Where was Kofi?

[EvilMonkey]

http://www.un.org/apps/news/story.asp?News...Cr=tsunami&Cr1=

 

Annan cuts short holidays to oversee massive UN relief effort after Asian tsunami

 

Kofi Annan

29 December 2004 – Secretary-General Kofi Annan is cutting short his end-of-year holidays to return to United Nations Headquarters in New York tonight to oversee the world body's relief efforts after the devastating tsunami that struck Southern Asia, killing some 80,000 people, injuring hundreds of thousands more and affecting millions.

 

He will meet tomorrow morning with UN Emergency Relief Coordinator Jan Egeland and the heads of other agencies involved in the relief effort, which officials have called unprecedented and possibly the largest ever launched by the world body.

 

Over the past two days, Mr. Annan has spoken to the leaders of the nearly one dozen countries hit by the disaster to see what they need most urgently and has also been in touch with leaders of major donor nations to review the international relief effort and to underscore the UN's coordinating role, his spokesman said today.

 

Earlier today Mr. Annan discussed the situation with United States Secretary of State Colin Powell.

 

In an interview on CNN last night, the Secretary-General called for a generous response to the flash appeal that the UN will launch on 6 January, warning that the emergency relief phase for the catastrophe together with the recovery and the reconstruction phase will require billions of dollars.

 

"The needs are enormous. They need food. They need clean water. They need shelter. They need medication," he said. "We need to begin worrying immediately about the non-food items, sanitation, clean water, to ensure that epidemics do not set in. And so they need lots of help and are looking to the international community to respond and respond generously."

 

 

I guess it took Kofi 3 days to decide top cut his vacation short and do his job or providing relief, which is SUPPOSED to be the one thing that the UN actually does well.

[EvilMonkey]

More great info about the glorious UN.

 

http://news.scotsman.com/latest.cfm?id=3944374

 

5:45pm (UK)

Bush 'Undermining UN with Aid Coalition'

 

By Jamie Lyons, PA Political Correspondent

 

 

United States President George Bush was tonight accused of trying to undermine the United Nations by setting up a rival coalition to coordinate relief following the Asian tsunami disaster.

 

The president has announced that the US, Japan, India and Australia would coordinate the world’s response.

 

But former International Development Secretary Clare Short said that role should be left to the UN.

 

“I think this initiative from America to set up four countries claiming to coordinate sounds like yet another attempt to undermine the UN when it is the best system we have got and the one that needs building up,” she said.

 

“Only really the UN can do that job,” she told BBC Radio Four’s PM programme.

 

“It is the only body that has the moral authority. But it can only do it well if it is backed up by the authority of the great powers.”

 

Ms Short said the coalition countries did not have good records on responding to international disasters.

 

She said the US was “very bad at coordinating with anyone” and India had its own problems to deal with.

 

“I don’t know what that is about but it sounds very much, I am afraid, like the US trying to have a separate operation and not work with the rest of the world through the UN system,” she added.

 

 

Note the line where this idiot said that coalition countries don't have good records on responding to international disasters. What rock does this person live under? And where was the UN's 'moral authority' when Saddam was gassing his own people, Sudan was at civil war, etc?

[LowerCaseRepublican]

Is there anywhere to find out how much vacation time Kofi has taken with his years in service?

 

According to an August 2003 article in the Washington Post, President Bush has spent all or part of 166 days during his presidency at his Crawford, Texas, ranch or en route. Add the time spent at or en route to the presidential retreat of Camp David and at the Bush family estate in Kennebunkport, Maine, and Bush has taken 250 days off as of August 2003. That's 27% of his presidency spent on vacation. Although to be fair, much of this time is classified as a "working vacation."

 

Bush isn't the first president to get away from his work. George Bush Sr. took all or part of 543 vacation days at Camp David and in Kennebunkport. Ronald Reagan spent 335 days at or en route to his Santa Barbara, California, ranch during his eight years in office. Of recent presidents, Jimmy Carter took the least days off -- only 79 days, which he usually spent at his home in Georgia. That's less than three weeks a year, which is closer to the average American's paid time off of 13 days per year.

 

What about Clinton? As of December 1999, President Bill Clinton had spent only 152 days on holiday during his two terms, according to CBS News. A former staffer noted Clinton was such a workaholic that "it almost killed Clinton to take one-week vacations during August." In 2000, Clinton cut his summer vacation short to just three days, so he and his wife could concentrate on her Senate race and fundraising for Democrats. While we couldn't find the exact tally for Clinton's last year in office, it's reasonable to expect he didn't increase his vacation rate. And in barely three years in office, George W. Bush has already taken more vacation than Clinton did in seven years.

 

The UN is a good idea but the security council basically can bend it over whenever it wants so s*** takes forever/doesn't get done.

[LowerCaseRepublican]

And note -- I'm just saying -- if people are going to b**** about Kofi being callous with being on vacation and taking 3 days to come back, they also need to rag on El Presidente and his massive amount of vacation time that he's been taking. Just needed to clarify.

[Flash Tizzle]

United Nations is guily of undermining itself.

 

I don't blame Bush for attempting to assemble an independent coalition. After the Oil for Food Scandal, I'd question UN methods of distributing 350 million.

[NUKE_CLEVELAND]

United Nations is guily of undermining itself. 

 

I don't blame Bush for attempting to assemble an independent coalition.  After the Oil for Food Scandal, I'd question UN methods of distributing 350 million.

 

 

I'm really glad the U.S. is leading the way in getting this relief effort done. It's refreshingly ironic that the U.N., who a few days ago was saying American's were stingy with their aid, is now crying like a little brat that didn't get picked for a pick up basketball game in gym class.

 

Now that the U.S. government and its citizens have provided a sizeable committment of cash and is using the military to deliver relief supplies, provide desperately needed drinking water and help the sick and wounded maybe people will be reminded that the U.S. is still the greatest force for good in the world.

 

BTW. I wouldn't want Kofi Annan touching that relief money either. Saddam Hussein already has several lawyers organizing his defense for nothing, he doesn't need any money siphoned off for a legal defense fund.

[NUKE_CLEVELAND]

And note -- I'm just saying -- if people are going to b**** about Kofi being callous with being on vacation and taking 3 days to come back, they also need to rag on El Presidente and his massive amount of vacation time that he's been taking.  Just needed to clarify. 

 

 

Callous? I didn't think Bush was callous for not interrupting his vacation. I do, however, find it funny though that nobody criticized Annan for taking exactly as long as Bush did to respond.

 

Kofi Annan, callous? No. He's not callous for taking vacation days, he's callous for taking bribes from Saddam Hussein with the same money that was supposed to buy food and medicine for innocent people. That also makes him corrupt and morally bankrupt but I'll stay on topic for now and stick to plain old callous.

[southsider2k5]

United Nations is guily of undermining itself. 

 

I don't blame Bush for attempting to assemble an independent coalition.  After the Oil for Food Scandal, I'd question UN methods of distributing 350 million.

 

And that's just the US donation. The world government pledges are at $2 billion now.

[mreye]

“Only really the UN can do that job,” she told BBC Radio Four’s PM programme.

 

“It is the only body that has the moral authority. But it can only do it well if it is backed up by the authority of the great powers.”

 

Ms Short said the coalition countries did not have good records on responding to international disasters.

 

Huh? LMFAO! Sounds like someone that made a few bucks in the Oil for Food program and is now pissed off she can't get her hands on this money. :fyou