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| International-UN-NGOs |
| 'World's conscience' retires from UN relief role |
| 2006-12-09 |
| JAN Egeland has a piece of advice for his successor as he finishes his job as the United Nations Emergency Relief Co-ordinator. Never ask the question: "Can it go wrong?" "Of course it can go wrong. When diplomats ask that question, they do not do anything. They do nothing. You have to ask the question: 'Can it go well?' " Mr Egeland has been called the "world's conscience". He has certainly raised the profile of the job, using his experience as a television reporter to harness the media to prod and poke reluctant governments to move. His description of Western governments as stingy after the 2004 tsunami set off an international debate and may have contributed to the eventual outpouring of generosity from governments and individuals. He is unapologetic about his forthrightness. "The whole point is not to please member states, or people in positions of power. The whole point is to help the voiceless or the dispossessed." |
| Posted by:Fred |
| #8 Is there a way to request my tsunami money back. I truly feel for the people of Indonesia, but when you've got smart-@ss former reporters running the show, I don't agree to give them money on merit alone. |
| Posted by: BA 2006-12-09 22:45 |
| #7 By the writer, who's apparently made of cotton and stuffing & resides on the end of Mr. Egeland's right arm. |
| Posted by: Mitch H. 2006-12-09 11:50 |
| #6 Mr Egeland has been called the "world's conscience". Really? By who? |
| Posted by: tu3031 2006-12-09 11:34 |
| #5 Mr Egeland has been called the "world's conscience". Not by me he hasn't. I prefer "jackass". |
| Posted by: JerseyMike 2006-12-09 11:23 |
| #4 Actually, it'd be nice to see the door give him a skull fracture and subdural hematoma on the way out... |
| Posted by: M. Murcek 2006-12-09 08:04 |
| #3 don't let the door hit you in the ass, Jan |
| Posted by: Frank G 2006-12-09 05:49 |
| #2 "using his experience as a television reporter" Well shit, that explains everything. |
| Posted by: .com 2006-12-09 03:17 |
| #1 "The whole point is not to please member states, or people in positions of power. The whole point is to help the voiceless or the dispossessed." Like the people of Darfur, or Christians of Dar el Islam? How about Jews dispossed from MME? Russians driven from the Mulsim republics of the former Soviat Union? Tibetans? |
| Posted by: gromgoru 2006-12-09 01:37 |