Thursday, February 03, 2005

Oil for Food hits paydirt...sorta

U.N. Secretary General, Kofi Annan, will discipline the former director of the oil-for-food program for Iraq, Benon Sevan, and one other high level official. So what exacly is this discipline? Does he get a really stern finger wagging? Take away his birthday?

Honestly, there's not much Kofi can do to Sevan as things stand. Sevan has retired from the U.N. and doesn't answer to them anymore. Way to go Kofi! Way to discipline someone who's already moved on. I don't think your stern letter of reprimand will do much. Sorry, but it will probably be round filed.

But then I read this:
Should there be proof of criminal acts, however, Annan would immediately lift diplomatic immunity on any U.N. official.

Okay, that takes some balls. I'd be willing to bet that New York has a telephone book sized stack of parking tickets and other minor violations waiting in the wings the moment immunity is lifted, real or imagined. Of course, proof is a rather elusive bird to admit these days. Will he actually do it if the proof isn't a full fledged smoking gun? Would he do it to his son who's also been implicated at various times?

This story has yet to be played out. We don't have the answers to what lengths Kofi Annan to go in the name of justice. Let's all hope he's a man of his word.

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