UNITED NATIONS, Dec. 8 (UPI) -- U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan received Wednesday a standing ovation from the 191-member General Assembly following his address on U.N. reform despite being under heavy fire from U.S. critics over the oil-for-food program with Iraq.
After nearly one minute of sustained applause, assembly President Jean Ping, foreign minister of Gabon, said the "rare" and "vibrant" tribute represented a pledge of support for Annan amid growing calls from U.S. lawmakers for his resignation.
"Mr. secretary general ... this long, standing ovation is an expression of the support of member states to your action and to the trust member states have in you as a person for the work that you've continued to undertake at the helm of the United Nations," Ping said.
All representatives present, including that of the United States, Ambassador Patrick Kennedy, rose in applause following Annan's message.
Previously, more than 3,870 U.N. staff members worldwide, as well as representatives from more than 87 nations, including U.S. Secretary of State Colin Powell, had pledged their support for Annan.
In his speech, Annan praised the reform proposals, formally issued last week by the High-level Panel on Threats Challenges and Change. He said though "undervalued," the United Nations may need "radical change," to meet future challenges, notably those related to terrorism.
"It is hardly possible to overstate what is at stake, not only for this organization, but for all the peoples of this world, for whose safety this organization was created," Annan said. "Either we turn our backs on the very notion of collective security, or we must work hard to make sure that collective security really means something."
Annan said he would implement those facets of the proposal that fall within his purview, but stressed the onus was on U.N. member states to carry out many of the plan's other measures.
"It is up to you, the member states, to act on their recommendations and to make 2005 the year of change at the United Nations," he said. "Do we want to raise our children in a world where small groups of terrorists can murder hundreds of thousands at any moment? Next time we are faced with genocide, will we again resign ourselves to watching passively until it is too late? The answer to all these questions must surely be a resounding no!"
A year ago, Annan appointed the 16-member panel of prominent politicians, diplomats and development experts to evaluate the current threats facing the world and recommend changes the United Nations could make to deal with them. The panel presented more than 100 proposals for reckoning with what it called the greatest threats to worldwide security in the 21st century: poverty, environmental degradation, terrorism, civil war, conflict between states, the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction and organized crime.
In March, Annan is due to issue his review on the implementation of the Millennium Declaration, a pledge world leaders made in 2000 to try and mitigate various global problems. In this review, Annan said he would draw heavily on the panel's report and member states' discussions of it.
The secretary general's speech and the General Assembly's subsequent display of support comes at a difficult time for Annan.
Critics said Annan should step down because he presided over the U.N. bureaucracy during the Iraqi oil-for-food scandal, an imbroglio in which U.N. officials allegedly received kickbacks or looked the other way while Saddam Hussein's regime siphoned off billions of dollars in illegal revenue.
In past weeks, calls for Annan's resignation have become more strident after it was revealed that a Swiss-based company involved in the oil-for-food program continued to provide his son, Kojo, with "no-compete" payments years after he stopped working for the firm.
Annan's supporters, however, say no evidence points to any wrong doing on the part of the secretary general. They say U.N. member states share responsibility for the organization's failure to prevent Saddam's subversion of the program.
Former U.S. Federal Reserve Chairman Paul Volcker is heading an investigation into the oil-for-food scandal on behalf of the United Nations. He is expected to present a preliminary report next month. Members of the U.S. Congress are conducting similar investigations.
The U.N. Oil-for-Food Program came into being in 1996, at a time when some said U.N. sanctions on Iraq were contributing to starvation and massive suffering in the country. The U.N. Security Council imposed sanctions on Saddam Hussein's regime following its invasion of Kuwait in 1991 for failing to adhere to earlier council resolutions.
(With additional reporting by William M. Reilly)
