The high-profile diplomat who never forgot his roots
Steelworker’s son Lord Williams of Baglan, who forged a glittering career as a diplomat and as a champion of human rights, has died aged 67. Ruth Mosalski looks back at his distinguished life
HE WAS a diplomat whose interest in international relations began in his university days.
Michael Williams, Lord Williams of Baglan has died aged 67 after a short battle with cancer.
The peer was an academic, broadcaster and human rights campaigner specialising in Asia.
He held posts with the United Nations and served with three foreign secretaries but never forgot his roots and voiced concerns about the impact of the steel crisis on his hometown.
The son of a steelworker in Port Talbot, Lord Williams developed an interest in international relations while at university.
He read international relations at University College London, following it up a masters degree in politics from the School of Oriental and Asian Studies. His PhD, also at SOAS, was a study of the relationship between communism and Islam in the 19th and early 20th century in West Java, and Indonesia became a country for which he retained a lifelong affection.
He became an expert in international relations including periods of active engagement in conflict resolution in some of the most troubled areas of the world.
Lord Williams worked for the United Nations in Cambodia where he was part of a mission which secured democratic elections following decades of war. In Yugoslavia, meanwhile, in his role as director of information for the United Nations Mission, he testified against Slobodan Milosevic at the International Criminal Tribunal in The Hague.
In later roles, as director for the Middle East and Asia at the United Nations, and three years in Beirut as special coordinator for the UN in Lebanon, he played a crucial role in helping to try to stabilise the region and to develop relationships following decades of suffering.
He also worked in the UN Secretariat in New York between 2005 and 2007.
From 2008 to 2011 he was special representative of the Secretary General in Lebanon.
He also worked in the Foreign and Commonwealth Office from 2000 to 2005 as special adviser to two Foreign Secretaries, Robin Cook and Jack Straw.
He became a distinguished fellow at Chatham House, the Royal Institute of International Affairs, in October 2011, when he returned to London after completing his time at the United Nations and becoming a life peer and the international trustee at the BBC. He brought to Chatham House his extensive experience both at the UN, where he reached the level of undersecretary general (having served as the UN special coordinator for Lebanon and, earlier, as the special adviser to the secretary general on the Middle East), and in Government.
Earlier in his career, he worked as part of the UN Transitional Administration for Cambodia (UNTAC) and the UN Protection Force for the former Yugoslavia, after serving as a senior editor at the BBC World Service and the head of the Asia research department at Amnesty International.
Lord Williams originally supported the war in Iraq, but he called for lessons to be learnt from the Chilcot Report, telling the Lords: “I urge the Minister to make sure that the lessons of the Chilcot inquiry and, more importantly, its report, are fully understood and the policy implications absorbed.”
He had also spoken out about the “vicious sectarianism” in Syria and the lack of action to help the innocents affected.
Writing in 2016, he said: “Not only do we make no effort to protect the innocents within Syria, but we stand by as hundreds perish in the Mediterranean and, with the singular exception of Germany, close the doors to thousands of men, women and children who clearly meet the criteria of the 1951 Refugee Convention.
“At some point real politics will prevail over violence in Syria and I believe we are at the beginning of that process.
“We must remember that the Paris peace talks concluding the Vietnam War lasted some five years before the agreement of 1973 between what was then North Vietnam and the United States, and this in a war that, despite its ferocity, was essentially between two parties.”
Lord Williams joined the council of Swansea University as a lay member in March in 2013.
Professor Richard B Davies, vicechancellor of Swansea University, said: “We are deeply saddened by the premature death of Lord Williams and extend our condolences to his wife and children.
“On his journey from humble origins in Port Talbot to high-profile roles in international relations, Lord Williams acquired a wealth of knowledge and expertise.
“He recognised his debt to his home region and joined the council of the university so that he could ‘give something back’.
“He was particularly concerned about the uncertain future of the steel industry.
“The university is extremely grateful for his wisdom, insight, and counsel.
“He was also a warmly-regarded friend of the university and will be remembered with both respect and affection.”
He is survived by his wife Isobelle along with his two children, Rhiannon and Ben.