[Congressional Record Volume 151, Number 94 (Wednesday, July 13, 2005)]
[Senate]
[Pages S8210-S8211]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
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U.N. REFORM
Mr. COLEMAN. Mr. President, I rise today to discuss Coleman-Lugar
bill that will effect meaningful and reasonable reform of the United
Nations. But before I delve into the issues of U.N. reform, I must take
a moment to thank my colleague Senator Lugar for his leadership. As the
chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, Senator Lugar has
been at the forefront of these issues for years--working to pass
bipartisan, consensus legislation touching a wide range of
international matters. In short, Senator Lugar's leadership on the
issue of U.N. reform has been crucial.
Sixteen months ago, as the chairman of the Permanent Subcommittee on
Investigations, I initiated a bipartisan, comprehensive investigation
into the massive international fraud that flourished under the United
Nations Oil for Food Program. You will recall this program was created
to help protect the poor of Iraq from the impact of international
sanctions. Unfortunately, Saddam Hussein manipulated the program--
siphoning off billions of dollars in under-the-table payments--and used
that money to strengthen his murderous regime at home and reward
friends abroad. As Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice testified at her
confirmation hearing, Saddam Hussein was ``playing the international
community like a violin.'' It could not have been more wrong: evil
prospered while the poor starved; the program designed to control and
oust the oppressor actually helped him stay in power and bolster his
arsenal.
Over the course of our 16-month investigation, the subcommittee has
held three hearings and released three reports on the oil-for-food
scandal. At those hearings and in our reports, we exposed how Saddam
abused the program--we documented how the Hussein regime rewarded
political allies by granting lucrative oil allocations to foreign
officials, such as Russian politician Vladimir Zhirinovsky and the
Russian Presidential Council; we presented evidence of how Saddam made
money on the oil deals by demanding under-the-table surcharge payments,
and how he generated illegal kickbacks on humanitarian contracts.
All of Saddam's abuses occurred under the supposedly vigilant eye of
the U.N. How could that happen? Well, over the course of our
investigation, an avalanche of evidence has emerged demonstrating that
the U.N. terribly mismanaged the Oil for Food Program. That evidence
revealed mismanagement ranging from outright corruption to sloppy
administration. For instance:
Our subcommittee uncovered evidence that Kofi Annan's handpicked
executive director of the Oil for Food Program, a man named Benon
Sevan, appears to have received lucrative oil allocations from Saddam.
Our subcommittee discovered evidence that a U.N. oil inspector
received a large bribe to help Saddam cheat on two oil deals.
Fifty-eight reports written by the U.N.'s own internal auditors
revealed rampant mismanagement by the U.N., describing a program rife
with sloppy stewardship and riddled with ``overcharges,'' ``double
charge[s]'' and other ``unjustified'' waste of more than $100 million.
The U.N.'s investigators, headed by Paul Volcker, determined that the
U.N.'s process for awarding three multimillion-dollar contracts in the
program was ``tainted.''
The U.N.'s investigators also found that Kofi Annan failed to
adequately investigate or remedy a serious conflict of interest--
namely, that the U.N. had awarded a massive contract to the company
that employed Annan's son.
Perhaps most disturbing, however, was that Kofi Annan's chief of
staff ordered the destruction of 3 years' worth of documents. That
order was given the day after the U.N. decided to investigate the Oil
for Food Program.
Such gross mismanagement and corruption in the Oil for Food Program
[[Page S8211]]
raise serious questions about the U.N.'s ability to administer crucial
programs in the future. American taxpayers pay roughly 22 percent of
the U.N.'s operating costs. They need assurances that their tax dollars
are well spent. This is especially true in light of the fact that the
U.N. is playing an increasingly larger role in world affairs.
As a result, we must bring about meaningful and reasonable reform of
the U.N. Such reforms must include three elements. First is the concept
of ``transparency.'' As Supreme Court Justice Brandeis famously stated,
``Sunlight is the most powerful of all disinfectants.'' Today, the
U.N.'s operations are shrouded in mystery--not a single ray of sunlight
disinfects the internal machinations of the U.N. The U.N. should be
transparent to its member states, and use those rays of sunlight to
prevent another episode of massive mismanagement.
Another necessary element for U.N. reform is ``accountability.''
Specifically, U.N. officials responsible for the operation and
management of programs, such as sanctions regimes and humanitarian
efforts, must be held accountable for their performance. Such
accountability should apply to all U.N. officials from the highest to
the lowest.
