Byline: Matthew Russell Lee of Inner City Press at UN
www.innercitypress.com/sc6srilanka042909.html
UNITED NATIONS, April 29 -- With the UN's top humanitarian John Holmes just returned from a trip to Sri Lanka that even he has called “disappointing,” many Security Council members thought it obvious that he would provide a briefing, if only in the “informal interactive dialogue” format under which the two previous Council sessions have been held.
Inner City Press was told by Council sources that the Holmes briefing, to include the government's reneging on a pledge to Secretary General Ban Ki-moon's envoy Vijay Nambiar to allow a UN humanitarian assessment team into the conflict zone, was slated to occur on Thursday, April 30 after a Cyprus agenda item, under the rubric “Other Matters.” To some, that seemed the least the Council could do, although one wondered if the Council would adjourn and move down to the basement, to drive home the point that Sri Lanka is not on its formal agenda.
On Wednesday morning, however, well placed sources told Inner City Press that opposition, led by China, has put even this stealth briefing into question. “It's not that China is not as humanitarian” as the others, Beijing's Ambassador argued. But they insist that no matter how many people are killed, the conflict in Sri Lanka is an internal matter.
With Russia slated to take over the Council presidency on Friday, May 1, it will become less likely that the Council will receive any briefings about Sri Lanka.
As of 11:42 a.m. on April 29, at least two Western countries, a Permanent and a non-Permanent member, believe that the Holmes briefing on Sri Lanka is on tap for Thursday, under other business. A better placed source said this is not agreed. At deadline it appears that following China's objection about location, Holmes may brief in the basement. Location, location, location. Watch this site.
Footnote: while Sri Lanka's refusal to grant a visa to the foreign minister of Sweden, the incoming president of the European Union, has apparently not been raised in the Council as such, one European Permanent Representative raised it to Ban Ki-moon. Inner City Press asked Mr. Ban about Sri Lanka outside the Security Council Wednesday morning. He responded, you have a briefing from John Holmes this afternoon. And about the Council, tomorrow afternoon? Watch this space.
And see, www.innercitypress.com/sc6srilanka042909.html