FOIA Shows US Push on Libya & Eritrea Sanctions, Hillary Clinton Didn't Want to Call Lavrov

By Matthew Russell Lee

UNITED NATIONS, February 13 -- Among the Hillary Clinton emails released late on January 29 by the US State Department was one which described in some detail a UN Security Council closed door meeting, about imposing new sanctions on Eritirea in late 2011, here.

  Inner City Press reported on that meeting, and asked then-Ambassador Susan Rice about it as she emerged, here. Rice praised Gabon (pushing for sanctions against, for example, South Africa) and now the released email shows why:

"Gabon made clear that they were unwilling to accept any substantive amendments to the text 'in blue,' although they might accommodate cosmetic changes to show good faith."

 As to the request by Eritrea's president to address the Security Council before the vote on new sanctions, the email says

"Amb. Rice reiterated our view that such a meeting would be redundant and counterproductive, but added that in light of the overwhelming support of Council members for such a meeting, the United States could not block such a decision (a procedural matter to which the veto does not apply) and would fulfill its host country obligations to grant Isaias entry."

  The visit never happened. Here's Inner City Press' story at the time.

  Also in the February 13 released emails is one in which, on Libya, hereJake Sullivan tells Hillary Clinton that he and Bill [presumably Burns] “are working a plan this am to push the Africans in the right direction."

There one on Yemen involving Jeffery Feltman, then for the US; he now manages the UN's Yemen enovy, who has (at least) six no show jobs, Inner City Press exclusive story here.

There's one on Sri Lanka, nearly entirely redacted and one on Abyeifeaturing South Sudan's Paul Mayom and that the UN's Haile (Menkerios) talked privately with the US' Marti Flacks, here.

There's one in which Hillary Clinton wrote, "I do not want to call Lavrov to discuss the Berengia [sic] park since I would have to raise other matters. How about a letter?" This was released on the day of a [GOP] Presidential nomination debate and the day on which, as it happened, Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia was found dead.

Back on January 29 among the Hillary Clinton emails released by the US State Department was a single one mentioning Burundi, which mentioned the FDLR (Hutu) militia being present in the country.

 Inner City Press, which has covered each of the State Department's FOIA releases and covers Burundi, tweeted a link to the email.  The adviser to Burundi's Pierre Nkurunziza replied that it was misleading -- not rare when confined to 140 characters -- and Inner City Press replied with a question.

  But it's worth noting that while the US couldn't even spell FDLR right, the current head of UN Peacekeeping Herve Ladsous wrote in 1994 as French Deputy Permanent Representative to the UN what he was trying to convince other Council members to embraces the escape of Hutu (genocidaires) into Eastern Congo, memo here.

  There they became the FDLR, which Ladsous then in his current job refused to fight. This is the same Ladsous who wrote his DPKO couldn't or wouldn't stop a genocide in Burundi, and refuses to answer Press questions about the rapes taking place under his watch.

  UN Spokesman Stephane Dujarric actively blocks Inner City Pressfrom even putting a question to Ladsous - and now Ban - and on January 29, ostensibly at the behest of the leadership of the UN Correspondents Association, ordered Inner City Press to leave the UN Press Briefing Room, Vine here, and physically reached to turn off Inner City Press' camera. Vine here. To this low has the UN sunk. Watch this site.

Like Burundi, Sri Lanka represents one of the lowest points of the last decade at the UN, from inaction in 2008 and 2009 to cover-ups since.  And while the US is now full of praise, a just released Hillary Clinton email, showing US knowledge that those who spoke to its Ambassador Rapp in 2012 were abused, raises new questions.

 The email, which Inner City Press found among the supplemental disclosure just put out by the US State Department, forwards from Cheryl Mills to the Secretary of State Clinton on February 10, 2012, a memo entitled, "Military Intelligence arrest & threatens people who spoke to Amb. Rapp."

  The memo says:

"The people are from the Selvapuram village in Mullaitivu. Ambassador Rapp visited that village yesterday. The villagers informed Amb. Rapp that during the final phase of the war (in 2009) they handed over their loved
ones to the Military. But since then they had not heard anything about their relatives whereabouts.

Now the military is forcing them to register their loved ones as dead. When the information about the meeting became public; the Sri Lankan military intelligence rounded up that area and is conducting investigations as to who gave evidence to Ambassador Rapp.

At least 5 people were taken to the military intelligence camp for more in depth investigations. They were also issued with death threats. The priest of the St. Jude's Church where the Ambassadors meeting took place was also detained at the military camp."

 And what did the US do? What has the UN done? We'll have more on this.

On January 4, 2016, Inner City Press which covered UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon's visit to Sri Lanka in May 2009, asked Ban's spokesman basic questions about Sri Lanka, which the UN has declined to answer for three days. From the transcript, video here:

Inner City Press: I wanted to ask you something on Sri Lanka, which is that, in the last couple of days, the President [Maithripala] Sirisena has said that there's no requirement of a special court for events in later stages of the conflict and also has announced some parcels of land to people in the north, but there seems to be a demand by the Tamil National Alliance that the military disoccupy land, that… private land that it continues to be in.  What's the UN's response to that?  What's the UN's, I guess, involvement, including through the peacebuilding commissioner and any other way…

Spokesman Stephane Dujarric:  I'll have to check… [cross talk] I don't have an update.  I'll check.

