By Matthew Russell Lee
UNITED NATIONS, March 31 -- Barely an hour after Susan Rice of the US said Miguel d'Escoto Brockmann would find his tourist visa under review if he purported to represent Libya or any foreign government at the UN, Wednesday's Chinese End of Security Council Presidency reception seven block south of the UN was abuzz about the standoff.
Several Permanent Representatives expressed shock to Inner City Press that d'Escoto Brockmann's press conference scheduled for March 31 at 10 am had so quickly been canceled or “postponed.”
Inner City Press was told that the when the UN Secretariat received the complaint, rather than point out that other press conferences have been held by non diplomats they moved to cancel Brockmann's “show.”
“Ban Ki-moon has gone too far,” a Latin American diplomat told Inner City Press. “Maybe the UN should be moved to Brazil.”
Another Deputy Permanent Representative, this time of a country on the Security Council, told Inner City Press about a Council credentials rule that if a citizen of one country seeks to represent another, he or she needs letters from both countries.
The example given, repeatedly now, is of an Irish national who was an expert working for Austria when it was on the Council. He could not get a letter from Ireland and so was not allowed in the Council, at least not for consultations.
But d'Escoto Brockmann could easily get a letter from Nicaragua, and he has a letter from Musa Koussa when he was Gaddafi's foreign minister, before his reported defection.
Another Permanent Representative pointed out to Inner City Press that the Musa Koussa letter is undated, and said the US and UN will use that.
The result is that the US, by invoking immigration rules, “mocking” as one Latin diplomat put it to Inner City Press its duties under its Host Country Agreement with the US, is blocking the UN press corps from hearing a perspective that the US doesn't like.
Outside the earshot of the Chinese hosts of Wednesday's reception, some mused back to the case of Tiananmen Square activist Shen Tong, whom China and then Boutros Ghali blocked from entering the UN to hold a press conference.
Then, UN correspondents protested and went (just) outside the UN's gates on First Avenue to hear the canceled briefing. And at that time, notably, the US is said to have sided with the right of the UN press corps to invite and hear from whomever they wanted, inside the UN. Watch this site.
Footnote: because so many attendees commented on it, so will we: the food at China's reception was amazing, from roast duck to fish spiced with chiles. Afterward DVDs were given out about minorities in China.
Several Council observers praised China's diplomacy as President for March, for example circulating two letters from Libya without obsessing about where they'd come in from. Now Colombia takes over for April; they are already preparing an end of April reception, Colombian music at a museum. But we'll have more soon on their program of work. Watch this site.
