UNITED NATIONS EXPRESSION OF HUMAN FAITH, CONFIDENCE IN FUTURE, SAYS SECRETARY-GENERAL, ACCEPTING BONINO PRIZE
Press Release
SG/SM/6206
UNITED NATIONS EXPRESSION OF HUMAN FAITH, CONFIDENCE IN FUTURE, SAYS SECRETARY-GENERAL, ACCEPTING BONINO PRIZE
19970415 Following is the statement of Secretary-General Kofi Annan upon receiving the Bonino Prize from the Bonino-Pulejo Foundation in Messina, Italy, on 13 April 1997:I deeply appreciate the honour you have done me by awarding me the International Bonino Prize. I thank all those involved. But I do not consider this to be an award for me alone. I should like to suggest that, through me, this prize is a tribute to the United Nations Organization as a whole -- to all those who, across the world, work in the service of peace, development, democracy and human rights. So not simply the person of the Secretary-General, but the whole staff of the United Nations is receiving this honour today.
The opening words of the United Nations Charter are: "We, the Peoples of the United Nations." This is the clearest possible statement that the United Nations does not belong to States alone. It is part of the common heritage of all of humankind. It belongs to everyone. For each and every one of us, it is a unique institution, a mechanism which links us all in our efforts to build a better world. It is an expression of human faith and confidence in the future.
We live in an era in which international affairs are no longer dominated by States as the sole actors. The participants include non-governmental organizations, national parliaments, private companies, the mass media, universities, intellectuals, artists, and every woman and every man who considers him or herself to be part of the great human family.
That is how I see the philosophy of the Bonino-Pulejo Foundation and the meaning of the international prize you have awarded to me today. As I cast my eye over the prestigious former laureates of your Foundation, I can see in a list of achievers in the fields of science, and the arts, people who have dedicated themselves to the international community.
Perhaps I could single out the name of my immediate predecessor, Maestro Riccardo Muti. I have always looked on the symphony orchestra -- because of its nature and composition -- as the microcosm of the perfect society. And I
have to tell you -- in confidence -- that I am somewhat envious of Riccardo Muti for the way in which, apparently without effort, he has total mastery over his orchestra and all the musicians that make it up, and for his capacity to bring forth such perfect harmony from them. If I possessed such a talent, I could make good use of it in an Organization of 185 Member States.....
Be that as it may, I must say again that I am encouraged and supported by the award of this prize. As I have said, the United Nations can do nothing and is nothing unless it is fully supported by international public opinion. I thank the Chairman of the Foundation, Antonio Calarco, and the members of the Board, as well as the authorities of the University of Messina. And I thank all of you who, through your support and your generosity, have made possible this celebration of the United Nations Organization.
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