Migration Agency Picks a New Leader, and Sends Trump a Message


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Mr. Konyndyk said that selecting Mr. Isaacs as a candidate had been “unwise” given the controversy over his statements on migrants and climate change. The bigger problem, he added, was the Trump administration’s views on asylum rights, travel bans and migration policies.


“The world was unlikely to support a U.S. candidate to lead the global migration body under those circumstances,” he said.


Diplomats said that Mr. Isaacs had credible field experience in handling humanitarian crises, but that his candidacy had suffered from his lack of experience with intergovernmental and diplomatic relations at a time when the organization is increasingly engaged in shaping global policy on migration issues.


With a budget of about $1.6 billion, the organization provides aid to people fleeing conflict and disasters, and it often comes to the assistance of migrants who are attempting perilous journeys in search of a better life.


The agency has around 9,000 staff members in more than 150 countries, and it prides itself on cost effectiveness. Its headquarters in Geneva are relatively small, with a high proportion of its employees deployed in field offices.


Mr. Vitorino won by acclamation in the final ballot, defeating Laura Thompson, a former Costa Rica ambassador to the United Nations in Geneva who is now the migration agency’s deputy director general.


Mr. Vitorino, who served in the Portuguese government led by António Guterres, the United Nations secretary general, and later as European commissioner for justice and home affairs, attracted support as a skilled political operator who was well-suited for the highly charged issue of migration.


Article source: http://www.cbc.ca/news/politics/gord-downie-death-political-reaction-1.4359917?cmp=rss

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