November 1992, Page 22

What They Said

Outspoken Emissary of Peace: An Interview with Boutros Boutros-Ghali

By Aicha Lemsine

"Our country has given much to the world, particularly to the Arabs. Gamal Abdel Nasser left the Arabs Pan-Arabism; Anwar Sadat initiated 'political realism.' But one day, another son of the Nile is going to have an important global role. This man of peace will be, God willing, Boutros Boutros-Ghali."
-Coptic Patriarch Essanassious Gregorious, April 1982

Ten years after the Coptic prelate's prediction above, Secretary-General Boutros Boutros-Ghali has taken charge at a unique time in the history of the United Nations. His head-on approach has won both rousing accolades and bitter criticism. His forceful eloquence and lively responses carry the enthusiasm of someone who is comfortable at the level of great truths.

The secretary-general's intelligence, sincerity, and his reluctance to mince words were obvious when I had an opportunity to discuss with him on behalf of the Washington Report a number of issues of concern to the Arab and Muslim worlds.

With regard to Bosnia, Boutros-Ghali says the two main priorities should be keeping the peace and providing humanitarian aid to the besieged population. He believes that, after an initial period of difficulty, "an excellent spirit of cooperation" has been achieved between the U.N. and the European Community. Still, the secretary-general notes, "We have difficulties of logistics, of finances and even of telecommunications!"

Boutros-Ghali also has been adamant that the gruesome "ethnic cleansing" in Bosnia-Hercegovina not overshadow the bloody civil war and spreading famine in the Horn of Africa. Neither population is more or less important than the other in the eyes of the secretary-general.

"In Somalia," he says, "the situation is extremely grave. The famine and the disease that have resulted from these military confrontations are in the process of decimating an entire people. But a resolution has been adopted in order to find a political solution and, more immediately, to reinforce the humanitarian aid" being sent to Somalia.

Speaking of my country, Algeria, and the confrontation between the banned Islamic Salvation Front and the military-backed government, Boutros-Ghali made it clear that this is an internal matter outside the U.N.'s jurisdiction.

"I would only like to say two things," he continued. "I was very pained to learn of the odious assassination of President Boudiaf. I am also paying close attention to Algeria's evolution, as it has a very great impact on the entire Mediterranean basin. 'Mediterranean' means 'the sea between the lands': the stability of this sea has repercussions for the continents of Europe and Africa. One can say that, in all senses of the term, Algeria is today 'at the crossroads.'"

The secretary-general expanded upon the brand of militant religiosity found in Algeria, North Africa and the rest of the Arab world. "It seems to me," he said, "that at the end of this century there is a very lively battle between two conceptions of power that are fundamentally antagonistic. The result of this battle will impact dramatically the face of the next century."

Boutros-Ghali sees one older model of government submitting political power to religious power, and the second, more recent conception insisting on a strict separation between secular and religious spheres of activity. "On one side politics is considered as simply the civil action of a theocratic absolute, while on the other politics is thought of as a succession of pragmatic compromises-a series of precarious arrangements periodically submitted to the citizens' judgement."

These are "two strictly opposed conceptions of power," he adds, "at least in theory. In reality, things are not so clear-cut."

Two Models of Government

"Certain countries seem to be hesitating between the two models," he continued. Remarking that the notion of a separation between religious and political powers has spread throughout the world in this century, Boutros-Ghali believes that contemporary religious extremism is a step backwards for humanity. "To distinguish between the realm of God and that of Caesar is one condition-perhaps the essential condition-of modernity and of liberty," he said.

With regard to the stalled negotiations between Morocco and the Polisario Front over the Western Sahara, Boutros-Ghali remains cautiously optimistic. He notes that he has already put into place the criteria inherited from his predecessor, Javier Perez de Cuellar, for deciding who will be eligible to vote in the U.N.-sponsored referendum. "I do not consider that the respective positions of the two parties are indefinitely frozen," he said, adding that his special representative, Yaqub Khan, was continuing to conduct talks with the two sides in an attempt to get the process moving again.

Boutros-Ghali closed our interview on an encouraging note directed at the Arab and Muslim world. "I would like the Arab and African region to understand that it is not alone, but that its destiny ultimately rests in the hands of the region's own people," he said. "Above all, my deepest desire is that each African and each Arab persuades himself of that, and assumes a spirit of responsibility. I love this region too much to promote any message other than this call for responsibility."

Aicha Lemsine is an award-winning Algerian novelist whose work has been translated into five languages. She lives in Algiers and writes frequently in the Algerian press.