U.N. urged to end 'secret deals, horse trading' in Chief's selection

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U.N. urged to end 'secret deals, horse trading' in Chief's selection

The U.N. must abandon the "secret deals and horse trading" that govern the selection of its Secretary-General and replace them with a fair and transparent process that ensures the best candidate gets the job, according to a coalition of NGOs, U.N. associations and former U.N. officials.

The signatories of an open letter to member states argue that, given the array of current crises, the selection of Ban Ki-moon's successor as head of the U.N. in 2016 will be one of the organisation's most important decisions over the next decade.

"The new Secretary-General will have to address a world confronted with increasingly dangerous civil wars, humanitarian and environmental disasters, terrorism, regressive development, economic and financial turmoil, and inequality," they write. "The need for global leadership and international cooperation is greater than ever."

Significantly outdated
But, they add, the procedure for choosing a Secretary-General — adopted in 1946 — is "significantly outdated" and incompatible with selecting the best candidate.

Under the existing rules, the members of the U.N. Security Council debate the candidates before nominating one and recommending them for appointment by the U.N. General Assembly. However, the process allows any of the five permanent members of the Security Council — China, France, Russia, the U.K. and the U.S. — to veto any candidate. Convention also decrees that there cannot be two consecutive Secretaries-General from the same region.

The letter's signatories, including Amnesty International, Avaaz, Civicus and the World Federation of United Nations Associations, want all U.N. members to be involved in the search for, and appointment of, future leaders.

Under the banner of the 1 for 7 Billion campaign, they are calling for "an end to the secret deals and horse trading that see five countries hold sway over an appointment that affects all the world's people".

They are also urging the U.N. to come up with an official shortlist, and to hold open sessions in which all states can question the nominees.

Sir Brian Urquhart, who served as personal assistant to the first Secretary-General, Trygve Lie, and was instrumental in the development of the organisation's peacekeeping force, has long argued for the system to be overhauled. The current U.N. Deputy Secretary-General, Jan Eliasson, acknowledged the importance of the debate, adding: "I think one should try to be as universal as possible."
U.N. urged to end 'secret deals, horse trading' in Chief's selection - The Hindu

There is no doubt that the best candidate should be selected in a fair and transparent manner.

The current system is heavily tilted to the selection by the Big 5 with a fraudulent cover of democracy.

Under the existing rules, the members of the U.N. Security Council debate the candidates before nominating one and recommending them for appointment by the U.N. General Assembly. However, the process allows any of the five permanent members of the Security Council — China, France, Russia, the U.K. and the U.S. — to veto any candidate. Convention also decrees that there cannot be two consecutive Secretaries-General from the same region.

That is why West oriented people have found their way as the Secretary General wherein decisions are guided to the designs of the West and then vetoed by Russia or China leading to making the UN a toothless animal of no import.