UNESCO
Mutant Deal with Space State
Asgardia Typifies Corrupt UN
System of Guterres
By Matthew
Russell Lee
UNITED
NATIONS GATE,
November 9 –
Another month,
another
scandal at
UNESCO the
agency that
has in its
mandate press
freedom but
has done
nothing as
Antonio
Guterres had
Inner City
Press roughed
up and still
banned from
the UN after
128 days amid
its reporting
on (his)
corruption.
Now it emerges
that former
UNESCO boss
Irina Bokova
cut a deal
with a
non-existent
planet
resulting in
financial
liability for
the already
(rightly)
struggling UN
agency.
Auto-translated
from the Russian:
"UNESCO
terminates the
agreement with
the virtual
"space state
Asgardia"
headed by the
former general
director of
"Almaz-Antey"
Igor
Ashurbeyli.
Asgardia
sponsored the
release of a
medal of this
international
organization
for 260
thousand
euros, in fact
receiving in
return the
first serious
recognition at
the
international
level. Now the
"space state"
has put a
financial
claim to the
UN structure.
The Cosmic
State of
Asgardia is a
virtual
structure with
a hymn and
flag that
exists only on
paper.
Admission to
the
"citizenship"
of this state
is carried out
via the
Internet, as
of autumn
2018, 270,000
people
received the
corresponding
status.
The small
satellite
Asgardia-1,
which was
launched into
a near-earth
orbit for the
money of
entrepreneur
Igor
Ashurbeyli, is
responsible
for the space
status in the
project:
information
about the
first
"citizens of
Asgardia" was
recorded in
his memory ...
In June 2017,
the then
UNESCO
Director of
the Bulgarian
Irina Bokova
and Igor
Ashurbeyli
signed an
agreement on
the release of
a
commemorative
medal "For the
Contribution
to the Science
of Space".
UNESCO
expenses on
the issue of a
medal and
awarding the
laureates were
to be paid by
the public
organization
Asgardia,
Ashurbeyli
told the BBC
Russian
Service. It is
about the sum
of 260
thousand
euros, follows
from the
contract
between the
two
organizations
(there is at
the disposal
of the BBC).
It was assumed
that it will
be paid in two
tranches - in
2017 and 2019.
This money
should have
been enough to
give the medal
for five
years. The
initiative to
launch the
project came
from Asgardia,
says the
former head of
Almaz-Antey.
Although
Ashurbeyli put
his signature
as the head of
a public
organization,
the
entrepreneur
positioned the
agreement on
his website
differently.
"The first
space state of
Asgardia and
UNESCO have
established a
new award,"
was the news
about the
signing of the
treaty.
The first
award ceremony
took place at
UNESCO
headquarters
in Paris in
October 2017.
The first
woman
cosmonaut
Valentina
Tereshkova and
the first
Cuban
cosmonaut
Arnaldo Mendez
received the
gold medal
with the image
of the planet
Earth.
Rightholder
illustrations
ASHURBEYLI.RU
A similar
ceremony was
to be held in
2018, but at
the end of
September,
Asgardia
received a
notice from
UNESCO about
the
termination of
the treaty
without giving
reasons. The
press service
of the
international
organization
confirmed that
this decision
was made
without
specifying
specific
reasons. In
response to a
message about
the
termination of
the project,
Ashurbeyli
asked the
current UNESCO
Director
General Audrey
Azoulay to
report on the
costs of the
contract: the
first tranche
of 129
thousand euros
was calculated
for 2.5 years
of
cooperation.
However, in
fact, only one
award was
given to the
laureates. The
difference
"Asgardia"
intends to
demand back,
summarizes
Ashurbeyli,
without naming
a specific
amount." And
what will be
the
accountability?
We'll have
more on this.
That jobs in
the UN system
are
essentially
for sale is on
display at
UNESCO, where
Norway is
pulling
funding
because its
candidate Gry
Ulverud didn't
get the top
educational
post. (Italy
got, or in
context
probably
bought, the
position for
Stefania
Giannini.) On
September 26
Inner City
Press asked
the UN in
writing,
"September
26-3: On
reports that
Norway is
cutting its
funding to
UNESCO because
it was not
given a high
position
there, what is
the SG's
comment and
action on
this? Is such
a quid pro quo
approach
acceptable or
the norm in
his UN
system?" By
the next day,
no answer.
