Sunday, March 23, 2003

Mark Steyn's website is wonderful! It's especially nice to find all his columns at one site. The link is to his Letter of the Week from Mark Mike which contains a truly astounding quote from Kofi Annan in 1999:
To those for whom the greatest threat to the future of international order is the use of force in the absence of a Security Council mandate, one might ask - not in the context of Kosovo - but in the context of Rwanda: If, in those dark days and hours leading up to the genocide, a coalition of States had been prepared to act in defence of the Tutsi population, but did not receive prompt council authorization, should such a coalition have stood aside and allowed the horror to unfold?

As important as the Council's enforcement power is its deterrent power. Unless it is able to assert itself collectively where the cause is just and where the means are available, its credibility in the eyes of the world may well suffer.

If the collective conscience of humanity - a conscience which abhors cruelty, renounces injustice and seeks peace for all peoples - cannot find in the United Nations its greatest tribune, there is grave danger that it will look elsewhere for peace and justice. If it does not hear in our voices, and see in our actions, reflections of its own aspirations, its needs, and its fears, it may soon lose faith in our ability to make a difference.

0 Comments:

Post a Comment

<< Home