Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2004-01-29-Speech-4-119"
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"en.20040129.5.4-119"2
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".
Mr President, it is, on behalf of the Commission, a particular pleasure to be able to say a few words today as the Secretary-General receives the Sakharov Prize on behalf of the United Nations. It is a particular pleasure because it is extremely difficult to recall another occasion on which the aims of an award and its recipient have cohered so perfectly.
I hope that in the months ahead these are arguments that we hear put with compassion and commitment to those who will, I trust, be doing their democratic duty.
Checking the statute of the prize, I found that it can be awarded for particular achievement in any of four fields: defence of human rights and fundamental freedoms, safeguarding the rights of minorities, respect for international law, and the development of democracy and the implementation of the rule of law. By my reckoning, that means we should today be awarding the prize four times over.
It is being given, of course, in memory of Sergio Vieira de Mello, and his life exemplified those values. Its barbaric curtailment leaves the world a good deal poorer. Sergio Vieira de Mello was an extraordinary man. I was privileged to see his work at first hand, in Hong Kong, in Kosovo and in East Timor. He was gallant, he was wise, he was dashing, he was principled and he was immensely effective. We are very fortunate that the UN is blessed with other, equally talented individuals, and is led by one as well.
Kofi Annan has made an immense contribution to furthering the effectiveness of the UN – and its constituent parts – where it matters: on the ground, across the globe. Under his authority, both in overseeing its peacekeeping operations, and subsequently as Secretary-General, the UN has brought protection, comfort and hope to millions. The Secretary-General has done this in the face of unprecedented challenges to the authority and even the fundamental rationale of the organisation. He has consistently risen to and overcome those challenges, unflinching and with his dignity wholly intact.
Right from the start, with the renewal of the United Nations plan for reform, through the review of peacekeeping operations, the Millennium Report, the call to action on HIV/AIDS and the establishment of the current Panel on Threats, Challenges and Change, the Secretary-General has ensured that our collective focus is in the right place at the right time. He does so once again today with his words on our obligation to develop a viable humane approach to asylum and immigration. I make this point as one, like many in this House, who is a descendant of migrants – in my case, of those who fled from the famine and hunger in Ireland in the 19th century to which the Minister referred.
The Secretary-General has reinvigorated the staple work of the UN institutions, the work that is done by those all-too-frequently unsung heroes: promoting economic development, feeding the hungry and educating the world. And he has ensured that this work responds flexibly to challenges never imagined by the founders of the UN: political challenges, military challenges, even medical challenges.
I do not think that it is an exaggeration to say that the Secretary-General’s personality and wisdom exemplify all our warmest and highest aspirations for the institution that he leads, the institution which he has served with such distinction for so many years. Like all Members here today, I salute the UN and I salute the Secretary-General with admiration and humility. I also commend his speech and the sentiments which underpinned it to the elected members of this Parliament and to those who elect them."@en1
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