Article by Paolo G. Parovel. Originally published on the paper edition of La Voce di Trieste No. 32, (October 5th, 2013). Read the Italian on-line edition HERE.
***
Trieste: the source of fake anti-FTT UN news is an officer of military services
Intelligence-level propaganda for politicians who should resign
[Links and unofficial translation: SV]
The man in the picture looks friendly and smart in his NATO-branded cap, and according to this 2006 interview (in Italian) he «is a professional journalist and editor of Trieste’s newspaper Il Piccolo. He acquired 20 years of experience working on daily and periodic newspapers and, in his role of officer of the Army’s reserve force, he serves also as press officer of the Armed Forces.
He served his duties, as expert of communication and information, in the Italian contingent’s international peace missions […] and as the Italian Foreign Ministry’s special correspondent» in critical areas, including the Middle East.
Furthermore, on the same subject «He takes part intense efforts as speaker and instructor in the Armed Forces.» The smart interviewee adds: «I am part of those who shape public opinion, and maybe influence it, more than creating it […] the biggest part of public opinion is shaped through a media, for which I do also work, among other things.»
Among other things, that friendly colleague is the same Pier Paolo Garofalo who, since this September [2013], is also the main author of an imaginative, propagandistic double-falsification: first, attributing statements against the Free Trieste Movement to the UN Regional Information Service, and then attributing declarations agains the Free Territory of Trieste to the Office of the UN Secretariat.
An operation that is a complete shame for both those who requested it and for all local politicians and media who not only bought as true those evident tales, but did even embrace them crying jubilant that the UN is on their side.
Without even questioning since when the cautious UN officers and offices release official opinions on the phone, or emailing random journalists.
Long story short, reckless colleague Garofalo settled his operational problem, and professionally hit the garget he himself, in the same interview, described as «housewife from Voghera» which means «medium-low class people with an average education» most easily manipulated by propagandas. But this highlights the overall and worst problem of all, which is (regardless of the sides in question) that of being governed and informed by small groups of weasels who command a big gang of politicians and journalist so “average” that it forgets to think before talking, or writing.
All while the majority of the people of Trieste understood the local situation rather quickly, making them and them alone look like either liars or fools. Indeed, judging from what we have read so far, the list of media and politicians who didn’t fall for it is short enough that includes only us, La Voce di Trieste, while the list of politicians includes the secretary of the Slovenska Skupnost, lawyer Peter Močnik, and few more.
Constructing the double falsification
This said, let us reconstruct, using the documents and direct sources available, to see who colleague and officer Garofalo and his little helpers scored this double hit.
The operation’s field of is the propaganda battle against the popular rebellion that gives life to the Free Trieste Movement. The disinformation artillery is the two main local newspapers, one in Italian and one in Slovene, Il Piccolo and Primorski dnevnik, while the political troop is the residual apparatus of Italian political parties, the PD first in line: from their predecessors, they inherited the obedience of lackeys, but not the brains of the bosses.
The goal of this specific action was to simulate the UN’s “excommunication” against the rebelling Triestines in order to compensate their spreading of regular, authentic documents of the US Department of State which, instead, confirm the International legal status of the city and of its international Free Port as Free Territory of Trieste, UN member, sovereign State under the UNSC’s protection and, since 1954, under the Italian Government’s temporary civil administration.
First round
The special disinformation operation involving the UN exploits ties with its press services, but it results initiated presenting (August 19th, 2013) and widely circulating on “Il Piccolo” (September 12th, 2013) the judicial act, apparently improvised, of a lawyer of the State’s legal service, Marco Meloni, according to whom the Free Trieste Movement is making an illicit use of the UN’s flags and insignias.
All while Garofalo, as a journalist from “Il Piccolo”, asked an UNRIC (the United Nations Regional Information Centre for Western Europe) officer which are the guidelines for the official use of those symbols and flags and the officer has very nicely answered, authorizing the journalist to mention him as the source of that very simple information.
Of course, the answer revolved on strictly official uses of the UN’s symbols, not on their use in free speech or political protests, and it is guidelines that can be easily found online, without bothering any officer.
Instead, on “Il Piccolo” September 17th, 2013 edition, Garofalo attributed to that office, with as much emphasis as possible, and publishing his full name and family name, UNRIC threatening official statements against the people of Trieste that use those symbols, as in confirming the accusations of the State’s lawyer.
To which the near totality of local politicians, in a chorus, started repeating those accusations and false confirmations, without bothering to verify the story. And without understanding that it made no sense, because UN officers, by protocol, cannot release such statements.
La Voce di Trieste has therefore immediately addressed a written request for clarification to the UNRIC and to that officer. Surprised, he answered that he never released such a statement, and anticipated the UNRIC’s official retraction to “Il Piccolo”. At this point, we caught our colleague red-handed regardless, all while the politicians and media involved revealed their leadershit skills.
