On W.
Sahara Ban
Says MINURSO
Ready for
Referendum, If
Morocco
Doesn't Veto
By Matthew
Russell Lee
UNITED
NATIONS, March
5 -- Why can't
UN Secretary
General Ban
Ki-moon go to
El Aaiun in
Western
Sahara, even
to visit the
headquarters
of the UN
Mission for
the Referendum
in Western
Sahara?
On
February 29,
Inner City
Press directly
asked Ban's
spokesman
Stephane
Dujarric, who
replied that
Ban's trip
will be in two
parts -- it's
just that when
the El Aaiun
portion will
happen is not
known.
On March 6,
Ban Ki-moon
(provided by
the UN in
French only)
"j’ai aussi
rencontré les
membres du
personnel de
la MINURSO,
qui font
preuve d’un
grand
dévouement.
Ils sont pręts
ŕ aider ŕ
organiser un
référendum
s’il y a un
accord entre
les parties.
Je me suis
rendu dans
plusieurs
sites, et je
compte aller
prochainement
au quartier
général de la
mission, ŕ
Laayoune, au
Sahara
occidental."
Ban met
staff of
MINURSO - but
not at its
headquarters
in El Aaiun -
and said they
are ready,
after decades,
to help
organize a
referendum IF
there is an
agreement
between the
parties. So
Morocco has a
veto?
Still,
many long
suffering
Saharawis say
even this
half-visit by
Ban Ki-moon is
better than
nothing. We'll
see.
On March 5,
Ban Ki-moon
said he was in
the regin "to
visit the
United Nations
Mission for
the Referendum
in Western
Sahara
(MINURSO). I
will visit the
team site in
Bir Lahlou, as
well as
personnel
performing
vital demining
activities. I
saw the
remarkable and
demanding work
the Mission is
doing in harsh
conditions of
the Hammada. I
also expect to
visit the
headquarters
of MINURSO in
Laayoune,
Western
Sahara, soon."
When?
And why not
say when he's
not doing in
now? And why
he canceled in
November (on
the off chance
he could go to
North Korea.
Priorities.)
Ban also said,
"I have been
heartened by
the faith
Sahrawis
people put in
the UN, its
principles,
and
international
law." If true,
has the faith
paid off?
Back on March
2, Inner City
Press asked
Dujarric's
deputy Farhan
Haq why Ban is
not going,
while wanly
claiming he
has the right
to do. UN
transcript
here:
Inner City
Press: On the
Western
Sahara, I
wanted to ask,
just to really
understand
clearly why
the
Secretary-General
would be going
so close to
the
headquarters
of MINURSO
[United
Nations
Mission for
the Referendum
in Western
Sahara] in
Laayoune but
not going
there.
And I just… I
guess I want
you to confirm
that his
reason for not
going at this
time and
saying that
he'll go at a
later time is
because, in
the absence of
the king
going, he
feels that he
can't go or
shouldn't
go. Why
is he not
going… if he's
writing a
report in
April about
the Mission,
why isn't he
going to its
headquarters?
What is the
reason?
Deputy
Spokesman:
Well, the
Secretary-General
himself
discussed some
of this at his
press
conference
yesterday in
Spain.
So, I would
refer you to
what the
Secretary-General
himself
said.
But, one thing
I'd like to
underscore is
that, as a
matter of
principle, the
Secretary-General
should be free
to visit UN
peace
operations at
the time of
his choosing,
and that is
what he will
do.
Question:
But, how do
you assert
that principle
without
actually doing
it? Has
there been…
said
otherwise, is
there any
other Mission
in the UN
peacekeeping
world where
the
Secretary-General
would only
visit if the
Head of State
or king were
present in the
country and
permitted it?
Deputy
Spokesman:
The bottom
line is,
wherever he
visits, the
Secretary-General
tries to make
the
appropriate
arrangements
so that the
objectives of
his visit will
succeed.
He wants all
of his trips
to achieve
actual goals,
and that is
what he times
his trips for.
Question:
And what is
his goal here,
a referendum?
