29750: Ban Ki-moon Bann Youn Moun! (fwd)

[Bob Corbett <corbetre@webster.edu>]

From: Jocelyn McCalla <jmccalla@jmcstrategies.com>


Ban Ki-Moon Bann Youn Moun!
January 1, 2007


When I learned that the Security Council of the
United Nations had selected Ban Ki-moon as the
organization’s next Secretary-General, I chuckled.
Haitians were going to have a field day with his
name through word play, said I to myself. In Haitian
Creole, Ban Ki-Moon sounds like “Bann ki Moun” (Whom
do you want?). Imagine the laughter and the joke
possibilities with the cultural twists and turns!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Ban Ki-Moon Gives Us One!
Little did I know that there would be much more than
a coincidental play on words on the new
Secretary-General’s first day in office. I guess he
anticipated the question, for, in answer to the
question of who his new spokesperson will be, he
gave us Michele Montas.

I am extremely delighted that the new SG has chosen
a top-notch professional, an exemplary human rights
advocate, a lady with tremendous strength of
character and class, a dear friend and colleague to
be his chief communicator.

The communiqué released by the United Nations on
this occasion reads a follows:

Incoming U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon on
Sunday appointed veteran Indian diplomat Vijay
Nambiar as his chief of staff and
award- winning Haitian journalist Michelle Montas as
his spokesperson.

The appointments were the first by Ban, who
officially takes the reins of the United Nations on
New Year's Day. In a statement, he said he intends
to make further appointments in the coming days.



~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"Today's appointments will serve as a solid basis
for establishing my team and pursuing a program of
reform of the Secretariat to provide continuity
along with change," Ban said.

Nambiar, a former Indian ambassador to the United
Nations, has served since March as special adviser
to outgoing Secretary-General Kofi Annan on a wide
range of issues, including as a contact with the 192
U.N. ambassadors.

Before coming to the United Nations, Nambiar served
as India's deputy national security adviser. He
joined the Indian Foreign Service in 1967 and
specialized in the Chinese language, serving in Hong
Kong and Beijing. He has served as India's
ambassador to Pakistan, China, Malaysia, Afghanistan
and Algeria.

"I have known Mr. Nambiar for a long time and we
share deep confidence and respect for each other,"
Ban said in a statement announcing his appointment
as " chef de cabinet."



~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Montas began reporting for Radio Haiti-Inter in the
early 1970s with her husband, Jean Dominique, where
the two exposed human rights abuses, political
corruption and state-sponsored violence in Haiti.

Between 1980 and 1994, the radio station was
attacked six times and Montas and her husband were
forced into exile twice. Dominique was assassinated
on April 3, 2000, as he walked into the station.
Montas continued to work at the station, but after
her bodyguard was fatally shot on Christmas Day 2002
and threats continued, she closed the station in
February 2003 and fled to New York.

She served as spokesperson for the U.N. General
Assembly in 2003 and is currently the head of the
French unit of U.N. Radio. A graduate of the
Columbia University School of Journalism, she
received the Maria Moors Cabot Prize for courage in
journalism in 2002.

Enough Said! Meanwhile, Let us all look forward to
better days under the new UN leadership, provide
them the support needed to navigate these
interesting and complex times, and wish them success
this year and beyond!

For more on Michele Montas and her quest for justice in Haiti, visit nchr.org - 
http://rs6.net/tn.jsp?t=4zpuh8bab.0.izwth8bab.g6j6vzbab.255&ts=S0219&p=http%3A%2F%2Fnchr.org

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

On this day, the 203rd anniversary of Haiti's
independence, Haitians can rejoice that one of their
own has reached the mountaintop. May the future
bring it greater reasons to rejoice!
Yours in the struggle for justice and human rights

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Jocelyn McCalla
JMC Strategies LLC
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
email: jmccalla@jmcstrategies.com
phone: 862-452-7196



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