UN's Ban Accepts “Whitewash” Report from Japan

While the UN says that after its inaction in Sri Lanka while 40,000 were killed in 2009 it is now studying the “lessons learned,” Secretary General Ban Ki-moon on Friday morning met with Sri Lankan Ambassador Palitha Kohona and four other Permanent Representatives to accept a quite contrary report.

   Before Inner City Press was asked to leave the conference room, Japan's Permanent Representative Tsuneo Nishida told Ban that “Sri Lanka is an important country” and “this morning we would like to present our report.” Then the meeting was closed; in fact, no topic was ever listed for the meeting. Inner City Press was the only media there.

  See short YouTube video here, on channel of Inner City Press.

   Some wonder if Ban would hold such a meeting, for example, with Syria's Permanent Representative Bashar Ja'afari and four other supportive Permanent Representatives, who could certainly be found. The answer would appear to be “no.” So why on Sri Lanka?

  Attending the meeting for the UN, along with Ban, were Department of Political Affairs officials Oscar Fernandez Taranco and Hitoki Den.

  Accompanying Sri Lanka's Kohona and Japan's Nishida were Permanent Representatives Abulkalam Abdul Momen of Bangladesh and Simona Mirela Miculescu of Romania and Usman Sarka, Deputy Permanent Representative of Nigeria. There was also a non-diplomat from Colombia University regarding whom we will have more.

Monem was one of the Asia Group Permanent Representatives who expressed concern about Sri Lankan general Shavendra Silva being put on Ban's Senior Advisory Group on Peacekeeping Operations. But then, after pressure, he and some others changed their positions.

Now Ban accepts what's called a “whitewash” report, the month before Sri Lanka is again considered in the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva. Will there be a read-out?

Update -- after Inner City Press published this story and then asked at Friday's noon briefing for a read-out of the meeting, the following was issued by the UN:

"The Secretary-General today met with H.E. Mr. Tsuneo Nishida, Permanent Representative of Japan to the United Nations, together with other representatives (Bangladesh, Nigeria, Romania, Sri Lanka and Columbia University) who participated in a Observation Project visit to Sri Lanka in December 2012. 

"As the Chairman of the delegation, Ambassador Nishida presented the report of the Observation Project, which included an assessment of the progress undertaken by the Government of Sri Lanka on post-war issues, including on the implementation of the recommendations of the Lessons Learnt and Reconciliation Commission. 

The Secretary-General recognised the important steps taken by the Government of Sri Lanka since the end of the conflict and strongly underlined the need to address the remaining challenges, particularly on issues relating to reconciliation and accountability.  He highlighted the important need for the Government to work constructively with the international community toward that end."

Then why does Ban, nearly four years on, still insist on a "national" process that clear has not worked?

   Inner City Press last asked the UN about Sri Lanka on February 20. As news of the summary execution of a 12 year old boy by the Sri Lankan Army in May 2009 spreads worldwide, Inner City Press asked Ban Ki-moon's spokesman about it, citing Ban's “two reports and a third one still ongoing.

  Ban's spokesman Martin Nesirky began with a correction, saying that this third report “is an internal task force looking at how recommendations will be carried out in the UN... it's not to do with looking into the actual events in Sri Lanka.”

http://www.innercitypress.com/sriban1whitewash022213.html