Speaking at the MCC Budapest Peace Forum 2023

Michael von der Schulenburg (full name: Michael Sergius Graf von der Schulenburg; born 16 October 1948 in Munich, Germany) is a German former diplomat with the United Nations and with the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE). Between 2005 and 2012 he worked at the rank of Assistant Secretary-General in UN peace missions in Iraq and Sierra Leone.[1][2]

Life and career

Michael von der Schulenburg is a descendant of the ‘Russian Line’ of the old German noble family of the von der Schulenburg. He earned degrees from the Free University in West Berlin, London School of Economics, and the École Nationale d’Administration.

He worked for the UN for 30 years – in assignments in Haiti, Pakistan, Afghanistan, Iran, Iraq and Sierra Leone, among others.[3] When serving at the United Nations Integrated Peacebuilding Office in Sierra Leone (UNIPSIL) as the highest UN representative in Sierra Leone (Executive Representative of the Secretary-General – ERSG), he came into conflict with the government over the implementation of the Lomé Peace Agreement, police arming and the forthcoming presidential elections. In 2012, he was asked to leave the country.[4][5]

In 2001 Schulenburg accused Pino Arlacchi, the Director General of the UN in Vienna and of the UN Office for Drug Control and Crime Prevention, in a confidential letter that was later leaked to the press, that the office under Arlacchi's leadership suffered from fear, intimidation and a general lack of transparency. An official UN investigation later confirmed the accused mismanagement practices.[6]

In 2009 Schulenburg put himself at risk in Sierra Leone to save 22 youths of the opposition from being lynched by a large crowd that was attacking the opposition’s headquarters.[7]

Since his retirement from the UN, Schulenburg worked as an advisor[8] and as a publicist.[9][10] In 2017, he published his book On Building Peace – Rescuing the Nation-State and Saving the United Nations.[11]

In 2020, Sierra Leonean President Julius Maada Bio awarded Schulenburg the highest honour of the country in recognition of his contributions to maintain peace in Sierra Leone, and made him Grand Commander of the Order of the Republic (GCOR).[12]

Publications

(2017). Building Peace – Rescuing the Nation-State and Saving the United Nations. Amsterdam University Press. ISBN 978-946298-427-1

References

  1. ↑ "SECRETARY-GENERAL APPOINTS MICHAEL VON DER SCHULENBURG AS DEPUTY SPECIAL REPRESENTATIVE FOR POLITICAL AFFAIRS IN IRAQ | Meetings Coverage and Press Releases". www.un.org. Retrieved 2020-08-28.
  2. ↑ "SECRETARY-GENERAL APPOINTS EXECUTIVE REPRESENTATIVE FOR UNITED NATIONS INTEGRATED PEACEBUILDING OFFICE IN SIERRA LEONE | Meetings Coverage and Press Releases". www.un.org. Retrieved 2020-08-28.
  3. ↑ "Michael von der Schulenburg – from east to west" (in German). Retrieved 2020-08-28.
  4. ↑ "Turning tables". The Economist. ISSN 0013-0613. Retrieved 2020-08-28.
  5. ↑ "Sierra Leone president forced out UN envoy -letter". Reuters. Retrieved 2020-08-28.
  6. ↑ O'Shaughnessy, Hugh (2001-07-28). "UN drug agency fiasco exposed". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 2020-08-28.
  7. ↑ "The Peacebuilders: Making Conflict Resolution Permanent". Pulitzer Center. 2011-04-02. Retrieved 2020-08-28.
  8. ↑ "External Project Partners". www.swp-berlin.org. Retrieved 2020-08-30.
  9. ↑ "Michael von der Schulenburg aus Wien – Autorenprofil, Artikel und Beiträge | IPG Journal". www.ipg-journal.de. Retrieved 2020-08-30.
  10. ↑ Michael von der Schulenburg. "Gescheiterter Westen: Afghanistan ist ein Scherbenhaufen". Neue Zürcher Zeitung (in German). Retrieved 2020-08-30.
  11. ↑ On Building Peace | Amsterdam University Press. 10 May 2017. ISBN 9789462984271. Retrieved 2020-08-30. {{cite book}}: |website= ignored (help)
  12. ↑ Vanguard, The Patriotic (2020-01-24). "State House: Michael von der Schulenburg honoured". The Patriotic Vanguard. Retrieved 2020-08-28.
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