By Matthew Russell Lee
UNITED NATIONS, December 23 -- The UN Budget fight went into overtime Thursday evening on the issues of genocide and the Responsibility to Protect (R2P).
Venezuela, Cuba and Nicaragua put forward a proposal to bar the UN Special Representative on Genocide from having anything to do with R2P, which they say is a concept which has never been approved by the UN General Assembly and which could be used for imperialist interventions.
The standoff took place in the context of Cote d'Ivoire strongman Laurent Gbagbo issuing threats against the UN peacekeepers there.
Whereas Wednesday night UN officials Susana Malcorra, Catherine Pollard and Controller Yamasaki were on hand to lobby for the Secretariat, neither R2P Special Adviser Ed Luck nor current top genocide official Francis Deng were seen on Thursday evening.
No UNTV stake out had been set up for statements to the Press. Ban Ki-moon's spokespeople had left, and would not hold a briefing until 2011. Thus are billions fought for and spent.
Budget Committee diplomats milled around the UN's North Lawn building while negotiations continued in Conference Room 5. “OICT is done,” a delegate called out, referring to the Office of Information and Communications Technology. A final deadline was announced: 10 or 10:45 in the General Assembly.
There, contested votes were still predicted on Durban III and on Iran's challenge to the Group of Experts on its Sanctions Committee, and to Special Political Missions more generally.
Earlier the General Assembly met in its old building, but only to act on the Credentials Committee's recommendation to accept the new Cote d'Ivoire Mission personnel appointed by Ouattara. President of the General Assembly Joseph Deiss quickly read out the proposal and quickly gaveled approval.
Nigeria and Namibia protested that they had wanted to speak, even to ask for a postponement. But Deiss would not relent. With other countries asking to speak, Deiss suspended the meeting, to reconvene only when the Budget Committee is ready.
