TRIBUTES
are flowing for the United Nations’ high-profile and well-respected
former Secretary-General, Kofi Annan, who has died.
He was founder and
Chairman of the Kofi Annan Foundation, which issued a statement on
social media, saying: “It is with immense sadness that the Annan family
and the Kofi Annan Foundation announce that Kofi Annan, former Secretary
General of the United Nations and Nobel Peace Laureate, passed away
peacefully on Saturday 18th August after a short illness...”
“His wife Nane and their children Ama, Kojo and Nina were by his side during his last days,” it said.
“Wherever
there was suffering or need, he reached out and touched many people
with his deep compassion and empathy. He selflessly placed others first,
radiating genuine kindness, warmth and brilliance in all he did.”
The
United Nations Migration Agency confirmed his death in a tweet, saying:
“Today we mourn the loss of a great man, a leader, and a visionary:
former @UN Secretary General @KofiAnnan. A life well lived. A life worth
celebrating.”
United
Nations chief Antonio Guterres voiced deep sorrow at the news his
predecessor had passed away, calling him “a guiding force for good”. “Kofi Annan was a guiding force for good,” Guterres said in a statement shortly after news broke of Annan’s passing.
“In many ways, Kofi Annan was the United Nations. He rose through the
ranks to lead the organisation into the new millennium with matchless
dignity and determination,” he added.
Business magnate Sir Richard Branson also tweeted that the world will be a “poorer place” without Annan.
German Chancellor Angela Merkel says Annan “inspired me and many others with his ideas, his firm convictions and, not least, his charisma.” Ms Merkel says in a statement that Annan shaped the United Nations “like hardly anyone before him” and said that “he knew how to spark enthusiasm, particularly among young people.”
Ms Merkel added that “in our present time, in which the common search for solutions to global problems is more urgent than ever, we will greatly miss Kofi Annan’s voice.”
Kofi Annan was a popular and unifying figure who quickly became a familiar face on television and in newspaper headlines. He was a sought-after guest at gala events and New York dinner parties.
The UN high commissioner for human rights Zeid Ra’ad Al Hussein said he was grief-stricken over Annan’s death.
“Kofi was humanity’s best example, the epitome, of human decency and grace. In a world now filled with leaders who are anything but that, our loss, the world’s loss becomes even more painful,” he said.
“He was a friend to thousands and a leader of millions.”
His home country of Ghana has now declared a week of mourning after his death.
Describing Annan as a “consummate” diplomat, Ghana’s Presdient Akufo-Addo said in a statement that Ghana was “deeply saddened” by news of his death.
EARLY LIFE AND CAREER
Mr Annan was born in Kumasi, Ghana, on April 8, 1938. He studied at the University of Science and Technology in Ghana and completed his undergraduate work in economics at Macalester College in St. Paul, Minnesota in 1961.
From there he did his graduate studies at the Institute of International Affairs in Geneva, and in 1972 earned a Master of Science degree at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology’s Sloan School of Management.
He is fluent in English, French and a number of African languages. He went on to meet his wife, Nane, and they had three children Ama, Kojo and Nina.
He
was the first Secretary-General to be appointed from within the
organisation’s ranks. He first joined the UN in 1962 as an
administrative and budget officer with the World Health Organisation in
Geneva,
He later served with the Economic Commission for Africa in Addis Ababa, the UN Emergency Force (UNEF II) in Ismailia, the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) in Geneva.
Before he went on to be Secretary-General, he was Under-Secretary-General for Peacekeeping. Mr. Annan also served as Special Representative of the Secretary-General to the former Yugoslavia (1995-1996), and facilitated the repatriation from Iraq of more than 900 international staff and other non-Iraqi nationals (1990).
HIS UN ACHIEVEMENTS
Mr Annan pushed for reform to rebuild the United Nations and make it more effective.
He made sure that UN peacekeepers had more resources. In 2005, Member States established two new intergovernmental bodies: the Peacebuilding Commission and the Human Rights Council.
Mr Annan also had a pivotal role in setting up the Global Fund to fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria, the adoption of the UN’s first-ever counter-terrorism strategy, and the acceptance by Member States of the “responsibility to protect” people from genocide, war crimes, ethnic cleansing and crimes against humanity.
