By
Matthew
Russell Lee
UNITED
NATIONS,
May 13 --
While the UN
continues to
deny that it
introduced
cholera to
Haiti, or
claims that
"it doesn't
matter" who
introduced it,
today's New
York Times in
an unsigned
editorial
states
flatly that
"the UN bears
heavy
responsibility
for the
outbreak:
its own
peacekeepers
introduced the
disease
through sewage
leaks at
one of their
encampments."
We'll
see if the
UN continues
to reflexively
send denial
letters to the
editor (below,
there's the UN
system's
response to a
finding of its
corruption in
Afghanistan,
defending its
10-seater sofa
set and $800
shredder).
But the Times
editorial on
Haiti goes on
to recite that
the "CDC
estimates that
adequate water
and sanitation
systems will
cost $800
million."
The
editorial
doesn't
directly say,
but Inner City
Press has
reported, that
this is
the annual
budget the UN
spends on
soldiers in
Haiti, which
has not
seen a war for
years.
Inner
City
Press:
yesterday,
there was a
press
conference
across the
street
by Haitian
activists,
including
human rights
activists and
those who
filed the
claim for
compensation
with MINUSTAH
and the
Secretary-General.
And, among
other things,
they said that
they have
heard nothing
back from this
UN, at any
level, since
December....
Since it has
been four
months and
there have
been new
developments,
is there a
time line?
What’s the
UN’s thinking
about this
issue,
because they
are saying
that it is
hurting the
credibility of
the UN
with Haitians
and others?
Spokesperson
Martin
Nesirky: Two
things,
Matthew. One
is that, as we
have
repeatedly
said, a claim
has been
received and
it is being
studied. There
is nothing
unusual in the
time frame for
studying a
claim of
this nature.
The second
point is that
the focus is
on what we can
do
to help the
Haitian people
now, and, of
course, in the
run-up to the
rainy season,
which is to
come. So, I
think that the
focus is
rightly on the
need to help
people now and
to ensure that
sanitation
measures are
put in place
before the
rainy season
and during the
rainy season.
On the first
part of the
question, the
answer remains
the same.
Inner
City
Press: Mario
Joseph, a very
widely
respected
Haitian human
rights lawyer,
makes this
comparison of
the $800
million a year
they
say is spent
on MINUSTAH
peacekeeping,
they say if
this money was
actually
devoted to
water
purification,
it would
change
Haitians’
lives. Is that
the real
number? Is
there some way
to get a
comparison
of what the UN
spends in
Haiti on just
what you are
saying,
sanitation,
water and
forward-looking
preventative
measures as
opposed to
this
peacekeeping
force?
Spokesperson
Nesirky:
I think that
we’ll be in a
position to
provide you
and
others with an
overview of
precisely the
kind of
measures that
are
being taken,
and have been
taken since
the outbreak
began. And
obviously that
is our focus.
Progress has
been made in
reducing the
number of
cases, but
there is a
long way to go
and that is
precisely
why the focus
needs to be
there. Let’s
see if we can
come up with
something that
gives you a
good snapshot
of where we
are. Other
questions,
please?
And
more than a
month later,
still no
response to
the formal
claim on
cholera.
On
May
11, Inner
City Press asked
about
corruption in
Afghanistan:
Question:
On
Afghanistan?
There is a
report that
the Monitoring
and
Evaluation
Committee, the
Afghan
Government,
and the
international
donors have
said that the
UN system's
role in
funding the
Afghan
national
police may
involve false
receipts, what
is the UN
system’s
response? Does
it believe
that there are
problems with
the program
or that
everything is
running well?
Spokesperson:
Seen the
story; speak
to UNDP
[United
Nations
Development
Programme].
Thanks very
much.
And
here's from
the
response UNDP
put out, and
the UN sent to
Inner City
Press:
UNDP
has
a zero
tolerance
policy towards
any form of
mismanagement
or
corruption for
its entire
country
program in
Afghanistan.
Your
article refers
to the Law and
Order Trust
Fund for
Afghanistan
(LOTFA), which
is part of our
program and
helps increase
security by
training the
Afghan
National
Police—including
through
payment of
salaries. It
is audited
every year by
a globally
respected and
independent
third party
auditing firm.
A
financial
audit recently
conducted by
KPMG of the
2011 project’s
expenditure
concluded that
there were no
financial
irregularities.
In
addition, a
comprehensive
evaluation of
the previous
LOTFA phase,
also conducted
by an external
evaluation
firm, found no
cause for
concern.
UNDP
notes
with concern a
statement in
your report,
which
describes a
"pattern of
bad behavior"
at LOTFA –
comments you
have
attributed to
an
anti-corruption
body set up by
the Afghan
government,
the Monitoring
and Evaluation
Committee.
However, their
report was
released the
day before
your article
was published
and
makes no
reference to
“bad
behavior”. It
does recommend
improved
oversight and
monitoring and
UNDP is
committed to
diligently
following up
on this.
Moreover,
we
would like to
set the record
straight on
the following
additional
allegations in
your piece:
1/
For
example, a
10-seater sofa
set and four
tables costing
$6,000 --
which the
article refers
to as “luxury
furniture”
that might not
even have been
purchased –
were procured
with full
procedural
checks and are
still being
used by the
head of the
Afghan Border
Police.
2/
The
purchase order
of a paper
shredder,
mentioned in
your report,
matched its
$800 price.
The purchase
was in line
with our
procurement
policy and was
only approved
after the
project
justified its
need for
a more robust
product...
Yours
truly,
Satinder
Bindra,
Director of
Communications
- UNDP
So
why the long
--
if factually
challenged --
response to
the WSJ about
Afghanistan,
including
10-seater sofa
set and
"robust" $800
shredder?
Especially
when compared
with the still
total silence
from the UN on
the Haiti
cholera claim
and belated
NYT story and
editorial?
A
range of
possibilities,
call them
multiple
choice:
a)
The
UN cares more
about, or is
more afraid of
exposure of
its
misdeeds in,
Afghanistan
than Haiti
because the US
and other
powers
cares about
Afghanistan.
(The NYT on
Haiti
references a
Congressional
move to direct
Susan Rice to
act, but the
UN's
responsibility
for
cholera
introduction
has yet to be
acted on.)
b)
The
UN is more
worried about
the WSJ than
the NYT, which
it views as
a liberal
paper tiger.
c)
UNDP
is more media
savvy than Ban
Ki-moon's
Secretariat.
Watch
this site.
