Comments on: The Guardian on what Tony Blair’s middle east job isn’t http://www.barder.com/2180 Brian Barder's blog Sat, 31 Jul 2010 15:20:23 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.0 By: Joelle esther benuayer http://www.barder.com/2180/comment-page-1#comment-90364 Joelle esther benuayer Tue, 10 Nov 2009 15:52:57 +0000 http://www.barder.com/?p=2180#comment-90364 Hello to prime minister, well, we talk about 1989, the peroistroika, and the wall  down, well i would like to talk to you about freedom and what is like, we can said today in Europa the peace is there, i said may be but still a but, this is my story in second world war my father was in england in royal air force, who are this people talk about exceptly for sure the prime minister, do they know what the world freedom mean, for me simple, freedom mean all equal peace love and cares, I work 17 years in newspappers in south of france whera are the infant from the resistance border, i m really happy for deustchland but nobody os perfect im jewish and i would like to tell you something, i denonce about corruption and drugs traffic in south of france, and i been a victim of  an agression, they stolen all my documents, do the people from deuschland know also this kind of story in past, for me nothing is more nice and freedom of speech and freedom to move where you want,,,,,, well for me is different because i talk what i see;,;;;;; my name is benyayer it s a old name moins 70 years before jesus christ,,,,,, and the ancestre of  my name us to said better to die in free country than die in slavery ;;;;; long life to the réunification in germany;;;;;;shalom.....joelle esther benyayer Hello to prime minister, well, we talk about 1989, the peroistroika, and the wall  down, well i would like to talk to you about freedom and what is like, we can said today in Europa the peace is there, i said may be but still a but, this is my story in second world war my father was in england in royal air force, who are this people talk about exceptly for sure the prime minister, do they know what the world freedom mean, for me simple, freedom mean all equal peace love and cares,

I work 17 years in newspappers in south of france whera are the infant from the resistance border, i m really happy for deustchland but nobody os perfect im jewish and i would like to tell you something, i denonce about corruption and drugs traffic in south of france, and i been a victim of  an agression, they stolen all my documents, do the people from deuschland know also this kind of story in past, for me nothing is more nice and freedom of speech and freedom to move where you want,,,,,, well for me is different because i talk what i see;,;;;;; my name is benyayer it s a old name moins 70 years before jesus christ,,,,,, and the ancestre of  my name us to said better to die in free country than die in slavery ;;;;;

long life to the réunification in germany;;;;;;shalom…..joelle esther benyayer

]]> By: Oliver Miles http://www.barder.com/2180/comment-page-1#comment-90337 Oliver Miles Sun, 08 Nov 2009 20:56:48 +0000 http://www.barder.com/?p=2180#comment-90337 This misconception about Blair's appointment is very widespread. See for example the blurb on the Parliament website about Blair's portrait at <a href="http://www.parliament.uk/visiting/exhibitionsandevents/exhibitions/blair_portrait.cfm" rel="nofollow">http://www.parliament.uk/visiting/exhibitionsandevents/exhibitions/blair_portrait.cfm</a>, which describes him as "appointed by the UN, US, Russia and EU quartet to his current role as Middle East mediator". Blair himself has been willing to speak on the record about political matters which seem to go beyond his terms of reference. For example the Commons Foreign Affairs Committee Fifth Report: Global Security: Israel and the Occupied Palestinian Territories published on 15 July 2009 comments "Although Mr Blair defended the Quartet's policy, on at least three occasions during our evidence session he framed the issue concerning Hamas in terms of whether the organisation committed itself to exclusively peaceful means. This suggested that Mr Blair might prioritise this condition over the Quartet's other two. For example, Mr Blair told us that if Hamas were to commit itself exclusively to peaceful resistance, 'everything would be opened up'. " There was a report when he was appointed that Russia had agreed to his appointment but not to pay any part of his costs. I asked the FCO whether the quartet had any budget, and who would pay. I was told that the British Government was supporting his appointment by seconding staff. My suspicion is that he is actually paid by Washington. He certainly sticks to US policy. This misconception about Blair’s appointment is very widespread. See for example the blurb on the Parliament website about Blair’s portrait at http://www.parliament.uk/visiting/exhibitionsandevents/exhibitions/blair_portrait.cfm, which describes him as “appointed by the UN, US, Russia and EU quartet to his current role as Middle East mediator”.
Blair himself has been willing to speak on the record about political matters which seem to go beyond his terms of reference. For example the Commons Foreign Affairs Committee Fifth Report: Global Security: Israel and the Occupied Palestinian Territories published on 15 July 2009 comments “Although Mr Blair defended the Quartet’s policy, on at least three occasions during our evidence session he framed the issue concerning Hamas in terms of whether the organisation committed itself to exclusively peaceful means. This suggested that Mr Blair might prioritise this condition over the Quartet’s other two. For example, Mr Blair told us that if Hamas were to commit itself exclusively to peaceful resistance, ‘everything would be opened up’. ”
There was a report when he was appointed that Russia had agreed to his appointment but not to pay any part of his costs. I asked the FCO whether the quartet had any budget, and who would pay. I was told that the British Government was supporting his appointment by seconding staff. My suspicion is that he is actually paid by Washington. He certainly sticks to US policy.

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