As
UN Banned from
S. Kordofan,
Ging Tells ICP
It's Failure,
“Insane,”
UNSC Meets
By
Matthew
Russell Lee
UNITED
NATIONS,
February 26, updated
– Before the
pending Sudan
draft
Presidential
Statement was
taken up by
the UN
Security
Council on
Tuesday
afternoon, the
UN
humanitarian
chief of
operations
John Ging told
Inner City
Press that
despite a
“Security
Council
resolution
nine
months ago
calling for
immediate
access,” no
aid has since
gotten
into South
Kordofan and
Blue Nile
States. Video
here, from
Minute
34:17.
After
Inner City
Press asked
about any
progress on
the so-called
Tripartite
Agreement to
get aid into
the two areas,
Ging said, “we
have to
stay focused
on results,
which have
been failure.
We have to be
honest about
prospects
are... nil.”
Ging
concluded that
to keep doing
the “same
thing, the
same way, with
the same
result” --
failure --
means “as
someone
famously said,
that you're
insane.”
But
three hours
later at the
Security
Council, a
meeting of
Deputy
Permanent
Representatives
began on a
long pending
Presidential
Statement on
Sudan and
South Sudan,
including not
only Abyei but
also
the Two Areas.
This
followed a
briefing last
week by Haile
Menkerious,
after which US
Ambassador
Susan Rice
told Inner
City Press the
draft PRST
would be
updated.
Since then, as
Iner City
Press on
February 21
exclusively
reported,
Sudan dropped
what would
have been its
position atop
the
humanitarian
pillar of
ECOSOC,
switching for
Pakistan's
"Coordination"
position.
Outside the
Council
Tuesday
afternoon, a
non-permanent
member said
“it's mostly
about the oil,
neither side
will give in
because each
side thinks
they can win.”
But
there is less
and less focus
on this; most
talk about
Syria or even
for now Mali,
Ging's lead
topic on
Tuesday. Sudan
has been left
behind, the
people of the
two areas the
most. Watch
this site.
Footnote:
Inner
City Press
also asked the
UN on Tuesday
what it was
doing to
about Sudan's
inability to
open a bank
account in the
United States,
one of the
responsibilities
of the US as
host country.
UN
Secretary
General Ban
Ki-moon's
deputy
spokesman
Eduardo Del
Buey
told Inner
City Press
that is up to
the host
country. But
Ban's
Controller,
months ago,
said that
“good news”
would been
announced
soon.
“The
good news is
that I'm
here,' Del
Buey said with
a smile.
Indeed.
We'll have
more on this.
Update
of 4:30 pm,
Feb 26 -
and after
Security
Council Deputy
Permanent
Representatives
met on Sudan
for less than
an hour and a
half, when
they emerged
several shook
their heads.
"Not today,
let's say,"
one told Inner
City Press.
"Oh we agree
on everything,"
another said
sarcastically.
The candor was
appreciated,
but there was
none of the
seriousness
(or posturing)
of the Syria
issue today,
or perhaps of
the Sudan
issue in the
past.
, 
