The Elders have reacted to the election of Donald Trump as the 45th president of the United States of America.
They believe that the ideals, magnanimity and empathy of their founder, Nelson Mandela, offer a model of ethical leadership for the new administration.
As Mandela said at his trial under the apartheid regime in South Africa in 1964 that: “I have cherished the ideal of a democratic and free society in which all persons live together in harmony and with equal opportunities,” chair of The Elders, Kofi Annan said, adding: “The people of the United States have elected Donald Trump as their next president. Mandela’s words remind us all that effective leadership requires vision, humility and openness; they provide a model for all heads of state and government to follow worldwide.”
Gro Harlem Brundtland, Deputy Chair of The Elders, added: “Today’s world faces challenges that can only be solved by coordinated global action, from climate change to fighting terrorism. The United States remains an indispensable actor and its support for effective international institutions, treaties and frameworks is as vital as ever.”
The Elders is an independent group of global leaders working together for peace and human rights.
Its members comprise: Kofi Annan (former UN Secretary General), Marti Ahtisaari (former president of Finland), Ela Bhatt (Founder of the Self-Employed Women’s Association in India), Lakhdar Brahimi (former Algerian freedom fighter, Foreign Minister), Gro Harlem Brundtland (First woman Prime Minister of Norway), Fernando H Cardoso (former President of Brazil) and Jimmy Carter (former President of the United States).
The rest are: Hina Jilani (a leading activist in Pakistan’s women’s movement and international champion of human rights), Ricardo Lagos (former President of Chile), Graça Machel (former freedom fighter and first Education Minister of Mozambique), Mary Robinson (first woman president of Ireland), Ernetso Zedillo (former President of Mexico), and Desmond Tutu (Archbishop Emeritus of Cape Town, a veteran anti-apartheid activist and peace campaigner).
Source: Ghana/AccraFM.com
