Qatar bribes countries to win votes for UNESCO post

CAIRO – 10 October 2017: Qatar’s energetic lobbying for the UNESCO post involved financial incentives to other countries, especially African countries, to win their support; Director of International Relations for the Simon Wiesenthal Center told The Algemeiner on Monday.

The Egyptian candidate Moushira Khattab received 11 votes, while Hamad bin Abdul Aziz Al-Kawari of Qatar ended up with 19 votes, Audrey Azoulay from France with 13 votes, Polad Bülbüloğlu of Azerbaijan with two votes, Pham Sanh Chau of Vietnam with two votes, Qian Tang from China with five votes, and Vera El Khoury Lacoeuilhe from Lebanon with six votes.

The Qatari candidate received 19 votes in the first round, causing suspicionsabout the weapon of money, which the Qatari regime uses to buy supportive voices.

There is a conviction that the votes obtained by the Qatari candidate in the first round represent the final ceiling of votes that can be obtained by money during the voting process.

“UNESCO has been undergoing a cash crisis since the U.S. stopped funding the organization in 2011. Early on in hiscampaign, Al-Kawari suggested that Qatar would be able to make up for the $400 million lost by UNESCO as a result of the American decision,” Samuels stated.

The person to be nominated by the Executive Board shall be chosen through a secret ballot, during a vote that will take place during the Board's 202nd session in October 2017. To win the election, a nominee mustgain the majority of votes,which would be30 out of 58 votes.

Subsequently, the Chairperson of the Board shall inform the General Conference, during its 39th session in November 2017, of the candidate nominated by the Board. The General Conference shall consider this nomination and then elect, by secret ballot, the person proposed by the Executive Board, according to UNESCO’s website.