Second round
The aggressing apparatus had then tried to shield them and itself relaunching the disinformation operation with an even bigger target: the UN Secretariat. From the regional RAI office (Italian national public broadcasting company) a journalist (Antonio Caiazza) addressed and email to the head of the press office (spokesperson) of the UN Secretariat, M.Nesirsky. The journalist summed-up Free Trieste’s theses about international treaties, then asked:
«My question is what United Nations think about the present, actual status of Trieste? Is the Territory finished or not in opinion of the United Nations?»
Mr. Nesirski deferred the matter to one of this subordinate officers, Ms. Morana Song, who, after a consultation with one of their legal offices, still answered with a cautious, diplomatic answer. Indeed (and obviously) she expresses no position in the UN’s name, and she doesn’t evaluate Treaties and Trieste’s legal status; rather, personally and in informal terms, she answers to “Dear Antonio” that:
«The United nations Secretariat considers Trieste to be an integral part of Italy»
Which, in diplomatic language, means precisely that the Secretariat office (not even the UN Secretary-General himself) consider, which means they treat, in their administrative and representation activities, Trieste as an integral part of Italy. But they are not going to express an opinion about the actual question, if this is or not its legal status according to the United Nations Organization.
As far as we know, the UN legal offices consulted by that officer before she provides this sibylline answer are well aware that the Free Territory of Trieste’s legal status under a provisional administration of the Italian Government has complex multilateral implications, which can be properly addressed only before the rights authorities and with the correct international procedures, including by monitoring and assessing the will of the sovereign, administered people.
The disinformation operation, instead, took advantage of the system’s two weak points.
The first, is the difficulty for UN officers to imagine that someone may be so incorrect or clumsy to publish, without authorization, and as official United Nations statements, interlocutory and courtesy emails. The second, is the stupidity and unbelievable arrogance spread about these subjects by Trieste’s political establishment. Indeed, the regional RAI has immediately spread (September 24th) on its news broadcasts both emails, falsely portraying the second as the UN Secretary-General’s own statement, and then as his offices’ denial “with a one-liner” of the Free Territory of Trieste’s very existence. And strengthened the news accompanying it with images of Mr. Ban Ki-moon as he discusses and signs documents.
One day later (September 25th), while the RAI news broadcast repeated the fake news associating Free Trieste to it and misattributing the “misunderstood” claim to the UN Secretariat, on “Il Piccolo” (both print and on-line edition) the specialized colleague Garofalo inflated himself, triumphant, the same fake news, following the same professional scheme, as impudent as efficacious as it is. Which was immediately picked up by “Primorski dnevnik” and other connected local media, just like with psychological warfare in the Middle East.
The military specialist in conditioning public opinion has indeed cunningly titled the newspaper’s article as: «UN: TRIESTE INTEGRAL PART OF ITALY – With a one-liner in an email sent to the regional RAI, the office of the United Nations Secretary General closes the Ftt question» and in his text he develops the false interpretation of the email with a careful technical choice of wording to make it believe that this is an official United Nations position, thus suggestively involving even the image of the UN General Assembly:
«”The United nations Secretariat considers Trieste to be an integral part of Italy”. This time the aspirations of the Free Trieste Movement, which advocates the thesis of a free Territory of Trieste independent from the Italian Republic, seems to have arrived the ultimate closure. The few but meaningful words were officially released by the Office of the Secretary General’s spokesperson, South Korean Ban Ki-Moon, through an email with “institutional” domain, on request of RAI journalist Antonio Caiazza. […]»
«Now the United Nations, in the week during which the general assembly meets in New York, one of the “top” moments of the UN’s activities, confirm it: Trieste belongs to Italy. The FTM’s aspirations to involve the glass palace to validate its reasons appear hopeless. The Office of the spokesperson of the Secretary General, led by Briton Martin Nesirky since 2009, has been short but clear.»
All of this resulted, once again with middle-east atmospheres, a deafening chorus of cries from anchormen, camels, and donkeys of Italian and Slovenian politics who, all of a sudden, thought they have received the blessing of the UN Secretary-General, and maybe still believe so.
Yet, immediate direct contacts, from both Trieste and the US, with the UN officer who was unfortunately involved in this story confirmed that she had never authorized that email’s release to the public, even less as an official position of either the Secretariat or other UN bodies, since it wasn’t and couldn’t be one.
On October 1st, La Voce di Trieste denounced this scandal with a general press release on line, and the day after this “Il Piccolo” has finally published the UNRIC’s rectification, however, relegating it among “notices”, with a small note by Garofalo who justifies his own doing denying in offensive terms the very rectification.
Going against the legal provision regarding answers and rectifications, and with choices that fall under Director Paolo Possamai’s own liability.
Conclusion
Hopefully, this is how the bad story ends. And confirms once again at least two important evidences: first, we truly are governed and informed by small groups of weasels who command a big gang of politicians and journalist so inept and irresponsible that are good only for resignation, second, that none of them has even one true legal or ethical argument against the Free Territory’s and international Free Port of Trieste’s violated rights to jobs and prosperity. Or to the mounting anger of its citizens, both workers and unemployed.
P.G.P.