Saturday, April 19, 2008
Banning the Olympics, UN Chief Prefers Beijing in July to Heat of August 8, Questions Persist
UNITED NATIONS, April 15 -- With attention mounting on which world leaders are not going to the Beijing Olympics opening ceremony on August 8 and why, UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon's excuse was made slightly more specific on Tuesday. Inner City Press asked Ban's director of political affairs Lynn Pascoe if there were any political ramifications to Ban's not going. He is "going to China at a time" he can have "serious discussions with China," Pascoe said, adding with apparent annoyance, "The Secretary-General is very straight forward on the issue." Video here, from Minute 2:13.
But Ban's spokesperson declined to confirm that he will visit Beijing and Seoul in connection with the G-8 meeting in Japan in July. And when Deputy Spokesperson Marie Okabe answered Inner City Press' question last week about whether Ban had been invited to, and would attend, the opening ceremony, she said only that Ban "conveyed to the Chinese Government some months ago that he may not be in a position to accept the invitation to attend this important event due to scheduling issues." She declined to say that the scheduling issues were, and the phrase became something of a joke worldwide, being rephrased as a "diary clash" in the British press.
Pascoe added, "you had a chance to ask the Secretary General" the question earlier in the day, when Ban took ten minutes of questions between a lunch and a three o'clock meeting, his first press availability at UN Headquarters in four weeks, since March 17. But time was short; Inner City Press which was going to ask the question and kept hand raised through the ten minutes was not called on. Hours later at the same spot, Inner City Press asked Pascoe as head of UN political affairs if the reaction to the Olympics no-show announcement had been somehow unforeseen by the UN. "I'm not going to restate the Secretary General's answers," Pascoe said. But there has still not been an answer directly from Ban Ki-moon.
That the issue should be addressed should not even require a question. Ban Ki-moon has said the UN should better explain what it does and why. Now then is the time. Tuesday evening, rather than at the UN, Ban's plans included the Korea Society, and meeting with his country's new president Lee Myung-bak. This meeting was not listed on Ban's public schedule. Perhaps plans for the July trip to Seoul -- and, for now at least, Beijing too -- will be discussed. Watch this space.
And see, www.innercitypress.com/ban2olympics041508.html
