By Matthew Russell Lee
UNITED NATIONS, June 15 -- Today's crackdown in Turkey on peaceful protesters in Taksim Square and Gezi Park by the government of Recep Tayyip Erdogan has been met with silence from the UN and its Secretary General Ban Ki-moon.
Ban issued his "warm congratulations" to Hasan Rowhani for winning the presidential election in Iran, at 5 pm Saturday New York time. But nothing on Turkey.
Back on Friday September 23, 2011, Inner City Press first reported on an incident inside UN headquarters where Erdogan's personal guards "beat up" UN Security officers, breaking the ribs of one.
Tellingly, when Ban's then chief of staff Vijay Nambiar run across First Avenue to the Turkish Mission -- again, first reported by Inner City Press -- it was to apologize to Erdogan.
Many UN staff were outraged, that they could be physically beaten and Ban would take the other side. But Erdogan was throwing his weight around; some cited anger at the Palmer (and Uribe) report about the Gaza flotilla incident.
Ban met with UN Security the next day, Saturday, September 24. Nine were suspended and told not to talk. Inner City Press first reported that too; others got on the story only on Monday and later. It was the beginning of a trend.
But the real-world trend is the use of force, and UN silence and double standards. And it continues. Watch this site.
