As
Australia
Vies for UN
Council Seat,
New
Zealand Means
Too Much CANZ?
By
Matthew
Russell Lee
UNITED
NATIONS,
May 26 -- For
months
Australia's Permanent
Representative
Gary Quinlan
has been
everywhere at
the UN in New
York, campaigning
against
Finland and
Luxembourg for
two seats on
the
Security
Council for
2013-14.
Now
that New
Zealand has
announced its
campaign for a
seat in the
following two
years,
2015-16, so
far opposing
Spain and
Turkey, some
wonder if this
might have any
impact on
countries'
votes.
As one
diplomat, well
placed Friday
in the UN's
North Lawn
Building, told
Inner City
Press,
"It might be
too much
CANZ." This
refers to the
Canada,
Australia and
New Zealand
grouping.
Could
Australia then
New Zealand
represent
their region
on the
Security
Council for
four
consecutive
years?
Or
might New
Zealand's
candidacy,
called
credible by
range of
diplomats
interviewed by
Inner City
Press, give
secret ballot
voters in
October
a rationale to
go with
Finland and
Luxembourg,
saying they'll
look to
the eastern
part of the
Western Europe
and Other
Group (WEOG) a
mere
two years
later?
In
the interim
the
good-natured
Quinlan has
been in the General
Assembly lobby
delivering a
speech on
indigenous
rights to a
crowd angry
when food
and drink was
cut off.
He
has presided
over the
General
Assembly
during a
session to
condemn Syria,
having studied
up and
prepared for
the variety of
procedural
motions that
his Syrian
counterpart
Bashar
Ja'afari was
predicted to
raise and did.
(Quinlan even
dealt with
some sound
system issues
during that
high-pressure
session.)
Quinlan has
made
Australia's
case, as a
country with
ever
increasing
diversity, a
piece of the
West in the
East, with a
knowledge of
peacekeeping,
using Timor
Leste as his
example.
Finland
too has
been working
hard at UN
Headquarters,
posting
peacekeepers
in
camouflage for
two weeks at
the entrance
to the General
Assembly,
handing out
chocolate bars
emblazoned
with the face
of Martti
Ahtisaari.
Finland's
Permanent
Representative
went beyond
the UN to
appear at an
event in
Chelsea about
new Finnish
design.
Luxembourg's
campaign
has been less
visible in New
York, other
than its
Permanent
Representative
speaking
publicly about
Peacebuilding
and appearing
at
every open
Security
Council
debate. But as
Quinlan has
remarked,
Luxembourg has
engaged in the
ground game,
visiting
capitals.
Others
allude to
promises of
aid, a
traditional
way to garner
votes.
Will
Australia
have to
further pick
up its game,
or respond in
some way, to
New
Zealand's 2015
candidacy?
Watch this
site.
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