UNITED NATIONS (UNITED STATES) (AFP) -
New
Zealand's former prime minister Helen Clark on Monday entered the race
to be the next UN secretary-general, touting her decades of leadership
as she aims to become the first woman to head the world body.
The
search for a successor to Ban Ki-moon comes at a time of high anxiety in
global affairs as the United Nations grapples with the biggest refugee
crisis since World War II and raging conflicts in the Middle East and
Africa.
"I am putting myself forward based on proven leadership
experience over close to three decades, both in my own country and here
at the United Nations," Clark told AFP in an interview, ending months of
speculation.
"I do think I have the experience and the attributes to do this job."
Currently
the UN's highest-ranking woman, Clark heads its largest agency, the UN
Development Programme (UNDP), a post she has held for the past seven
years, overseeing the world body's vast development agenda.
New
Zealand formally put forward Clark, one of the most experienced women in
global politics, as its candidate at a press conference in Wellington.
"Having
served as the prime minister of New Zealand for nine years and held one
of the top jobs in the United Nations for the past seven, Helen Clark
has the right mix of skills and experience for the job," Prime Minister
John Key said.
"There are major global challenges facing the world
today and the United Nations needs a proven leader who can be pragmatic
and effective.
"Coming from New Zealand, Helen Clark is well placed to bridge divisions and get results. She is the best person for the job."
- 'Very challenging outlook' -
The
66-year-old former academic is among New Zealand's longest-serving
prime ministers, having headed the government for three successive terms
from 1999 to 2008.
Next week, the UN General Assembly will hold
public hearings for the candidates for the first time in the United
Nations' 70-year history, with the race still wide open months before a
vote.
Other than Clark, seven candidates including three women are
vying for the top job. The candidates include UNESCO chief Irina Bokova
of Bulgaria and the former High Commissioner for Refugees, Antonio
Guterres, of Portugal.
Clark would become the first woman to lead
the United Nations, after eight men in the top job -- although she
downplayed her gender as a factor in her candidacy.
"I'm not
putting myself forward because I'm a woman. I'm putting myself forward
because I think I'm the best person for the job," she said.
"I happen to be a woman with a strong track record."
"I've given it a lot of thought," Clark said of her candidacy. "I think we face a very, very challenging world outlook."
- New approaches -
The
United Nations has come under heavy fire over its failure to reform,
with critics arguing it is ill-adapted to respond to evolving global
crises.
Clark pointed to those shortcomings during the interview,
saying she was "extremely keen" to steer the world body towards a more
effective approach to addressing what she termed a "different kind of
conflict."
Today's warfare is about "civil wars, disparate
non-state actors. It's violent extremism. This requires new approaches,"
she said.
Turning to the UN bureaucracy, Clark called for reform
to turn the world body -- with its 40,000-plus employees and annual
budget of over $8 billion -- into a more "pro-active organization."
"We can be a clunky, old-fashioned-style administration," she acknowledged.
"I'm known for being a pragmatic, task-focused and results-oriented person."
UN
diplomats see Clark as a prominent candidate for the top post, but it
remains unclear how much support she will be able to garner from the
permanent Security Council members: Britain, China, France, Russia and
the United States.
Russia has said that the next secretary-general
should come from eastern Europe, the only region that has yet to be
represented in the top job.
Britain has said it would back a woman to be the world's top diplomat.
After
public hearings are held in the General Assembly beginning next week,
the Security Council is expected to select the winning candidate in
July, who would then be endorsed by the assembly.
The successful candidate will begin work on January 1, 2017.
by Carole Landry
© 2016 AFP
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