Salim Ahmed Salim

Salim Ahmed Salim
سلیم احمد سلیم
سليم احمد سليم
7th Secretary General of the
Organisation of African Unity
In office
19 September 1989 – 17 September 2001
Preceded by Ide Oumarou
Succeeded by Amara Essy
Minister of Defense and National Service
In office
1985–1989
President Ali Hassan Mwinyi
4th Prime Minister of Tanzania
In office
24 April 1984 – 5 November 1985
Preceded by Edward Sokoine
Succeeded by Joseph Warioba
8th Minister for Foreign Affairs
In office
1981–1984
Preceded by Benjamin Mkapa
Succeeded by Benjamin Mkapa
Permanent Representative of Tanzania to the United Nations
In office
1970–1980
President Julius Nyerere
Personal details
Born (1942-01-23) 23 January 1942
Sultanate of Zanzibar
Nationality Tanzanian
Political party CCM
Spouse(s) Amne
Children
Alma mater University of Delhi
SIPA, Columbia (MIA)
Committees Chair, Mo Ibrahim Prize selection committee
Positions Chancellor, HKMU
Chair, MNF

Salim Ahmed Salim (Arabic: سليم احمد سليم‎‎, Urdu: سلیم احمد سلیم, Swahili: Salim Ahmad Salim, born 23 January 1942) is a Tanzanian diplomat who has worked in the international diplomatic arena since the early 1960s.

Early life

Salim was born in what was then considered the Sultanate of Zanzibar to Sheikh Ahmad Salim Riyami, an ethnic Arab of Omani descent from Oman while his mother was a local-born mixed-race Tanzanian, born to an ethnic Arab father and a mixed-race Indian and Afro-Arab mother.

Education

He was educated at Lumumba College in Zanzibar and later pursued his undergraduate studies at the St. Stephen's College of the University of Delhi and obtained his master's degree in International Affairs from the School of International and Public Affairs at Columbia University in New York. He became a student activist in the early 1960s and was founder and first Vice President of the All-Zanzibar Student union.

Positions held in Tanzania

Diplomatic positions held

Positions at the United Nations

Campaign for UN Secretary General

In 1981, Salim Ahmed Salim ran for Secretary-General of the United Nations against the two-term incumbent, Kurt Waldheim of Austria. Salim was then serving as President of the United Nations General Assembly, and he had the support of the Organisation of African Unity and the Non-Aligned Movement.[3][4] He could also count on China to veto Waldheim in the Security Council.[5] However, Salim was opposed by the Reagan administration in the United States, which regarded him as an anti-American radical who was hostile to South Africa and supported Palestinian statehood.[6][7][8] The Soviet Union also opposed Salim for his activism and his pro-China stance.[7]

Salim won the first round of voting with 11 votes to Waldheim's 10. As expected, Salim was vetoed by the United States, and Waldheim was vetoed by China. Salim's support dropped after the first round, as some countries believed that the United States was implacably opposed to Salim, while China had previously dropped its veto of Waldheim in 1971 and 1976.[9] However, neither country would relent, as the selection deadlocked for 6 weeks over a total of 16 rounds of voting. The deadlock finally ended when Waldheim and Salim both withdrew from the race, opening up the selection to other candidates.

In 1996, Salim was again mentioned for the office. Secretary-General Boutros Boutros-Ghali was running unopposed for a second term and had the support of 14 of the 15 members of the Security Council. The United States was opposed to Boutros-Ghali and offered to support any other African candidate, including Salim Ahmed Salim.[10] However, France made it clear that it would veto Salim, so he was not nominated.[11]

Other diplomatic positions

At the continental level, following the invitation of the President of the African Development Bank, he has since March, 2002 been acting as African Water Ambassador whose responsibilities include advocacy, sensitization, and mobilization of support on African water issues. He also serves as:

At international level, Salim serves on the following boards, panels and commissions:

