By
Matthew
Russell Lee
IMF,
April
19 -- When
Christine
Lagarde of the
International
Monetary Fund
took press
questions on
Thursday
morning, at
least two were
about her
fashion and
health, then
two on Egypt.
On the second,
Lagarde
declined to
get into the
details of the
negotiations
with Egypt's
military
government,
but said that
second
guessing by
unnamed other
stakeholders
-- can you say
"Tahrir
Square" and
"Arab
Spring"? --
made things
more
difficult.
Ms. Lagarde
said, "If we
hear solid
partners on
the ground
say, aah, I am
not too sure
about this
program, not
too sure about
the IMF, not
too sure about
borrowing, it
is a bit of an
issue."
Lagarde
made a
point of
mentioning in
her opening
statement an
IMF poverty
reduction
trust. But no
question was
taken, for
example, on
the two
Sudans,
even after
Lagarde had
the day
previous
welcomed South
Sudan as the
188th member
of the Fund.
One
wanted and
still wants to
ask: what is
the IMF's view
of the oil
transfer fee
dispute
between the
two Sudans, in
which IMF
studies are
often cited?
What is the
"help with the
IMF" that
South Sudan's
UN
Ambassador
Agnes Oswaha
told Inner
City Press her
country
offered to
Khartoum
before the
re-outbreak of
war?
Microphones
were
squawking and
cell phones
going off; the
auditorium was
standing room
only and the
first two
questions
selected by
spokesman
Gerry Rice
were from
Japan and
China's
Xinhua,
respectively
on
contributions
and
fashion,
specifically a
feathered
Chinese jacket
at the
cleaners.
The
usual biweekly
academic crew
was either not
in the house,
or not called
on. "There
will be
further
opportunities
for
interaction,"
Gerry Rice
promised.
We'll see --
watch this
site.
