Tharoor officially in the running

There has been a great deal of scuttlebutt in the last twenty four hours speculating about a proposition I blogged about on SM almost two years ago. UN Official and author Shashi Tharoor has been nominated by India for the position of Secretary General of the United Nations once Kofi Annan’s term ends:

India has decided to nominate a career UN diplomat, Shashi Tharoor, for the post of UN secretary-general.

The Ministry of External Affairs in Delhi says that Indian missions abroad have begun seeking support from member nations to back Mr Tharoor’s candidacy.

Mr Tharoor is currently the under secretary-general for communications and public information in the UN.

He has worked in the world body for nearly three decades since completing his PhD at Tufts University in the US… Mr Tharoor, an Indian national, has written several novels, including a political satire, The Great Indian Novel. [Link]

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p>UN watchers have long speculated that the next Secretary General will come from Asia, since it seems to be Asia’s turn to have a go at the job of herding cats.

There are three other Asian candidates are in the running – Ambassador Jayantha Dhanapala of Sri Lanka, Thailand’s Deputy Prime Minister Surakiart Sathirathai and the South Korean Foreign Minister Ban Ki-moon.

However observers in India say Mr Tharoor’s long association with the UN works to his advantage. [Link]

The real question however is what President Bush and the U.S. Ambassador to the UN, John Bolton think of Tharoor. I am SURE at least that they think he is better than one of the alternatives. Without U.S. backing it is hard to imagine Tharoor rise to the top. If some in the Israeli lobby have anything to say about it, Tharoor’s rise won’t be easy. Look at the invective already making its way onto the internet, such as over on Israpundit:

For quite some time I’ve been chronicling the exploits of the UN’s propaganda minister, the loathsome Shashi Tharoor. You name it, he’s done it: overseen a fat, grotesquely wasteful propaganda apparatus, and run Israel-bashing media events featuring anti-Semites and professional hate-Israel polemicists.

Tharoor has had a hankering to succeed Kofi Annan as secretary general, and the media today reports that it’s official. India, apparently putting national loyalty over common sense, has just officially nominated Tharoor for the job. [Link]

The New York Sun has some of the best behind the scenes analysis of Tharoor’s chances:

But when it came to the big job – that of secretary-general – India always bowed to the tradition that candidates were suggested not because of their personal qualifications but because of their provenance. Geographical rotation was paramount. The big nations, including the five permanent members of the Security Council, tacitly agreed not to field candidates. Secretaries-general were picked from small, nondescript nations. The conventional wisdom was that such men – and they were always men – would be more amenable to guidance from the big powers.

The decision to put Mr. Tharoor’s name forward cracked that tradition, up to a point, and the question is why. It is not that Mr. Tharoor was owed favors by Mr. Singh’s Congress Party-led ruling coalition of 14 fissiparous political parties and groupings. On the contrary, Mr. Tharoor’s politics are nonpartisan. His copious and elegant writings as a novelist, biographer, and columnist haven’t suggested anything other than a faith in secularism…

A second explanation might be found in the political and economic relationship between the Singh government and the Bush administration. President Bush has already gone against the political grain in Washington by agreeing to sell nuclear technology to India even without Mr. Singh signing the nonproliferation treaty. The placement of a Washington-backed prominent Indian figure as U.N. steward could represent the logical next step in the blossoming Bush-Singh nexus.

That is but conjecture. It’s by no means assured that Mr. Singh will find Washington receptive to Mr. Tharoor. Yesterday, I encountered a former American envoy in Turtle Bay, Richard Holbrooke. He declined to comment on the race for secretary-general, but he has privately told friends that he didn’t think Mr. Tharoor’s prospects were especially bright. Ambassador Bolton, the current envoy, is not known to be enthusiastic about Mr. Tharoor. That may have more to do with Mr. Bolton’s reported preference for a candidate from outside the U.N. system. Mr. Tharoor is given little chance around the press room. [Link]

Now as your probably guessed, if India is going to nominate someone then Pakistan can’t be too far behind. First they throw up a press balloon:

Pakistan on Friday termed as ‘speculation’ reports that it plans to field Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz or some high profile candidate against India’s nominee Shashi Tharoor for the UN Secretary-General post.

