UN
Experts Cite
Bahrain on
Al-Khawaja,
Ban Ignored
Experts on
Haiti Cholera

By
Matthew
Russell Lee

UNITED
NATIONS,
September 5 —
From the UN
Office of the
High
Commissioner
for Human
Rights in
Geneva comes
this press
release: “A
group of
United Nations
independent
human rights
experts has
urged the
government of
Bahrain to
release
prominent
human rights
defender
Maryam
Al-Khawaja,
who has been
detained since
30 August on
charges of
assaulting a
police
officer. “

  
On September
3, Secretary
General Ban
Ki-moon’s
spokesman
Stephane
Dujarric was
asked about
Maryam
Al-Khawaja’s
detention and
said he would
see what he
could get on
that. 
Since then,
nothing from
Ban Ki-moon or
his Office.

  
Inner City Press
has repeatedly
asked Ban’s
spokespeople
about UN
experts urging
Ban’s
Secretariat
and Herve
Ladsous’ UN
Peacekeeping
to be
accountable
and pay
reparations
for bringing
cholera. The
response has
been that Ban
doesn’t need
to respond to
these
“independent”
experts.

  
But, Inner
City Press
asked, how can
the UN ask its
member states
to take
requests by UN
independent
experts
seriously if Ban’s
UN itself does
not?

 
  In
August a UN
Special
Rapporteur, 
Catarina de
Albuquerque on
the Right to
Water, urged
investigation
and
compensation.
She wrote:

“The

United Nations
Stabilization
Mission in
Haiti has come
under scrutiny
for its role
in the cholera
epidemic in
Haiti in the
aftermath of
the 2010
earthquake.
The epidemic
killed over
8,500 people,
sickened more
than 700,000
and is still
ongoing. It
has been
alleged that
the cholera
was brought in
by
peacekeepers
and that it
spread because
of haphazardly
constructed
sanitation
facilities
that leaked
sewage into a
river that was
an important
source of
drinking
water. The
United Nations
has rejected
the
accusations
and claimed
immunity based
on the
Convention on
the Privileges
and Immunities
of the United
Nations, but
United Nations
human rights
representatives
are
increasingly
calling on the
United Nations
to establish
responsibility.
The
Independent
Expert on
Haiti has
stressed the
need “to
assure the
Haitian people
that the
epidemic will
be halted as
soon as
possible and
that full
reparation for
damages will
be provided”.
He called for
clarification
of the facts
and for
realization of
the right to a
remedy,
arguing that
the “United
Nations should
be the first
to honor these
principles”and
that “silence
is the worst
response”. The
United Nations
High
Commissioner
for Human
Rights called
for an
investigation
by the United
Nations and
the country
concerned, and
called for
“those who
suffered as a
result of that
cholera be
provided with
compensation”.
The Special
Rapporteur
wishes to
emphasize the
obligation to
investigate
the
allegations in
order to
establish
responsibility
for any
violations and
to ensure the
alleged
victims’ right
to a remedy,
including
compensation,
if warranted.
She welcomes
the commitment
by the United
Nations to
eradicate the
disease in
Haiti and
urges it to
meet that
commitment by
providing
adequate
resources. She
further calls
on the United
Nations to
establish
appropriate
accountability
mechanisms for
ongoing and
future
missions as
well as to
review and
reinforce
measures for
adequate
sanitation and
preventive
measures.”

A week
after UN
Secretary
General Ban
Ki-moon ended
his trip to
Haiti and
Santo Domingo
after taking a
single
question about
the UN
bringing
cholera to the
island, the
UN’s
independent
expert Gustavo
Gallon had
this to say,
in his
statement,
which Inner
City Press
putting online

here:

<![CDATA[

]]>

“As for
cholera, the
independent
expert noted
that the
Secretary
General of the
United Nations
visited the
country and
traveled on 14
July to the
Central
Plateau, where
cholera first
appeared. He
launched a
sanitation
campaign
there. I hope
that this
visit will
contribute to
the
implementation
of the
recommendation
I made in my
report of
March 2014 on
the necessity
of creating a
reparations
commission for
the victims of
cholera, in
order to allow
the evaluation
of damages,
corresponding
compensation
or
idemnification,
the
identification
of those
responsible,
the stopping
of the
epidemic and
other
measures. As
Independent
Expert on the
situation of
human rights
in Haiti, I
take this
opportunity to
reiterate this
recommendation.”

 Back

here and
embedded
below.

 Inner

City Press
asked Haq to
comment, in
the context of
the more than
8000 deaths in
Haiti, on this
sentence:
“there is a
growing
acceptance
that an
individual
state can be
held liable
for deaths in
a UN-mandated
operation.”

 
Haq said, we
are still
studying it.
But he has
said nothing
in the week
since. And on
July 23, based
on Inner City
Press’ style
of questioning
or legal focus
in questions,
Haq said “You
are not
entitled to be
at the noon
briefing,” video here.

 
Later on July
16, Ban’s
office sent
out what he
said to the
Dominican
Congress:
mentions of
Junot Diaz and
Robinson Cano,
but nothing
about the UN
bringing
cholera to
Hispaniola.

  
At the July 15
UN noon
briefing Inner
City Press
asked Ban’s
deputy
spokesperson
to respond to
protest signs
in Haiti:
“Dead: 8563,
Sick 704,000;
Justice 0.”

 
Haq said Ban
assures
Haitians of
his personal
commitment,
wants to be
the advocate
of the Haitian
people.

 
Inner City
Press asked,
will the UN
apologize? (Video here and embedded
below.  Here’s an
Inner City
Press song on
topic.)

Haq replied
that Ban is
“anguished”
about the
situation.

But is that an
apology?

 
Haq said he
had nothing to
add. Where he
gave the next
question, he
got back a
softball which
invited him to
talk about
money Ban’s UN
gave, or
raied, or
merely tried
to raise.

 
Each time Ban
mentioned
cholera,
without once
addressing who
brought it to
Hispanola.
While an Inner
City Press
reader points
out the troop
contributing
country,
Nepal, the
question is:
wasn’t the UN
in charge of
sanitation?

 
Doesn’t UN
Peacekeeping
under Herve
Ladsous still
refuse to
screen
peacekeepers
before
deployment
from cholera
hot-spots?
Didn’t the UN
dissemble
about the
failure to
take this
safeguard?

 Ban ended
his first speech
saying “you
can count on
me and the UN
to do our
part.” Really?

 
After meeting
a family
impacted by
(the UN’s)
cholera, Ban
said “the
whole
international
community,
including the
United
Nations, has a
moral duty to
help those
people to stem
the further
spread of
cholera.” Just
“including”
the UN. Just
because.

 
In what the UN
called a
“press
encounter,”
without
providing any
QA, Ban
said “Lastly,
in addressing
all
socio-economic
issues as well
as cholera
issues, let me
also underline
that this is
not a time for
donor
fatigue.”

 
Is that it?

 
A question is
whether Ban
while there be
served with
legal papers
about the UN
bringing
cholera to
Hispanola,
another topic
on which Ban’s
spokespeople
dodged and

worse.

  Follow @innercitypress
Follow @FUNCA_info