By Matthew Russell Lee
UNITED NATIONS, February 2 -- As in Cairo peaceful demonstrators are beaten while the police and army watch, the UN's responses have been at cross purposes.
Secretary General Ban Ki-moon said “I once again urge restraint to all the sides.” The UN Development Program defended its work with Egypt's police, but also told Inner City Press that all of its programs in Egypt have be put on hold.
Inner City Press asked incoming Security Council President Maria Luiza Ribeiro Viotti if Ban's Department of Political Affairs chief Lynn Pascoe would or even could raise Egypt, Tunisia or Yemen in the so-called “horizon scanning” briefing set for February 23.
She said one or two issues would be negotiated in advance. Given the composition of the Council, and Ban's need for votes for a second term, it seems clear that the protests against autocrats will not reach the Security Council.
She was asked, what it would take to put it on the Council's agenda, the takeover of the Suez Canal? There was some laughter in the press room, but no answer.
Inner City Press asked both Ban's spokesmen and UNDP the following, beginning on January 30:
Ban's spokesman Martin Nesirky on January 31 declined to answer but said that he'd made inquiries. Inner City Press re-sent the question to UNDP, adding a request to “please state the status of UNDP programs in Egypt and Tunisia, and if Administrator Clark has any comment on calls for democratization in Yemen, given that she just traveled there.” On February 2 UNDP answered the Egypt and Tunisia but not Yemen) questions:
Subject: RE: Stephane- Hi, questions re Egypt (and Tunisia) programs, response to critique of BENAA, any comment on democratization in Yemen, Somalia follow up, thanks
From: Spokesman Dujarric [at] undp.org
Date: Wed, Feb 2, 2011 at 10:51 AM
To: Inner City Press
Matthew, The BENAA Programme aims to help strengthen the culture of Human Rights among government officials. The project has so far trained 1000 Judges, 800 prosecutors and 3500 police officers including security officers on basic Human Rights issues including "What the Egyptian Constitution says on Human Rights", Egypt's obligations to international and regional agreements and conventions on human rights; and what treaty bodies are reporting on Human Rights in Egypt. The training is delivered by University professors, international experts and local NGOs. The absolute majority of the trainers were independent trainers. There were some training sessions that were conducted by officials of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs on issues of obligations to international agreements. The project is also supported by the Governments of Holland and Sweden as well as the European Union.
Currently all UNDP projects in Egypt are on hold.
On Tunisia: GEF programmes and MDG related programmes – maternal health and poverty reduction are ongoing. All other programmes are on hold and will be reviewed, in consultation with national partners, to reflect the national priorities and needs.
What Helen Clark had and has to say about Yemen, where Ali Abdullah Saleh the ruler for 32 years now tells protesters he'll leave in 2013, remains to be seen. Watch this site.
Footnote: the reason for Ban's statement “I once again urge restraint to all the sides” may be the demarche to his office by Egypt's Ambassador Maged Elaziz, complaining that Ban didn't also blame protesters for violence.
Egypt's Ambassador has been trying to get a UN system job for some time. But Ban's deputy spokesman Farhan Haq on February 1 confirmed to Inner City Press that he had complained. Then, another statement by Ban “urg[ing] restraint to ALL the sides.”
