By Matthew Russell Lee
UNITED NATIONS, April 13 -- When UN Peacekeepers are determined, by the UN itself, to have shot at civilians by using inappropriate force, what accountability is there? None, with Herve Ladsous atop UN Peacekeeping. Not only is the supposed reporting in the incidents inconsistent, misrepresented and withheld - Ladsous' mission don't even report when "their" peacekeepers die.
On April 13, after media in Bangladesh reported that one of its peacekeepers with the UN Mission in Central African Republic, Lance Corporal Md Nazrul Islam, had died, Inner City Press asked UN Spokesman Stephane Dujarric for details.
But Dujarric said he had no information -- including that a death of a peacekeeper had occurred -- from the UN Peacekeeping mission. This has happened before, including with Moroccan and Egyptian peacekeepers who died in Cote d'Ivoire, as reported here on February 4by Inner City Press. What is wrong with UN Peacekeeping under Ladsous?
Only recently, Ladsous' peacekeepers have fired at unarmed demonstrators in Haiti and in Mali, killing three civilians. Now in Central African Republic his "peacekeepers" used live fire in Kaga-Bandoro; one protester died.
Ladsous' MINUSCA mission has three times refused to send its statements to Inner City Press, as has Ladsous' mission in Haiti MINUSTAH, unlike for example the (DPA-run) missions in Libya, Iraq and Afghanistan. Ladsous refuses to answer Press questions about shootings of civilians; his mission(s) won't sent out statements.
But at the April 10 UN noon briefing, Inner City Press asked UN Spokesman Stephane Dujarric if the peacekeeper's gun fire "into the air" was responsible for the protester's death. Dujarric said there will be a report; Inner City Press asked it will be publicly released, unlike in Haiti.
Dujarric said its findings will be summarized. But this wasn't done in the case of the Haiti shooting. Given the Ladsous French connection in all this, will this report be released, or even summarized? Watch this site.
(Dujarric also said he didn't know what the protest against the UN in CAR was about - really? - just as the portion of teh Mali report presumably about Ladsous' missions deal with the MNLA was not part of the summary.)
From the UN's April 6 noon briefing transcript, video here and embedded below:
Inner City Press: While you were away or last week, the summary was released of the incidents in Gao. And I wanted to know, since Mr. Ladsous did not answer this question, does the report contain a review of the deal that was struck between the UN mission and the MNLA in Tabancourt that gave rise to the protest in which three civilians were killed? And I also wanted to bring to your attention that during the stakeout by Mr. Ladsous on Thursday, the microphone was grabbed by Mr. Ladsous' spokesman to avoid just this question. Since you previously said it wouldn't happen, I wanted to know what you think of it.
Spokesman Stephane Dujarric: I think on the issue of the summary, what was released is released. I have nothing to add to the summary. My understanding is that Mr. Ladsous' spokesman pointed to another journalist to answer the question, and that's the way it happened.
Inner City Press: He grabbed the microphone.
Spokesman Dujarric: Go ahead.
Spokesman Stephane Dujarric: I think on the issue of the summary, what was released is released. I have nothing to add to the summary. My understanding is that Mr. Ladsous' spokesman pointed to another journalist to answer the question, and that's the way it happened.
Inner City Press: He grabbed the microphone.
Spokesman Dujarric: Go ahead.
Inner City Press: I just wanted to make you aware of that. But I'm saying is that the summary of the report was released, but it seems like the underlying incident that gave rise to the protest wasn't answered about in any way. What does the UN understand…?
Spokesman: The report looked at, at the incident, which is a very violent confrontation. And I think we've made our recommendations clear, and I think the investigation was done rather swiftly.
Inner City Press: And is the Haiti report about shooting at civilians going to be similarly summarized? And if not, why not?
Spokesman: The Haiti report is currently… has now been finalized. [The Department of Peacekeeping Operations] and [the Department of Field Support] have been in contact with the relevant police-contributing country concerned, which has decided to repatriate the unit commander. In addition, three officers have been placed on modified, nonoperational duty pending the final result of the inquiry. So I will… I hope to have more on that for you.
Spokesman: The report looked at, at the incident, which is a very violent confrontation. And I think we've made our recommendations clear, and I think the investigation was done rather swiftly.
Inner City Press: And is the Haiti report about shooting at civilians going to be similarly summarized? And if not, why not?
Spokesman: The Haiti report is currently… has now been finalized. [The Department of Peacekeeping Operations] and [the Department of Field Support] have been in contact with the relevant police-contributing country concerned, which has decided to repatriate the unit commander. In addition, three officers have been placed on modified, nonoperational duty pending the final result of the inquiry. So I will… I hope to have more on that for you.
But Dujarric only referred to repatriation, not to any disclosure, as in Mali, of "excessive or unauthorized force" under Ladsous. Why not?
On Mali, after Ladsous' MINUSMA like France, for which Ladsous was a diplomat including during the 1994 Rwanda genocide, urging the escape of Hutu genocidaires into Eastern Congo, reached side deals with the MNLA rebels about Tabankort, there was a protest in Gao.
UN Police ultimately under Ladsous' command shot and killed three civilians. In this case, because the Malian government wanted an investigation of the killing of protesters which supported its positition, the UN did an investigation and at least released a summary. (Ladsous refused to answer Inner City Press' questions including about the roots of the protest, his mission's deal with the MNLA in Tabankort.)
But in Haiti, where Ladsous' peacekeeping mission was filmed shooting at protesters who oppose Michel Martelly, the report has not even been summarized. MINUSTAH chief Sandra Honore told Inner City Press the report is finished and "with DPKO" - that is Ladsous. But no summary is being released. Ladsous refused Inner City Press' question about this, and scribes ignored that these are two incidents of shooting unarmed civilians, in two countries, under Ladsous. Who is responsible?
Vine here. These questions took place at the UN Security Council stakeout, but Reuters and Agence France Presse did not mention it, only blaming Rwanda. Both previously tried to censor Inner City Press coverage of Ladsous and French colonialism, to the extent of moving to ask the UN to throw Inner City Press out.
Which approach is journalism?
AFP wasn't even AT this stakeout - Ladous sought to avoid questions by repeating his talking points in French, but no AFP. Then Reuters told UNTV to give it the microphone, to ask about Rwanda. Ladsous leered. Then a retired Reuters reporter was pointed at by Ladsous' spokesman Nick Birnback, who then grabbed the UNTV microphone to take it away from Inner City Press.
