South Africa (SA) will support a female candidate from Latin America for the position of United Nations (UN Secretary-General, Minister of International Relations and Co-operation Ronald Lamola announced during a foreign policy briefing in Pretoria.
Addressing media ahead of the upcoming SADC Summit, Lamola confirmed that Costa Rican diplomat Rebeca Grynspan is scheduled to visit SA as part of her campaign for the top diplomatic post.
However, Lamola clarified that the upcoming visit should not be viewed as an immediate official endorsement by SA.
“It is common practice that candidates visit different countries to lobby and engage,” Lamola said. “We will be engaging her from that context of understanding her vision and what she wants to do in the UN. The principles will guide us as to who we will support.”
Lamola highlighted two primary criteria guiding SA’s eventual stance; adherence to the UN’s unwritten tradition of regional rotation, which currently points towards Latin America, and the historical election of the organisation’s first female Secretary-General.
–Channel Africa–
