Kofi Annan did nothing to stop the Rwandan massacre in 1994, and now is in charge of peace in Syria.
March, 2004
UN chief’s Rwanda genocide regret
Annan headed UN peacekeepers at the time of 1994 genocide
The United Nations Secretary General Kofi Annan has said he could and should have done more to stop the genocide in Rwanda 10 years ago.
At a memorial conference at the UN, Mr Annan said he realised he personally could have done more to rally support for international efforts to stop it.
“The international community is guilty of sins of omission,” Mr Annan said.
The genocide – in which some 800,000 people died – occurred when Mr Annan was head of UN peacekeeping forces
Rwandans have accused the peacekeepers who were there at the time of failing to protect them.
One survivor, Specios Kenya Bugoi, described how 4,000 Tutsis took shelter close to Belgian troops hoping to be safe.
Speaking through an interpreter she described how the troops left and the killings began.
“During that massacre I lost my husband, members of my family, all of my friends, neighbours,” she said.
“I slept among the cadavers for the whole night.”
In April 2000 the UN Security Council admitted responsibility for failing to stop the genocide.
BBC NEWS | Africa | UN chief’s Rwanda genocide regret
Having failed to do anything useful in Rwanda, the UN decided to let him do the same thing to Syria.
Former U.N. chief Kofi Annan was this year picked to lead a joint ceasefire mission with the Arab League to Syria and has been negotiating with the Syrian regime for several months.
Earlier, the EU’s Foreign Policy Chief Catherine Ashton said “the continuing violence is appalling,” and that the EU will continue to support Annan “for as long as he wishes to continue” it. However, others were more concerned about the progress of the Annan mission.
Belgian Foreign Minister Didier Reynders expressed frustration with the amount of time the Annan mission to Syria was taking and said it was time to reopen the debate about a humanitarian corridor into Syria with some military presence.
“We support the mission of Kofi Annan but it has begun to be very long now without any ceasefire. And so I’m sure that we need to do more and maybe we’ll go back to the humanitarian corridor,” he told reporters before a meeting of EU foreign ministers.
3rd UPDATE: EU Agrees New Syria Sanctions,Some Worry On Annan Mission – WSJ.com