Photo Credit: By Gary Raynaldo / United Nations World Headquarters In New York City USA.

By Gary Raynaldo   DIPLOMATIC TIMES

UN Secretary-General António Guterres said he deeply regrets the decision this week of the Government of the Federal Republic of Somalia to declare its top envoy in the Horn Of Africa nation ‘persona non grata’.   The government of Somalia on Tuesday kicked out Nicholas Haysom  (UN Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Somalia and Head of the United Nations Assistance Mission in Somalia)  for “violating protocols” and “deliberately interfering” in the internal affairs of the Horn of Africa country. However, Guterres said in a statement released Friday through a spokesman that the declaration is meaningless in the context of the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations:

“The doctrine of persona non grata does not apply to, or in respect of, United Nations personnel.  As described in the 1961 Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations, the doctrine applies to diplomatic agents who are accredited by one State to another in the context of their bilateral relations. The United Nations is not a State and its personnel are not accredited to the States where they are deployed, but work under the sole responsibility of the Secretary-General.” 

Statement attributable to the Spokesman for the Secretary-General on Somalia, Farhan Haq, Deputy Spokesperson for the Secretary-General.

However,  UN Secretary-General Will Appoint A New Special Representative For Somalia To Replace Haysom

Credit: gurtong.net /  Nicholas Haysom , Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Somalia and Head of the United Nations Assistance Mission in Somalia (UNSOM). 

Secretary-General Guterres remains “totally committed” to ensuring that the needs of the Somali people are at the forefront of the work of the United Nations in Somalia,” according to the spokesperson. The secretary-general intends to appoint “in due course” a new Special Representative for Somalia and Head of UNSOM, the spokesperson said.