United Nations Archives - Page 2 of 5 - Commonwealth Oral History Project

Interview with Mark Robinson

by chrismoffat | Jul 15, 2015 | Apartheid, CHOGM, Civil Society, Commonwealth Secretariat, Development, Diplomacy, Education, Elections, Falklands Islands, Foreign and Commonwealth Office, Grenada, Kenya, Malta, Namibia, Palestine, Papua New Guinea, Queen, Rhodesia (see also Zimbabwe), South Africa, Technical Assistance, Trinidad and Tobago, Uganda, United Kingdom, United Nations, Zambia, Zimbabwe (see also Rhodesia)

Download Interview Transcripts: Part One (17 July 2013); Part Two (8 August 2013); Appendix One (on Belize). Biography: Robinson, Mark. 1946- . Born in Bristol, England. Educated at the University of Oxford. Special Assistant, United Nations Emergency Relief Operation...

Interview with Madhuri Bose

by chrismoffat | Jul 13, 2015 | Bangladesh, Cameroon, CHOGM, Civil Society, Commonwealth Secretariat, Democracy, Development, Education, Elections, Human Rights, India, Kenya, Mozambique, United Nations

Download Interview Transcript. Biography: Bose, Madhuri. Educated at the Graduate Institute of International and Development Studies, Geneva. Positions with the Centre for Human Rights, Geneva, late 1970s, and with the International Labour Organisation, United...

Interview with Max Gaylard

by chrismoffat | Jun 29, 2015 | Apartheid, Australia, CHOGM, Commonwealth Secretariat, Diplomacy, Elections, Human Rights, Kenya, Malaysia, Mozambique, Nigeria, Papua New Guinea, Sierra Leone, Small States, South Africa, Technical Assistance, United Nations, Zimbabwe (see also Rhodesia)

Download Interview Transcript: Part One (7 May 2014); Part Two (6 August 2014). Biography: Gaylard, Maxwell. 1946- . Born in Nambour, Queensland, Australia. Educated at the University of Queensland and the Australian National University. Served in the Australian...

Interview with Carolyn McAskie

by chrismoffat | Jun 8, 2015 | Canada, Commonwealth Secretariat, Development, Diplomacy, India, Kenya, South Africa, Sri Lanka, Technical Assistance, Uganda, United Nations

Download Interview Transcript. Biography: McAskie, Carolyn. Born in Glasgow, Scotland. Joined the Canadian civil service in 1968. Assistant Director of Finance and Personnel, Commonwealth Secretariat, 1975-80. Canadian High Commissioner to Sri Lanka and the Maldives,...

Interview with Dave Steward

by chrismoffat | May 5, 2015 | Angola, Apartheid, Canada, Cold War, Constitutional Change, Diplomacy, Namibia, Race, Rhodesia (see also Zimbabwe), South Africa, Sport, United Nations, USA, Zimbabwe (see also Rhodesia)

Download Interview Transcript. Biography: Steward, Dave. 1945- . Born in Nairobi, Kenya. Educated at the University of Stellenbosch, 1962-65. Joined the South African Department of Foreign Affairs in 1966. Ambassador to the United Nations in New York, 1981-82. Policy...

Interview with Farooq Sobhan

by chrismoffat | Mar 10, 2015 | Australia, Bangladesh, CHOGM, Decolonisation, Diplomacy, India, Malaysia, New Zealand, Non-Aligned Movement (NAM), Pakistan, Rhodesia (see also Zimbabwe), Sri Lanka, Trade and Investment, United Nations, Zambia, Zimbabwe (see also Rhodesia)

Download Interview Transcript: Part One (19 November 2014); Part Two (5 January 2015). Biography: Sobhan, Farooq. 1940- . Born in Calcutta and graduate of the Universities of Dhaka and Oxford. Deputy Permanent Representative of Bangladesh to the United Nations in New...

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Definitioner

Farooq Sobhan

Farooq Sobhan (b.1940) is a Bangladeshi diplomat who served as Foreign Secretary of Bangladesh from 1995 to 1997. He was previously Ambassador to China (1987-90), and High Commissioner to Malaysia (1984-87) and India (1992-95). Sobhan was candidate for the position of Commonwealth Secretary General in 1999.