His “Global Compact” initiative back in 1999, has become the world’s largest effort to promote corporate social responsibility.
In 1998, he helped to ease the transition to civilian rule in Nigeria. In that same year, he went to Iraq to try and solve a breakdown in talks with the Security Council in relation to weapons inspections to avoid further war and destruction.
In 1999, he was a key figure in helping Timor-Leste gain independence from Indonesia.
He was the diplomat behind certifying Israel’s withdrawal from Lebanon in 2000, and in 2006, his efforts helped bring peace between Israel and Hezbollah.
HIS AWARDS
Annan was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize along with the UN in 2001 “for their work for a better organised and more peaceful world”.
He has also received numerous honorary degrees and many other national and international prizes, medals and honours.
LIFE AFTER THE UN
Mr Annan’s role as an advocate for human rights did not stop. He helped negotiate an end to violence in Kenya that killed 1,220 people after the African nation’s December 2007 election. He also went on to work within the Kofi Annan Foundation as Chairman. He was also chair of The Elders, the group founded by Nelson Mandela.
He was a Chairman of the Africa Progress Panel and led the Alliance for a Green Revolution in Africa.
In
February 2012, he was tasked with bringing a resolution to the Syrian
crisis after being appointed as joint UN and Arab League envoy.
He later resigned in August of that year.
At
the time, former UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon issued a statement
saying: “Kofi Annan deserves our profound admiration for the selfless
way in which he has put his formidable skills and prestige to this most
difficult and potentially thankless of assignments. He has worked within
the mandate provided to him by the General Assembly and with the
co-operation of various Member States.”
HIS BRUSH WITH HOLLYWOOD
Mr Annan met many Hollywood stars who have pledged their support to global fights against war, poverty and other initiatives for change.
U2 frontman Bono was photographed with Mr Annan when he gave a banner representing a petition signed by 21 million people to Nigeria’s president in 2000. Bono was delivering a message from 21 million people who had signed the petition to end global debt.
Later,
Mr Annan was seen with Bono and then-Live8 organiser Bob Geldof before a
meeting at the G8 Summit in Gleneagles, Scotland in 2005.
Mr
Annan’s wife was also right by his side during his time at the UN,
where she helped present Angelina Jolie with her United Nations
Correspondents Association Citizen of the World award in 2003.
Australia’s
own Nicole Kidman also met Mr Annan and his wife at the premiere of her
movie in 2005, The Interpeter, which featured her taking on the role of
an interpreter for the UN.
Mr
Annan also filmed a scene with the Muppet character "Elmo" during a
taping of Sesame Street in New York in 2001. At one point Annan offered
Elmo a job at the UN and Elmo asked if he could win a Nobel prize, too.
Mr Annan's taping came a few days before he was to accept the 100th Nobel Peace Prize on December 10.
Former
world heavyweight champion Muhammad Ali also met Mr Annan while he was a
United Nations Messenger of Peace. This 1998 file footage shows him
receiving the dove of peace from Mr Annan.
“His wife Nane and their children Ama, Kojo and Nina were by his side during his last days,” it said.
UN
Secretary General Kofi Annan waves after delivering his final speech to
the 61st session of the UN General Assembly in New York in 2006.
Picture: AFPSource:AFP
Today we mourn the loss of a great man, a leader, and a visionary: former @UN Secretary General @KofiAnnan.— IOM - UN Migration (@UNmigration) August 18, 2018
A life well lived. A life worth celebrating. pic.twitter.com/z51WTB4Y65
German Chancellor Angela Merkel says Annan “inspired me and many others with his ideas, his firm convictions and, not least, his charisma.” Ms Merkel says in a statement that Annan shaped the United Nations “like hardly anyone before him” and said that “he knew how to spark enthusiasm, particularly among young people.”
Ms Merkel added that “in our present time, in which the common search for solutions to global problems is more urgent than ever, we will greatly miss Kofi Annan’s voice.”
Kofi Annan was a popular and unifying figure who quickly became a familiar face on television and in newspaper headlines. He was a sought-after guest at gala events and New York dinner parties.
