Unlike perhaps most diplomatic events, the discussion during the April 19th session on revitalizing the GA had its moments. Canada reaffirmed its leadership on the issue by elaborating on possible reform and urging practical action. The statement opposed amending Resolution 11/1, suggesting that doing so could divide the membership and weaken the next UNSG’s legitimacy.
But India disagreed forcefully, stating
“Resolution 11/1 of 1st February, 1946 belongs to the past. Let the dead bury the dead…[W]hile the Canadian proposal is undoubtedly fruitful for the future, it is a blind alley for the present.”
The Indian ambassador, Nirupam Sen, suggested that Resolution 11/1 gave undue authority to the Security Council to pick a single nominee for the GA to consider, an authority which compromised the officeholder’s responsibility to a “broader UN membership.” Only through discarding Resolution 11/1 and allowing for multiple nominees presented for “direct and actual election” by the GA could a candidate “have the moral courage to resist pressures” from the P5.
Forceful, indeed. Inspirational even. But changes to Resolution 11/1 are not likely to be welcomed by a majority of the GA this year, let alone acted on by the Security Council.
Regardless of this divisive point, there is no disagreement that the wider process is “very confusing and unclear” (U.S. Ambassador John Bolton) or that the issue is “a matter of concern to many delegations” (Japanese Ambassador Kenzo Oshima).
As discussions get more firmly underway in June or July, the respective presidencies – France and Denmark – may be in a place to implement modest steps forward, such as informal discussions between candidates and regional groups. This single engagement could be implemented this summer with significant impact on the legitimacy of the selection process and of the next UNSG.
The selection process would have been good when it was enunciated in 1945, Sen said. “Today the secretary general has to do much more…and therefore there is a need for a wider base of legitimacy.”
[…] Canada however has rejected calls by India and other developing countries for multiple nominees, as was circulated week, fearing it would split the membership and weaken the UNSG’s authority. A proposal under consideration by the 114-member Non-Aligned Movement at India’s initiative would call on the Security Council to present the General Assembly with a slate of three nominees for UNSG. […]
a curious business. What is Ambassador Sen trying to do here? Is he flying a kite? is he acting on instructions or, as many suggest, on his own initiative? Is this some Brahminical strategy to (a) assert India’s determination to exercise its clout (b) signal India’s disaffection at the failure of its effort to get onto the Security Council or (c) even the playing field for a possible Indian candidacy for the post of SG?
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