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p style=”margin-right: 0px”>”It is all speculation at the moment,” Pakistan Foreign Office Spokesperson Tasnim Aslam said when asked about reports that Islamabad plans to field Aziz, who had previously served as Vice President of City Bank, for the UN top post. [Link]

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p>Having met Tharoor before I think he’d probably be a good choice but I’d be surprised if he actually made it. He seems to be very intelligent, nuanced in thought, and is a good observer. Usually we don’t get to see so much depth in our world leaders. 🙂

See Related posts: The next U.N. Sec Gen?? , Tharoor, not Kidman, is the Interpreter, Exercising American power at the book market, The Guardians of the British Raj

45 thoughts on “Tharoor officially in the running

  1. i tend to agree with you. i don’t think he will make it. it’s likely china, with possible encouragement from pakistan, will veto his nomination. and given bolton’s recent outburst against mark malloch brown for some hardly earth-shattering comments, the u.s.’s support is in doubt, unless bush and rice push it (unless israel objects strongly to tharoor) . and the same people who oppose india as a candidate for permanent membership on the security council will probably oppose tharoor. i think the other asian candidates will be more palatable to them.

  2. I don’t geddit. Why is India nominating Tharoor for the position again, especially given the job’s traditionally gone to “small nondescript nations”? I never understood India’s obsession with the UN. This seems like a throwback to the old days when India pursued meaningless foreign policy goals with singleminded dedication.

    Good post btw.

  3. I have mixed feeling about the self proclaimed “liberal” Shashi Uncleji.

    I had read his “From Midnight to Millenium”, his Mahabharat-esque book on India, and the Bollywood book. In all of these, his positions seem to be…well, “liberal”. In my mind, “liberal” is a centrist position, a bit of wishy washiness that attempts to be “balanced”. And in the US, “liberal” usually means center right. Free market is OK, the US as a superpower is ok, everything is ok, as long as you stay in the middle. BUT, I haven’t kept up with his positions as of late, so I could be wrong.

    He has worked in the world body for nearly three decades since completing his PhD at Tufts University in the USÂ… Mr Tharoor, an Indian national, has written several novels, including a political satire, The Great Indian Novel.

    He’s still an “Indian national”? I thought he’s an Amreekan citizen by now.

    If some in the Israeli lobby have anything to say about it, TharoorÂ’s rise wonÂ’t be easy.

    The Israeli lobby hates on anybody that doesn’t come right out and say, “We wholeheartedly and unconditionally support Israel and all it does”. “Critique” is not a part of the Israeli lobby’s vocabulary, if that’s what Tharoor had been doing.

    I also don’t think he’s going to make it. Not if the powers-to-be have any say in it.

  4. If Tharoor does make it, I sincerely hope Bolton will be around.

    Also, Tharoor might be too busy to write one of his awful books. So there might be some good in this after all..

  5. according to another story, the u.s. is also not opposed to the sri lankan candidate and asean and china favour the thai candidate.

  6. I think Tharoor is the right man for the job for the following reasons:

    1. He is politically correct. When it comes to India, he has taken absolutely no stand in any major issue: Reservations, Illegal Bangladeshi immigration, Kashmir, corruption, pollution etc etc. In the international arena, he uses all the right words democracy, peace, compassion. He has not taken a stand on globalisation, immigration, Outsourcing, Israel(although he is quite anti-semitic sometimes) etc etc.

    2. He is a Socialist. This is a must for anyone aspiring to be a leader in the UN. Wealth distribution is one of the chief obsessions of an organisation that has teeth to achieve little else.

    3. He hates the BJP. For anyone to be taken seriously in cocktail circuits, this is a must. When the Vajpayee took office, he lamented that “Sadhus and Sants have entered the sacred halls of Parliament.” He cannot fathom the new assertiveness of Hindus, and calls it “False Hinduism” as if he has been ordained with the priviledge of defining Hinduism.

    4. Subtle superciliousness. Haughtiness is a UN virtue – almost a necessity when taking a moral high ground. His clipped London accent certainly helps, an accent that he hides well when he is in a desi gathering.

    5. Has no accomplishments. This is the most important one, since it mirrors the UN which has accomplished nothing in the last 50 years. I know, I know, he has written a few books, which you should certainly read on nights when it’s difficult to fall asleep. Most of them are a sequence of facts and events, with almost no opinion or original thought in them. But at the end of the day, if you probe a little, you will find nothing concrete in his achievements.

    All in all, a good fit.

    M. Nam

  7. He is a Socialist.

    Tharoor is socialist?? Um, I may be wrong, but he’s a free market proponent. He thinks globalization and economic liberalization of India is good.