Former UN General Secretary Kofi Annan and his wife Nane in 2013. Picture: AFPSource:AFP
“Kofi was humanity’s best example, the epitome, of human decency and grace. In a world now filled with leaders who are anything but that, our loss, the world’s loss becomes even more painful,” he said.
“He was a friend to thousands and a leader of millions.”
His home country of Ghana has now declared a week of mourning after his death.
Describing Annan as a “consummate” diplomat, Ghana’s Presdient Akufo-Addo said in a statement that Ghana was “deeply saddened” by news of his death.
EARLY LIFE AND CAREER
Mr Annan was born in Kumasi, Ghana, on April 8, 1938. He studied at the University of Science and Technology in Ghana and completed his undergraduate work in economics at Macalester College in St. Paul, Minnesota in 1961.
From there he did his graduate studies at the Institute of International Affairs in Geneva, and in 1972 earned a Master of Science degree at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology’s Sloan School of Management.
He is fluent in English, French and a number of African languages. He went on to meet his wife, Nane, and they had three children Ama, Kojo and Nina.
Former
United Nations Secretary General Kofi Annan and his wife, Nane, visit
the paediatric Service of the Zinder Hospital in Zinder, Niger, in 2005.
Picture: APSource:AP
He later served with the Economic Commission for Africa in Addis Ababa, the UN Emergency Force (UNEF II) in Ismailia, the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) in Geneva.
Before he went on to be Secretary-General, he was Under-Secretary-General for Peacekeeping. Mr. Annan also served as Special Representative of the Secretary-General to the former Yugoslavia (1995-1996), and facilitated the repatriation from Iraq of more than 900 international staff and other non-Iraqi nationals (1990).
Former
UN Secretary General Kofi Annan & wife Nane outside the United
Nations New York headquarters in 1998 following successful negotiations
in Baghdad. Picture: AFPSource:AFP
Mr Annan pushed for reform to rebuild the United Nations and make it more effective.
He made sure that UN peacekeepers had more resources. In 2005, Member States established two new intergovernmental bodies: the Peacebuilding Commission and the Human Rights Council.
Mr Annan also had a pivotal role in setting up the Global Fund to fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria, the adoption of the UN’s first-ever counter-terrorism strategy, and the acceptance by Member States of the “responsibility to protect” people from genocide, war crimes, ethnic cleansing and crimes against humanity.
United
Nations Secretary General Kofi Annan being escorted by USA soldiers
upon his arrival in Baghdad, Iraq 12 Nov 2005. Picture: AFPSource:AFP
In 1998, he helped to ease the transition to civilian rule in Nigeria. In that same year, he went to Iraq to try and solve a breakdown in talks with the Security Council in relation to weapons inspections to avoid further war and destruction.
Former
UN Secretary General Kofi Annan being greeted by United Nations staff
in lobby of the Secretariat building in New York after his Iraq deal
averted threat of war. Picture: APSource:AP
He was the diplomat behind certifying Israel’s withdrawal from Lebanon in 2000, and in 2006, his efforts helped bring peace between Israel and Hezbollah.
Kofi Annan with former Palestinian (PLO) leader Yasser Arafat at Gaza city in 2000. Picture: APSource:AP
Annan was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize along with the UN in 2001 “for their work for a better organised and more peaceful world”.
He has also received numerous honorary degrees and many other national and international prizes, medals and honours.
Director
General of the The Norwegian Nobel Committee, Gunnar Berge, awards Kofi
Annan with the 2001 Nobel Peace Prize in Oslo. Picture: AFPSource:AFP
Queen
Elizabeth II investing the former Secretary-General of the United
Nations Kofi Annan with an honorary Grand Cross of the order of St.
Michael and St. George knighthood at Buckingham Palace in 2007. Picture:
APSource:AP
Mr Annan’s role as an advocate for human rights did not stop. He helped negotiate an end to violence in Kenya that killed 1,220 people after the African nation’s December 2007 election. He also went on to work within the Kofi Annan Foundation as Chairman. He was also chair of The Elders, the group founded by Nelson Mandela.
