By
Matthew
Russell Lee
UNITED
NATIONS,
August 15 --
The UN talks a
lot about
human rights
and democracy,
but on
specific cases
what does it
come to?
On
August 15
Inner City
Press asked
the UN
spokesperson
about gang
rape in
Somalia, the
promotion of a
coup leader in
Mali, the
jailing for
three years of
an elected
parliamentarian
in the
Democratic
Republic of
the Congo for
criticizing
President
Joseph Kabila,
and opposition
to the decline
in media
access at the
UN. Video
here and
embedded
below.
UN
deputy
spokesperson
Eduardo Del
Buey had no
comment on the
promotion of
Malian coup
leader Sanogo
-- and just
after the
briefing
issued a
statement for
Secretary
General Ban
Ki-moon
praising Mali.
On
whether Ban's
Human Rights
Due Diligence
Policy is
applied by UN Peacekeeping chief Herve Ladsous
to the UN
support to the
AMISOM force
in Somalia --
as
noted, Ladsous
had
essentially
killed off the
policy in the
DRC -- Del
Buey said he
didn't know.
Nor could or
would he
confirm that
Al Shabaab has
taken over the
hospital in
Marere
(sometimes
spelled
Mareerey)
vacated by
MSF.
In
more
Ladsous-related
DRC news, Del
Buey said the
UN and
Ladsous'
mission have
no comment on
the three year
sentence for
Muhindo Nzangi
for
criticizing
Kabila. Del
Buey said the
UN never
comments on
rulings by
independent
courts. That's
not true - and
these courts
are not
independent.
Inner
City Press
asked about
two issues
raised by the
Free
UN Coalition
for Access --
the inordinate
delay and lack
of explanation
of delay in
putting online
UN videos, for
example of the
1:30 pm August
14 Central
African
Republic
stakeouts of
Valerie Amos
and Babacar
Gaye until
past 8 pm
deadline, and
for
confirmation
that now media
seats will be
made available
in the General
Assembly, as
requested by
FUNCA since
June 10.
Del
Buey said the
General
Assembly is
run by the
Office of the
President of
the GA and the
Department of
General
Assembly and
Conference
Management,
and he would
check. Faced
with threats
by the
Department of
Public
Information,
FUNCA informed
DPI it could
and would
proceed -- and
it has and
will. Watch
this site.
, 
