Sadako Ogata's UNHCR

In November 1979, Sadako Ogata was appointed by the Japanese Ministry of Foreign Affairs as the head of the Cambodian refugee relief inspection mission. When she went to Thailand-Cambodia border to inspect refugee relief, she had an intuitive understanding of the refugee problem for the first time. "It was a huge refugee crisis," Sadako Ogata said.

One day in the early 199s, Sadako Ogata turned on the radio and heard the news that the then United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees had resigned. She was very surprised because she had only been in this position for eight months. Sadako Ogata did not think that she would soon become the next United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees.

On December 21st, 199, then UN Secretary-General Javier Perez de Cuellar decided to choose Sadako Ogata as the most difficult and important position in the international humanitarian arena. Sadako Ogata accepted. She recalled: "This may also be the hardest decision in my life. I changed my lifestyle, changed my career and left my family." Her family once asked her how many years she planned to work, and she replied, probably a few years.

UNHCR was established in 1951. At first, it was a small international organization with only 23 employees and an annual budget of less than $5 million. Its main responsibility was to help refugees who fled from socialist countries in Eastern Europe at that time. Ogata took office as High Commissioner under such a special situation as the end of the Cold War. She thought that the refugee problem would be solved soon after the end of the cold war, but she never imagined that 1 was three phases, for ten years in a row. This is completely unprecedented among her previous seven high commissioners.

in the past ten years, she has changed from a scholar to a complete "on-the-spot" with a short body of only 1. 5 meters and a bullet-proof vest weighing 15 kilograms. She spends more than half a year at the refugee scene, such as this week in Geneva, next week in Iran, and next week in Rwanda, running around nonstop. According to statistics, she walked around the earth four and a half times in the first three years. It can be said that she has traveled all the refugee areas, from Europe to Asia, to Africa, and then to Central America. Wherever there are refugees, there are her footprints. Everywhere she goes, she has to inspect refugee camps and training centers, and negotiate with government authorities, opposing parties and some military forces, one after another. During her ten years as the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, Ogata broke through many old rules of supporting refugees in the past and carried out a series of pioneering work according to the actual situation. If we set up safety zones and refugee camps in our country instead of outside our country, we should protect them first and then carry out rescue, so as to reduce the consumption of physical strength and energy of refugees. This has been done in Iraq and Somalia. At that time, although it was strongly opposed by many people in UNHCR, Ogata resolutely decided to adopt the above-mentioned rescue measures according to the actual situation. She believes that although the practice has changed, the basic principle is the same, not to sit idly by, but to be proactive and gain time, that is, to try every means to protect refugees and ensure their lives. On January 1, 1991, Sadako Ogata took office at the age of 63. Just a few days after taking office, UNHCR is facing the problems left over from the Gulf War. More than 4, Kurdish refugees are trapped in northern Iraq and cannot cross the border into Turkey. Technically speaking, they are not refugees and do not belong to the jurisdiction of UNHCR, but the international community needs UNHCR to provide humanitarian relief to them. Sadako Ogata said that this was a watershed decision. In order to ensure the safety of refugees, Sadako Ogata came to the then US President George W. Bush and said only one sentence to him: "Please don't withdraw your soldiers." Such a request is very rare, but in the chaotic situation in Iraq, Sadako Ogata has no choice. Her belief is that "the bottom line is always the welfare and safety of refugees".

In Cambodia, she worked hard to create a new refugee handling mode, that is, sending UN peacekeeping troops to rule for a period of time. In this process,

she vigorously carried out all aspects of work and gradually repatriated and resettled refugees. Using this method, 4, Cambodian refugees were repatriated.

In addition, taking advantage of the fighting gap that has not yet been stopped, it is unprecedented to transport relief materials to Sarajevo citizens by air. Because Sarajevo was besieged and completely isolated at that time, citizens were trapped at home and could not go out to buy food, and there was no food to buy. They became "domestic refugees" for a while, and they could not survive unless they relied on international protection and assistance. Of course, in this process, Ogata made a decision to temporarily stop airlifting goods in a rage, which became a major event that shocked the United Nations for a while. But looking back, it was not unreasonable for Ogata to make this decision at that time. Because the Muslims on the receiving side closed the passage from the airport to the city in order to show the world that they were isolated and helpless and to condemn and pressure the Serbs, the aid could not be carried out. Obviously, this action has a strong political color, and according to the regulations, humanitarian aid is never allowed to be used politically, which led to this incident. A few days later, when the Muslim side announced that it would stop the boycott, Ogata immediately gave instructions to resume the air transport. From this incident, it can be seen that Ogata is an aggressive woman and it is completely reasonable to be called the "High Commissioner for Action".

