UN
Accepted in S.
Sudan Mission
Nepalese
Arrested for
Torture, No UN
Vetting
By
Matthew
Russell Lee
UNITED
NATIONS,
January 7,
updated --
Does the UN
accept as
"peacekeepers"
alleged war
criminals who
are subject to
arrest under
the Convention
on Torture?
The answer is
"yes."
It
was confirmed
to Inner City
Press on
January 7, by
UN Secretary
General Ban
Ki-moon's
spokesman
Martin
Nesirky, that
a Nepalese
"expert on
mission" in
the UN Mission
in South Sudan
was
arrested in
London.
Inner
City Press
asked how can
it be that the
UN Department
of
Peacekeeping
Operations
does not vet
those it sends
to countries
like South
Sudan,
but rather
leaves it up
to the Troop
Contributing
Country, which
obviously
would not
agree that it
own soldiers
were war
criminals?
Nesirky
replied
that the
person at
issue -- he
has been named
as Colonel
Kumar Lama --
was an "expert
on mission" in
UNMISS, and
the
DPKO expected
Nepal to vet
him.
Inner
City Press
asked if there
is any class
of
peacekeeping
personnel
which the UN
itself vets.
The question
was not
immediately
answered.
Instead,
reference was
made to a
forthcoming or
"being rolled
out" policy on
vetting.
Where
is the policy?
Inner City
Press asked if
this new
policy would
apply
to the
Congolese
soldiers in
Minova during
the 126 rapes
in late
November,
about which
DPKO chief
Herve Ladsous
has three
times
on
camera
refused to
answer Press
questions.
Nesirky
replied
with "three
words," or two
words: vetting
UN
personnel. So
although
Ladsous' DPKO
supports and
works with
units of
the Congolese
army which it
will not
specify, this
new vetting
policy
will not apply
to them, even
if they
committed mass
rape in
Minova.
Ladsous'
DPKO
and its
missions are
getting weaker
and weaker.
Recently UN
whistleblowers
complained to
Inner City
Press that the
mission in
Darfur,
UNAMID, gave
the Sudanese
government
veto rights
over its
Civil
Protection
Strategy, and
the strategy
has not been
heard from
since.
"It
went to the
Country Team
then to the
Sudanese
government in
September," a
source told
Inner City
Press. "And
nothing
since. There
is no
leadership
from
headquarters."
Inner
City Press
asked Nesirky
this policy,
too. Watch
this site.
Update
of 3:55 pm --
later the
following was
receive, not
on the
shooting of
IDP or the
"Protection of
Civilians"
strategy, but
to an earlier
Inner City
Press
question:
From:
UN
Spokesperson -
Do Not Reply
[at] un.org
Date: Mon, Jan
7, 2013 at
3:49 PM
Subject: Your
question on
Darfur
To: Matthew
Russell Lee
[at]
innercitypress.com
The African
Union-United
Nations
Mission in
Darfur
(UNAMID) has
confirmed
reports of
demonstrations
against the
plan to turn
Rongatas camp
for internally
displaced
person
into a model
village for
returnees,
turned
violent. On 1
January, the
45-year old
deputy leader
of the camp,
Mr. Adam Ahmed
Mohamed, was
killed by
demonstrators
and some of 22
houses were
burnt. The
Mission also
received
reports
informing that
four
internally
displaced
persons were
arrested in
relation to
the murder and
arson.
UNAMID has
deployed
several
military and
police patrols
in the camp
and is
monitoring
closely the
situation on
the ground.
UNAMID’s
position on
return is
clear. It only
supports safe
and voluntary
returns.
, 