James Jonah

James OC Jonah (b.1934) is a Sierra Leonean civil servant and diplomat who spent more than three decades working for the United Nations Secretariat in New York. He retired in 1994 as Under-Secretary-General for Political Affairs, returning to New York as Sierra Leone’s permanent representative to the UN (1996-98) and later serving as Minister of Finance, Development and Economic Planning (1998-2001).

Ramphal Institute

The Ramphal Institute is a not-for-profit organisation established in honour of the former Commonwealth Secretary General Sir Shridath Ramphal in 2008. Based in London, UK, the Institute focuses its work on developing knowledge and education practices around social, economic, governance and environmental policy areas, for the benefit of the 54 states of the Commonwealth of Nations.

Ramphal Commission on Migration and Development

The Ramphal Commission on Migration and Development was a two year initiative headed by the Hon PJ Patterson, former Prime Minister of Jamaica, and funded by the Ramphal Institute from 2009 to 2011. The Commission produced a report – ‘People on the Move: Managing migration in today’s Commonwealth’ – and completed advocacy work with member states to promote the benefits of international migration for economic and social development.

SAFTA (South Asian Free Trade Area)

The South Asian Free Trade Area (SAFTA) was established in 2004 at the 12^th SAARC summit in Islamabad, Pakistan. The SAFTA agreement was signed by the foreign ministers of Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan and Sri Lanka and aims to create a free trade area among the 1.6 billion people in this region.

Asian Development Bank

The Asian Development Bank (ADB) is a regional financial institution with headquarters in Metro Manila, Philippines. Established in 1966, its stated aim is to facilitate economic development in Asia. It counts 67 countries as members, with 48 of these from within Asia and the Pacific region.

ADB (Asian Development Bank)

Amartya Sen

Amartya Kumar Sen (b.1933) is an Indian economist and philosopher who was awarded the Nobel Prize for Economics in 1998. He is Thomas W Lamont Professor and Professor of Economics and Philosophy at Harvard University, and previously served as Master of Trinity College, Cambridge, UK, and Chancellor of Nalanda University, India.

South Asia Regional Fund

The South Asia Regional Fund (SARF) is a development fund established in 1997 at the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting in Edinburgh. It is managed by the Commonwealth Development Corporation (CDC), based in Mauritius, and aims to promote growth through direct equity and equity-related investments in private sector companies operating in South Asia.

Commonwealth Private Investment Initiative

The Commonwealth Private Investment Initiative (CPII) was launched by the Secretariat in 1995 to promote emerging markets and small economies to commercial investors. Four regional funds were established for Africa, the Caribbean, the Pacific and South Asia. The CPII sought to challenge conventional notions of risk in South-South and North-South partnerships, promoting development among member countries. The initiative was renewed in 2005 with ‘CPII2’.

Rahul Bajaj

Rahul Bajaj (b.1938) is an Indian businessman and political figure. He is chairman of the Indian conglomerate Bajaj Group, founded by his grandfather Jamnalal Bajaj in 1926. Bajaj was elected to the Rajya Sabha (upper house of Indian Parliament) in 2006.

Lord Cairns

Simon Dallas Cairns, 6^th Earl Cairns, (b.1939) is a British businessman who has held high-level appointments with SG Warburg & Co, Mercury Securities, BAT plc and Allied Zurich.

Simon Cairns (Lord Cairns)

Simon Dallas Cairns, 6^th Earl Cairns, (b.1939) is a British businessman who has held high-level appointments with SG Warburg & Co, Mercury Securities, BAT plc and Allied Zurich.

Commonwealth Business Council

The Commonwealth Business Council (CBC) was formed at the 1997 Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting in Edinburgh, United Kingdom, with an aim to promote global trade and investment across the Commonwealth of Nations. Acting as a bridge between governments and the private sector, the CBC promoted the liberalisation of services and regional economic integration. Dissolving in 2014, its final Director General was Peter Callaghan.

Modi

Narendra Damodardas Modi (b.1950) is an Indian politician and leader of the Bharatiya Janaa Party (BJP). He was elected Prime Minister of India in 2014, having previously served as Chief Minister of Gujarat (2001-14).

