STATEMENT OF THE SPECIAL REPRESENTATIVE OF THE SECRETARY GENERAL FOR IRAQ, MR. STAFFAN DE MISTURA

Mr. Secretary General,
Dear Relatives, Friends, Colleagues,
Dear Iraqi friends – Assalam Ayleikum
I came from Bagdad at your request, Mr. Secretary General, representing the 354 international colleagues and more than 420 Iraqi colleagues who are working under the flag of the UN today in Iraq.
They are here with you in the spirit in this very moment. A little bit more than two weeks ago we had our own ceremony in Bagdad in our new Office called Diwan. We had brought there the emblem you saw in the video of the UN Headquarters in the Canal Hotel. We brought it back, we put it on the side of our entrance, we prayed, we listened to a special Iraqi poetry and music made for our colleagues on that day, together in Baghdad. Some of us cried because those colleagues were also very good friends. The UN is back. The UN never left Iraq. We went through a moment of trauma and for a period the UN kept a low-key approach, but out local national courageous Iraqi staff were always there, and kept the programmes going. Things have changed, things have moved, even things in Iraq have been improved, not perfectly, but have improved. And the UN has increased its footprint. Resolution 1770 and the strong support, Mr. Secretary General, from yourself, made sure that the UN would try to be as pro-active as possible in the current circumstances in order to assist the Iraqis.
During that ceremony we were reminded that the most important messages we have received from those who died is their legacy. And in fact, this is the message I would like to bring to you, families and friends.
During the last three years five million children have been vaccinated through the UN assistance, 4,8 milion have received books. The UN system has also been active in assisting refugees and more than 2 million internally displaced persons. We have and are involved in issues related to water and sanitation. Cholera could be a major problem but so far we have helped to avoid an epidemic. We’ve been actively involved in two elections, the constitution, the referendum, and now we are involved in a very complicated area called the «disputed territories», which is going to be a challenge in the next 3–4 months, and the future provincial elections. In other words, the UN is very much back in Iraq in assisting the Iraqis to face their own challenges. Now, we have to recognise that things are still complicated and rather dangerous in Iraq in spite of clear improvements. I would like you however to know that when days are very hot, when sandstorms are taking place, when rockets are coming inside the green zones, like it did happen in May, and when we have a feeling that things are not moving as we would like to, what keeps us going is the feeling of duty and privilege that we are there to ensure that those friends and colleagues who died did not die in vain. I know, dear relatives, this is a small, small comfort, compared to the pain you have come through, the pain you will be going through because these are pains that will never be forgotten. But I hope on behalf of my colleagues in Iraq that it might be a slight comfort for you to know that we are there also and mostly to prove that your loved ones did not die in vain. Thank you.