  8. A very nice article by Shashi Tharoor on Why he believes in Ganesh

    For in my Hinduism the godhead is not some remote and forbidding entity in the distant heavens. God is immediately accessible all around us, and He takes many forms for those who need to imagine Him in a more personalized fashion. The Hindu pantheon includes thousands of such figures, great and small. Ganesh is the chief of the ganas, or what some scholars call the “inferior deities”. He is not part of the trinity of Brahma (the Creator), Shiva (the Destroyer) and Vishnu (the Preserver), who are the principal Hindu gods, the three facets of the Ultimate First Cause. But he is the son of Shiva, or at least of Shiva’s wife, Parvati (one theory is that she shaped him from the scurf of her own body, without paternal involvement). As a writer I have always been interested in the kinds of stories a society tells about itself. So part of the appeal of Ganesh for me lies in the plethora of stories about how this most unflappable of deities lost his (original) head and acquired his unconventional appearance.
  9. Desitude, thanks for bringing this to our attention.

    I take back my previous opinions on Tharoor. Having a UN Sec. who knows the intimate details of Ganesh and Hinduism is top international material.

    Maybe doing a puja prior to opening every UN session might bless us all and do the world some good…

  10. And I ain’t tryin to dis the UN because they ain’t not no army. just go sell some medicine bitches.

  11. desitude,

    If you read Tharoor’s article carefully, you will understand why such Hindus (unintentionally) end up giving fodder to all types of anti-Hindu bigots. If Macaulay wanted proof of his success, Tharoor would be exhibit-A.

    A look at some discrepancies/fallacies…

    • Ganapathi as we prefer to call him in the South“: Ganapathi is used by North Indians as well. “Ganapathi Bappa Moreya…”

    • Ganesha’s principal attribute in Hindu mythology…”: The word mythology is a loaded term in the West. Tharoor of all the people should know that. Mythology is used to describe events of religions that were conquered and killed by Christianity. Eg: “Apollo was a mythical Greek God. In Greek mythology this happened, that happened. In Mayan mythology this happened.” To use this word when describing Hindu stories does a dis-service to the religion.

    • The great 2,000-year-old epic, the Mahabharata “: Come again? 2,000 year old? Did this happen after Buddha/Mahavira/Greeks/Romans? Maybe after the steam engine was invented?

    • Ganesh is the chief of the ganas, or what some scholars call the “inferior deities“.” Stop. Please. Spare us all this.

    • “When I was a child in Bombay (now Mumbai)”. The correct, respectful way of writing this is: “When I was a child in Mumbai (formerly Bombay)”

    M. Nam

  12. I enjoyed from Midnight to the Millennium. Tharoor seemed rather centrist to me.

    On the UN leadership comment: I think the thoughfulness comment is a cheap dig given that Annon seems quite thoughtful.

    On Tharoor as SG: Not going to happen because India is too powerful. SG’s come from small countries with no major global presence.

  13. On the UN leadership comment: I think the thoughfulness comment is a cheap dig given that Annon seems quite thoughtful.

    If you mean the last line of the post the dig wasn’t at Annan but at…other leaders. If the last few years have taught us anything it is that thoughtfulness and nuance aren’t qualaties people vote for in their leaders.

  14. “If the last few years have taught us anything it is that thoughtfulness and nuance aren’t qualaties people vote for in their leaders.”

    Cheap Comment

    “what President Bush and the U.S. Ambassador to the UN, John Bolton think of Tharoor”

    Neither is enthralled with Tharoor (especially Bolton)…He is a long shot at best.

  15. as we prefer to call him in the South

    Um, how does that deny your claim that the term is also used in the north?

    Tharoor of all the people should know that. Mythology is used to describe events of religions that were conquered and killed by Christianity

    Well, no. “Mythology” is a generic term in the area of religious studies that is used to refer to stories that inform the ritual and cultural aspects of that community which may or may not be historically based. It is used in reference to christian scriptures as well.

    Come again? 2,000 year old? Did this happen after Buddha/Mahavira/Greeks/Romans? Maybe after the steam engine was invented?

    Well my guess is that he thinks that it was about the same time Frodo left the shire! What’s your point?

    Btw, your 1-5 is such an uninformed view of Tharoor’s views and bio that I have to wonder whether it even merits a response.

    thank you!

  16. I dont understand why the Indian government is supporting Tharoor. He has always distanced himself from Indian Policy, which is good for him, but for India.

    India should focus on only one goal: UNSC permanent member. They should use all their favors only one time. If I am planning I would use Tharoor as the bait or fall guy.

    But then again, this govt is not Indian government, this is the dynasty of Nehru. So I dont expect much.

  17. MoorNam: Are Tharoor’s exegeses on Ganesh and Hinduism fundamentally vital to how he’d be as a Sec Gen?

    India should focus on only one goal: UNSC permanent member.

