At UN, China Gets DESA, Austria DPI, Stonewall on Feltman, DGACM to Choi?

By Matthew Russell Lee

UNITED NATIONS, May 31 -- The UN's game of musical chairs is nearly over. On Thursday three more posts were given out, although the UN still refuses to confirm Inner City Press' March 28 scoop that US official Jeffrey Feltman will get the top post at the Department of Political Affairs.

  But on Thursday China's Wu Hongbo got the top job in the Department of Social and Economic Affairs, with Pakistan's Shamshad Akhtar as his Assistant Secretary General. 

 

  This leaves open the post atop the Department of General Assembly and Conference Management. Since the Continent of Africa is losing the Deputy Secretary General spot to Swedish Jan Eliasson at the end of June, many assume and Inner City Press has reported that DGACM will go to a sub-Saharan African: Senegal's Mr. Dieng, registrar at the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda.

  But more recently some amazed (or disgusted) sources have told Inner City Press that Ban's fellow South Korean had of Information Technology Mr. Choi may get DGACM, or perhaps the top envoy spot in Timor Leste.

  On May 1, Inner City Press reported a scenario in which the top of the Department of Public Information would go to an Austrian. And so it is: Peter Launsky-Tieffenthal. A former Greek foreign minister was a last minute top candidate -- "because Greeks need jobs," one wag said -- but Austria got it in the end.

  So Inner City Press asked Ban's Deputy Spokesman Eduardo Del Buey to responded to what Syria's Permanent Representative Bashar Ja'afari told it on Wednesday: that if Inner City Press' March 28 scoop of Feltman to DPA is true, it would be an "escalation." Del Buey simply refused to comment. Watch this site.

As Ban Confirms Ousting His Deputy, Sources Slam UN Musical Chairs

By Matthew Russell Lee, Exclusive

UNITED NATIONS, January 26 -- Amid calls for and claims of UN reform, Secretary General Ban Ki-moon on Wednesday belatedly confirmed he is ousting his Tanzanian Deputy Asha-Rose Migiro, Angela Kane of Germany as his head of Management, and Vijay Nambiar of India as his chief of staff.

Inner City Press had previously reported each of these, most recently identifying Susana Malcorra of Argentina as Migiro's replacement. When Inner City Press asked on January 23, Ban's spokesman Martin Nesirky said he had not seen the Tanzanian newspaper which picked up Inner City Press' story.

Now a range of well-placed sources have painted for Inner City Press Ban Ki-moon's next steps. Rather than the top UN Disarmament post, for which there is better qualified outside interest, Angela Kane is said to be destined for the UN Economic Commission for Europe post vacated by Jan Kubis.

A third American name has surfaced for the Department of Management post Kane is losing. As a savvy Deputy Permanent Representative told Inner City Press, Patrick "Kennedy is the one, leaving as you've reported the contest for [the] D[epartment of] P[olitical] A[ffairs] between Jane Holl Lute and Alejandro Wolff."

Other sources say that Wolff's so far short service as US Ambassador in Chile is an issue. Within DPA, transition projects initially premised on American B. Lynn Pascoe leaving at the end of February have now been delayed to the end of May.

The Deputy Permanent Representative continued, "the UK is getting frozen out. They can't get back DPA. So they want for Nambiar's chief of staff post their Perm Rep here, Mark Lyall Grant."

For the record, when ICP was previously told by another well placed Secretariat source, "Mark Lyall Grant for chef de cabinet" or Chief of Staff, Inner City Press inquired and got a denial of Lyall Grant as an Under Secretary General, now included here. (Some wonder, could the UK be gunning for Deputy Secretary General - that is, not a USG post?)

Under the USG theory, the UK getting the Chief of Staff post would mean Valerie Amos would vacate the USG post at the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs. Japan could retake OCHA, as it is losing Kiyo Akasaka atop the Department of Public Information.

On December 5 without taking any questions, Vijay Nambiar announced that Sha Zukang of the Department of Social and Economic Affairs and Shabaan Shabaan of the Department of General Assembly and Conference Affairs would leave after Rio + 20.

Sources say Sha would like to stay - but that a direct pull back from Nambiar's December 5 announcement "wouldn't look right." They say, why not Sha laterally, a la Nambiar and Kane, to DGACM, with "the other Egyptian, Maged Abdelaziz, taking over DESA?"

