As
UNSC Methods
Reviewed, PGA
Ashe's
Euro-Heavy
Reform Group
Says It's
in Charge
By
Matthew
Russell Lee
UNITED
NATIONS,
October 30 --
During the
all-day debate
Tuesday in the
UN
Security
Council,
ostensibly of
its Working
Methods, the recent
naming by
President of
the General
Assembly John
Ashe of a
six-country
advisory group
on Council
Reform was
the elephant
in the
room, or
Chamber.
What
was this
group, first
reported
on by Inner
City Press,
set up to do?
Why are three
of its six
members
European,
along with
Sierra Leone,
Papua New
Guinea and
Brazil?
Some
have
complained to
Inner City
Press that
Sierra Leone
didn't attend
the first,
"slapped
together"
meeting. A
second
meeting,
they say, was
held yesterday
October 29 --
again, sans
Ashe. (In
fairness,
Inner City
Press published
Ashe's
office's
response, here.)
Brazil
came out and
said: the
group, which
is it on, will
come up with a
text which is
to be the
basis of
inter-governmental
negotiations.
Another G-4
member,
Germany,
echoed this in
its speech
(which as we
noted, also
mentioned the
growing role
of Twitter,
which the
German
Mission told
Inner City
Press in
context
includes media
tweets,
here.)
Later
Tuesday
evening yet
another G4
member told
Inner City
Press they
like
this process.
United for
Consensus? Not
so much.
Japan
of the G4 said
that even the
current
Elected Ten
members
weren't
consulted on
Syria. (In
fact, despite
UK calling in
Valerie Amos
and
France calling
in
Saudi-sponsored
rebel Ahmad al
Jarba, it's
largely
down to Russia
and the US,
which even
envoy Lakhdar
Brahimi seems
to
be chafing
against.)
Many
points were
made by
members of
ACT, and some
surprising ACT
supporters.
Here's another
one, on issues
of needed
transparency:
the Free
UN Coalition
for Access,
@FUNCA_info.
And here's an
example: even
the question
of which
media could
cover the
"Council's"
recent Africa
trip was
decided,
without
transparency,
by a single
colonial
member, France.
African
members, and
others, weren't
consulted.
It's time to
ACT up.
New
Zealand
recalled that
the Secretary
General, under
Article 99 of
the
Charter, can
put urgent
matters in
front of the
Council. But
as Inner
City Press
reported,
daily at the
time, on
Sri Lanka Ban
Ki-moon
never did
that.
He
has a report
saying that
should happen
in the future
-- but his
Office
of the
Spokesperson
told Inner
City Press the
report, already
leaked to
Inner City
Press by a UN
whistleblower,
may
or may not
exist. And
so it goes in
this UN. Watch
this site.
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