H.M. to receive U.N. lifetime achievement award from Kofi

The Bangkok Post, Friday 26th May 2006

"United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan will today present His Majesty the King with the United Nations development award which will be the highlight of his official visit to Thailand. Mr Annan, who arrived in Bangkok last night from Vietnam, will present the UNDP Human Development Lifetime Achievement Award to His Majesty at Klai Kangwon Palace in the resort town of Hua Hin, Prachuap Khiri Khan.

The award is to recognise the King's dedication to improving the lives of the Thai people. It will be the first time that the award will be conferred on an individual, according to the United Nations Information Service. ''His Majesty the King has worked tirelessly to improve the lives of the poor. This award honours his assiduous dedication to the well-being of the people of Thailand recognised the world over,'' said Joana Merlin-Scholtes, the resident representative of the UN Development Programme, in the statement.

Mr Annan will deliver an opening speech with Privy Council chairman Prem Tinsulanonda at a discussion on the King and human development at the Foreign Ministry today. UN reform, the candidacy of caretaker Deputy Prime Minister Surakiart Sathirathai for the UN secretary-general's post, a Thai proposal to be a regional disaster relief centre and the situation in Burma will likely top the agenda during talks today with caretaker Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra, according to Foreign Ministry spokesman Kitti Wasinondh.

The talks will take place at Government House before his departure for Hua Hin for an audience with the King.

Mr Thaksin will also reiterate Thailand's interest in and readiness to become a regional disaster relief centre because of its facilities and experience in handling natural catastrophes such as the tsunami, the spokesman said. Over the past two years, the Thaksin administration has pushed for the country to become a regional centre for the tsunami early warning system in the Indian Ocean and Southeast Asia by allotting seed funds of US$10 million (380 million baht) as a trust fund to be managed by the UN Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific. The two leaders will also likely discuss other global issues, including Iran, the spread of avian flu and disaster management, Mr Kitti said. Thailand's role in the UN-led peacekeeping mission in East Timor and Thailand's engagement with Burma could be raised by the UN chief, sources said.

Thailand is Mr Annan's last stop on his trip to Australia, South Korea, Japan, China and Vietnam"

The world's 'Development King'
UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan gave a speech at a high-level panel discussion on 'His Majesty the King and Human Development' at the Foreign Ministry yesterday, excerpts of which are published here By KOFI ANNAN

"Your Excellency, Ladies and Gentlemen, later today I will have the honour to present the United Nations Development Programme's inaugural Human Development Lifetime Achievement Award to His Majesty King Bhumibol Adulyadej. I feel especially privileged to do so on the 60th anniversary of His Majesty's accession to the throne. For the United Nations, this ceremony has special significance for another reason as well: it marks the very first time that we recognise outstanding contributions to development through this award.

Human development, reduced to its essence, is a very simple concept: it is about empowering people. Not the few, not even the many, but all people. It is about empowering them through education, through opportunity, through health care and nutrition. It is about empowering individuals with choices so that they may live healthy, knowledgeable and creative lives.

Human development puts the individual at the centre of development. It emphasises economic growth and sustainability, human rights and security, equity and political participation. The United Nations prioritises such development at the very centre of its agenda, and we put tremendous effort into promoting it. We do it through UNDP's global and national Human Development Reports. We do it through the development work of UN Country Teams in 166 countries across the world. And we do it through this award.
After all, if human development is about putting people first, there can no better advocate for it than His Majesty.

At his coronation in 1946, His Majesty uttered the famous Oath of Accession: ''We shall reign with righteousness, for the benefit and happiness of the Siamese people.'' Ever since, His Majesty has lived this Oath, selflessly devoting his time and efforts to the wellbeing and welfare of the people of Thailand, regardless of their ethnicity, religion or legal status. As the world's ''Development King'', His Majesty reached out to the poorest and the most vulnerable people of Thailand, listened to their problems, and empowered them to take their lives into their own hands.

His Majesty's rural development projects have benefited millions of people across Thailand. They have prompted small-scale agriculture; appropriate farming technologies; sustainable use of water resources; conservation; and flood and drought mitigation. In northern Thailand, His Majesty's rural development initiatives have helped reduce opium harvests through crop substitution. At the same time, these projects have improved access to health care and education for the local population, and brought significant benefits to the ethnic groups living in the mountainous region along the Myanmar and Lao borders.

His Majesty's active support for a wide range of social causes has proved crucial to their success. From promoting child health to combating iodine deficiency, from campaigning against disease to increasing access to education, programmes supported by His Majesty have an impact on the everyday lives of millions of his subjects. At the same time, His Majesty's visionary thinking has helped shape the global development dialogue.

His Majesty's ''Sufficiency Economy'' philosophy emphasising moderation, responsible consumption, and resilience to external shocks is of great relevance to communities everywhere during these times of rapid globalisation. The philosophy's ''middle path'' approach strongly reinforces the United Nations' own advocacy of a people-centred and sustainable path toward human development. His Majesty's development agenda and visionary thinking are an inspiration to his subjects, and to people everywhere.

With today's Award, we hope to further promote the ideas and experiences of His Majesty's work, and to help draw attention to their underlying thinking well beyond the borders of the Kingdom of Thailand.

For His Majesty's extraordinary achievements and deep and unwavering commitment to human development, this afternoon it will be my great honour to present to His Majesty the UNDP's first ever Lifetime Achievement Award."

Rights groups appeal for help from Annan

Angkhana submits letter to UN chief

ACHARA ASHAYAGACHAT
Human rights activists and pro-democracy groups have sought help from United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan in tackling what they say is the deteriorating rights situation in Thailand. A group of activists carrying banners denouncing the government's attitude towards human rights gathered in front of the UN Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (Unescap) while Mr Annan's car was entering the UN office.


An open letter signed by 120 organisations and individuals was submitted to the UN secretary-general by Angkhana Neelaphaijit, wife of the missing Muslim lawyer Somchai, who also sought a brief private meeting with Mr Annan.


However, a representative of the UN Development Programme came out to receive the petition. A meeting between Mrs Angkhana and a Unescap representative will be held at a later date.


Mr Annan held an internal discussion on UN reforms and regional operations with UN staff before flying off to confer the Human Development Lifetime Achievement Award on His Majesty the King in Prachuap Khiri Khan.


''Despite the extraordinary contribution to human development by the King, the government, led by caretaker Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra, has failed to commit to the promotion and protection of human rights,'' the letter says.


''Many of the government's policies and actions have reversed Thailand's earlier gains in human rights and democratisation,'' it adds, citing violence in the southern border provinces, the executive decree on government administration in emergency situations and anti-drug campaigns. The government's surveillance and harassment of some human rights defenders and restrictions on media freedom have also deprived the Thai people of basic rights, the letter says.


Mr Thaksin has continued to backtrack on Thailand's long-standing humanitarian stance towards Burmese refugees in an effort to improve relations with the military regime, it adds.


The civic groups called on the Mr Annan to urge the government to review its war on drugs and stop implementation of any programme that would lead to extra-judicial killings in the future, to abolish the emergency decree used in the deep South and review the practices of the police and state authorities in dealing with violence in southern Thailand, among other things.


Mrs Angkhana, in her personal letter to the Mr Annan, also informed him that justice for her husband, as well as other missing people, was far from being obtained. ''Furthermore, in seeking justice I have faced many difficulties and intimidation and have even received threats,'' she said in the letter.


The case of her missing husband has received international attention, including from the UN Working Group on Disappearances and the European Commission