  Three day later, nothing. On January 7, Inner City Press asked about reports of torture in Sri Lanka in the last year, under President Sirisena.Video here, transcript here:

Inner City Press: there were two reports issued yesterday about torture in Sri Lanka, not in the past but in the last year as well while Mr. [Maithripala] Sirisena has been in the Government, a UK-based groupand a South Africa-based group, very detailed reports including, like, locations that they found.  What is… I mean… I guess…

Spokesman:  I will… I will check.

  While not answering any of those questions, on the evening of January 7 Ban Ki-moon issued a statement of pure praise of Sirisena, here. Has Ban's UN turned the corner on Sri Lanka or not?

Even as Ban and his spokespeople declined to answer basic follow up questions about Sri Lanka, about who in his Executive Office was informed of peacekeepers raping children in the Central African Republic, and about Burundi, his UN Correspondents Association now known as the UN Corruption Association, having charged $6000 for seats next to Ban, continues to promote him - without questions, literally.

  UNCA head Giampaolo Pioli, who tried to get the investigative Press thrown out of the UN for accurately reporting that Pioli had accepted rent money from Palitha Kohona, Sri Lanka's ambassador, then gave a "UN screening" on a war crimes denial film in the Dag Hammarskjold Auditorium, has issued this, only to those who pay UNCA money, leaked by a disgusted UNCA member:

"Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon would like to meet with UNCA members and all UN correspondents for the New Year's visit this Wednesday, Jan 6th, 2016 from 10:35 to 10:50 am in the UNCA room. It will be an opportunity for him to say a few words to all of our colleagues and to exchange his best wishes. There will not be a Q&A session but as in every year it is a great occasion to be together. Please attend."

 Well, no. Providing a rah-rah session with no Q&A is pathetic. And, "all correspondents" will not enter the UN Corruption Association, which charges money for access to Ban. But there are questions, including on Sri Lanka. For now, the January 6 "event" was canceled, so Ban could speak to / at the press from the UN Security Council stakeout, without taking questions.

The former President of the General Assembly John Ashe and four others have been indicted, Ashe for buying documents from Ban's UN Secretariat.

Ban's envoy to Libya Bernardino Leon was exposed by leaks as having taken instructions and then a job from the United Arab Emirates.

And Ban's head of UN Peacekeeping, Herve Ladsous, is listed in UN Dispute Tribunal documents as having tried to cover up child rapes in Central African Republic by peacekeepers from his native France.

  Inner City Press, which Ban's spokesman Stephane Dujarric did not call on despite calling two separate times on the same UN Correspondents Association scribe, asked audibly, “Do you have any update on the John Ashe indictment? Bernardino Leon? These were major developments this year.” Vine here.

  But Ban refused to answer the question. He walked out of the briefing room, shaking hands scribes. The press conference began with Dujarric setting aside the first question for the head of UNCA, who thanked Ban for attending an event on Wall Street for which UNCA charged $6,000 to sit with Ban. This is the UN Corruption Association.

  A question on or to cover up the sexual abuse scandal was arranged, with Agence France Presse congratulating Ban for this response to the sexual abuse scandal. (Senegalese Babacar Gaye was urged to resign, Ladsous who on camera linked the rapes to “R&R," video here, remains in place.)

Ban read out a wan answer on Burundi; his deputy spokeperson refused an Inner City Press question on Burundi at the previous day's noon briefing.  We'll have more on this.

Ban once promised monthly press conference but his last one was three months before, then nine months before that. On September 16 with the UN being less than successful in mediating in Yemen and Libya, Syria and South Sudan, accused of rapes in Central African Republic and killing 8,000 in Haiti with cholera (after 40,000 died in Sri Lanka with little response from the UN), Secretary General Ban Ki-moon was asked, What is your legacy?

  That question, nor none of the other 11 Ban's spokesman Stephane Dujarric selected, did not refer to the rape scandal, much less deadly cholera or the Sri Lanka report released earlier in the day in Geneva, after months of delay and supposed concern by Ban.

  Inner City Press asked, before the press conference ended and then again before Ban left the room, “Anything on Sri Lanka?” But there was nothing. Ban's spokesman Dujarric didn't even allow Inner City Press to put a question to UN Peacekeeping chief Herve Ladsous, who covered up rapes in DR Congo, Darfur and now CAR.

  Most recently, Ladsous linked rapes to a lack of “R&R,” rest and relaxation, video here.

Dujarric himself cut off Inner City Press questions on what Ladsous said, and declined to answer on Reddit in an “Ask Me Anything.” (He didn't say he's ANSWER everything, one wag pointed out.)

  But even beyond the scandals, Ban did not in his opening statement mention Somalia, or CAR, or Darfur; none of the questions selected by Dujarric was about Africa. (One wire points out Africa was part of a UN-at-70 question; noted.)

    Inner City Press also tried to ask about Burundi -- nothing - and South Sudan, on which we are preparing a story.

  It was Voice of America with the “What is your legacy” question. Ban said he'd answer next year. Inner City Press might answer sooner. Watch this site.