Maged Abdelaziz is a big player for the Group of 77 and the Non Aligned Movement, now on Rio + 20 and in December on the UN budget. Exemplifying how countries use "their" UN Secretariat officials, sources say that in December with Argentina still chairing G-77, the Argentine mission asked the Argentine head of the Department of Field Support Susana Malcorra to "get involved," for G-77.

To replace Malcorra at DFS, rather than moving as many think Ban should to a national of a major Troop Contributing Country, sources point to a candidate they call "homegrown" - that is, already in the UN and DFS. But the candidate they name is another American: Tony Banbury.

When Ban gave his reform speech on January 25, which many Permanent Representatives panned to ICP, US ambassador for Management Joseph Torsella tweeted excitedly about it. Some link this to the number of USG posts that the US is seeking, in seeming contradiction to Torsella's criticism in other contexts of "closed" slates, positions pre-dedicated to particular countries.

Ban himself is said by sources close to him to be particularly concerned with South Koreans. How and where to keep Information Technology chief Choi, and "another Choi"?

A close source self described as "outraged" at Ban Ki-moon's personnel practices told Inner City Press disgustedly, "Ban's staffer Isabel is a relative of his wife," amid much head shaking. Unlike the denial of "Mark Lyall Grant as USG" stated above, we have no denial or confirmation of this last from Ban or his spokesperson's office, which has refused to confirm or deny or even take questions on the simplest of facts, even after answers have on camera been promised.

This is Ban's UN - watch this site.

At UN, Talk of Dutch Replacing Choi, Carpetbagger Aims for Iraq, Musical Chairs

By Matthew Russell Lee, News analysis

UNITED NATIONS, June 24 -- With Abidjan buzz with reports that Dutch politician Bert Koenders is set to replace UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon's ally Choi Young-jin atop the UN Mission there, in New York it fits into a puzzle of Ban's doling out of UN posts by country.

Currently the Netherlands “has” the UN top spot in Iraq's UNAMI mission, in the person of Ad Melkert. But Melkert is coming up on two years in the job, and is said to be on his way out.

Sources tell Inner City Press that already Michael von der Schulenburg, the UN official chopping at the bit to get out of Sierra Leone, is vying to replace Melkert in Iraq. These well placed sources say that von der Schulenburg previously while serving the UN in Iran ran a business exporting carpets and other antiquities. What better new posting, then, than Iraq?

While the UN this week confirmed to Inner City Press that Ban has tapped Norway's Hilde Johnson, in advance, to replace Haile Menkerios in South Sudan, at Friday's noon briefing there was said to be no announcement ready about Choi. On June 22 Inner City Press asked about a set of Assistant Secretaries General whose contracts have expired:

Inner City Press: it appears that some of the ASGs [Assistant Secretaries-General] in DESA [Department of Economic and Social Affairs], Thomas Stelzer or Ms. [Rachel] Mayanja, that their contracts have expired, that according to Secretariat data, in the one case, expired in December; in one case, expired in March; the idea being that maybe they are not going to be renewed, that they are supposed to find other posts as part of mobility. Can you confirm that, and what is the, what are the legalities, what are the specifics of working at the UN without a contract? It said that Mr. Stelzer is being paid as, almost as a consultant, although he is an ASG, at least on paper.

Ban & Schulenburg, note the empty chairs, magic carpet not shown

Spokesperson Martin Nesirky: Well, I don’t think right here and now I would want to get into individual personnel cases. I don’t think that is appropriate. If that picture changes, I will let you know.

Inner City Press: can you say as a general matter that this idea that five years in a post may be enough and that people should look, not to leave the system, but look for other posts in the system. Is that something that the Secretariat is putting out?

Spokesperson Nesirky: As you well know, that is something that has been discussed at some length amongst Member States, and there are differing views on that amongst Member States. And as a general rule, as a general practice, it is not appropriate to comment on individuals’ contracts or employment status with the Organization. Other questions? Yes, Mr. Abbadi?

Ah, UN transparency. There are a number of UN officials who are coming up on five years in the same job: let the musical chairs begin! Watch this site.