| UN
Correspondents Association Sold Guterres
For $350,000 on Wall Street Silent on His
Censorship
By Matthew
Russell Lee, CJR Letter
PFTracker
BBC
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UK - Honduras
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Source
UN GATE / WALL
ST, Feb 8 – The UN has
been so corrupted and
dominated by China under UNSG
Antonio Guterres that now its
ostensible journalist award is
controlled with Chinese state
media. On November 22 Chinese
state media "won" the third
vice presidency of UNCA,
albeit with only 40 votes of
only 143 ballots supposedly
representing journalists
worldwide.
And now we
see that the actual membership
of the United Nations
Correspondents Association, an
entity used by Guterres and
his team to legitimate their
censorship and banning of
critical press, has a total of
less than 40 members who show
up. Now they want ID cards.
Here from a number of
disgusted UNCA members,
including within the 39, are
the January 27 minutes:
"UNCA General
Membership Meeting Monday,
January 27, 2020 UNCA
Executive Committee Members
present: Valeria Robecco,
Nabil Abi Saab, Giampaolo
Pioli, Ali Barada, Oscar
Bolanos, Maria Khrenova, Edith
Lederer, Ibtisam Azem, Linda
Fasulo, Betul Yuruk, Alexander
Hassanein, Philippe Rater,
Kaori Yoshida, Sherwin
Bryce-Pease Absent:
Jianguo Ma 39 UNCA
members attended (including
the Executive Committee)
Opening of the
Meeting: UNCA President
Valeria Robecco opened the
meeting and introduced the
2020 Executive
Committee. Valeria then
presented a proposal to
provide an UNCA ID Card for
members in good standing and a
discussion took place. The ID
proposal was adopted by a vote
of 33 in favor, 3 against with
1 abstention. A total of 37
members were present at the
time of the vote. UNCA
Subcommittees and their
members
1. Space,
Security and Access Committee:
Valeria, Giampaolo, Nabil,
Alex, Betul, Philippe, Edie 2.
UNCA Awards Committee:
Valeria, Giampaolo (Chairman),
Sherwin, Tuyet, Jianguo, Edie,
Linda 3. UNCA room
activities/Social Events:
Valeria, Nabil, Maria, Oscar,
Alex, Linda, Edie, Kaori,
Ibtisam. The committee
sponsored its first event of
the year on January 14. It was
a press conference given by
Human Rights Watch. 4.
Website/Social Media: Valeria,
Ali, Maria, Kaori,
2019 UNCA Awards
Dinner and upcoming 2020
Gala. Valeria reported
that there was a very good
reaction to the dinner from
journalists, diplomats and
contributors and efforts have
begun for the 2020 Gala. There
is great hope that the Dinner
will be an even more
successful event this year. It
will be taking place both
during the 75th Anniversary of
the UN and the 25th
Anniversary of the UNCA
Awards. Valeria reported that
UNCA has a good chance of
getting Robert Redford, actor
and climate change activist,
as honoree for the 2020 Event.
Others being discussed include
Nicole Kidman and Charlize
Theron. 2019 UNCA and
Awards Financials: The
UNCA General Bank Account had
$19,460.70 at the end of 2019.
$35,825 had been collected
from membership dues (187
renewals, 33 new members);
$13,000 from directory
advertising. Expenses were
$41,927 (from UNCA room
activities, receptions, and
annual directory) 2019
UNCA Awards Gala: The total
bank account balance at the
end of 2019 was
$94,449.20 The Gala
brought in $334,400 with
income from table sponsorship
at $147,000; income from prize
sponsorship at $75,000; income
from advertising at $12,500
and income from individual and
mission ticket contributions
at a total of $77,400. UNCA
tickets at the UNCA membership
rate brought in $22,500. Total
expenses were
$356,908.55. The UNCA
budget was unanimously adopted
by the 39 members present at
the meeting. It is available
in the UNCA office.
Other matters:
Discussion of various venues
for the upcoming Awards
dinner, including costs and
capacity. The 2020 Dinner is
scheduled to be held at
Cipriani Wall Street as in
2019. It accommodates more
than 550 people and has a
competitive price.
Discussion of how to get
maximum access for journalists
during the 75th UN General
Assembly in September 2020.
and better treatment by UN
Security officers than in
previous years. Meetings
on the subject are expected to
take place with MALU, Security
and relevant UN
departments. ***Meeting
Adjourned at 3:50pm***"
UN
Security of course physically
roughed up Inner City Press,
noted even by US Press Freedom
Tracker, here
- but not a word from the UN
Censorship Alliance. Here is
Inner City Press' February 4,
2020 radio Q&A about the
corruption of Guterres, and
the complicity of those state
and most corporate media in
the UN, here.
Press freedom means access and
not banning for critical
media. But not in the UN, and
not with UNCA, the UN Censorship
Alliance.
On
December 6 Inner City Press
now banned from the UN 521
days and counting went after
reporting on the SDNY court
all day down to Wall Street.
There, UNCA was selling access
to Guterres to a slew of
people in tuxedos and gowns,
many with no UN connection.
Video here.
Inner City Press
asked questions outside, of
Guterres' chief of staff
Viotta and USG Melissa Fleming
(no answers), Nigerian UN PGA
Bande about Cameroon (no
answer), and to UNCA
correspondents (VOA's long
time UN bureau chief responded
with her middle finger). Some
were more polite, noted.
An
expensive car was auctioned
outside. Inside, sponsored by
a seller of facial sheet
masks, UNCA celebrated state
media and Egypt. Inner City
Press has a right to re-enter
the UN and asked questions,
just like the retired and
state media Guterres and
Fleming allow in. We will
continue on this.
Now after
UNsurprisingly omitting any
and all coverage of China's
abuse of Uighurs and Hong Kong
from its bogus awards, the UN
Censorship Alliance will hold
a glitzy celebration of
Guterres on Wall Street, no
less, on December 6. They are
entirely corrupt. No questions
on the new UN rapes, links to
fraud and bribes, nothing.
Another
proof: two of the top six
spots are controlled by Italy,
including a Treasurer
Giampaolo Pioli who rented one
of his Manhattan apartments,
funded by a scam pasta
company, to a Sri Lankan war
criminal. He and Valeria
Robecco quickly told a
"publication" with UN office
space, ONUItalia, that UNCA
"remains Italian." The UN Correspondents
Association is
totally
corrupt.
With China having
a veto in UNCA, will stories
about CEFC China Energy's
proven bribery at the UN, and
bid to buy an oil company
linked to Guterres through the
Gulbenkian Foundation, even
get through a first round of
review with this Chinese
"journalism" veto? Fat chance.
***
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