    Not to veer off topic (sorry, Abhi) but maybe I am missing something here: why does everybody and India want the Permanent Seat so badly? Shouldn’t the Indian government be worrying about domestic issues rather than wanting to be a part of the Club of the Powerful? I’m not saying that the Indian gov’t shouldn’t have an international outlook, and desire to be a part of the international community. But really, what benefits are going to be derived from being a UNSC perm. member?

    Personally, I think the UNSC needs a drastic makeover for starters. Major reform.

  18. Moornam – I think mythology is the closest word in the english language to describe the hindu stories. There is some politics around the use of this word, but not in the way you suggest. The Bible cannot be called mythology for example, as it embodies the Truth. This status is not given to hindu mythology. But hindus do not claim that any of their stories are the Truth so I see no problem with this classification. It only bothers me that Hindu philosophy is not given the status it deserves, but that’s a different issue. In Vedic culture Ganpati was simply the lord of ganas. Hundreds of years later when the Puranic stories were created to explain the philosophy to the common man, he came to be associated with the form he has now, with the trunk etc. This has now become an indelible image since most people know the puranic stories but not the vedic philosophy. Therefore, most Hindus can only imagine Ganpati as an elephant god – an image very much rooted in mythology and not philosophy. As for Tharoor, I think his stance with regard to hinduism is actually improving with the years.

  19. …..”career UN diplomat.” I’m sorry, I couldn’t get past that phrase to read the rest of the post. Did you know doubling up from laughter can lead to difficulty in type, type, typing?

  20. according to the dictionary’s definition of mythology, all religions, their stories, including the bible, can be classified as mythology. it has nothing to do with whether someone regards it as the truth or not.

  21. On, the other hand, he does have nice hair, which I’m sure is all the qualification you need for, “career UN diplomat.” That, and thinking your debating club should be funded by loads of money from hard-working nobodies who deserve your contempt, scorn, or incompetence. Darfur, much?

  22. He cannot fathom the new assertiveness of Hindus, and calls it “False Hinduism” as if he has been ordained with the priviledge of defining Hinduism.

    blockquote>If you read Tharoor’s article carefully, you will understand why such Hindus (unintentionally) end up giving fodder to all types of anti-Hindu bigots.

    Shri MoorNam once again proves the virility of Saffron Balls and the new Hindu assertiveness. Of course, anti Hindu bigots are everywhere, especially amongst Hindus who disagree with us. For they are the biggest scum of all, and to them Shri MoorNam shakes his balls. Then they faint of fear, the spineless anti Hindu bigot scum!

    Assert yourselves Hindus! Give the anti Hindu bigots a thappar across the face with your saffron balls! Learn to drink through your nostrils and breathe out of your ass! For the GLORY of HINDUS!

    Death to Shashi Tharoor!

    Hail Mogambo!

  23. And, finally, to clarify, and to add a third post as I haven’t posted in months and will likely not post again in months: the Darfur refers to the incompetence part, obviously, and the hard-working nobodies refer to the poor slobs whose money goes for the upkeep of such glossy, slightly feathered hair. QED.

    How has everyone been in my absence anyway? Who is this Manju character by the way? Greatly enjoying Manju’s comments, among others…….

  24. As for Tharoor, I think his stance with regard to hinduism is actually improving with the years.

    I agree. Once he is suitably improved vis a vis Hinduism we can anoint him with our approval. Until then treat with caution – he is one of the biggest enemies of the Hindu assertivness. I think we should sneak one of our model minority children into a press conference and ask him to test his stance with regard to Hinduism by asking him to demonstrate drinking water through his nostrils, or breathing through his asshole, to prove he understands Hindu glories, and not false tolerance and pretending to believe in Ganesh, which makes him the biggest anti Hindu bigot on Earth.

    (Except for Wendy Doniger and California State Education Board)

    Divyaji, only when he gains your approval regarding stance on Hinduism, will I take him off the list of grievances against the Assertive Hindu Nation. Until then, he is anti-national.

    Hail Mooooooogambo!

  25. Shashi Tharoor needs to talk a little bit of John Dewey, Charles Pierce, and a little more of John Rawls. When he pledges allegiance to the Union, we can make him anything any govt. wants. Until then, he can talk about Mahatma and Rama and edema and such ad-infinitum.

    Yeah, he is got nice hair goin’ for him. If you’ve ever met him, you’ll know him as one of the nicest, gentlest people to talk to.

  26. The Bible cannot be called mythology for example, as it embodies the Truth.

    Divya,

    That the bible chooses to call itself “the Truth” is part of its mythology.

