Jordan’s ambassador to the United Nations, Prince Zeid Ra’ad Zeid Al-Hussein, has entered the race to become the next U.N. secretary-general, he said on Tuesday. Zeid becomes the fifth declared candidate to succeed Ghanaian Kofi Annan, who completes his second five-year term at the end of the year. Zeid’s nomination was submitted by Jordan’s government.
The other four candidates are Asians, and most U.N. members say it is Asia’s turn to lead the world body. Jordan is technically a member of the Asian group of countries at the United Nations. The other candidates so far are South Korean Foreign Minister Ban Ki Moon, Shashi Tharoor of India, the U.N. undersecretary-general for public information; Jayantha Dhanapala of Sri Lanka, a former U.N. disarmament official; and Surakiart Sathirathai, Thailand’s deputy prime minister. Source [Reuters]
This is great news and the Prince is well qualified, having earned his BA in Poli-Sci at Johns Hopkins and a PhD in history from Cambridge. He served as Jordan’s deputy permanent representative before his current posting there as the permanent representative. He is the current president was president of the Assembly of States Parties — the management oversight and legislative body of the International Criminal Court — and is a political affairs officer with UNPROFOR in the former Yugoslavia. [There’s more here in Arabic]
I wish him the best of luck. I can’t imagine how happy I will be if he succeeds! He will certainly put Jordan on the global map!
Tommy, you’re like many people I know who pass judgement on any Arab just for being an Arab.
I pass judgements on you because of what you say, not simply because of what you are.
I believe that all humans are equal and that what pisses me off when you trust your government more than you trust the UN.
I’m glad you believe that that all people are equal, Hareega, but I definitely trust my government more than the United Nations. Most Arabs had better trust their own governments more than the United Nations, as well. Even if many Arab governments are dishonest, at least they are capable of exerting themselves in defense of their people. The United Nations is corrupt and ineffectual. The United Nations cannot and will not protect you the way your own government can. Thee United Nations gives nobody any reason to trust them.
I believe the US has taken the role of the UN as the polcieman of the world.
The UN has never demonstrated any capability for “policing” the world.
But Darfur has no oil, so who gives a shit?
Certainly not the Arabs. They weren’t prepared to intervene in Darfur anymore than they were ready to intervene in the former Yugsolavia or Kosovo: conflicts the US helped resolve. Conflicts that involved no oil or great economic interest either. I’m not saying that the Arabs should get involved militarily in Darfur. I don’t think the conflict in Darfur may be particularly amenable to military means from any party. However, it would be nice to see organizations like the Arab League step up to the plate and exert pressure on Sudan to contain the janjaweed rather than playing the role of apologist for Bashir. It would also be nice of the Arab media would devote even a fraction of the attention it devotes to the Palestinians to Darfur for a change.
Regarding American involvement in Darfur: the United States was already involved in Iraq by the time Darfur became an issue.
Tommy, you’re like many people I know who pass judgement on any Arab just for being an Arab. You don’t know me for God’s sake so please don’t pass judegements.
I believe that all humans are equal and that what pisses me off when you trust your government more than you trust the UN. I believe the US has taken the role of the UN as the polcieman of the world. IF they really cared about human lives and human rights as much as you do they should interferred in Darfur and we both know they could have left a huge impact there with a cost not even close to the cost the Amercian people paid for the war in Iraq.
But Darfur has no oil, so who gives a shit?
“no country has broke the UN resolutions more than ISrael did, Iraq doesn’t even come close to Israel in that, and only the US among ALL countries in the world has backed up ISrael in that. The UN position is totally understandable.”
No kidding. The UN is one that passes those resolutions when it should be doing something productive instead of wasting my money as a taxpayer. The fact that out of all the crazy stuff happening in the world they focus
The UN position isn’t understandable as you claim. How you can you say that when you have the Sudan issue, over one billion people in China living under and oppressive government (that occupies Tibet – a people much more peaceful and deserving of nationhood than the Palestinians, IMO), Iran hanging teenage rape victims from cranes, some of the most savage violence in the world occurring in the Congo, Zimbabwe under Mugabe, non-Muslims being oppressed by Muslims in countries ranging from Indonesia to Pakistan to Egypt, and so on?
Hareega, you are typical of so many Arabs I hear. Like them, you are completely oblivious to the suffering of non-Arabs wherever they may be. No wonder the entire Arab world has managed to turn a blind eye to Darfur; they aren’t Arabs so who gives a shit.
Tommy,
no country has broke the UN resolutions more than ISrael did, Iraq doesn’t even come close to Israel in that, and only the US among ALL countries in the world has backed up ISrael in that. The UN position is totally understandable.
No country has supported Al Qaeda and The Islamic movements in Arab countries like the US did in the 1970s and 1980s.
When George W. started the war in Iraq he acted against the will of at least 95% of the world’s population and not only the UN.
It’s not only the UN which is condemning the US foreign policy, it’s the world. Time to accept democracy.
I correct myself: “The Assembly of States Parties is the management oversight and legislative body of the International Criminal Court.” – taken from the ICC website http://www.icc-cpi.int/asp.html. They do actually decided on the budget, but it is misleading to say thet created the court.
is the most difficult job in the world and as the USA and Israel are controlling the UN
You’ve. Got. To. Be. Kidding. Me.
The United Nations is about as anti-American and anti-Israeli as international organizations come. Take the UN Human Rights Commission: the Commission (which i ran by such human rights beauties as Iran, Cuba, and China) does nothing but wag its finger at Israel constantly. (OK. Granted. Once in a while they go after the human rights record of the United States also!) The number of UN resolutions on the book condemning Israel is probably greater than the number condemning all other nations on earth combined.
I believe the United States should withdraw completely from the United Nations and force them to leave New York. They can take up residence in Paris, Tehran, Beijing, Riyadh, Havana, Rangoon, or Mogadishu: all of which are more suited to the United Nations’ ideological bent than New York is.
I’m tired of billions of American dollars being wasted each year on an organization that does nothing but molest kids in Africa, engage in chicanery along the lines of the Oil-for-Food Program, provide terrorists with human shields, and write toothless letters of condemnation and passing one useless resolution after another, while providing corrupt, lazy bureaucrats with hefty paychecks.
Abolish the United Nations!
Dear Natasha, the prince is not the current president of the International Criminal Court; rather he used to be the president of the Assembly of States Parties that created and funds the Court – a post that he has left at the beginning of this year.
This is very difficult for me to say as a pround Jordanian but I hope the prince does NOT become SG! the UNSG is the most difficult job in the world and as the USA and Israel are controlling the UN we will expect more bloodshed and violence in the Arab World in the next decade and I just do not want to have a Jordanian UNSG in that position. I hope John Bolton will become UNSG (he is not Asian, I know) so that will reflect the reality of the UN!
What criteria does the UN set to be a candidate? I might fit !
Prince Zeid bin Ra’ad wants to be the next UN chief, huh?
I don’t know much about him, but why not? Just about anybody would be better at this point than the feckless, incompetent, and corrupt Annan.