By Matthew Russell Lee
UNITED NATIONS, August 23 -- The UN seems to have hit a new low in the Democratic Republic of Congo, assisting the government to recruit dubious Mai Mai militias to join forces to fight the M23 mutineers.
Inner City Press asked Ban Ki-moon's spokesman Martin Nesirky about it on Thursday, but all he said was "ask DPKO," the Department of Peacekeeping Operations.
But DPKO chief Herve Ladsous has said openly, twice on camera, that he will not answer any Inner City Press questions. Video here, at Minute 28:10.
So does this mean no answer to Press questions about DPKO, the UN's main presence in the world?
There are other DPKO questions: can the Darfur mission, so often slow on the draw, confirm or deny the killing of 11 soldiers in Darfur?
What does the UN Mission in South Sudan think of Ted Dagne having to flee Juba after writing about corruption?
What about the reporting killing of civilians in Kismayo, Somalia by the Kenyan Navy, as part of the UN assisted (and funded) AMISON "peacekeeping" mission?
In the past, Inner City Press would ask such questions at the noon briefing, and then later get an e-mailed response from the Office of the Spokesperson. For example, on the reported killing of civilians in Eastern Congo by Ladsous' (and Roger Meece's) MONUSCO mission, this belatedly came in:
Regarding your questions about the threat to civilians in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, we can say the following:
The clear and foremost new danger to civilians in North Kivu has been posed by the armed mutiny of the M23 movement, and its conduct of offensive military operations.
MONUSCO has engaged its troops, as necessary, in defence of communities and population centers targeted by these military operations, and to impede M23 actions threatening them. In doing so, the Mission takes extensive efforts to ensure minimal additional risk to civilians and to avoid harm from MONUSCO actions.
There is no evidence to date, directly or from partners, of civilian casualties resulting from MONUSCO actions in connection with the M23 offensives. The Mission would investigate credible reports in this regard by all means possible. Concerning claims by the M23 movement of civilian casualties as a result of MONUSCO actions, the Mission has followed up and has found many inaccuracies in the dates and places given by the M23 of MONUSCO actions.
At first, after Inner City Press published the name of a reported victim, the UN replied that it couldn't go investigate because it was too dangerous. Now it says it "would investigate credible reports." So was no investigation every done?
Ladsous should be asked. But would he answer?
In other UN-answering news, an open letter to the UN from the genocide survivors' organization Ibuka, complaining about the writings on the FDLR of UN "expert" Steve Hege, has not been responded to. Watch this site.
