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The neighborhood bully
The long fight for the rotating Latin American seat on the Security Council finally ended, as it was bound to, with Venezuela and Guatemala backing down in favor of a compromise candidate, Panama. Though Guatemala led by around 25 votes through most of the 47 ballots, it never approached the two-thirds General Assembly majority needed for a non- permanent Council seat.Panama is a respectable choice. What made this election noteworthy was that the main issue - in fact the sole issue - was the United States. Venezuela's claim to a seat was based on President Hugo Chávez's posturing as a resolute enemy of President George W. Bush; Guatemala was forced to fight a defensive battle against the fact that it was Washington's preferred candidate. Curiously, the longest-ever election process for a seat on the Security Council was also for the Latin American slot - a 155-round marathon in 1979 between Cuba and Colombia in which the United States was also the featured bad guy, and from which Mexico emerged the winner. The difference is that back then the Cold War was in full swing, and ideology determined what side you were on. Today, America's poor standing is based in considerable part on the Bush administration's proudly flaunted disdain for the opinion of the world, an attitude aptly represented in the person of John Bolton, the U.S. ambassador to the United Nations. That said, the fact that Guatemala handily out-polled Venezuela in all but one round (a tie) showed that a solid majority of the world's nations recognize Chávez for the grandstander he is and are not fooled by his anti-American bluster. All he succeeded in doing in the end was to deny Guatemala, a small country, its turn in the international limelight. Panama and Venezuela have been on the Security Council four times each, Guatemala never. That's pretty dismal for a self-styled champion of the little guy. Posted by: ryuge 2006-11-06 |
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