On
Palestine as
ATT Vice
Chair, UN
Tells ICP Any
“Participating
State”
Can Do It
By
Matthew
Russell Lee
UNITED
NATIONS,
February 20 –
With Palestine's
bid to be a
vice chair of
the upcoming
Arms Trade
Treaty talks
proceeding,
Inner City
Press on
Wednesday
asked UN
Secretary
General Ban
Ki-moon's
spokesman
about
positions the
Press is told
Ban's
Secretariat
took in closed
door
“informal”
meetings.
Multiple
sources
tell Inner
City Press
that Ban's
Secretariat
took the
position that
the format
used in the
summer, before
Palestine was
voted as a non
member
observer State
on November
29, should
still be
used this
coming March:
that is, a
“member
states” format
that
would exclude
Palestine.
(Palestine
argues that it
is all states,
for
which it
qualifies.)
Ban's
spokesman
Martin Nesirky
told Inner
City Press
that the
“Secretariat
often provides
technical
advice on
matters of
protocol,” but
that
it is “up to
those who are
participating
in that
conference to
determine.”
After
the noon
briefing,
Ban's
spokesperson's
office sent
Inner City
Press
the following:
From:
UN
Spokesperson -
Do Not Reply
[at] un.org
Date: Wed, Feb
20, 2013
at 12:41 PM
Subject: Your
questions at
today's noon
briefing
To:
Matthew.Lee
[at]
innercitypress.com
Regarding
your
question on
the rules of
the Arms Trade
Treaty (ATT)
Conference:
By resolution
67/234 the
General
Assembly
decided that
the rules of
procedure for
the 2012 ATT
Conference
would be
applicable to
the
upcoming
meeting. Rule
6 of the Rules
of Procedure
for the 2012
ATT
Conference
provides in
part as
follows: "The
Conference
shall
elect from
among the
representatives
of
participating
States the
following
officers: a
President, 14
Vice-Presidents
and a
Rapporteur-General,
as well as the
Chairs of the
Main
Committees.”
Inner
City Press
showed this
answer to a
well placed
supporter of
Palestine's
bid to be vice
chair. Ah hah,
this source
said, pointing
at the words “
participating
States.”
He said, that
means All
States. Then
he wondered
why the
Secretariat
would have
said one
thing in
closed door
informals, but
now apparently
another
publicly,
in writing.
The
ATT talks kick
off on March
18. Watch this
site.
, 
