Byline: Matthew Russell Lee of Inner City Press at UN
www.innercitypress.com/g771sudan012309.html
UNITED NATIONS, January 23 -- The surreal nature of the UN was on display on Friday, culminating in a party for Sudan, replete with melting ice sculptures of fish and the Sudanese flag, on the occasion of the take-over of the Group of 77 and China by a nation whose president the International Criminal Court prosecutor wants locked up for crimes against humanity.
All day, the UN dodged the irony. At 11 a.m., Ban Ki-moon through his Deputy Asha Rose Migiro congratulated Sudan. At noon, Inner City Press asked Ban's spokesperson Michele Montas if, on the day she had read out the condemnation of Sudan for war crimes, Ban had any comments for Sudan or for the "incongruity" of the two announcements --
Inner City Press: in your opening, you read two items that seemed to be sort of related, but you didn’t relate them. One, Mr. Ban Ki-moon had congratulated Sudan on becoming the head of the G-77 and you also read out this report by UNAMID, among others, that Sudan had violated international law in the Kalma camp. Has Ban Ki-moon said anything to Sudan on that? Do you see these as in any way related? Do you have any comment on these two seemingly incongruous facts?
Spokesperson Montas: They are not incongruous facts. Both are true and both are directed towards different aspects of the issue.
Inner City Press: So his congratulation remains the same, even given today’s findings?
Spokesperson Montas: Yes. [Video here.]
Now to be fair, in the UN system nominations like Sudan's are made by regional groups, and others just vote them along. But some wonder if the head of an organization ostensibly committed to human rights should congratulation, without further elaboration, Sudan without any further comment.
Inner City Press asked a senior UN official, the head of Peacekeeping, if he thought Sudan's new position atop the G-77 might give it more leverage in negotiations with the UN. While he demurred, he did not disagree with Inner City Press' analysis that not only does the G-77 chair legitimate Sudan, it also gives it power over the UN budget process. Ban Ki-mute might -- might! -- call or want to call President Al-Bashir to demand cooperation with UNAMID, the UN peacekeeping mission in Darfur. And now Sudan could say, do you want your human resources, ERP or other proposals to pass the General Assembly's budget commitment, where the G-77 has much power?
And see, www.innercitypress.com/g771sudan012309.html
