By Matthew Russell Lee
UNITED NATIONS, October 14 -- While the UN's Ebola mission in Ghana builds up quickly, UN Peacekeeping's Herve Ladsous on October 14 said his DPKO officials "are working closely with Liberia's security agencies to plan future security operations conducted in the context of the state of emergency."
What does that mean -- UN Peacekeeping participation in curfews? Cordon and quarantine? Martial law if it comes to that?
Ladsous should answer - but he has refused Press questions (video compilation here), blocked the Press' camera (Vine here) and more recently his Office demanded that an on the record interview about DPKO bringing cholera to Haiti not be aired.
But the questions should be answered, as should the impact on this mission in Mali of its chief, Bert Koenders, so quickly leaving to become Dutch foreign minister. Inner City Press wrote about this early on October 14; at the day's noon briefing UN deputy spokesperson Farhan Haq wouldn't even confirm that Koenders is leaving. This is the Ladsousification of the UN.
Back on September 24 for the UNMEER Ebola response mission, UN official Tony Banbury said “we're moving 470 four by four vehicles” into the impacted zone of Liberia, Sierra Leone and Guinea.
Inner City Press asked Banbury if these vehicles are all coming from existing UN Peacekeeping missions. Banbury replied, “some peacekeeping missions are downsizing [so] all of them are coming from peacekeeping missions.”
As Inner City Press exclusively reported a week ago, as the final point in an otherwise positive profile of this UN mission's lightening speed, the UN is seeking to withdraw vehicles from its mission in Darfur, where it is also accused by whistleblowers of covering up continued killing of civilians.
The UN seems to have no problem pulling its vehicles and forces out of Darfur - the only problem is getting the government in Khartoum to agree to big Western transport planes to fly into Darfur to move the vehicles.
Banbury continued that “some are very close to the end of their serviceable life for the UN. The requirement in some cases is for burial parties, to transport corpses.”
Banbury said the UN is told by doctors that “after use for that purpose for a length of time, it should be burned.”
Footnote: Here is a copy of the recruitment message for UNMEER sent out within the UN, obtained by Inner City Press:
UNDSS Urgent Request for UN wide staff surge for UNMEER - First Wave to deploy by Monday 29 September 2014
DISTRIBUTION
To: UNSMS (Travel Advisory Distribution List)
UNDSS International Field Staff
UNDSS Local Field Staff
UNDSS-NY
DHSSS Chiefs
All Security Focal Points & Alternate Security Focal Points
UN Departments, Agencies, Funds and Programmes
Dear Colleagues,
Please find attached an urgent request for staff interested in forming part of the Surge Team for the United Nations Mission for Ebola Emergency Response (UNMEER) for your information and action as necessary.
The magnitude of this crisis and the unprecedented nature of this situation demands effective action on the ground quickly. The obstacles ahead, to contain the outbreak, prevent further spread of the virus and help affected communities and nations to recover, are formidable. It is for these reasons that the Secretary-General activated the UN system wide crisis framework and took unprecedented steps to ensure that the UN responds as one at this time of great need.
Please note the deadline for applications is 24 September 2014
Best regards,
24/7 Communications Centre
UN Department of Safety and Security
UN Operations and Crisis Centre
United Nations Secretariat
DISTRIBUTION
To: UNSMS (Travel Advisory Distribution List)
UNDSS International Field Staff
UNDSS Local Field Staff
UNDSS-NY
DHSSS Chiefs
All Security Focal Points & Alternate Security Focal Points
UN Departments, Agencies, Funds and Programmes
Dear Colleagues,
Please find attached an urgent request for staff interested in forming part of the Surge Team for the United Nations Mission for Ebola Emergency Response (UNMEER) for your information and action as necessary.
The magnitude of this crisis and the unprecedented nature of this situation demands effective action on the ground quickly. The obstacles ahead, to contain the outbreak, prevent further spread of the virus and help affected communities and nations to recover, are formidable. It is for these reasons that the Secretary-General activated the UN system wide crisis framework and took unprecedented steps to ensure that the UN responds as one at this time of great need.
Please note the deadline for applications is 24 September 2014
Best regards,
24/7 Communications Centre
UN Department of Safety and Security
UN Operations and Crisis Centre
United Nations Secretariat
So the UN is bringing peacekeeping vehicles from Darfur, to transport corpses in and them burn them. Watch this site.
