By Matthew Russell Lee
UNITED NATIONS, January 29 -- What does the UN Regional Center for Preventive Diplomacy for Central Asia do?
For example, what has it done on the border fight between Kyrgyzstan and Uzbekistan, complete with blockades of Barak and Sokh, helicopters, threats?
UNRCCA was set up by the former chief of the UN Department of Political Affairs, Lynn Pascoe, mostly because Turkmenistan was willing to invite the UN in.
Once every six months Miroslav Jenca, Special Representative of the United Nations Secretary-General, comes and briefs the Security Council, and a press statement is issued.
But the briefing are always closed. And Jenca does not do stakeouts to take press questions.
On Tuesday after the Security Council's president for January Masood Khan came out and read the most recent Council press statement, Inner City Press asked him about the border fight between Kyrgyzstan and Uzbekistan.
Khan said things hadn't come up in that level of detail. Then what is UNRCCA working on? What accountability ever was there for the pogrom against ethnic Uzkeks in Kyrgyzstan? You never find out from Jenca. What is the point of the Office?
In an era when Secretary General Ban Ki-moon has ordered another $100 million in cuts, calling those who oppose him "selfish" and triggering a "No Confidence" Staff Union vote Inner City Press has put online here - what is the VALUE of the UNRCCA? Watch this site.