Honours and awards

Honours

Order Country Year
Order of the Star of Africa  Liberia 1980
Order of the United Republic of Tanzania  Tanzania 1985
National Order of a Thousand Hills  Rwanda 1993
Grand Cross of the Order of Devotion  Republic of the Congo 1994
Order of Merit (Grand Officer)  Central African Republic 1994
Medal of Africa  Libyan Arab Jamahiriya 1999
National Order of the Lion (Grand Officer)  Senegal 2000
Order of the Two Niles  Sudan 2001
Ordre El-Athir  Algeria 2001
Order of Mono  Togo 2001
National Order of Mali (Commander)  Mali 2001
Order of the Companions of O. R. Tambo (Gold)  South Africa 2004
Order of the Uhuru Torch (Second Class)  Tanzania 2011

Awards

Honorary degrees

University Country Degree Year
University of the Philippines Los Baños  Philippines Doctor of Laws 1980[1]
University of Maiduguri  Nigeria Doctor of Humanities 1983[1]
University of Mauritius  Mauritius Doctor of Civil Law 1991[1]
University of Khartoum  Sudan Doctor of Arts in International Affairs 1995[1]
University of Bologna  Italy Doctor of Philosophy in International Relations 1996[15]
University of Cape Town  South Africa Doctor of Laws 1998[16]
Addis Ababa University  Ethiopia Doctor of Laws 2003[17]

Recipient of the 2006 Martin Luther King "Drum Major for Justice" award.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 "Biography of Dr. Salim Ahmed Salim". United Nations. April 2002. Retrieved 17 February 2013.
  2. ↑ "Permanent Representatives". Permanent Mission of the United Republic of Tanzania to the United Nations. Retrieved 16 November 2012.
  3. ↑ Nossiter, Bernard D. (1 November 1981). "Someone is Trying to Fire Dr. Waldheim". The New York Times.
  4. ↑ Berlin, Michael J. (16 November 1981). "Both Contenders Hoping for a Breakthrough in U.N. Election". The Washington Post.
  5. ↑ Gargan, Edward A. (26 October 1981). "Chinese Widening Role at the U.N.". The New York Times.
  6. ↑ Berlin, Michael J. (11 September 1981). "Waldheim Declares Candidacy For Unprecedented 3rd Term". The Washington Post.
  7. 1 2 Berlin, Michael J. (25 October 1981). "North vs. South in U.N. Contest". The Washington Post.
  8. ↑ "Tanzanian Ends Drive to Become Head of the U.N.". The New York Times. 9 December 1981.
  9. ↑ Berlin, Michael J. (28 October 1981). "Vetoes Deadlock Election of U.N. Secretary General". The Washington Post.
  10. ↑ Crossette, Barbara (23 July 1996). "U.S. Warns U.N. on Campaigning for Post". The New York Times.
  11. ↑ Crossette, Barbara (12 December 1996). "In Jockeying to Lead U.N., Ghanaian Is Moving Ahead". The New York Times.
  12. ↑ http://www1.voanews.com/english/news/a-13-2007-12-18-voa47-66814662.html?refresh=1
  13. ↑ "Press Release" (PDF). African Union. 23 October 2014. Retrieved 14 November 2014.
  14. ↑ Magubira, Patty (23 October 2014). "Salim crowned ‘Son of Africa’". The Citizen. Retrieved 14 November 2014.
  15. ↑ "Lauree Honoris Causa : Salim Salim Ahmed". University of Bologna. 1996. Retrieved 27 September 2013.
  16. ↑ "UCT Honours Roll". University of Cape Town. Retrieved 17 February 2013.
  17. ↑ "Over 4,000 Graduate From Addis Ababa University". Addis Tribune via allafrica.com. 1 August 2003. Retrieved 17 February 2013.
Political offices
Preceded by
Edward Sokoine		 Prime Minister of Tanzania
1984–1985 		Succeeded by
Joseph Warioba
Preceded by
Benjamin William Mkapa		 Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation
1990-1993 		Succeeded by
Benjamin William Mkapa
Diplomatic posts
Preceded by
Indalecio Liévano		 President of the United Nations General Assembly
1979–1980 		Succeeded by
Rüdiger von Wechmar
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