by Matthew Russell Lee, Patreon Book Substack
UN GATE, May 27 – On World Press Freedom Day, the United Nations of Antonio Guterres is more hypocritical than usual.
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.
Before 2018, then Swedish Deputy Permanent Representative Carl Skau answered Inner City Press' questions, at the UNSC stakeout and in writing. But now Skau has been hired by the UN system - some might say, a conflict of interest after having been on bodies ostensibly overseeing Guterres - and does nothing about the UN's ban on Inner City Press, which he used to answer. We have written to him, as before by Twitter DM. More important, what if anything will he do about censorship about which is he is aware and on notice? Watch this site.
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.
Still, ill-informed media run the Guterres video without commentary. Disinformation, indeed.
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