By Matthew Russell Lee
www.innercitypress.com/unban3quakehaiti011810.html
UNITED NATIONS, January 18 -- Into the UN Security Council Monday morning, Secretary General Ban Ki-moon and his top advisers filed grim faced in. UN Peacekeeping will be asking for authorization of 800 more soldiers and 450 more police, a Western Council member's spokesperson told reporters.
Inner City Press asked, Will the resolution address the increased U.S. military presence? No, the spokesperson said. It is only about MINUSTAH," the UN Mission there. That the Dominican Republic offered a battalion was discussed. The question was, only to police the border?
A scribe chosen to accompany Ban to Haiti on Sunday recounted he was on the ground for barely six hours. He was not present at the Christopher Hotel when the Danish UN staffer was miraculously dug out.
Rather, his spokesperson and that of UN Peacekeeping had run back, while reporters dutifully remained on the UN's bus. The UN documented its own victory over the darkness, by Flip video.
Among Ban's most senior advisors, several chosen correspondents noticed a dandy-ish fur collar and wondered where PETA, the People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals, might be. These same visually oriented correspondents noted at the stakeout Monday morning the bright red tan of a Latin member's spokesman. Inner City Press asked, Haiti? Somewhere nearby, the genial red faced one replied.
The UN reporter for a salmon colored daily, who signed up for the trip on January 13 but was told "no luck" on January 17, ended up relying on the UN's own news service for his critique for American management of the airport. Some wondered whether his realistic assessments of Team Ban had left him off the trip while South Korean media was chosen to go.
The significant other of a still-missing UN staff member complained that no one was or is looking for her, where she was during the quake. Even with the UN dramatically focused on Haiti, these voices seem to get lost.
While the Ban administration is all hands on deck about Haiti, its seeming inability to deal with more than one issue at once is ill-serving it. On Friday Inner City Press began asking Ban's spokesman about attacks in Kabul, Afghanistan.
Today I'm sticking to Haiti, the spokesman archly replied.
While later he related and took the question, three days later there has been no answer.
By Monday's Council meeting, more attacks had taken place in the heart of Kabul. Still no word from the UN. Nor about moves to further muscle the UN out of the climate change negotiation process.
The Council's consultations began, with Ban slated to appear before the press at 10:40 or 10:50 a.m.. Watch this space.
Update of 11:19 a.m. -- When Ban Ki-moon came to the stakeout, he said he would take two questions. The first selected question was what he most moved him personally. The second concerned coordination with the U.S., to which Inner City Press followed out: What about the Doctors Without Borders plane turned back? Ban replied that his envoy Edmond Mulet is working with the Americans. Video here.
Behind Ban, top humanitarian John Holmes whispered to the spokesman. While Ban left for his previously scheduled meeting with UN staff, Holmes stayed to take more questions, including from Inner City Press on mercenaries, Jacmel, fuel and national staff, answers to which are reported on this site, here.
From the UN's transcript:
Inner City Press: Doctors Without Borders was building over the weekend an inflatible hospital. What steps is the UN going to take to make sure, at least at the airport, that these type of needed facilities can get in?
SG: There is an overwhelming situation – bottlenecks – in airport facilities and road conditions and delivering food aid. The US Government has been assisting the Haitian Government with control tower equipment. As you know the control tower has been damaged while the runway was okay. Therefore the United Nations is very closely coordinating with the US authorities to have a smooth operation, and I am grateful that the United States Government has been swiftly and effectively dealing with this, in close coordination with the Unied Nations. Mr. Edmond Mulet has been very closely coordinating with the US ambassador and other key donors at the airport.
