联合国公开遴选下一任秘书长

The eight candidates vying to be the next secretary-general of the UN will for the first time pitch for the job in public, in a process that promises greater transparency but which will come down to an accord between the US and Russia.

9名候选人将首次公开角逐下任联合国(UN)秘书长一职，这一过程有望增加透明度，但最终结果将会取决于美国和俄罗斯达成的一致意见。

In an effort to shift the selection process away from backroom dealmaking, the candidates are detailing their case to the UN General Assembly in a 10-minute presentation followed by two-hour question-and-answer sessions between yesterday and tomorrow.

在昨天到明天的3天时间里，这些候选人每人将先用10分钟时间向联合国大会(UN General Assembly)作竞选陈述，然后回答提问。每名候选人将总共有2小时时间。这一安排旨在让遴选过程不再成为幕后政治交易的过程。

For the first time in the UN’s 70-year history, the eight people who have so far declared their candidacy — including Helen Clark, former New Zealand prime minister, and Irina Bokova, former Bulgarian foreign minister — will also take part in public events designed to create a broader debate about their views. In another first, a public list of declared candidates will be made.

迄今宣布参选的这9个人——包括新西兰前总理海伦•克拉克(Helen Clark)和保加利亚前外长伊琳娜•博科娃(Irina Bokova)——的竞选过程还将是公开的，目的是让人们可以对他们的观点展开更广泛的辩论，这是联合国70年历史上的首次。联合国还将公开参选人的名单，这也是历史上的首次。

Even with the new burst of public scrutiny, however, the five permanent members of the UN Security Council still have an effective veto over the decision, with the US and Russia expected to have the decisive voice in choosing a replacement for Ban Ki-moon.

然而，即便遴选过程头一次要接受公众审视，联合国安理会(Security Council)的5个常任理事国仍对最终决定拥有事实上的否决权，预计美国和俄罗斯在选择潘基文(Ban Ki-moon)的接替者时有决定性发言权。

As a result, the candidates will face the delicate task of finding a way to talk about important global issues without offending Washington or Moscow.

结果是，这些候选人将面对一个微妙的任务：设法在不冒犯华盛顿或莫斯科的情况下谈论全球重要事务。

“There is much more transparency this time, but that does not alter the fundamental political game, which will ultimately come down to the US and the Russians,” said Richard Gowan, an expert on UN issues at the European Council on Foreign Relations.

欧洲对外关系委员会(European Council on Foreign Relations)联合国问题专家理查德•高恩(Richard Gowan)表示：“这次的遴选透明得多，但这并没有改变基本的政治游戏格局，它最终仍将取决于美国和俄罗斯。”

“If any of the candidates say anything remotely controversial about the Middle East peace process, Israel, Syria or Ukraine, they are going to be on the next flight out of JFK.”

“如果哪位候选人在中东和平进程、以色列、叙利亚或乌克兰问题上说出略微带有争议性的话，他就会乘坐下一班飞机离开肯尼迪国际机场(JFK)。”

The selection process this year is revolving around two themes. The first is a push — pioneered by Colombia and now supported by a quarter of UN members — to have a woman as the next secretary-general. Half of the eight who have so far declared are women.

今年的遴选过程围绕两个主题展开。第一个是推动一位女性担任下一任联合国秘书长——该提议最初由哥伦比亚提出，现已获得四分之一联合国成员国的支持。迄今已经宣布参选的9位候选人当中，有4位女性。

The other is an assumption by governments from eastern Europe that it is their turn to nominate the secretary-general — with six of the eight coming from the region. The other six candidates are Igor Luksic, Montenegro’s minister of foreign affairs; António Guterres, former prime minister of Portugal and former UN High Commissioner for Refugees; Danilo Turk, former president of Slovenia; Vesna Pucic, former foreign minister of Croatia; Natalia Gherman, former foreign minister of Moldova; and Srgjan Kerim, former foreign minister of Macedonia.

