|
On W.
Sahara, As Ban
Eyed Building
Morocco's
Road, Can
Staff Speak to
Diplomats?
By Matthew
Russell Lee,
Follow up to
Exclusive
UNITED
NATIONS,
September 16
-- The UN of
Ban Ki-moon,
which gave in
to Morocco's
demand to pull
out 83 members
of its MINURSO
mission in
Western Sahara
and has yet to
get most of
the returned,
is now
proposing to
given in
further,
sources
exclusively
told Inner
City Press on
September 8.
A
UN Security
Council
meeting was
set up for
Friday,
September 9 at
3 pm. Inner
City Press
reported that
the goal was
for Ban's UN
Secretariat to
propose that
the UN take
over the work
Morocco
unilaterally
began of
building and
asphalting a
road in the
Guerguerat
area.
Previous UN
reports, under
Kofi Annan,
expressed
concern at
this road. But
now under Ban
Ki-moon, the
UN is prepared
to propose to
do it itself.
Fully a week
later, Inner
City Press
asked Ban's
spokesman
Stephane
Dujarric to
explain Ban's
position - and
if Morocco can
complain, and
get UN Under
Secretary
Gneral action
on, UN staff
speaking with
a Polisario
diplomat. From
the UN's
September 16
transcript:
Inner City
Press: I'd
asked you
yesterday to
clarify what
the
Secretary-General's
proposal had
been about
this road on
which Security
Council
consultations
were called
last
Friday.
You said you'd
look into
it. But
at least some
on the sort of
pro-Moroccan
side that have
said the road
is now
completed.
So I wanted
just a factual
report, if you
have one, on
what's
actually taken
place since
last Friday.
Spokesman:
No. What
I have is that
MINURSO
(United
Nations
Mission for
the Referendum
in Western
Sahara) is
undertaking
any task in
this current
crisis to be
based on the
agreement of
both parties
and of the
Security
Council.
The Mission's
proposal would
include the
withdrawal by
both parties
of all armed
elements.
Peacekeeping…
MINURSO would
retain the
exclusive
presence in
the
area.
And MINURSO is
concerned
about the
preservation
of peace and
civility in
Western Sahara
and the
prevention…
the resumption
of armed
hostilities.
[MINURSO] is
an instrument
of peace and
not in the
interest of
either party.
ICP
Question:
Okay.
And one other
thing.
It's also on
Western
Sahara, but
it's also sort
of about UN
rules, what is
expected of
the UN
staff. A
UN staff
member, the
Secretary of
the Third
Committee,
Moncef Khane,
was observed
speaking to a
representative
of the
Polisario, Mr.
[Ahmed]
Boukhari.
And a
complaint was
made by the
ambassador
from Morocco
to the USG
(Under-Secretary-General)
of DGACM
(Department of
General
Assembly and
Conference
Management) —
many acronyms
there.
And Catherine
Pollard
actually
called the
Secretary of
the Third
Committee in
and said that
he should be
more careful
who he talks
to. So I
wanted to
know, beyond
this
particular
case, how
should UN
staff… are
they allowed
to speak to
diplomats of…
Spokesman:
I'm not going
to comment on
the particular
case because I
have no
detailed
knowledge of
who people
talk to and
when they talk
to them.
Obviously, I
think as I
general rule,
UN staff speak
to whomever
they may want
to speak to
who may be in
this building.
ICP
Question:
Right.
So you
don't…
Spokesman:
I'm not going
to speculate
further
because I
don't know the
facts.
* * *
These
reports
are
usually also available through Google
News and on Lexis-Nexis.
Click here
for Sept 26, 2011 New Yorker on Inner City
Press at UN
Click
for
BloggingHeads.tv re Libya, Sri Lanka, UN
Corruption
Feedback:
Editorial [at] innercitypress.com
UN Office: S-303,
UN, NY 10017 USA
Reporter's mobile (and weekends):
718-716-3540
Other, earlier Inner City Press are
listed here,
and some are available in the ProQuest service,
and now on Lexis-Nexis.
Copyright 2006-2015 Inner City Press,
Inc. To request reprint or other permission,
e-contact Editorial [at] innercitypress.com
|
, 
