By Matthew Russell Lee
UNITED NATIONS, July 18 -- More than 24 hours after UN Peacekeeping chief Herve Ladsous refused on camera to take Press questions if his mission in Congo killed civilians, Inner City Press put the question for a second time to Ban Ki-moon's deputy spokesman Eduardo Del Buey.
Del Buey said the UN stands behind what lead spokesman Martin Nesirky said last week. But, Inner City Press pointed out, that was before reports emerged that the UN's 30 mm firing from helicopter gunships killed, among others, civilians Bushye Agathe.
After Del Buey at Wednesday's noon briefing said the UN was standing behind what Nesirky said the previous week, before Inner City Press' question that Ladsous refused to take, then this e-mail came in:
Subject: Your question on MONUSCOFrom: UN Spokesperson - Do Not Reply [at] un.org
Date: Wed, Jul 18, 2012
To: Matthew.Lee [at] innercitypress.com
Last week, MONUSCO engaged two of its attack helicopters in support of FARDC efforts to deter M23 elements near the villages of Ngugo and Nysisi, south of Rutshuru town, in North Kivu. The M23 elements were seen to be moving south toward Goma. MONUSCO had also received reports of human rights violations by the M23 in that area. The Mission attack helicopters used rocket fire and missiles to deter their further advances and protect the population.
MONUSCO is currently assessing the impact of the operation, which took place in a remote and heavily forested, mountainous area.
Date: Wed, Jul 18, 2012
To: Matthew.Lee [at] innercitypress.com
Last week, MONUSCO engaged two of its attack helicopters in support of FARDC efforts to deter M23 elements near the villages of Ngugo and Nysisi, south of Rutshuru town, in North Kivu. The M23 elements were seen to be moving south toward Goma. MONUSCO had also received reports of human rights violations by the M23 in that area. The Mission attack helicopters used rocket fire and missiles to deter their further advances and protect the population.
MONUSCO is currently assessing the impact of the operation, which took place in a remote and heavily forested, mountainous area.
Ladsous should have taken and answered and still should answer this question, since he is in charge of the Department of Peacekeeping Operations. But he refused, on camera, on July 17. Video here, from Minute 6:50.
Ladsous began this strategy of explicitly conditioning answering or even taking question on getting positive -- and we and others posit, as yet unmerited -- coverage on May 29 in a televised press conference, and has continued it off camera since.
(Inner City Press has quoted sources from closed door meetings of the Committee of 34 that Ladsous proposes that the UN uses drones, and several delegations think he already has the French firm Thales in mind.)
But that reporting was from April. Ladsous' approach is at odds with Ban Ki-moon's claims about his administration's approach to the media.
We'll pursue this -- and, we hope, answers to the questions Ladsous refused to answer or even take, on top of the unanswered questions about DPKO introducing cholera into Haiti, and Ban and Ladsous having as a Senior Adviser on Peacekeeping Operations an alleged war criminal, Sri Lankan general Shavendra Silva.
Notably Ladsous did take Press questions earlier in May, and what he fastened on between then and May 29 is mysterious and / or troubling. Watch this site.