另一个是东欧国家设想，现在该轮到他们提名联合国秘书长人选了——9名候选人当中有7人来自东欧地区。上文中没有提到的另外7名候选人是：黑山副总理兼外交部长伊戈尔•卢克希奇(Igor Luksic)、葡萄牙前总理、联合国前难民事务高级专员安东尼奥•古特雷斯(António Guterres)、斯洛文尼亚前总统达尼洛•蒂尔克(Danilo Turk)、克罗地亚前外交部长韦斯娜•皮习克(Vesna Pucic)、摩尔多瓦前外交部长纳塔利娅•盖尔曼(Natalia Gherman)、马其顿前外交部长斯尔詹•克里姆(Srgjan Kerim)以及昨天刚刚宣布参选的塞尔维亚前外交部长、联合国大会前主席武克•耶雷米奇(Vuk Jeremic)。

The first candidate to present yesterday was Mr Luksic from Montenegro, who faced questions largely about management of the UN. “We need to adhere to the principle of equitable rotation of jobs,” he said, suggesting that the new secretary-general should come from eastern Europe. Mr Luksic said he would consider basing the UN’s deputy secretary-general in Nairobi, in order to better address African issues.

昨日第一位出场的候选人是来自黑山的卢克希奇，提给他的问题大多与联合国的管理有关。“我们需要遵守公平轮换的原则，”他表示，暗示联合国新任秘书长应来自东欧。卢克希奇表示，他将考虑把联合国副秘书长一职设在内罗毕，以便更好地应对非洲的问题。

The Security Council is expected to hold an informal poll this summer, with a final decision in September or October, although diplomats said the process could drag on if there is a stalemate.

预计联合国安理会将在今年夏季举行非正式投票，将在9月或10月做出最终决定，不过，外交人士表示，如果出现僵持，遴选过程可能延长。

Diplomats say the field is still very open at this early stage, although the two candidates considered slight favourites were Ms Bokova, who is the head of Unesco, and Ms Clark, who runs the UN Development Programme.

外交人士表示，在目前的初期阶段，几名候选人仍然势均力敌，不过外界稍微更看好一些的两名候选人是联合国教科文组织(Unesco)总干事博科娃和联合国开发计划署(UN Development Programme)署长克拉克。

Other candidates can still enter the race, especially if none of the current eight wins strong backing this week. If Ms Bokova falters, diplomats said Kristalina Georgieva, the Bulgarian who is vice-president of the European Commission, could emerge as a strong contender, although she has ruled out a bid.

有意参选的人士仍可继续参选，特别是如果目前的9位候选人都没有在本周获得有力支持的话。外交人士表示，如果博科娃局势不妙，那么欧盟委员会(European Commission)副主席、保加利亚人克里斯塔琳娜•格奥尔基耶娃(Kristalina Georgieva)可能会成为有力竞争者，尽管她已表示不会参选。

Kevin Rudd, former Australian prime minister, has also been mentioned, although he might be considered too close to the US to win the support of Russia or China, which is also a permanent member of the Security Council.

澳大利亚前总理陆克文(Kevin Rudd)也被提及，不过外界可能认为，他与美国过于亲近、无法赢得俄罗斯或中国的支持，中国也是联合国安理会常任理事国之一。

The US has been criticised for its heavy-handed intervention to secure the nominations of Kofi Annan in 1997, having effectively ousted Boutros Boutros-Ghali, and in 2006 when Mr Ban was chosen. Russia is believed to want a candidate from eastern Europe, while the US would be happy to cast the contest more broadly.

1997年，为了让科菲•安南(Kofi Annan)获得提名，美国几乎可以说是把布特罗斯•布特罗斯-加利(Boutros Boutros-Ghali)赶下了台；美国在2006年潘基文当选时也进行了强力干预。这种做法让美国遭到外界批评。据信，俄罗斯希望候选人来自东欧，而美国将乐意看到竞争在更广范围内展开。

Vitaly Churkin, Russian ambassador to the UN, said the public hearings “might” influence the final decision. “It is important for us that the next secretary-general enjoy the broadest possible support among members of the United Nations,” he said.

俄罗斯驻联合国大使维塔利•丘尔金(Vitaly Churkin)表示，公开听证“可能”影响最终决定。他表示：“下任联合国秘书长应得到尽可能广泛的联合国成员国的支持，这对我们来说很重要。”