Outgoing UN official: World powers curbed me from aiding Palestinians
United Nations General Assembly President Miguel d'Escoto Brockman says he was restrained by leading UN members.
By DPA Tags: UN Israel news PalestiniansOutgoing United Nations General Assembly President Miguel d'Escoto Brockman said Monday he had been restrained by leading UN members in his efforts to improve the lives of Palestinians in the Gaza Strip.
"My greatest frustration this year has been the Palestine situation," the Nicaraguan said in his final address to the 192-nation assembly before passing on the one-year presidency to Libyan diplomat Ali Treki.
Treki will open the 64th assembly session on Tuesday. The body is already mired in controversies because Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi plans to attend UN meetings next week in the wake of protests against Scotland's release last month of the Libyan bomber of Pan American Flight 103. The bombing over Lockerbie, Scotland in 1988 killed 270 people, most of them Americans.
D'Escoto Brockman, a former Sandinista foreign minister in the 1980s in Nicaragua and a Maryknoll priest, said he was urged to exercise "caution" and to give the diplomatic process in the Middle East conflict more time to work.
"Faced with this situation, I sincerely did not know what to do," he said. "I wanted to help Palestine, but those who should supposedly have been most interested denied their support for reasons of 'caution' that I was incapable of understanding."
He said he found it "disgraceful" that influential members of the UN Security Council had shown "passivity and apparently indifference" on the Israeli blockade of Gaza in the past two years.
He has criticized some western governments during his one-year tenure on issues ranging from the world economic and financial crisis to social injustice suffered by the poor.
The assembly presidency, which rotates among the world's five regions, has been mostly a protocol position.
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TRy to get tickets for the comedy show UN.
UN Assembly isnt interested in helping anyone, just promoting racist agenda to keep their governments in power and scapegoat others.
Well said. The whole UN concept is twisted and distorted by those that lead. Cleaning house began, once upon a time, during the reign of Kofi Annan, until his own son was caught up in the Iraqi food for oil scandal. Honesty or fair play cannot be found, only strange folk in this Tower of Babel whose egoistic aims are no less than a snake oil salesman. Good night from chilly Swiss Alps.
I haven't heard anything about the fighting in Yemen coming from UN. Hundreds of thousands of refugees and thousands dead. But I guess imperialism, capitalism, Zionism are much greater issues.... in the meantime in Venezuela a certain Hugo is slowly becoming a dictator for life.
That's your legacy Miguel and don't forget it.
Since Gaza gets food and medicinefrom Israel and cash from abroad, is this guy frustrated thathe can't get "dual use" supplies through to Hamas to help them re-build their bunkers and terror infra-structure in preparation for their next attack on Israel?
Palestinians are resisting occupation and illegal settlements. Are they supposed to do nothing when they have the present situation on their own land. Wise-up Alan
I see that only evil people get the chance to be UN General Assembly presidents: Brockman and now a Lybian lackey of Kadafi. What does it say about the UN organisation, that it's about time to give it a kick in the a-- and send everybody home?
This guy is speaking from the heart and shame on you Alan for labeling every Palestinian as a militant and resistance movement.
you can only help those who want to be helped. Palestinians prefer to be a 'resistance' movement