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CAIRO: Perhaps no Egyptian diplomat of the second half of the 20th century enjoyed the fame and international status of Boutros Boutros-Ghali. He remains the only Arab to have assumed the role of secretary-general of the UN, his term lasting from 1992 until 1996. 

To this day in Egypt, the name of Boutros-Ghali often resonates when discussing the crises the country is now facing, especially regarding the issue of the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam. The people of the country, including the simplest of them, know very well that he was the Egyptian official most closely tied to Africa’s diplomacy in the nation’s history. Even his nomination for the office of secretary-general of the UN was primarily supported by a number of African countries. 

Boutros-Ghali is one of the most prominent political figures in the history of modern Egypt. His fame went from local to global. The UN faced major worldwide challenges during his term as secretary-general, which coincided with radical transformations around the world including the collapse of the Soviet Union, the end of the Cold War, and the start of the unipolar era and US hegemony. This period also included the repercussions of the Gulf War, the break-up of Yugoslavia and the Rwandan genocide. 

During his time heading the UN, Boutros-Ghali successfully developed the working mechanisms of the organization and the means for it to intervene in conflicts to mitigate them and resolve disputes through peaceful means. He developed a concept for preventive diplomacy and peacemaking efforts, and for the attempted preservation of peace and support for it after a conflict ends. 

Boutros-Ghali was born in Cairo on Nov. 14, 1922, to a Coptic family. His paternal grandfather, after whom he was named, was the prime minister of Egypt from 1908 until he was assassinated in 1910. His maternal grandfather, Mikhail Sharobim, was an important historian and author of “The Ample Guide to the Ancient and Modern History of Egypt.” 

Boutros-Ghali once said in an interview: “I was born in a family linked to government bodies from the beginning.” Most of his family was associated with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. 

He first assumed the position of acting foreign minister in 1977, succeeding Ismail Fahmy, who resigned from the role following President Anwar Sadat’s peacemaking visit to Jerusalem. Boutros-Ghali was reinstated to the position in 1978-79 to succeed Mohammed Ibrahim Kamel, who disagreed with Sadat for similar reasons as Fahmy and quit on the eve of the signing of the Camp David Accords. 

Boutros-Ghali remained in the role under Hosni Mubarak’s rule and held several other positions, including deputy prime minister, minister of state for immigration, and deputy foreign minister for several months before he became secretary-general of the UN, in the face of strong opposition from the US. 

Despite his career with the Egyptian Foreign Ministry, he only assumed the role of minister of state for foreign affairs and was never named foreign minister. It is no secret to those close to him that the fact he was never given the title foreign minister made his heart heavy all his life, even though one of the nicknames given to him by Egyptians was “the father of popular diplomacy.” 

Boutros-Ghali was elected to the post of UN secretary-general in 1991 and faced great difficulties during his tenure. He wrote about these challenges in his book, “Five Years in a Glass House,” in which he revealed many hidden matters, including America’s role in the crises that swept the world during that time. 

His book also shed light on the souring of his relationship with Washington, describing the administration as being content with adopting loud external positions while pushing the UN into raging battles without providing it with real power or the necessary funds. 

The decline of this relationship ultimately cost him his position with the UN. In 1996, 10 members of the Security Council, including Egypt, Guinea-Bissau and Botswana, tabled a resolution calling for Boutros-Ghali’s term to be extended for five more years. Fourteen of the 15 council members supported the resolution, but the US used its power of veto and suspended his candidacy, making him the first secretary-general to be denied a second term.

Boutros-Ghali said there were several reasons for Washington’s decision to veto his nomination for a second term, including political pressures related to the 1996 US presidential election, disagreements between America and the UN over issues such as the Bosnian War and the Rwandan genocide, and tensions over the outstanding dues owed by the US to the organization. 

After leaving the UN, he headed the Organization Internationale de la Francophonie as its first secretary-general. He also chaired Egypt’s National Council for Human Rights, before resigning in February 2011 following the events of Jan. 25 and the departure of Mubarak. 

When the Egyptian state decided to establish the National Council for Human Rights in 2003, it could not have found a more worthy and prominent Egyptian figure to head it. Boutros-Ghali had all the required qualities and continued to lead the council until 2011. He was reappointed in 2013 as its honorary president. 

Among his stances that are most memorable to Egyptians was the time when, following the popular uprising in 2013 that overthrew the Muslim Brotherhood, Boutros-Ghali wrote to Ban Ki-moon, the UN secretary-general at the time, saying: “What happened in Egypt on June 30, the day that saw protests demanding the removal of (President) Mohammed Morsi, was a full-fledged revolution, during which a fascist regime in a religious guise was eliminated.” 

Boutros-Ghali added in his message that the role of the UN, with all its mechanisms and components, was to “achieve international peace and security and cooperation between states,” and that what it does must seek to “fulfill its principles and charter to serve peace, security and justice, and fight terrorism.” 

He also wrote that “the people of Egypt revolted to eliminate a fascist regime that had a religious guise and worked to divide society in favor of one faction at the expense of all the other people,” and to “eliminate a regime that deepened discrimination.” 

Boutros-Ghali died on Feb. 16, 2016, at the age of 93 in a hospital in Cairo after a fight against illness. He was preparing to travel in a UN air ambulance to Paris to continue his treatment and undergo urgently required surgery. However, it was his fate to pass away in Cairo, connected to the city until his last breath, as if Egypt refused to let his soul leave its lands, out of loyalty to him and in appreciation for his time and effort. He had dedicated his life to Egypt from a young age. 

Egypt bade him farewell with a military funeral, during which prayers were led by Coptic Pope Tawadros II. The mourners in attendance included President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi and other state officials. Boutros-Ghali was buried at St. Peter and St. Paul’s Church in Cairo’s Abbassia district. 

• Dr. Abdellatif El-Menawy, a columnist for Arab News, is a critically acclaimed multimedia journalist and writer who has covered war zones and conflicts worldwide.