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What's up Mr. Annan?
by Thanos Kalamidas
2007-04-30 10:07:47 |
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The best way to start this is with a scream! But let me rephrase it: the former General Secretary of the United Nations Kofi Annan warns that the aid targets for Africa “will be missed” unless more is done. This is the part you start screaming.
Mr. Kofi Annan was UN Secretary General for two terms and his last day at the office was just four months ago, so except the usual P.R. and preparing for his new job, which will definitely be properly rewarded, what else did he do? I could have thought of other ways to phrase my question…but let’s stick with this one.
In an article just before his retirement from the UN I had emphasized that nothing much happened while he was the General Secretary, on the contrary. During his period with all the economic scandals and involvement of UN officials to other black holes, including sex scandals in Serbia and Croatia, the UN lost everything that had been built, or at least the last pieces of the dreams that were built after WWII.
What followed? Countries started totally ignoring the UN, with USA invading Iraq, Ethiopia invading Sudan and the number of dead increasing dramatically on a daily base. 30,000 kids die every bloody day and Mr. Kofi Annan you are partly responsible for that. The time the UN was the most important institution was just before George W. Bush and Tony Blair started spinning their WMD myths, you were doing politics and that was for one very good reason: You were trapped inside a cyclone of financial scandals that touched your inner circle.
How many genocides happened during your time Mr. Kofi Annan? And when you had the possibility to do something you wasted your time going after Milosevic to satisfy your political agenda with the Europeans and the Americans. You left countries like Zambia, Ivory Coast, Niger, well the list is endless, to musicians and Hollywood stars. The truth Mr. Annan is that Bono and Bob Geldof did more than you for Africa and the nations that die over there.
Mr. Annan, nations die from a lack of water and HIV, things you could do something to help but even when the African countries were asking for cheaper HIV medication you were balancing between the chemical industry and the interests of the American and European countries that host this industry. In a few words: You failed Mr. Annan and I hope you can hear the 30,000 kids that die every single day screaming at you.
And you are coming now, with only four months since your replacement started his PR games to point out mistakes? Please tell me what are you going to do that you didn’t do during the decade you had the power?
Not that I expect any answer but reading this: "Unless we step up our efforts we will not make the target," Mr Kofi Annan, has set up a panel to assess the West's aid pledges to Africa and made his comments at a high-level meeting in Berlin to discuss the matter. In 2005, rich nations pledged to increase aid for developing countries by $50bn (£24.9bn), and eliminate debt of the 18 poorest nations in Africa. Again, if I remember well, the only one who talks about the African debt over the last decades is Bono, so, thinking about it, I might have found out what Mr. Annan’s next position is: the lead singer of U2!
Ovi_magazine Thanos_Kalamidas Ovi-lehti UN Current |
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