By Matthew Russell Lee
UNITED NATIONS, September 26, updated -- After an apology to Turkey's prime minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan for an incident that left UN security officers injured, UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon through his spokesman Martin Nesirky told Inner City Press Monday at noon that "unfortunate misunderstandings" with "security officials of member delegation... have been satisfactorily resolved."
Inner City Press, which first reported the fight between Turkish and UN security on Friday, earlier on Monday exclusively reported eyewitness accounts and dissatisfaction within UN Security at Ban's apology and the suspension of UN Security officers. Nesirky refused to confirm the suspensions, saying that since it's been "resolved [there's] nothing to be gained by me giving chapter and verse."
In follow up interviews with UN Security staff, who requested anonymity due to fear of retaliation, Inner City Press has been told that "the emergency response team was suspended." The number of suspensions was put at six, with Team Ban now shifting to calling it "modified duty."
In the incident, in the General Assembly balconies during Palestinian President Abbas' speech, Erdogan's delegation was informed where they could and could not walk.
A scuffled ensued, with Officer Matthew Sullivan being injured in the ribs, and according to sources a female Jamaican officer being injured in the face.
"They called a Code Thirteen, calling all officers available," a source told Inner City Press. "I saw my colleagues on the ground, with blood on the floor. They didn't let us approach."
Now the suspension of the nine officers has been deemed "with pay," which at least one source characterized as "buying silence" after selling the officers out. The source asked, referring to member state's budget woes and debates, "Who's paying for this?"
Nesirky refused to comment on any of this, telling Inner City Press, "I've told you what I have to say... We are grateful for the understanding and forbearance shown by all involved."
Turkey has already bragged about getting an apology. Turkish Mission sources tell Inner City Press that Erdogan had a similar incident two years ago outside the Clinton Global Initiative in Midtown, when his entourage was stopped by security. He has not since returned to CGI, the sources say, noting that Bill Clinton was around when Ban met with Erdogan to apologize.
Ban has often said he is committed to defending UN personnel. This did not take place after UN Security's Louis Maxwell was killed by Afghan National forces in Kabul -- in fact, the UN covered up the murder, then begrudgingly said Maxwell was a hero. Inner City Press asked UN Security chief Greg Starr, who replied, “The problem is, in many cases you're asking the Afghans to really follow up on one person. How many thousands of Afghans have died? So you've got to be sensitive culturally.”
But beyond "cultural sensitivity," Ban's decision in this case to apologize seems to many in UN Security, and beyond, as eminently political, and now lacking any transparency. "If he won't even defend his own people," one UN Security officer asked, "how can he pretend to defend civilians?" How indeed. Watch this site.
