Identifier
Created
Classification
Origin
09PARISFR76
2009-01-20 15:32:00
UNCLASSIFIED
Mission UNESCO
Cable title:  

GAZA/JERUSALEM DOMINATE UNESCO EXECUTIVE BOARD INFORMATION

Tags:  UNESCO PREL KWBG IS EG JO 
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UNCLAS PARIS FR 00076
cxparis:
 ACTION: UNESCO
 INFO: AMBU AMB AMBO DCM SCI DAO POL ECON

DISSEMINATION: UNESCOX
CHARGE: PROG

APPROVED: CHARGE:SENGELKEN
DRAFTED: POL:DOSTROFF
CLEARED: NONE

VZCZCFRI914
RR RUEHC RUEHTV RUEHJM RUEHAM RUEHKU RUEHEG
RUEHRH RUEHAS RUEHTU RUEHRB RUEHDM RUEHDO RUEHGV RUCNDT
DE RUEHFR #0076/01 0201532
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
R 201532Z JAN 09
FM UNESCO PARIS FR
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC
RUEHTV/AMEMBASSY TEL AVIV
RUEHJM/AMCONSUL JERUSALEM
RUEHAM/AMEMBASSY AMMAN
RUEHKU/AMEMBASSY KUWAIT
RUEHEG/AMEMBASSY CAIRO
RUEHRH/AMEMBASSY RIYADH
RUEHAS/AMEMBASSY ALGIERS
RUEHTU/AMEMBASSY TUNIS
RUEHRB/AMEMBASSY RABAT
RUEHDM/AMEMBASSY DAMASCUS
RUEHDO/AMEMBASSY DOHA
RUEHGV/USMISSION GENEVA
RUCNDT/USMISSION USUN NEW YORK
UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 PARIS FR 000076 

SIPDIS

E.O. 12598: N/A
TAGS: UNESCO PREL KWBG IS EG JO
SUBJECT: GAZA/JERUSALEM DOMINATE UNESCO EXECUTIVE BOARD INFORMATION
MEETING

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 PARIS FR 000076

SIPDIS

E.O. 12598: N/A
TAGS: UNESCO PREL KWBG IS EG JO
SUBJECT: GAZA/JERUSALEM DOMINATE UNESCO EXECUTIVE BOARD INFORMATION
MEETING


1. Summary: Middle East issues dominated the information session for
Executive Board members held by UNESCO Director-General Koichiro
Matsuura on January 16. Arab states repeatedly urged Matsuura to be
more active in protecting educational and cultural facilities in
Gaza. The latter undertook to put UNESCO personnel into a UN team
that will soon travel to Gaza to assess the inhabitants' needs. He
also agreed to hold - probably in February -- another information
session for Executive Board members after UNESCO team members return
to Paris. Member states also raised Jerusalem, inquiring what the
Director-General planned to do to prevent another impasse over the
Temple Mount's Mughrabi Gate from disturbing the next Executive
Board. The Director-General said he was trying to encourage the
parties (Israel, Jordan, and the Jerusalem "waqf") to reschedule an
"encounter" among these parties that was cancelled last November
just before it was scheduled to meet. End Summary.

GAZA TAKES CENTER STAGE


2. Gaza and Middle East issues dominated the Director-General's
biannual Information Meeting, 16 January 2009. Executive Board
Chairman Yai (Benin) set the tone by beginning the session with a
moment of silence for "the victims of Gaza". Asked repeatedly what
he is doing about the conflict, Director-General (DG) Matsuura told
Member State delegates that he had spoken out five times since the
fighting began, including issuing a statement of support regarding
Qatar's Sheikha Mozah's proposal to have schools in Gaza declared as
safety zones. The DG also promoted calls for dialogue as well as
the necessary protection for both educational and media
institutions.


3. The DG said that Secretary-General Ban Ki-Moon has accepted the
idea of a United Nations interagency mission to assess the needs on
the ground, which will be sent as soon as possible. Matsuura said
that he has already expressed UNESCO's desire to participate in the
mission, particularly in connection with evaluating how to get
educational institutions up and running, and determining the level
of damage to any cultural sites.


