H.E. Dr. Jorge Illueca
President of the Thirty-Eighth Session of the United Nations General Assembly President of Panama, 1984Vice President of Panama, 1982-1984
5 April 2002
Kofi Annan, as the Secretary-General of the United Nations, vested as he is with de jure and sometimes de facto responsibilities, is performing his political and diplomatic duties in the best interests of the World Organization. His ability to harmonize the competence of the General Assembly and of the Security Council has been of extraordinary value to promote the coherence of the actions of the United Nations bodies.
The peoples that support the principles and purposes of the United Nations realize how important his functions are — not only those based on a mandate entrusted to him either by the General Assembly or the Security Council, but also the diplomatic endeavors taken on his own initiative.
I interpret the feelings of many human beings in Latin America and the Caribbean in paying tribute to Kofi Annan’s individual vision and energy. Mr. Annan has guided the administrative side of the Organization on a steady course through the tumultuous atmosphere of the 21st Century. He deserves the recognition, the admiration and the gratitude of the peoples of the United Nations.
