SECRETARY-GENERAL APPOINTS ADVISORY COMMITTEE ON GENOCIDE PREVENTION

United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan has decided to appoint an Advisory Committee on Genocide Prevention.  The Committee shall provide guidance and support to the work of the Secretary-General’s Special Adviser on the Prevention of Genocide, Juan E. Méndez, and contribute to the broader efforts of the United Nations to prevent genocide.

The Committee will be composed of distinguished individuals with a diversity of backgrounds related to conflict prevention, human rights, peacekeeping, diplomacy and mediation.  It shall be chaired by David Hamburg, President Emeritus of the Carnegie Corporation of New York, and is expected to meet at least twice during the course of the present year, with its first meeting to be held on 19 - 20 June.  In addition to its Chair and Special Adviser Juan E. Méndez, the Committee’s members will be:

Monica Andersson of Sweden, Senior Adviser, Department for International Law, Human Rights and Treaty Law, Foreign Ministry of Sweden;

Zackari Ibrahim of Nigeria, former Minister of State for Foreign Affairs of Nigeria;

Roméo Dallaire of Canada, Canadian Senator and former Force Commander of the United Nations Assistance Mission for Rwanda;

Gareth Evans of Australia, President, International Crisis Group and former Minister for Foreign Affairs of Australia;

Roberto Garretón of Chile, former representative of the High Commissioner for Human Rights for Latin America and the Caribbean and former Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in the Democratic Republic of the Congo;

Sadako Ogata of Japan, co-Chair of the Commission on Human Security and former High Commissioner for Refugees; and

Archbishop Desmond Tutu of South Africa, winner of the Nobel Peace Prize and former Chairman of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission of South Africa.

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For information media • not an official record