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| Mogens Lykketoft |
The General Assembly
president added his voice Tuesday to a push for strong consideration to be
given to women candidates for the top U.N. post as secretary-general. In the U.N.'s 70-year history,
there has never been a female secretary-general, but there is a growing
campaign for Ban Ki-moon's successor to be a woman. He is slated to leave the
job when his second five-year term ends on Dec. 31, 2016.
"I
am absolutely confident that there are any number of potential female
candidates" qualified for the top U.N. job, Assembly President Mogens
Lykketoft told the Security Council.
Associated Press report continues:
"Bearing
in mind that in 70 years the U.N. has never had a female secretary-general, the
inclusion and consideration of woman candidates should be an important focus
for all of us as we ensure that this organization continues to advance gender
equality on all levels," he said.
Making
only the seventh appearance by the leader of the 193-member General Assembly at
the Security Council, Lykketoft said he is moving ahead on measures in the
resolution aimed at making the largely secretive selection of the
secretary-general more open and transparent.
The
U.N. Charter says "the secretary-general shall be appointed by the General
Assembly upon the recommendation of the Security Council." But in the
largely opaque process of choosing the secretary-general, the five permanent
members of the Security Council — the U.S., Russia, China, Britain and France —
have the real power because of their vetoes.
The
General Assembly resolution will allow member states for the first time to see
basic information about all candidates, including their resumes, and to meet
and question them. But it will still be the Security Council, and especially
the permanent members, who make the selection.
Lykketoft
said he and the current rotating president of the Security Council, Spain's
U.N. Ambassador Roman Oyarzun Marchesi, are discussing the first step, the
process of soliciting candidates for secretary-general.
A statement from six
elected council members serving two-year terms — Angola, Chile, Jordan,
Malaysia, New Zealand and Spain — said the council "has been slow" to
engage with the assembly, complaining that this is essential given the call "for
dialogue and a more transparent and inclusive process of decision-making on
this issue."
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