26 Countries Back U.N Democracy Fund Plan
By EDITH M. LEDERER
The Associated Press
Friday, June 17, 2005; 3:46 PM
UNITED NATIONS -- The United States and 25 other countries have given their support to Secretary-General Kofi Annan's call for a U.N. Democracy Fund to promote democratic institutions and practices around the world.
In a letter to Annan, obtained Thursday by The Associated Press, the 26 governments said the fund would play a valuable role in highlighting the importance of democracy and U.N. involvement in democratic development.
The Democracy Fund was one of six U.S. priorities for U.N. reform announced Thursday, and Undersecretary of State Nicholas Burns also said the United States would likely support the addition of two or so permanent members to the powerful U.N. Security Council, including Japan.
But acting U.S. Ambassador Anne Patterson questioned whether the United States would agree to reform of the Security Council, which has deeply divided U.N. members, before we have a package of reforms that was acceptable to the United States, to our Congress.
President Bush proposed establishing a U.N. Democracy Fund in his speech to the General Assembly in September and pledged an initial unspecified contribution. He also urged other nations to donate to the fund, which he said would help countries lay the foundations of democracy by instituting the rule of law, independent courts, a free press, political parties and trade unions.
Annan backed the creation of a Democracy Fund in his sweeping proposal in March for U.N. reform, an issue he wants world leaders to tackle at a summit in September.
The United Nations supports emerging democracies with legal, technical and financial assistance and advice, and does more than any other single organization to promote and strengthen democratic institutions and practices around the world, but this is a little known fact, Annan said.
But the secretary-general said the United Nations needs to better coordinate democracy building activities, mobilize resources more effectively, and expand U.N. efforts to help members further broaden and deepen democratic trends throughout the world.
The letter from the 26 governments said the Democracy Fund should provide assistance for projects in new and emerging democracies which are often the most vulnerable.
In addition to the United States, the other signatories were Argentina, Australia, Bangladesh, Brazil, Britain, Bulgaria, Cape Verde, Chile, Croatia, Czech Republic, El Salvador, Estonia, Germany, Guatemala, Hungary, India, Israel, Italy, Japan, Mongolia, Peru, Poland, South Korea, Sri Lanka and Thailand.
© 2005 The Associated Press