| by M. R. Lee
( October 2,
2012, New York, Sri Lanka Guardian) It
was on the final day of the week-long UN General Debate that Sri Lanka's G.L.
Peiris spoke, along with North Korea, Belarus and Syria.
 |
| G.L. Peiris signed, Ban Ki-moon shakes, (c) MR Lee |
Like these other three, Sri Lanka spoke out
against any outside interference in its internal affairs. Unlike Syria,
however, Sri Lanka has largely prevailed in this request. No one has been held
accountable for the killing of civilians in 2009. Peiris bragged about
redeveloping northern Sri Lanka, without saying who is benefiting.
In the afternoon, before North Korea spoke,
Inner City Press waited and attended the photo op between UN Secretary General
Ban Ki-moon and Peiris. Beyond UN Photo, the only other photographers present
were both affiliated with the Sri Lankan government.
Visible was Permanent Representative Palitha
Kohona and other Mission staff, but not his Deputy, general Shavendra Silva of
whose presence on the UN Senior Advisory Group on Peacekeeping Operations Ban
on February 8, 2012 told Inner City Press, "it was the member states that
decided."
After the October 1 meeting Ban issued a
bland read-out:
"The
Secretary-General met with H.E. Mr. G. L. Peiris, Minister for External Affairs
of the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka. They exchanged views on the
post-conflict situation in Sri Lanka and cooperation with the United Nations.
"The
Secretary-General noted the Government’s latest efforts to implement the
recommendations of its Lessons Learnt and Reconciliation Commission as well as
the steady progress and remaining tasks on resettlement efforts in the North.
He also emphasized the need to find a political solution without further delay
to the underlying factors of the past conflict."
So when is the report by Charles Petrie,
about the UN's own inaction in 2008 and 2009, going to be finished -- that is,
released to the public? Was the crackdown on journalists, including the
disappearing of Prageeth Ehaliyagoda, raised by Ban Ki-moon?
Is it difficult to know: Ban held a so-called
"press encounter" on Monday, but no questions were allowed. On
Tuesday, the UN Secretariat's description of the week will be given by Ban's
new Deputy Jan Eliasson at 11:15 am.
And late on Monday in what some called
garbage time it was announced that "Due to the press conference tomorrow
by the UN Deputy Secretary-General, there will be no noon briefing by the
Spokesperson."
Will Eliasson take more than 45 minutes? In
the past, a noon briefing might be canceled if Ban spoke at the same time. Now,
it will be cancel for the Deputy, apparently in an attempt to get
correspondents to focus on the UN's own messaging rather than ask questions,
for example about Sri Lanka. This is Ban's UN.
 It was on the final day of the week-long UN General Debate that ...){kind=link}