Unimpressed
by
UN Press, As
Regime
Handpicks
Successors,
Arab Spring in
Winter
By
Matthew
Russell Lee
UNITED
NATIONS,
December 23 --
One question
raised by the
Arab Spring is
whether a
dictatorship
has ended if
the regime
gets to
handpick its
successors
while calling
it reform or
even, new
blood.
While
what will
happen in Syria
remains to be
seen, along
with the UN's
role, at the
UN itself on
Friday there
was a
microcosm
seen.
From 4
to 5 pm in the
Dag
Hammarskjold
Library
Auditorium,
the UN
Correspondents
Association
executive
committee
called a vote
to
override the
UNCA
Constitution,
ostensibly
legitimating
not holding
elections as
required by
December 15.
They
extended their
terms into
January, while
saying they
would not meet
or take any
action other
than run the
postponed
election.
They have
said that this
postponement
is to attract
"new blood"
into
the UNCA
leadership
after a year
that saw
attempts at
censorship and
dis-accreditation,
a decrease in
meetings,
briefings and
advocacy,
culminating in
a loss of over
40% of the
press corps'
space in the
UN.
Immediately
after
the abruptly
curtailed
meeting, the
executive
committee
unlocked their
glassed-in
announcement
board and
posted their
candidates for
each of the
top six
positions,
complete with
endorsements
by the two
outgoing
officials.
The
speed with
which the
nomination
board was
opened, filled
and then
locked again
was witnessed
by Inner City
Press as it covered
UN
budget
negotiations
in an
otherwise
empty press
area.
This floor of
cubicles was a
reduction,
presented as
temporarily,
to what had
long
been the
media's space
at the UN. Now
there is
further
reduction,
further
atrophy and
decay.
There
is only one
candidate for
each position
-- North Korea
style. Four of
them would
hold the same
positions as
in 2012. In
UN-ese, this
is
ironically
called a
"clean" slate
election, one
with no
opposition.
The
outgoing
treasurer, who
got her
employer Voice
of America to
ask the
UN to
dis-accredit
the Press
saying she had
the support of
her
colleagues
from Reuters
and Agence
France-Presse,
has given her
endorsement to
a successor
treasurer, who
served as an
executive
committee
member "at
large" in
2012.
(The
representative
of
a Voice
of America
affiliate has
declared for
an "at large"
post, along
with an
examiner who
refused to
answer
questions
about
what work he
did for the
Committee:
this is what's
called new
blood.)
The
"colleague
from Reuters,"
previously
viewed as
president in
waiting, has
decided to
remain
slightly
behind the
throne as
first
vice
president.
The outgoing
president
he advised has
endorsed a
successor,
whose views of
the year of
censorship and
documented
dis-accreditation
attempts are
not yet known.
In Yemen,
Saleh-nominee
Hadi has
incrementally
broken from
the past. But
this is the UN
-- so
we'll see.
Watch this
site.
Footnote:
Launched
on December 7,
the Free UN
Coalition for
Access, FUNCA,
has begun
advocating not
only on media
space but more
importantly,
impartial
accreditation,
fair treatment
and freedom of
information.
More to
come on each
of these
issues and
more: watch this
site.
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