Deputy
Spokesman:
His goal is a
resolution by
all parties of
the issue
concerning
Western
Sahara.
Yeah?
Inner
City Press
asked if it
will happen
before Ban's
April report.
Dujarric's
answer, as is
so often the
case, was
unclear,
seemingly
intentionally
so.
Ban was
supposed to go
in November
2015 but he
canceled it,
thinking he
could get more
political -
read, South
Korea
electoral --
play by going
to North
Korea. But
then North
Korea turned
him down.
On
February 25,
Inner City
Press asked
Dujarric about
issues
including
Western
Sahara, after
three days
reporting on
the UN from
outside after
Ban's head of
Communications
Cristina
Gallach threw
Inner City
Press out
without due
process: petition
here; weird
pro Morocco
spin on the
ouster, here.
Now
ahead of Ban's
March 1 stop
in Spain -
will Gallach
be there? -
there is pick
up of the
fact that
Gallach is
Spain's
highest UN
official, and
that she
ousted the
Press from the
UN.
Will it be
resolved by,
or come to
head on, March
1? In defense
of Ban and
Gallach,
anonymous
troll account
has taken to
tweeting, now
at Spanish
journalists,
that Gallach
is fine and
didn't throw
Inner City
Press out of
the UN on two
hours notice
without once
speaking to
it. But those
are the fact.
Among the new
troll
account's
followers are
Ban Ki-moon's
spokesman
Stephane
Dujarric and
four UNCA
board members,
plus Reuters
bureau chief
Louis
Charbonneau,
who has a
history with
this, see
here.
On February
26, Dujarric
said, "the
Secretary-General's
right to visit
any
peacekeeping
mission, but
there is the
de facto
authorities in
that area
would need to
provide the
clearance for
the plane to
land."
So, he really
DOESN'T have
the right, and
isn't really
pushing for
it. Inner City
Press on
February 26
asked
Dujarric, UN transcript
here:
Inner City
Press: I
wanted to ask
what the
Secretary-General's
goals are for
this Western
Sahara
trip.
What is he
seeking to
come out of
it? Does
he… would he
like to see a
referendum
with
independence
as a
goal?
What's he go
into it
looking
at?
Thanks.
Spokesman
Dujarric:
Obviously,
the… you know,
a lot… a large
focus will be
on the
humanitarian
situation.
He'll be
visiting the
camps near
Tindouf, and
it is also
part of his
preparation,
obviously… he
will report on
the trip in
his upcoming
report, which
is scheduled
for April.
Humanitarian,?
We'll have
more on this.
We'll
see. UN
President of
the General
Assembly
Mogens
Lykketoft
announced a
trip to Europe
and Morocco; particularly
as the bribery
case against
former PGA
John Ashe
proceeds, with
two guilty
pleas and also
indicted
former
Dominican
Republic
Deputy
Permanent
Representative
(and South
South News
executive) Francis
Lorenzo found
to NOT have
immunity,
taking
Moroccon
government
funding for a
trip to
Morocco with a
Morocco-provided
staffer,
particularly
(but not only)
if not
addressing the
obvious issue
of Western
Sahara, seems
ill-advised.
We'll have
more on this.
Mogen
Lykketoft,
meanwhile,
couldn't bring
himself to say
Ashe's name,
only referring
to the
President of
the 68th
General
Assembly
session.
Lykketoft, who
allowed his
Office to be
used for
fellow Dane
Helle
Thorning-Schmidt
to campaign
for the top
spot in the
UN's refugee
agency UNHCR,
said he will
be making
reform
proposals. We
will be there
- with
questions for
Lykketoft.
Ban
again
mentioned what
he told Inner
City Press at
his last
stakeout, a
task force
under his chef
of staff
Susana
Malcorra. But
as Inner City
Press asked
Ban's
spokesman
Dujarric, with
all due
respect, Malcorra
accepted one
of Ng's South
South Awards,
for Ban.
And as note,
Gallach went.
We'll have
more on this.
, 