The third element necessary for U.N. reform is effective internal
oversight. Simply put, the U.N.'s internal auditor--the Office of
Internal Oversight Services, OIOS, needs drastic improvement. The OIOS
is woefully underfunded and lacks true independence. With respect to
funding, the OIOS receives $24 million per budget--a paltry pittance
when compared to the $162 million allocated to U.N.'s press office.
Without an effective and independent auditor, the U.N.'s operations
will continue to be plagued with misconduct and mismanagement.
Those crucial elements are the cornerstones of the proposed Coleman-
Lugar bill, the United Nations, Management, Personnel, and Policy
Reform Act of 2005. The bill presents a well-balanced and constructive
U.N. reform initiative that addresses: (1) a variety of U.N. management
weaknesses identified by the subcommittee, a lack of transparency,
oversight, accountability, and effective budgetary and personnel
systems, and (2) a series of U.N. policy issues that need reform,
including peacekeeping and human rights. The legislation strikes an
appropriate balance between important goals: effecting crucial U.N.
reforms, preserving U.N. administrative discretion, and ensuring
limited U.S. government monitoring and oversight.
Our proposed legislation underscores that an effective United Nations
is in the interest of the United States and that the United States must
lead the United Nations toward greater relevance and capability. The
bill also emphasizes that the U.S. push for further reform will require
bipartisanship and the joint involvement of the executive and
legislative branches so that the U.S. presents a unified position
toward the United Nations. The proposed legislation exhorts the U.S. to
use its voice, vote, and funding in the U.N. to accomplish U.N.
management, personnel, and policy reforms. It requires the President to
submit an annual report on U.N. reform to ``appropriate congressional
committees.'' It also authorizes the President to withhold 50 percent
of U.S. contributions to U.N. if he determines that the U.N. is not
making sufficient progress in implementing reforms described in the
act.
While the proposed legislation acknowledges that the U.N. has
initiated some reforms, it also recognizes that the U.N. has failed to
make many necessary changes. The bill cites past GAO reports on U.N.
reforms and recent U.N. reports, including the High-Level Panel Report
and the Secretary-General's Report, on the need to expedite existing
reforms and implement new urgently-needed reforms. It emphasizes that
the U.N. must transform itself to meet current and future challenges
and undertake institutional reforms that ensure the effectiveness,
integrity, transparency, and accountability of the United Nations
system.
The proposed legislation recognizes the important findings of the
subcommittee in its Oil for Food Program investigation identifying key
internal management weaknesses that led to mismanagement, fraud, and
abuse of the program. It also cites the June 2005 Gingrich/Mitchell
U.N. Reform Report. The majority of the U.N. management, personnel,
budget, and policy issues addressed in the proposed legislation are
consistent with many recommendations of the subcommittee and the recent
Gingrich/Mitchell report.
The management section of the proposed legislation stems from the
many U.N. management weaknesses revealed in the subcommittee's oil-for-
food investigation. The section strengthens the power of the Secretary-
General to replace top officials in the U.N. Secretariat and recruit
only the highest quality individuals, placing emphasis on professional
excellence over geographic diversity. It calls for an updated
assessment of the U.N. procurement system and the establishment of a
new and improved procurement process that embodies the standards
currently present in the U.S. Foreign Corrupt Practices Act of 1977,
which prohibit officials from making or receiving payments, gifts, or
exchanging other promises to secure an improper benefit.
In short, this legislation will help transform the United Nations
into a modern and dynamic institution capable of responding to the many
complex and varied challenges confronting it. The reforms embodied in
this legislation provide the United Nations the opportunity to embrace
change and regain its role as a critical institution in today's rapidly
changing international environment. This legislation will force the
United Nations to be a better managed, transparent, and accountable
organization. This legislation will prevent reoccurrences of scandals
like the Oil for Food scandal, peacekeeping abuses, and other
managerial failures.
I must reiterate the importance of a robust and effective U.N. for
the future of U.S. relations with the international community. The
U.N., when properly led and properly managed, can play an important
role in promoting global peace and stability. Real reform, and not mere
rhetoric, is the proper course of action to ensure an effective U.N.--
the mission of the U.N. is simply too important to look the other way.
As I conclude my remarks, I would like to reiterate my thanks to
Chairman Lugar for his leadership on the issue of U.N. reform and for
the opportunity to work with him to tackle this important issue.
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