At UNSC, Argentina's Month Has 7 Stakeouts, Vulture Funds, Mothers of the Disappeared, Dialogue

By Matthew Russell Lee

UNITED NATIONS, October 28 -- Argentina's month atop the UN Security Council has three more days to run, with meetings on East Jerusalem and the International Court of Justice, but their mission held their End of Presidency reception on October 28 so we review it.

   First, press openness, reviewed by the new Free UN Coalition for Access. Maria Cristina Perceval held seven stakeouts during the month, on top of the Program of Work press conference reviewed below. By the numbers, it was neither the best nor the worst recent presidency.

  Argentina leaves a mark on the Council's "Working Methods," advocating for more participation by the elected ten members, questioning the veto.

  But what Argentina in particular brought to the table was a human feel, not only talking about the Mothers of the Disappeared and where appropriate the issue of sovereign debt and vulture funds, but also saying to Palestine and Israel, and Ukraine and Russia, we will let you speak, we want dialogue.

   These all came together at 6:30 pm on October 28, when with rights of reply between Russia and Ukraine still ongoing in the Council, Perceval bid adieu to go host her reception. 

  Up in the Delegates' Dining Room, after a video and a talk by a “recovering grand-daughter” of the disappeared and amid the tango, Inner City Press was approached by the workers, saying the Aramark has lost the DDR contract, replaced the workers said by “Culinary” (Arts?). Will they keep on the workers, as the UN's cleaning contractor did, no thanks to the UN but rather to the union? This seems the kind of question Argentina cares about, to their credit.

   Venezuela is coming into the Council in Argentina's place, as Angola will replace Rwanda and New Zealand, Australia. Quiet South Korea will be gone, with Malaysia coming in; Spain will take over for Luxembourg, one of the champions of the stakeout. Speaking of the stakeout, the Internet has been dead there for two days, as the UN seems to want Council coverage to die. But not only Inner City Press but also the Free UN Coalition for Access will oppose it, unlike the UN's Censorship Alliance.

 Back on October 2 when Argentina took over the UN Security Council's Presidency, the closed-door consultations on the program of work went longer than usual. Inner City Press learned from sources in the meeting that the hang-up was Ebola, specifically whether the issue and new UNMEER mission are on the agenda of the Council for a briefing.

  When Argentine Permanent Representative Maria Cristina Percevalcame to take questions on the month's Council schedule, Inner City Press first asked her on behalf of the Free UN Coalition for Access to hold many Q&A stakeouts, then asked about Syria as well as the Ebola debate. Video here and embedded below.

  On Syria, Inner City Press asked if she anticipates there being a vote in the Security Council about the airstrikes in Syria by the US and (so far) five Arab countries. She replied that the program of work has Syria meetings on chemical weapons and on humanitarian access but the airstrikes are not included. Not yet?

  On Ebola, Perceval confirmed that the debate behind closed doors had been about the issue; she recounted that since there are already UN Peacekeeping (and political) missions in the Ebola hot zone, the Council has some jurisdiction. She said to give her time to find a solution. Guess: Arria formula meeting?

Argentina, given its stand-off with hedge / “vulture” funds, has been raising the issue of sovereign debt in every UN forum possible. Why not in the Security Council? Especially if the Ebola mission gets in there? Watch this site.

Footnote: Before replying to Inner City Press, Perceval said as an aside that “our friend is at the Security Council before many of us, and afterward too” and therefore has precise questions. The reality is that covering the Security Council has been made more difficult, with no fightback and sometimes collusion by the old UN Correspondents Association. 

   More on HuffPost Live, here.

  Those are some of the reasons Inner City Press quit and opposes UNCA, calling it the UN's Censorship Alliance, and co-founded theFree UN Coalition for Access, which pushes for transparency including a Freedom of Information Act covering the UN, and protection of the right to investigative journalism. FUNCA is looking forward to Argentina's month atop the Council.

   

Argentina's UNSC Month, With Snowden and Malvinas But Not Syria, Ends Nicely with Dancing in the Dark

By Matthew Russell Lee

UNITED NATIONS, August 29 -- When Argentina held its end of UN Security Council presidency reception Thursday night, the smell of the Permanent Five members' domination of international affairs was still acrid in the air.

Thursday afternoon at 2:30 pm the P5 held a meeting in their clubhouse next to the Security Council. It continued as regular rank and file members of the UN filed into the Council chamber to hear a "wrap up" debate about Argentina's month.

But Syria the biggest issue, at least according to the media and Western capitals, was debated in a small room with just five countries. Left to the other elected ten, and to the UN's other 178 members, were conflicts in Africa, generic issues like cooperation with regional organizations and the protection of civilians.

Argentina did well with these two. As Inner City Press reported from the first day of their presidency, the regional cooperation debate included Cuba for CELAC, and a healthy dose of Latin outrage at the grounding of Evo Morales' plane and the US spying through the NSA, exposed by whistleblower Edward Snowden. 

  (Bolivia raised it again on August 19, in connection with the UK's nine hour detention under anti-terrorism laws of journalist Glenn Greenwald's partner David Miranda.)

  These important topics are rarely heard in the Security Council, so Argentina deserves credit.

  The UK might say different, angry that the August 6 session focused in on the Malvinas or Falkland Islands. We have to report it: while UK Permanent Representative Mark Lyall Grant was back from vacation at the P5 Syria meeting on Thursday, he left right after and was not seen, at least by this reporter, at Argentina's end of presidency reception.

This was held out of the UN, at Malbec / Tango House on Lafayette south of Astor Place. A bit of full disclosure, or making-of: CitiBike is a welcome program, but at six pm on First Avenue in front of the UN there are no bikes. Nor on 43rd Street in front of the Ford Foundation, nor even on 39th and Second. Once found on 32nd, it's a nice ride to Astor Place.

Inside, the wine was Argentine, and the talk turned to, what else, Syria. Inner City Press was told that the P5, so dysfunctional, will meet with Ban Ki-moon on Friday, and that a Council session on Monday, Labor Day, is possible.

  The read-out from the closed door P5 meeting included not only what Inner City Press already reported (Russia pushing Geneva Two and UK its resolution) but also request for more inspections inside Syria, not only Ghouta. Good luck.

Pursuing other issues, Inner City Press learned that the slide of UN Peacekeeping under Herve Ladsous into the position of combatant began even before the killing this week of a Tanzanian soldier in the UN Intervention Brigade. There is a lot of concern, but few will say it. We will.

On stage, five couples and four musicians conjured Buenos Aires, with split skirts and accordian and bow on stand-up bass. Inner City Press joked it should have been done in the Security Council, with dapper Oscar Fernandez Taranco, himself Argentinian or Italian as convenient, briefing amid a dance.

There were DPRs, PRs like Togo and Australia, next month's president. Argentina's Permanent Representative Perceval and her team, civil and classy all month, continued to the end. Anyone who missed the dancing in the dark missed out. But the Security Council is so often dancing in the dark. Watch this site.