Foreword

The year 2002 brought new hopes and challenges for the United Nations. The world celebrated as East Timor achieved independence and the Organization handed over authority to the country’s first democratically elected President in May. Timor-Leste joined the United Nations in September, as did Switzerland. Progress was seen in Kosovo, where some powers were transferred from the United Nations interim administration to a democratically elected assembly, and in Sierra Leone, where elections were held in May. These strides towards peace and democracy were even more remarkable in view of the destruction those societies had suffered just a few years earlier. Gains were made in other areas as well, most notably with the entry into force of the Statute of the International Criminal Court, an unprecedented step forward for world order, human rights, justice and accountability.

Related Subject(s): United Nations