HEADQUARTERS PRESS CONFERENCE BY AFRICAN AMBASSADORS TASK FORCE

Secretary-General Kofi Annan's unanimous reappointment by the Security Council, six months before his first term expired, was an unprecedented honour, Ambassador Roble Olhaye of Djibouti, Chair of the African Ambassadors Task Force, told correspondents at a Headquarters press conference this morning. 

"We are extremely elated", Ambassador Olhaye said, "and we are very grateful to all members of the Council for their smooth and speedy action, and to the wider membership for their steadfast and unambiguous support for Mr. Annan, as demonstrated by their standing ovation this morning at the General Assembly" during that body's endorsement of the reappointment.

The Task Force was created to oversee and monitor developments related to the candidacy of the Secretary-General for a second term.  Also participating in this morning's briefing were Ambassador Roland Yao Kpotsra of Togo, Ambassador Martin Belinga Eboutou of Cameroon, Ambassador Noureddine Mejdoub of Tunisia, Ambassador Arthur C.I. Mbanefo of Nigeria, Ambassador Nana Effah-Apenteng of Ghana, Ambassador Anund P. Neewoor of Mauritius and Ambassador Daudi Ngelautwa Mwakawago of the United Republic of Tanzania.

"Given the overwhelming goodwill and trust this gentle, calm, soft-spoken and unassuming individual has generated", Ambassador Olhaye explained, the group announced its decision to urge Mr. Annan to consider a second term on 15 March 2001.  In the months since, they had been working tirelessly to promote his reappointment among Member States.  The membership had responded favourably because Mr. Annan exemplified civility, savvy, grace, dignity, and equanimity of mind.  "The world is fortunate to have his stewardship at this time of great change", he said.

A correspondent asked what issues the Secretary-General should be handling more assertively, now that he had been reappointed and was free from certain political pressures.  Ambassador Mwakawago of Tanzania said Mr. Annan could adhere more strictly to the tenets of the Millennium Declaration, while the Ambassador of Ghana, Mr. Effah-Apenteng, said he would have to focus more energy on the AIDS crisis, especially in Africa, as well as on implementing the recommendations of the Brahimi panel on peacekeeping.  Ambassador Olhaye pointed to reform of the United Nations system as an ongoing priority.

Another correspondent asked the panel their thoughts on the upcoming conference against racism.  The Tunisian Ambassador, Mr. Mejdoub, said that young people should be educated in a culture of tolerance.  Ambassador Neewoor of Mauritius thought racism was closely related to the kind of ethnic divide that had been seen in the Balkans, and which was a matter of urgent concern.

When the panel was asked what kind of support the Secretary-General should receive from Africa in his second term, Ambassador Mbanefo of Nigeria clarified the fact that the Task Force had supported him not for what he could do for Africa in particular, but for his service to the entire international community.  The Ambassador of Tanzania said that the upcoming African Union meeting in Lusaka,

Zambia, would be an opportunity for African nations to strategize with the Secretary-General on how best to address African concerns.  At the end of the day, he said, the primary responsibility lay with the leaders and peoples of the countries themselves.

Replying to a question on Mr. Annan's role in ending African conflicts, Ambassador Olhaye said that the Secretary-General had been heavily engaged in the issue, driving home the message that "Africa matters".   He had galvanized the Security Council and entire membership into paying attention to Africa.  "Its conflicts are no longer orphan conflicts", he said.

The Ambassador of Ghana said there had been tremendous improvement in the situations of Sierra Leone, the Democratic Republic of the Congo and even Burundi, but the solution of most of those conflicts depended on the countries and their leaders.  Of course, Nelson Mandela had been involved in finding a solution to the conflict in Burundi.  Similarly, the Secretary-General could play a supporting role in ending conflicts, but as an individual, he could not actually solve them.

Thanking the correspondents for having provided comprehensive coverage of their activity, he declared the goals of the Ambassador's group accomplished. 

"Our task force is over and will now self-destruct", he said.

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