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Lobbying Hot to Replace U.N. Envoy for Refugees

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Associated Press

Diplomats from around the world are pushing their candidates to replace Poul Hartling, the U.N. high commissioner for refugees who steps down next month from the Nobel Prize-winning agency.

U.N. Secretary-General Javier Perez de Cuellar is said to be under intense pressure as he prepares to choose among the ambassadors, former government ministers and others lining up for the prestigious $120,000-a-year position.

One U.N. source, speaking on condition of anonymity, said the lobbying at United Nations headquarters is “very hot.” Hartling, a former Danish prime minister, is due to retire Dec. 31 as high commissioner.

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Ambassador for Refugees

The commissioner acts as the ambassador for 10 million refugees, interceding with governments in an effort to secure decent treatment for them. The Geneva-based agency also runs camps for refugees waiting to return home or resettle abroad.

Because the nominee is subject to confirmation by the 159-member General Assembly, the secretary general must pick a candidate with broad support.

The five main contenders for the post are considered to be:

--Butros Butros Ghali, Egypt’s minister of state for foreign affairs.

--Jean-Pierre Hocke, a Swiss who is director of the International Committee of the Red Cross.

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--Anders Thunborg, former defense minister of Sweden.

--Max van der Stoel, a former foreign minister who is now Dutch ambassador to the United Nations.

--Tom Vraalsen, Norway’s U.N. ambassador.

Trudeau a Possibility

Among the others mentioned as candidates are former Prime Ministers Pierre Trudeau of Canada and Malcolm Fraser of Australia.

The United States, which provides a quarter of the agency’s budget and has criticized its financial management, favors a strong administrator such as Hocke, according to U.S. sources.

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Unlike many U.N. positions, the commissioner’s job does not rotate geographically and various blocs are pulling for their own candidates.

Ghali is the candidate of the Organization of African Unity; Van der Stoel is the European Community’s choice. Prime Minister Olaf Palme of Sweden pushed hard for Thunborg while at the United Nations last month, a U.N. source said.

Logged 580,000 Miles

The secretary general could ask Hartling to stay on another year. However, the 71-year-old Dane, who took over the U.N. job in 1978, says he has had enough.

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