
rights. Video
here.
Earlier
in
the day US
Ambassador
Samantha Power
while briefing
Congress about
the Obama
Administration's
budget for
international
organization
also spoke of
Palestine's
moves and said
they would be
opposed. But
how? Mansour
said this is
the first
batch,
Palestine has
the right to
do more. Can
you say,
International
Criminal
Court? Watch
this site.
, 
