Honouring Boutros Boutros-Ghali, General Assembly Says Former Secretary-General Instrumental in Shaping United Nations Response to Post-Cold War Realities
The General Assembly held a plenary meeting this morning to pay tribute to the memory of the United Nations’ sixth Secretary-General, Boutros Boutros-Ghali.
In his tribute to Mr. Boutros-Ghali, who passed away two days ago, Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon applauded him for guiding the United Nations through the tumultuous early 1990s and helping shape the Organization’s response to post-cold war realities. As the first African and Arab Secretary-General, he had broken barriers and consistently given voice to the poorest and least powerful members of the human family. Also, he had steered the Organization through a series of global conferences on the environment, population, human rights, women’s rights, social development and the unique challenges faced by the world’s small island developing States. Those gatherings had captured the imagination and given the world exciting new policies, directions and purpose, he said, stressing that the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development owed much to the pioneering intellectual work of the 1990s.
Describing Mr. Boutros-Ghali as a memorable leader who rendered invaluable services to world peace and international order, Mr. Ban said the former Secretary-General had overseen remarkable growth in peacekeeping. His “Agenda for Peace” report had made far-reaching proposals for fortifying that flagship United Nations activity. During his time in office, peacekeeping operations had helped Cambodia, El Salvador, Mozambique and other countries emerge from conflict. Among other things, Mr. Boutros-Ghali had pursued major restructuring efforts and managerial reforms that had strengthened the United Nations. In his report “An Agenda for Democratization”, he had broken new ground in emphasizing the links between peace, development and democracy at the national level. While he was too direct for some and too independent for others, Mr. Ban thanked his predecessor for his lasting contribution and called upon all to continue to build on his legacy.
Speaking on behalf of the President of the General Assembly, Marlene Moses said Mr. Boutros-Ghali had held office during a period of great change and great challenges. Taking over after the fall of the Berlin Wall, the former Secretary-General had worked relentlessly to reform the Organization and manage its response to appalling crises in Europe, Africa and beyond. Expressing her condolences to Mr. Boutros-Ghali’s family, and to the people and Government of Egypt, she paid tribute to him for doing the most difficult job in the world.
Also speaking was the representative of Egypt, who said the death of Mr. Boutros-Ghali was a huge loss for his country and the United Nations family. As a proud Arab and African, he had dedicated his life to achieve international peace and development, leaving a political legacy to Egypt. To consolidate his office’s independency, he had worked tirelessly and paid a high price for that. He had seen the United Nations as an indispensable forum to advance the common goals of mankind and had believed in the power of multilateral diplomacy.
The representative of Swaziland, speaking on behalf of the African States, said Mr. Boutros-Ghali had been a great source of pride for his continent. His landmark “Agenda for Peace” still guided United Nations work in peace operations today, he said, adding that, as the United Nations implemented the findings of several recent reviews of peacekeeping and peacebuilding, it would undoubtedly build on Mr. Boutros-Ghali’s legacy. Quoting from the former Secretary-General’s address on the occasion of the fiftieth anniversary of the United Nations, he said Mr. Boutros-Ghali had foretold the challenges of globalization and fragmentation, alarming environmental events and a global communications revolution.
The representative of the United States, speaking on behalf of the host country, said that, while her Government and the United Nations had had their differences during Mr. Boutros-Ghali’s term of office, the United States nonetheless recognized the former Secretary-General’s greatness. Among other major contributions, he had proposed an ambitious reform plan that some said had “breathed new life into the United Nations”. Advancing such an ambitious agenda was never easy. Nevertheless, Mr. Boutros-Ghali had made a profound and lasting contribution to peace and global prosperity. In honouring his legacy, the international community should redouble its efforts to those ends.
A number of subsequent speakers said that Mr. Boutros-Ghali’s term of office had been marked by a resurgence of multilateralism following the end of the cold war and by an unprecedented demand for United Nations services. His legacy was a source of deep reflection on the evolution of the United Nations over the last 25 years, some said, adding that his perseverance and commitment to service deserved the world’s admiration and respect. Others recalled that, as Secretary-General, Mr. Boutros-Ghali had shown no hesitation in posing “tough questions” to Member States, and that he had shaped the way in which the Organization addressed conflicts by introducing the concept of post-conflict peacebuilding.
Also paying tribute to the former Secretary-General were the representatives of India on behalf of the Asia-Pacific States, Armenia on behalf of the Eastern European States, Uruguay on behalf of the Latin American and Caribbean States, Liechtenstein on behalf of the Western European and other States, and Lebanon on behalf of the Arab States. The representative of the International Organization of La Francophonie delivered a statement as well.
The next meeting of the Assembly will be announced.