    This “The truth” versus “stories” distinction is a dangerous one and sets up hierarchies of religions. Besides, large parts (if not all of) the bible are ‘stories’ too.

  27. WTF is M. Nam? Why the hate? What are his accomplishments? Why is he hiding behind the anonymity of the internet to spew his garbage?

  28. And yes, I agree with you that the word ‘mythology’ applies to Hindu narratives. I would equally apply it to Christian (Bible and other) stories — a myth being a story or narrative (often with a hero) shared and believed as ‘true’ by a culture.

  29. That the bible chooses to call itself “the Truth” is part of its mythology. This “The truth” versus “stories” distinction is a dangerous one and sets up hierarchies of religions. Besides, large parts (if not all of) the bible are ‘stories’ too.

    EXACTLY!!!

  30. And yes, I agree with you that the word ‘mythology’ applies to Hindu narratives. I would equally apply it to Christian (Bible and other) stories — a myth being a story or narrative (often with a hero) shared and believed as ‘true’ by a culture.

    Ms. Fink Nottle – The official position is that the Bible is God’s Truth. This fact takes a while to settle into pagan heads and most pagans just assume the Bible is just stories. But it is represented as the Truth – and not just by the Church. You will never find PBS or NPR or BBC refute this claim. They just have to tiptoe around it. Nor do secular Universities and schools refute this claim. My point was only to show that politically it is treated as the Truth which is not the status granted to any other myth – whether they seek such status or not.

  31. Shyam Saran’s son and I are friends, and he told me about Tharoor requesting India’s support for his candidacy almost a year back. Though i’m not familiar with Tharoor’s work i have looked into his career and though i’ve seen that his rise in the organization has been pretty high, there hasn’t been mention of his achievements and that could be due to his preference for low publicity. I would like to see a more aggressive individual on the UN seat, one who would not hesitate to use force to stop the Rwandan and Bosnian massacares or rewrite the rules of engagement for peacekeepers after taking into account the millions dead. The United Nations needs someone who is not afraid to stand his ground to any opposition to the issue of saving lives.

  32. I agree with Kesh but don’t get your hopes high on any aggressive maverick getting the job since the 5 perm SC members want someone that caters to their leanings (especially the U.S. and moreso than before the Brits).

    As someone else put it…this will be a ‘more Secretary than General’ role.

  33. I saw Shashi Tharoor’s booknotes appearance in C-Span 2 a while back, when he was promoting his book on Nehru. He appeared very articulate and the way he spoke it appeared that this person is cut out for public office. Very diplomatic. But sounded very intellegent.

    I dont know enough about his stand on important topics. But he is definately articulate, intellegent and guarded in speech, which are preety good qualities for a public office. I would love it if he wins.

  34. it’s amazing how the indian newspapers will get themselves into a tizzy about something that is barely reported in the world at large, and ain’t gonna happen, no way no how. are you kidding me? shashi tharoor? or more to the point, an indian? there is some precious quote from south block or some indian analyst in one of the papers about how having an indian sec-gen would not in any way diminish india’s chances of getting a permanent SC seat, because the two roles and processes are completely different. uh, i don’t think so. it’s going to be enough of a negotiating feat to get india a permanent SC seat, in a reconfigured SC, and the secretary general is most definitely a key player in that.

    brother shashi is clearly a good guy, in an intellectual-elite, diplomatic-reception stylee, even though his balls might not be a full shade of saffron, but ain’t no indian gonna be the next sec-gen. it’ll be someone from a smaller country without SC aspirations. i’d put my money on the thai brother.

  35. and to write nasty, gratuitious non-tributes for better writers

    tilo, well said. Thanks, I did not read this before. How can you not admire RK Narayan?

    UN which takes it self too seriously without having actually accomplished anything deserves this guy at the top. After all he thinks too highly of himself and has not had a real job his entire life.

  36. How can you not admire RK Narayan?

    By not admiring him. I think it’s a bit weak to consider certain writers beyond critique.

    I’m not at all interested in Tharoor’s novels. But I find his passionate engagement with a celebrated literary figure interesting. This career diplomat made the choice to assess another novelist, refrained from being diplomatic about it.

    Simply wonderful!

  37. I don’t think Tharoor would be a bad choice at all – a long, obscure rant is at my blog. (Incidentally, the quotation from the 23 September 2004 article is wrong. Tharoor is British born and Indian and US educated.)

  38. India is not, as people keep calling it, an underdeveloped country, but rather, in the context of its history and cultural heritage, a highly developed one in an advanced state of decay. – Shashi Tharoor India’s nomination to replace Kofi Annan as SG of the UNO