By Matthew Russell Lee
UNITED NATIONS, November 21 -- After the UN Security Council adopted a resolution on Somalia Wednesday morning, South Africa took the floor to question Secretary General Ban Ki-moon's report having in essence denied the existence of toxic dumping and illegal fishing.
Just before the speech, it was complained to Inner City Press, "It's only Ban Ki-moon who doesn't see it."
Another diplomat pointed out that South Korean ships are among those accused of illegal fishing off Somalia.
South Africa's speech concluded that the issues must be investigated "how ever inconvenient." Togo spoke next and echoed this call.
In the Security Council was Ban's head of UN Peacekeeping Herve Ladsous, fresh off the failure of the MONUSCO mission to do anything as the M23 mutineers took over Goma and now Sake in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.
In Goma, the UN immediately "found" rape and child soldier recruitment by M23, even as peacekeepers on the ground deny it. Ban's and Ladsous' UN, it seems, sees and reports what's convenient. Watch this site.
Footnote: another Somalia issue on which the African Security Council members were ignored was incorporating and paying for a naval component in the AMISOM mission in Somalia. This is becoming a trend.