4. Kuwait and Egypt spoke to urge a Gaza mission be undertaken at
the earliest opportunity, with Egypt asking that the
Director-General come up with some practical measures to take

immediately, as it will take too much time for the mission report to
be finalized. Several Arab speakers urged the Director General to
convene an information meeting on the Gaza situation in early
February. The DG thanked Kuwait for arranging a meeting for him
with Arab ambassadors on the Gaza situation and agreed that he would
hold another information meeting once he had some new information to
report.


5. Cuba thanked both the DG and the Chairman for their comments on
Gaza and said that it is not possible to "be on the margins" of
what's happening in Gaza (noting bombings of UN buildings, mosques,
schools). He suggested that the DG's public comments be more widely
publicized to let the world know that UNESCO has expressed its
concerns on this situation. He went on to say that the DG should
personally take part in the United Nations mission to Gaza, adding
that "we have to say 'Yes We Can'!"


6. The Portuguese ambassador asked the DG to take concrete steps,
and suggested that the UNSYG's High Representative for the "Alliance
of Civilizations Jorge Sampaio, be invited to brief members on the
situation in Gaza. (Note: The Spanish and Turkish delegations
later took the floor to second this idea. End note.) The DG said
that he would be pleased to arrange for an information meeting with
Sampaio at an appropriate time when there is something to say, but
stressed he would not wait for the high representative before
scheduling another information meeting on Gaza.


7. After Board members had ceased asking questions, Israeli
Ambassador David Kornbluth, an observer, was given the floor. He
said that if UNESCO is to play any role, it must be in fact-finding.
He asked that the DG ensure that the role be balanced, and that it
must take into account how the conflict began, adding that rockets
had fallen on Israeli schools and communities. Kornbluth also
mentioned that the "terrorists'" use of shielding (referring to the
Hamas practice of using civilians and civilian property as shields)
is a war crime. Kornbluth urged that any fact-finding by UNESCO be
balanced, or warned that it will not help us move forward.

MUGHRABI GATE AND JERUSALEM


8. Many delegations also raised issues relating to Jerusalem. The
French ambassador said that the World Heritage enhanced monitoring
mechanism for the Mughrabi Gate is the embodiment of the kind of
cooperation that can be achieved at UNESCO. At the same time, the
ambassador asked the DG how he planned to avoid major disruptions on
issues like Mughrabi Gate that occurred at the last Executive Board
session


9. Matsuura said that the "technical encounter" between the Israelis
and Jordanians was "postponed" in mid-November 2008, and that he is
working to arrange another. (Note: The Director-General was being
very diplomatic in suggesting he was responsible for the failure of
the meeting. End note.)

10. The Spanish ambassador specifically asked that the DG convene a
meeting concerning World Heritage in Jerusalem before the next
Board, adding that we need to show that the World Heritage
convention can help everyone achieve their goals.


11. Executive Board Chairman Yai declared that we must all work to
ensure that this issue is not politicized excessively, and that we
should do our best to begin negotiations far in advance of the
Executive Board. He noted that a delegation from Israel would be
visiting the Secretariat 27-29 January. (Note: Israel's A/S and DAS
for IO Affairs will be visiting for the Holocaust Remembrance
ceremonies. End note.)


12. Once again, the Israeli and Iranian delegations (both observers)
were permitted to speak when member states had finished talking.
Israeli Ambassador David Kornbluth urged the DG to be careful with
the process, referring to the problems that occurred during the
negotiation process during the last Executive Board. Kornbluth said
that the process that we now use took years to arrive at, and that
we have proven that it works, as we have been able to arrive at
consensus decisions. He noted that when the process is abandoned,
as it was at the last Executive Board, negotiations collapsed. He
asked that we recognize the process is fragile, and that we treat it
with the respect that it deserves. Kornbluth also asked that the
people involved arrive with clear positions early enough to allow
for talks to begin before the Executive Board is underway.


13. Finally, Iran's delegate said that he supported the call for an
information meeting. He said that the situation is a "real
holocaust" and that "UNESCO must help put an end to this genocide
and extermination".


14. Comment: UNESCO's next Executive Board session begins on April

14. It is likely to be dominated by Middle East issues, judging by
the extraordinary number of questions on Gaza and Jerusalem at the
Director-General's general information session January 16.

ENGELKEN