BJP

The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) is one of the two largest political parties in Indian national politics, along with the Indian National Congress. It was founded in 1980 and grew out of opposition to the Congress-led ‘Emergency’ suspension of democratic rule in the late 1970s. The BJP is closely aligned with the right-wing Hindu nationalist organisation Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh.

Morshed Khan

Morshed Khan (b.1940) was Foreign Minister of Bangladesh from 2001 to 2006. He had previously served as a Special Envoy of the Prime Minister of Bangladesh in the 1990s, and, prior to joining politics, Khan was a successful businessman in mobile phone, automotive and financial industries.

Pranab Mukherjee

Pranab Kumar Mukherjee (b.1935) is an Indian political figure who became President of India in July 2012. He was Minister of Defence (2004-06), Minister of External Affairs, (2006-09), and Minister of Finance (2009-12) under Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, having previously served in the cabinets of PV Narasimha Rao during the 1990s and Indira Gandhi in the 1980s.

SAARC

The South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) was established in 1985 to coordinate economic, political and socio-cultural interaction across the South Asian region. Its eight member countries include: Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan and Sri Lanka. It is head-quartered in Kathmandu, Nepal.

Commonwealth Smart Partnership

The Smart Partnership initiative was adopted by Commonwealth heads of state at the 1995 CHOGM and is linked to the Commonwealth Partnership for Technology Management (CPTM) and other technical assistance programmes. Its inaugural summit was hosted by Mahathir bin Mohamad at Langkawi in Malaysia. See also the ‘Langkawi International Dialogue’ (LID).

Noordin Sopiee

Tan Sri Dr Mohammad Noordin Sopiee (1944-2005) was a Malaysian academic and chairman of the Institute of Strategic and International Studies (ISIS), a leading think tank in Malaysia established in 1983. Prior to his involvement with ISIS, Sopiee was editor-in-chief of the New Straits Times.

South Centre

The South Centre is an intergovernmental organisation established in 1995 and head-quartered in Geneva, Switzerland. The Centre grew out of the 1987 South Commission, an initiative chaired by Julius Nyerere and sponsored by several non-aligned countries, and carries on the Commission’s remit to analyse the particular development problems facing countries in the South and provide intellectual and policy support for developing countries.

South Commission

The South Commission was established in 1987 during a meeting of non-aligned countries in Harare, Zimbabwe. Chaired by Julius Nyerere and with Manmohan Singh as Secretary General, the Commission was tasked with analysing those particular challenges facing countries in the South. In 1990, it produced the influential report ‘The Challenge to the South’, responding in part to the fallout of the 1983 Brandt Commission report. The Commission led to the establishment of the South Centre - an international think tank head-quartered in Geneva - in 1995.

Economic Cooperation among Developing Countries

The promotion of ‘Economic Cooperation among Developing Countries’ (ECDC) is a central principle of the Group of 77 countries, providing the focus for a number of conferences and collaborative activities, notably the 1981 Caracas Programme of Action on ECDC and the 1986 Cairo Declaration.

ECDC (Economic Cooperation among Developing Countries)

Small Island Developing States

The Small Island Developing States (SIDS) are a group of developing countries recognised as a distinct group by the United Nations, initially at the UN Conference on Environment and Development in 1992. Group activity among the SIDS has been defined by the 1994 Barbados Programme of Action, which focuses on sustainable development.

Group of 77

The Group of 77 is a coalition of United Nations member states, primarily composed of developing nations, who collaborate in UN negotiations to promote their collective economic interests. The Group was founded on 15 June 1964 at the UN Conference on Trade and Development.

G-77 (Group of 77)

New International Economic Order

The New International Economic Order (NIEO) was a proposal set forth by a group of developing countries in 1974 to the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development. It focused on issues of trade, development assistance, tariff reductions in developed countries and was intended to revise the dominant ‘Bretton-Woods’ economic order that was perceived to disproportionately benefit the United States.

NIEO (New International Economic Order)

Institute of Strategic and International Studies

The Institute of Strategic & International Studies (ISIS) Malaysia was established in 1983 as an autonomous, not-for-profit research organisation and has become one of Malaysia’s most influential think tanks, especially respected on issues of diplomacy and foreign affairs.