In the past ten years, she has carried out major reforms in UNHCR, streamlining staff and saving expenses. During the Gulf War in 1991, based on the actual needs of refugee relief and some people criticized the United Nations for its slow response to refugees, she immediately decided to set up an emergency response section in UNHCR and raised $25 million as emergency assistance funds. At that time, at the headquarters in Geneva, five aid experts were usually on duty. In case of emergency, a few employees with language skills and professional knowledge could be selected at any time according to the situation, and a rescue team was immediately formed, with indispensable items such as communication equipment, tents and first aid kits, and rushed to the scene as soon as possible. It has also set up storage warehouses for relief materials all over the world to form an air transportation system, forming a 24-hour emergency handling mechanism. In the past ten years, she has also given great support to China's work of properly accepting and resettling nearly 3, Indo-Chinese refugees in China, mainly Vietnamese refugees, and has also given a lot of financial help. When she was invited to visit China in late July, 1992, she also made a special trip to Guangxi and Guangdong to visit China refugee settlement sites, and spoke highly of China's refugee settlement work, saying that it could be regarded as a model of resettlement work in the world. What is particularly commendable is that around 1993, when she learned that almost all the citrus trees planted by the refugees in Jiangxi, China, were frozen to death due to natural disasters, she immediately used the Personal College Fund of 3, US dollars for emergency assistance to restore their production and construction, which fully reflected her extreme concern and support for the refugees in China. Before Hong Kong's return to China on July 1, 1997, she also made great efforts, either urging the British and Vietnamese governments to speed up repatriation or helping boat people and refugees resettle in a third country, thus solving the problem of Vietnamese boat people and refugees stranded in Hong Kong.

She paid two official visits to China, one in late July 1992 and the other in early 1997. She has repeatedly said that she has great affection for China, < P > and attaches great importance to the relationship with China. This is just as she said in her book Post-war Japan-China-US-China Relations, "For Japan, China is a very important neighbor, and its relationship with China has always been a central issue in Japan's foreign relations, both before and after the war. Politically, economically and culturally, Japan and China are not simply a relationship between countries, but a bond formed by the people themselves that transcends state relations. " During Sadako Ogata's term of office, the principle of United Nations refugee relief has been constantly challenged. Faced with such a dilemma, Sadako Ogata sometimes said to her colleagues, "We are not Hamlet, and we can't dwell on the dilemma. You have to judge and then make a quick decision based on whether you can better protect people. " Many years after leaving the post of United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, Sadako Ogata is still thinking today. "Humanitarian relief can play a great role, but it can't play all the roles," she said.

However, in the past 1 years, thousands of refugees have been rescued, and Sadako Ogata's efforts have been unanimously affirmed. No matter UN officials, donor countries or countries receiving assistance, they are full of respect when referring to this oriental woman. Wu Jianmin, dean of the School of Foreign Affairs, who worked with Sadako Ogata in the United Nations, commented: "In 1 years, Ms. Sadako Ogata has completed the most impossible work."

In short, Ogata has done a lot of practical and good things in the past ten years and solved many refugee problems. As she once concluded, in Asia, the problem of Indo-Chinese refugees has been solved. In Africa, led by Mozambique, 1.7 million refugees have returned to their hometowns to settle down. In Central America, due to the return of Guatemalan refugees and their settlement in Mexico, the refugee problem has also come to an end. Refugees in Bosnia and Rwanda are moving towards solutions.

It is precisely because of her many achievements mentioned above and her lofty spirit and quality that she has won praises from all countries in the world and won many international awards, such as the Boigny Peace Prize for UNESCO (the prize of 16 million yen was used to create an education fund for African refugee children), the Philadelphia Medal of Freedom of the United States and the Asian Nobel Prize. In 21, she became a "cultural contributor" in Japan, and Sweden also awarded her the "Polaris Medal" and so on. It can be seen that due to her special position and her own practical efforts. Not only have individuals won high honors internationally, but they have also contributed to improving Japan's influence in the international community.

In p>21, when Japanese Prime Minister Mori Yoshiro visited Africa, the local slogan was welcome to Ogata. In 22, Junichiro Koizumi even wanted her to be the foreign minister. On May 8, 24, Sadako Ogata, then director of the Japan International Cooperation Agency, received a gift from a female representative during her visit to Senegal.