More queries on CBK’s UNESCO Job

Fresh questions have arisen over UNESCO's suspension of former President Chandrika Bandaranaike Kumaratunga's appointment as a consultant to the UN agency following complaints over her human rights record.

Main among them is whether UNESCO did in fact appoint Ms. Kumaratunga as its consultant. The issue has arisen since the 'Office of the Former President Chandrika Kumaratunga' announced in a news release on October 25, 2006 that she "has accepted responsibilities as a Senior Consultant for education in Asia, at the invitation of UN Secretary General, His Excellency Mr. Kofi Annan and UNESCO Director General Mr. K. Matsuura."

However, UNESCO Director General Matsuura has written to Ms. Kumaratuanga on October 26 2006, a day after the announcement by her office in Colombo, suspending such an appointment, as revealed in The Sunday Times last week. In that letter the UNESCO chief has said "....I must also re-examine the proposed arrangement with you; however, I will revert to you as soon as possible on the outcome of this reconsideration."

As is clear, there is no mention of an appointment as a Senior Consultant. To the contrary, diplomatic sources point out that Mr. Matsuura has only declared that he must "re-examine the proposed arrangement with you."

" The fact that he referred to a "proposed arrangement," that too a day after Ms. Kumaratunga had formally announced that she had been appointed Consultant, these sources say, has raised the all important question. This week the 'Office of former President Chandrika Kumaratunga' sent The Sunday Times an undated media release. This is what it said:

"We write with reference to your news item under the screaming headline "UNESCO suspends Chandrika." "We wish to say this news is incorrect. UNESCO has informed President Kumaratunga that a human rights organisation based in Hong Kong and Mr. V. Ivan have made allegations and that as a matter of normal practice UNESCO must inquire into these allegations"The Director General of UNESCO Mr. Koichiro Matsuura is in touch with President Kumaratunga and is fully aware of the nature of the persons and organisations who have made the allegations and the veracity of all such allegations.

"We once again refute the story you continue to carry, that President Kumaratunga lobbied strongly for UNESCO assignment and that she sought the support of President Chirac. This information is completely false. "President Kumaratunga wishes to state that she is not surprised at the willfully manipulated information, obviously issued from one place, to all the media, as she is aware who and from where it has emanated. But we regret that newspapers purporting to be national media have permitted themselves to be persuaded into publishing information that is blatantly fabricated with vicious intent."

Note by the News Editor: Ms Kumaratunga says that our story is "incorrect," "completely false," and "blatantly fabricated," but then has only confirmed what we have reported -- that UNESCO has suspended her work and that its Director General Matsuura has written to her. Details of the letter were published last week. That is not all. The report was further confirmed to The Sunday Times by none other than Dr. Matsuura's own spokesperson at the UNSECO Headquarters in Paris, Muriel de Pierrebourg.

The Sunday Times offered an opportunity for Ms. Kumaratunga to respond. Her office was contacted and a senior official was spoken to. Later, her office informed us that our message to speak has been passed down to her. There was, however, no response from her. She chooses to disregard the opportunity afforded to express her side of the story and now complains our report is "blatantly fabricated with vicious intent." Much of the media release issued by her office in Colombo, which bears no name, is a vituperative attack on those who have questioned the legitimacy of her appointment.

We will not print it in fairness to third parties – even though criminal defamation laws have been repealed! We stand by our story that former President Chandrika Kumaratunga's work as a consultant to UNESCO has been suspended. Speaking at a staff ceremony a day after the story appeared, former President Kumaratunga herself admitted that she has been suspended based on some petitions and pending an inquiry. Had the Former President's Media Unit which originally announced her appointment on October 25, informed the local media of her suspension as well, national media may not have had to be "persuaded" by anyone to publish information that is blatantly true.

Significantly, The UNESCO Director-General's letter to Former President Kumaratunga was dated the day after her press release was issued, and the same day on which the local media announced her appointment. But the Media Unit of Former President Kumaratunga did not deem it fit to inform the Public that she had been suspended, until after the local media got the details and published it.