Some of the world’s most recognisable and respected international figures have warned that the United Nations will struggle to remain “credible” unless it transforms the way it elects its secretary general.
Pressure to ease the stranglehold of the five permanent members of the UN security council – the UK, the US, China, Russia and France – is being stepped up this weekend, as the organisation marks its 70th anniversary on Saturday.
The Elders, a group of international statesmen formed by Nelson Mandela, including former US president Jimmy Carter and former UN secretary general Kofi Annan, have released a video setting out their new proposals.
Instead of the current system, under which the five permanent member states nominate one name for the UN assembly to vote on, they want the assembly to be given three names from which to choose. The next secretary general is due to be chosen next year.
Speaking for the group, Hina Jilani, a Pakistani human rights lawyer and activist, says: “This is an infinitely demanding job and an important one. If we are to make the UN in any way credible then we have to make sure that the choice, the selection process of the secretary general, is firstly transparent, it’s inclusive, and it’s a kind of means to strengthening the UN bodies themselves.”
The Elders also want future secretary generals to serve only one seven-year term, instead of standing for re-election after five years, to make them more independent.
“[The secretary general] could do the best he could and not be striving to get votes from the five permanent members who are going to say who’s going to be the next secretary general,” says Carter.
The video revives criticisms that the current system makes it less likely the UN executive will stand up to the permanent members.
“It’s to some extent a process that doesn’t look for the best person. They are looking for more the secretary than the general,” says Mary Robinson, the former Irish president and UN human rights commissioner.
The current UN secretary general, Ban Ki-moon, was criticised prior to his election in 2007 for being a “faceless” bureaucrat, though he has taken a strong lead on issues such as climate change, especially in persuading the US and China to curb global warming emissions.
Traditionally, no UN general secretary has served more than two terms, or 10 years.
Other members of the Elders include co-founder Graça Machel, who was the first education minister of Mozambique in 1975; former Finnish president and Nobel peace prize winner Martti Ahtisaari; and South African archbishop emeritus Desmond Tutu. The advisory board includes Virgin tycoon Sir Richard Branson, and a representative of the United Nations Foundation.
