By Matthew Russell Lee
UNITED NATIONS, September 9 – Clown fish swam in 3-D in the UN's Trusteeship Council Chamber on Saturday night, while clowns in UN Security harassed the Press which had every right to cover the premiere screening of “Wonders of the Sea 3D” with Jean-Michel Cousteau, narrated by Arnold Schwarzenegger. The screening was listed in the UN's Media Alert, but when Inner City Press showed up at the UN's tourist entrance to cover it, it got stopped.
A UN Security officer who had participated in the retaliatory eviction of the Press (audio here, he's the one explaining the seizure of a broadcasting smart phone by saying, “it's too much”) stepped in front of Inner City Press and said, No Green P's allowed. Green P means “non resident correspondent,” the status the UN reduced Inner City Press to as it covered the UN bribery scandal of Ng Lap Seng, since convict on six counts including under the US Foreign Corrupt Practices Act. The UN claims there is no difference in access, even as it prepared to limited UN General Assembly week passes to “resident correspondents,” including no-show state media like Akhbar al Yom, in a side deal with the UN Correspondents Association now known as the UN Censorship Alliance. Pushing back, Inner City Press arrived late, missing any photo op but producing thisPeriscope livestream. The filming was in Fiji, the home country of the outgoing President of the General Assembly to whom Inner City Press on September 8 directed questions not only about corruption - he said there are crows picking around the edge of the UN, which is true - but also about the oceans. The cinematography of WOTS3D is amazing, with nighttime filming and close up of undersea creatures courting or fighting. We recommend it - but not the UN's censorship for corruption - highly. There was to be a reception after the film, to which Inner City Press was invited but which due to this Press targeting by the UN Department of Public Information, was not covered by Inner City Press. This has been raised to new / incoming DPI chief Alison Smale, so far without response. Here is Inner City Press' (and the Free UN Coalition for Access') curtain raiser from the upcoming UN General Assembly High Level Week. Watch this site.
