U.N. Under Secretary-General Feltman's mission to Banjul postponed

UN Under-Secretary-General Feltman

According to The Point newspaper, Mr. Jeffrey Feltman, United Nations Under-Secretary-General for Political Affairs's mission to The Gambia has been postponed.  The report is based on a news release from the UNDP office at Cape Point.  The Mission was to have taken place from 4th - 5th February.

On the eve of his planned visit to Banjul, we wrote an open letter urging the U.N. official to bring certain issues of concern to ordinary Gambian citizens who have become voiceless under the regime of Yaya Jammeh.

The reason for the postponement was not addressed in the UNDP press release, according to The Point.  The UNDP Banjul office website did not post its own press release announcing the postponement.

The United Nations Political Affairs Department's website, while also silent on the postponement did report that "at the request of the United Nations Secretary General, Mr. Ban Ki-moon, the Under-Secretary-General Mr. Jeffery Feltman visited Burkina Faso with Special Representative of the SG, Mohamed Ibn Chambas where they met with the transitional authorities and representatives of political parties.

Meanwhile, we will continue to try to reach the offices of Mr. Feltman to get information on the reasons for the postponement and how soon this important mission will be rescheduled.  You will recall that the U.N Rapporteur Mission that was to have taken place in was abruptly postponed until it was scheduled at a later date but not before great pressure was applied before Jammeh relented.