by Matthew Russell Lee, Patreon Book Substack
UN GATE, May 21 – On World Press Freedom Day, the United Nations of Antonio Guterres was more hypocritical than usual, see below. Now over the transom to Inner City Press which Guterres bans, this:
"Dear Matthew Russell Lee, this is to inform you that Ms. Usha Rao-Monari, UNDP Associate Administrator, an Indian woman national, has resigned from UNDP, due to irreconcilable differences with Ms. Achim Steiner, UNDP Administrator, following months of high tension and disagreements between the two, ever since she started in her post. This marks the second recent departure of a woman from the global south under the current UNDP Administrator’s leadership from his Executive Management Group. Ms. Khalida Bouzar, UNDP Director of the Regional Bureau for Arab States (RBAS) resigned from UNDP earlier this year. Bouzar had joined UNDP in 2020 from IFAD.... Mr. Michel Candotti, Steiner's Chief of Staff, said to an UNDP staff who dared suggest collaboration with an UN Resident Coordinator, 'don't go anywhere near the RCs, they will suck everything out of you.'" Well, something sucks.
While UN Global Communications chief Melissa Fleming put out a video of Guterres equating what he (and she) characterize as disinformation as the threat to press freedom, Guterres has banned Inner City Press from entering the UN since 2018, when it exposed the omission of links to bribery firm CEFC China Energy from his financial disclosure.
Law firm Quinn Emanuel, on a pro bono basis, wrote to Fleming and the UN Correspondents Association (with state media of China on its board of directors) seeking a dialogue to reinstate Inner City Press.
There has been no answer, nor to an appeal to Guterres head of security Gilles Michaud.
We will not cease - keep it coming; we will.
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