ISIS (Institute of Strategic and International Studies)

Vajpayee (Atal Bihari Vajpayee)

Atal Bihari Vajpayee (b. 1924). Indian Statesman. As a member of the Bharatiya Janata Party, he was briefly Prime Minister in 1996, and again 1998-2004.

Michael Frendo

Michael Frendo (b. 1955). Former Maltese politician. As a member of the Nationalist Party, he was Minister of Foreign Affairs 2004-08. He has also been a member and Chair of CMAG.

APEC

Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) was established in 1989 and is a forum seeking to promote free trade and economic cooperation in the Asia-Pacific region.

Jim Bolger

James “Jim” Bolger (b. 1935). New Zealand politician and member of the National Party. He was Prime Minister 1990-97, and leader of the opposition, 1986-90.

World Bank

The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development. An international institution, founded in 1944, that funds development projects

United Nations. Major international organisation, founded in 1945.

Ninian Stephen

Sir Ninian Stephen (b. 1923). Australian jurist and the 20th Governor-General of Australia (1982-1989).

Millbrook Declaration

The Millbrook Declaration (1995) is a Commonwealth policy programme, announced at the end of the New Zealand CHOGM. It was designed to uphold the Harare Declaration (1991). Click here to read the Declaration in full.

Arnold Smith

Arnold Smith (1915 –1994). Canadian diplomat, the first Commonwealth Secretary-General (1965–1975).

Manmohan Singh

Manmohan Singh (b. 1932). Indian politician and economist, he served as Prime Minister from 2004 to 2014.

Kamalesh Sharma

Kamalesh Sharma (b. 1941). Indian diplomat, Commonwealth Secretary-General from 2008-2016.

Security Council

A body, part of the United Nations organisation, charged with upholding of global peace and security.

SADC

Southern African Development Community (SADC). An international organisation founded in 1992, and a successor to the Southern African Development Coordination Conference, founded in 1980. Goal to encourage socio-economic cooperation and integration among southern African states.

Sonny Ramphal (Shridath Ramphal)

Shridath Surendranath 'Sonny' Ramphal (b. 1928). Guyanese politician, second Commonwealth Secretary-General (1975-1990).

Cyril Ramaphosa

Cyril Ramaphosa (b. 1952). South African politician and trade union leader.

OECD

Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development. An global economic organisation of 34 countries to promote economic progress and international trade, founded in 1961.

Julius Nyerere

Julius Nyerere (1922-1999). Tanzanian politician and President (1961-1985).

Non-aligned movement

An international organisation of countries that are not aligned with any manjor world power, founded in 1961.

Nehru (Jawaharlal Nehru)

Jawaharlal Nehru (1889-1964) was an Indian politician and prominent leader in the Indian National Congress-led movement for independence from colonial rule. He served as India's first Prime Minister from 1947 to his death in 1964. Nehru was also a key figure in the Non-Aligned Movement, present at its founding in Belgrade in 1961.

NAFTA

The North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) is a trilateral trade agreement signed by Canada, Mexico and the United States and designed to eliminate tariffs and other barriers to economic cooperation. NAFTA came into force in 1994.

Robert Mugabe

Robert Mugabe (b.1924). Zimbabwean resistance leader and politician. Served as Prime Minister (1980-1987) and President (1987-) of Zimbabwe.

Don McKinnon

Sir Donald McKinnon (b. 1939) is a New Zealand politician who served as Deputy Prime Minister for the National Party (1990-96), Foreign Minister (1990-99) and Secretary General of the Commonwealth of Nations (2000-08).

Nelson Mandela

Nelson Mandela (b. 1918). South African anti-apartheid campaigner and politician, served as South Africa’s first post-apartheid President (1994-1999).

Dr Mahathir (Mahathir bin Mohamad)

Dr Mahathir bin Mohamad (b. 1925). Malaysian politician and Prime Minister (1981-2003).

Kuala Lumpur in 1989

The eleventh Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting.

Kenneth Kaunda

Kenneth Kaunda (b.1924). Zambian politician and President (1964-1991).

