Mary Robinson to lead Mandela peace group
MARY Robinson is to follow Archbishop Desmond Tutu and Kofi Annan as chair of peace and human rights campaigning group The Elders.
The international organisation of senior public figures was set up by the late Nelson Mandela in 2007.
Mrs Robinson said it was a ‘huge honour’ to take up the role at such a critical moment for peace, justice and human rights worldwide.
‘Building on the powerful legacies of Archbishop Tutu and Kofi Annan, I am confident that our group’s voice can both be heard by leaders and amplify grassroots activists fighting for their rights,’ she said.
President Michael D Higgins congratulated Mrs Robinson, saying it was a ‘testament to the very high regard in which she is held at a global level’, and that the former president continued to be a ‘source of inspiration and deep pride’ for the Irish people’. Tánaiste Simon Coveney said Mrs Robinson’s appointment was ‘recognition of her long and courageous engagement in the causes of international peace, justice and human rights’. He said that she ‘brings great honour to Ireland’ in the process.
Archbishop Tutu said he was delighted at the news. ‘Mary always puts ordinary people at the heart of The Elders’ mission, and I know she will fight for their rights with the same vigour as our dearly missed brother Kofi,’ he said. ‘I have witnessed her commitment to rights and justice in Palestine, Côte d’Ivoire, India and so many other parts of the world,’ he added.
Mrs Robinson is also a former UN High Commissioner for Human Rights. In 2014 she was appointed to oversee UN efforts to tackle climate change. Former UN secretary-general Ban Ki-moon and Mozambique’s former education minister Graca Machel, who co-founded The Elders, will serve as joint deputy chairs.