- Agnès Buzyn will work in the WHO management team, headquartered in Geneva .
- Internet users have unearthed a project granting diplomatic protection to WHO officials, but this does not concern Agnès Buzyn, targeted by an investigation in France for her management of the coronavirus epidemic.
- This project aims to grant diplomatic advantages to foreign officials from the WHO office in Lyon.
A time foreseen at the head of the Cité des sciences in Paris, it is finally in Geneva, at the headquarters of the WHO , which ‘ Agnès Buzyn bounces back after her failure at municipal in Paris in June. According to AFP, which confirms information from L’Opinion , the former Minister of Health, who had to manage the start of the pandemic of Covid – 19 in France, will deal with multilateral affairs in the cabinet of Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, the director general of the UN agency specializing in health issues.
Among his future responsibilities, relations with the G7, the UN or the foundation of Bill and Melinda Gates. She replaces another Frenchwoman, Michèle Boccoz, named
the 31 October Ambassador to the Philippines. Agnès Buzyn joins the World Health Organization https://t.co/E0oMacojU0 – 19 Minutes (@20Minutes) January 5, 2021 Internet users quickly unearthed a bill relating to an agreement between France and the WHO . This agreement would relate to “the granting of diplomatic status to officials of the WHO office”. Some social network users then made the reconciliation between this text and the new post of Agnès Buzyn. It turns out that the former minister is targeted by investigations carried out by the Court of Justice of the Republic on the management of the Covid crisis – 16. The 15 October, she was targeted by a search
FAKE OFF
This draft agreement between France and the WHO cannot be linked to the new responsibilities of Agnès Buzyn, because, contrary to what its title suggests, it only applies to civil servants foreigners from the WHO office in Lyon. The aim of this text is to make the Lyon office attractive to international civil servants by granting them diplomatic advantages.
What are these advantages? It is about “the acquisition of a vehicle in suspension of customs duty and tax at the time of taking up office and diplomatic status for officials of grade P5 and above”, detailed the government in its presentation of the bill.
The French in this Lyon office will not have this complete diplomatic immunity
However, for the moment, none of the three officials of grade P5 or above present in Lyon will be able to benefit from these advantages: all three are French, underlines the Senate , yet the text excludes offering these advantages to executives of French nationality or permanently resident in France. These will only benefit from immunity “for official acts performed in the exercise of their functions”. The diplomatic status offers, for its part, an immunity extended to acts of private life.
The genesis of this text is also well before the Covid epidemic- 19. The first exchanges between the international institution and France on this subject date from 2016.
Soon a WHO academy in Lyon?
Why did France accede to this WHO request? A circular from 692 of the Prime Minister of the time, Manuel Valls, “considered that the reception of international organizations on French territory was a priority for the action of the State, in the to the extent that it is now accepted that the benefits of their presence far outweigh the costs, particularly in financial and fiscal terms. ”
The government is also hoping for the establishment of a WHO academy in Lyon after this agreement. This academy “aims to establish in Lyon a benchmark continuous training structure at the global level for health personnel, managers and managers of WHO but also outside WHO”, note the rapporteur of the text, Senator Jacques Le Nay.
However, it will be necessary to wait before to see this new center: the draft agreement does not yet have the force of law. Voted by the senators on 15 December, it’s now the turn of the deputies to vote on it.
Officials working for the WHO enjoy “immunities and privileges”, according to 1346462897141030912 the rules of the organization . These, however, “do not exempt staff members who enjoy them from fulfilling their private obligations or from observing the laws and police regulations in force.” The CEO may decide to waive these benefits.