Former
South Africa president Nelson Mandela is reunited with The Elders, who
included former secretary-general of the UN Kofi Annan. Picture: APSource:AP
Former
UN Secretary General Kofi Annan and founder of Live 8 charitable
foundation and former rock star Bob Geldof launch the Africa Progress
Report in Addis Ababa, on May 11, 2012. Picture: AFPSource:AFP
He later resigned in August of that year.
Syrian
President Bashar Assad, right, meets with Kofi Annan, the United
Nations special envoy to Syria, in Damascus, Syria, on Saturday March
10, 2012. Picture: APSource:AP
Russian
President Vladimir Putin with former UN-Arab League special envoy and
peace mediator Kofi Annan during their meeting in central Moscow.
Picture: AFPSource:AFP
Former UN Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon meets with former UN-Arab League Joint Special Envoy for Syria Kofi Annan. Picture: AFPSource:AFP
Mr Annan met many Hollywood stars who have pledged their support to global fights against war, poverty and other initiatives for change.
U2 frontman Bono was photographed with Mr Annan when he gave a banner representing a petition signed by 21 million people to Nigeria’s president in 2000. Bono was delivering a message from 21 million people who had signed the petition to end global debt.
U2
frontman Bono with Nigerian President Olusegun Obasanjo and former
United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan at a UN summit in 2000.
Picture: GettySource:Getty Images
Kofi Annan shows the way to U2 singer Bono, left, and Live8 organiser Bob Geldof. Picture: APSource:News Limited
Angelina Jolie receiving her United Nations Correspondents Association Citizen of the World award from Nane Annan. Picture: APSource:AP
Nicole
Kidman with Kofi Annan and his wife Nane, at the premiere of her latest
film The Interpreter at the Ziegfeld Theatre in New York City in 2005.
Picture: GettySource:AFP
Mr Annan's taping came a few days before he was to accept the 100th Nobel Peace Prize on December 10.
Kofi Annan laughs as he films a scene with the Muppet character "Elmo". Picture: APSource:AP
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BOXING: Muhammad Ali Named United Nations Messenger of Peace in 1998 File September 15
There wasn’t one leader that Mr Annan probably didn’t meet or at least brush shoulders with during his time at the UN.
From US Presidents including George W. Bush and Bill Clinton, to former British Prime Minister Tony Blair, and even Australia’s former Prime Minister John Howard also met him during his long list of global meetings.
Former President Bill Clinton, the United Nations special envoy for tsunami recovery, meets Kofi Annan in 2005. picture: APSource:AP
Britain's
former Prime Minister Tony Blair greeting former Secretary General Kofi
Annan, outside No 10 Downing Street in London in 2003. Picture: AFPSource:AFP
Former
UN Secretary General Kofi Annan greets President George W Bush at
United Nations headquarters in New York in 2003. Picture: APSource:AP
The leaders at the summit seeking to end violence in West Bank & Gaza Strip. Picture: AFPSource:AFP
Pope John Paul II converses with Kofi Annan. Picture: AFPSource:AFP
The service is the largest annual inter-faith gathering in the UK.
Former United Nations secretary general Kofi Annan with Queen Elizabeth II in 2016. Picture: GettySource:Getty Images
In February 2000, Mr Annan made his first trip to Australia, where he made a first stop to Darwin to thank the city for its role in bringing order and stability to East Timor.
he then went on to see Mr Howard in Canberra with former Foreign Minister Alexander Downer. They discussed the UN leaving East Timor.
Former
Governor-General Sir William Deane with former UN Secretary-General
Kofi Annan at Government House in Canberra in 2000. Picture: SuppliedSource:News Limited
Mr Howard told reporters he had indicated to Mr Annan it was necessary for all of the UN Member States to look forward in relation to the post-conflict period in Iraq.
FEBRUARY
21, 2000 : Prime minister John Howard (L) with UN Secretary General
Kofi Annan during joint press conference at Parliament House in
Canberra, 21/02/00. Pic John Feder.Source:News Corp Australia
“We want to see the affairs of Iraq handed back to the Iraqi people as soon as practicable,” Mr Howard said.
“We want to see the emergence of a free and open government that is responsive to the wishes of the people of Iraq and I think all of the efforts of the world community should be directed towards that.”
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