IMF

International Monetary Fund. Created in 1944 at the Bretton Woods Conference, the International Monetary Fund (IMF). The IMF's original aim was to stabilise exchange rates and aid national reconstruction after the end of the Second World War.

Sheikh Hasina

Sheikh Hasina (b. 1947). Bangledeshi politician and Prime Minister (1996-2001, 2009-).

Malcolm Fraser

Malcolm Fraser (b. 1930). Prime Minister of Australia (1975-1983). Fraser also served as Co-Chairman of the Commonwealth Eminent Persons Group on South Africa.

FCO

Foreign and Commonwealth Office. British government department with responsibility for relations with other countries. Created in 1968 from the merger of the Foreign Office and the Commonwealth Office. Often called 'the Foreign Office'.

European Union. International organisation of European states. Known as the European Economic Community before 1993.

ECOWAS

Economic Community of West African States. An international organisation founded in 1975.

East African Community

The East African Community (EAC) was founded in 1967 to strengthen ties between five countries in the African Great Lakes region - Burundi, Kenya, Rwanda, Tanzania and Uganda - via a common market, a common customs tariff and a range of public services. Disagreements among the members caused the group to dissolve in 1977, but the EAC was reformed in 2000. A new customs union was established in 2005.

Durban Summit

The 1999 Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting, held in Durban.

Delhi in 1983

The Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting was held in New Delhi in 1983.

Commonwealth Secretariat

The Commonwealth Secretariat is the principal inter-governmental body of the Commonwealth, responsible for promoting cooperation between members. Founded in 1965.

ComSec (Commonwealth Secretariat)

The Commonwealth Secretariat is the principal inter-governmental body of the Commonwealth, responsible for promoting cooperation between members. Founded in 1965.

CMAG

Commonwealth Ministerial Action Group. Established by Commonwealth Heads of Government in 1995, the CMAG upholds the terms of the Harare Declaration.

Commonwealth Foundation

The Commonwealth Foundation is a Commonwealth organisation founded in 1965 to promote the growth of professional organisations and exchange of skills, and now pursuing a broader developmental agenda.

Commonwealth Fund for Technical Co-operation

The Commonwealth Fund for Technical Co-operation (CFTC) is an organisation administered by the Commonwealth Secretariat that delivers technical assistance to Commonwealth member countries. A mutual and voluntary fund, it was established in 1971.

CFTC (Commonwealth Fund for Technical Co-operation)

CHOGM

Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting. Every two years Commonwealth heads of government meet to discuss global and Commonwealth issues, with the aim of promoting common initiatives.

Lord Carrington (Peter Carrington)

Peter Carrington, 6th Baron Carrington (b. 1919). British politician and member of the Conservative party. He was Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs (1979-82) and 6th Secretary General of NATO (1984-88). In 1979 he chaired the Lancaster House conference.

CARICOM

Caribbean Community. In 1972, Commonwealth Caribbean leaders at the Seventh Heads of Government Conference agreed to transform the Caribbean Free Trade Association (CARIFTA) into a Common Market and establish the Caribbean Community, of which the Common Market would be an integral part. The treaty establishing the Caribbean Community was signed at Chaguaramas on 4 July 1973.

Tony Blair

Tony Blair (b. 1953). British politician, served as Prime Minister from 1997 to 2007.

ASEAN

The Association of Southeast Asian Nations. Formed in 1967, the Association of Southeast Asian Nations is a political and economic organization of Southeast Asian countries.

Apartheid

A system of legally enforced racial segregation implemented and upheld by the National Party in South Africa from 1948 – 1994

ABC countries

Within the Commonwealth, Australia, Britain and Canada.

Abacha (Sani Abacha)

General Sani Abacha (1943-1998). Nigerian army general and politician. He was the de facto President of Nigeria from 1993 to 1998.

Mrs Thatcher (Margaret Thatcher)

Margaret Thatcher (1926-2013). British politician and Prime Minister (1979-1990).

Interview with Mark Robinson

Interview with Madhuri Bose

Interview with Max Gaylard

Interview with Carolyn McAskie

Interview with Dave Steward

Interview with Farooq Sobhan

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