Aftenpost
behind a
paywall
describes a
demarche of
UNESCO boss
Audrey Azoulay
by
representatives
not only of
Norway but
also Denmark
and Sweden.
This is ironic
because these
two countries
are moving to
cut funds to
UNEP because
of (Antonio Guterres-like)
travel
waste by
UNEP chief
Erik Solheim,
who happens to
be Gry
Ulverud's
husband. Does
her losing out
on the UNESCO
job make
Solheim less
tempted to
spend public
money flying
to Paris?
Nothing, it
seems, can
stop Guterres'
Lisbon air
shuttle on
the public
dime, for
which he has
been willing
to have Inner
City Press
which asks
about it
roughed up and
banned, even
on September
26 from a UN
human rights
speech by
Michelle
Bachelet it
had RSVP-ed
for and had a
ticket to,
video here.
Today's UN
system is
corrupt. The
UN
talks a lot about
freedom of the press
but this summer at
its headquarters in
New York has twice
physically ousted
critical Inner City
Press, banned by
Secretary General
Antonio Guterres
from entering the UN
since July 3 when it
was covering the UN
Budget Committee.
This was captured on
video
and now the
September 23 NY
Post, here.
And so,
seeing that the
Paris-based UN
Educational,
Scientific and
Cultural
Organization has
whole sections
devoted to Protection
of Journalists
and Fostering
Freedom of
Expression, Inner
City Press reached
out to UNESCO's
Director of Freedom
of Expression Guy
Berger, whom it had
questioned
in the UN Press
Briefing Room back
in March before
being banned from
that room, about
UNESCO sexual
harasser Frank
Larue, and to the New
York-based
liaison Ricardo de
Guimarães Pinto.
A similar
request for action
directed first to
a.azoulay [at]
UNESCO.org, then to
dg [at] UNESCO.org
was blocked: it
seems Ms Azoulay
accepted mail and
information only
from within UNESCO.
So much for
protecting
journalists.
Here is what
Inner City Press has
sent to UNESCO,
Berger and de
Guimarães Pinto:
Dear Messrs. de
Guimarães Pinto
(NY), Berger
(Paris), DG:
This is a
formal request for
freedom of the press
action by UNESCO. I
am an investigative
journalist who has
covered the United
Nations system for a
decade. But but I
have now been banned
from the UN with no
end in sight since
July 3, when I was
physically ousted
from the UN for the
second time in 11
days, while I was
doing reporting.
I am
told by the UN that
the “suspension” of
my access to the UN,
now for 22 days, is
for a review of
being physically
ousted by UN
Security from
covering the UN
Budget Committee
meetings on July 3,
the type of meeting
I have staked-out
and covered for 11
years, the last two
as a non-resident
correspondent. I
managed to film some
of my ouster,
beginning half way
through as UN
Security Lieutenant
Ronald Dobbins tried
to grab my phone,
video
here.
Something
has
gone wrong in the UN
- on which UNESCO
must act,
immediately -- when
a journalist typing
up notes from an
interview with the
UN Budget Committee
chair has been
approached and
assaulted by UN
Security officers at
least one of whom
had and has a
personal vendetta
springing from
previous (and
accurate) Press coverage.
But it
has become or
exposed a more
systemic problem: I
have been banned
from the UN for
doing my job as a
journalist, with no
due process, no end
in sight.
USG DPI
Alison Smale has
gone on a three week
vacation, after
vaguely claiming I
was uncivil as my
arm was being
twisted, and that a
few e-mail responses
to my questions by
the UN spokespeople
means the UN is
respecting my rights
as a journalist.)
DPI has
caused this problem
by downgrading Inner
City Press to “non
resident
correspondent”
status for my
coverage of the John
Ashe / Ng Lap Seng
UN bribery case,
which allows UN
Security to target
me any time I cover
a meeting after 7
pm. I am allowed by
rule to stay for
such meetings, and
for an hour
afterward. But this
is not been
communicated to or
accepted by these UN
Security officers.
The
only solution is to
restore Inner City
Press, which
produces substantial
UN coverage, to its
long time shared
work space in UN
Room S-303 (which
sits almost entirely
unused) and to
restore me to
resident
correspondent
status. And then to
ensure rules, and
the rule of law and
freedom of the press
at the UN, going
forward. If you have
any questions, I am
available (for now
outside the UN
gates) on my cell
phone, or on email
here. Please confirm
receipt of this
request.”
They did not even
confirm receipt. So
much for protection
of journalists.
***
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