Diplomats are wading through 250 pages of member states’ suggestions on what should be included in the United Nations’ grandly named “Pact for the Future,” the outcome document of the world body’s equally grandly named “Summit of the Future” this September. A single pact to transform multilateralism and fix the world feels far-fetched, but one useful result could be an endorsement for improving accountability around UN appointments.
The “zero draft” of the pact had this to say in paragraph 118:
“We stress the need for the selection and appointment process of the Secretary-General and other executive heads to be guided by the principles of transparency and inclusiveness.”
The Blue Smoke campaign set out to build on that goal of transparency, providing briefings and feedback to member states on the topic. We’re glad to see several of them pushed for positive changes to the draft text. Looking through the notes, we see that the ACT Group wants the pact to address the issue of monopolies on top UN jobs — a longstanding demand of ours. Making related points, Brazil, El Salvador, Liechtenstein, Malaysia, Mexico, South Africa and the like-minded group (minus five) pushed for references highlighting the need for geographic diversity.
The other groundswell in the draft text is another priority of ours: gender representation in the UN’s top jobs. Colombia, Canada, Israel, Mexico, Malaysia, Brazil, the ACT Coalition, the LMG-5, Liechtenstein and El Salvador all pushed this issue; ACT, Australia and the European Union then suggested that states should be nominating female candidates as a matter of course, particularly for the role of Secretary-General.
What’s up?
Here’s what else has been going on in appointments:
The Victims Rights’ Advocate, Jane Connors, has stood down. Her job was advertised in December and we understand a successor has been chosen but not yet named. This is a vitally important role, supporting survivors of sexual abuse at the hands of UN personnel, particularly peacekeepers, but there have historically been significant limits on what the UN has the resources or the authority to do about the problem — even aside the question of political will — which makes the position exceptionally difficult. We hope the new appointee will show dynamism and creativity in how they engage with victims and their communities.
A credible but unconfirmed rumour reaches us that Atul Khare, under-secretary-general for Operational Support (DOS) has had his contract renewed for two years. Having been in this post or its previous incarnation since the beginning of 2015, Khare is one of only two survivors of the Ban Ki-moon administration in the Senior Management Group, second only in longevity to Miguel de Serpa Soares, who has been under-secretary-general for Legal Affairs (OLA) and UN Legal Counsel for more than 11 years. Khare’s reappointment has apparently provoked strong reactions in DOS — both positive and not so. As PassBlue reported in 2022, he has been perceived by some as having favored Russian aviation providers in his role at DOS amid Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
Embarrassingly, there is still no word about the appointment of an executive director for UN Habitat well over a month after the expiration of the term of the incumbent Guterres rushed out. However, just as last month’s newsletter was published, UN Habitat announced Michal Mlynár, as the acting executive director. Mlynár, a former deputy executive director at UN Habitat, ex-Slovakian ambassador to the UN and a former president of the UN Habitat governing council, would seem eminently qualified. Nevertheless, one would imagine that the states predominantly in the Global South, who supported his predecessor, were not thrilled to see the post go — however temporarily — to a white Western male.
The Economic and Security Council (ECOSOC) still has a vacant seat for Eastern Europe, well over a year into the three-year term that the victor will serve. Russia and North Macedonia remain deadlocked with neither side close to getting the two-thirds majority required to win. You would be forgiven for having missed it (we did too!) but on Dec. 5, another round of elections — the 24th in total — was held. It was just as inconclusive as the prior 23 voting rounds: with 116 votes needed to win, the results were:
• Russia 97
• North Macedonia 76
• Georgia 1
Further balloting to be determined.
Now that the new members of the International Court of Justice have taken their posts, they have elected a president, Nawaf Salam, and a vice president, Julia Sebutinde. The profile of the court has been elevated by the Genocide Convention case that South Africa has brought against Israel regarding their invasion of Gaza. From this perspective, these appointments continue to present the court neutrally. President Salam is from Lebanon, a country where Israel recently launched missiles, but Vice President Sebutinde of Uganda was the only judge to vote against all of the ICJ’s recommended provisional measures in Gaza. She even voted against some measures which Israel’s own judge did not oppose.
The UN Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) has operated under an acting executive secretary for over a year, since the UN Environment Programme hired the previous incumbent. They are in the process of finding a permanent replacement. UNEP creates a shortlist of three from which the Secretary-General selects, in consultation with the 14 states of the CBD bureau. However, some of these states are apparently unhappy with the fairly minimal consultations over the matter.
Exacerbating the issue is that the frontrunner is rumoured to be a senior official from the European Commission, which would give responsibility for this issue to a permanent Executive Secretary from the Global North despite the vast majority of the megadiverse countries being located in the Global South, which has only happened in two of the 31 years of the CBD’s existence. Blue Smoke recently published a report on how, despite the increased impact the UN’s environmental processes have on women and those living in the Global South, in recent decades the seniormost roles in the UN’s four primary environmental entities have been filled by men by 80 percent and 60 percent by individuals from the Global North.
Tips
Do you know something more about who is in the running for any of these posts? Or information about another upcoming appointment? Reach out to us in total confidence at hello@bluesmoke.blog. Any information you give us will only be used on the terms you set.
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