Friday, July 10, 2015

AFICS to members: We're vindicated: MOU on hold: no meeting -- maybe later! (9 July 2015)

ASSOCIATION OF FORMER INTERNATIONAL CIVIL SERVANTS
Room DC1-580, United Nations, New York, NY 10017
Tel. (212) 963-2943 Fax. (212) 963-5702 e-mail. afics@un.org
www.un.org/other/afics
NEW YORK
Honorary Members
Martti Ahtisaari
Kofi A. Annan
Ban Ki-moon
Aung San Suu Kyi
Boutros Boutros-Ghali
Javier Perez de Cuellar

9 July 2015

Dear Loraine,
We note the evident frustration in your letter of 7 July 2015, with its unfair criticism of the elected
leadership of AFICS/NY. Your disappointment at not being able to have exactly the kind of
AFICS/NY meeting you desire at short notice is matched by ours at your insistence on distorting and
mischaracterizing verifiable information about pension matters. I will not refute the allegations in your latest letter. I prefer to adopt here a more positive tone in the hope that you will reciprocate by
replacing at least a part of the acrimony with a measure of understanding.

About a week ago we learned that the MoU would likely not be signed before the Pension Board meets next week and we have since been awaiting official confirmation. We understand that the USG for Management will post a message to this effect on iSeek tomorrow.

AFICS/NY is pleased that high level UN officials have decided to settle the issue by not moving ahead now on their own proposals. It vindicates our position which is that the MoU did not require the involvement of retirees and should be left to those directly responsible to resolve.

So, while we had indeed initiated making arrangements for an extraordinary meeting of an AFICS/NY Assembly, we consider in light of the above information that the element of urgency to organize it has been removed. AFICS/NY can now plan a meeting that is properly prepared and not rushed, one that would permit the maximum participation of members with enough lead time to encourage attendance that is representative of the membership at large.

Sincerely,
[signed] Linda Saputelli

President

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