The United Nations community gathered at UN Headquarters in New York on 27 October 2005 to celebrate the sixtieth anniversary of the Organization and the 100th birthday of its second Secretary-General, Dag Hammarskjöld.
The commemorative event, titled “The Spirit of the United Nations: Markings for the Future”, explored the importance of spirituality in the work of the United Nations system. Several passages were read from Mr. Hammarskjöld’s journal, “Markings”, which he described in a letter to his literary executor as “a sort of white book concerning my negotiations with myself and with God”.
Jan Eliasson of Sweden, President of the sixtieth General Assembly, spoke of his admiration for Dag Hammarskjöld, with particular reference to the “spiritual legacy” the former Secretary-General left behind at the United Nations. He believed that Hammarskjöld was unique, as his nature contained both the spiritual and the practical, with “his eyes both fixed on the ground and looking out on the horizon”.
UN Under-Secretary-General for Communications and Public Information Shashi Tharoor applauded the focus of the celebration, saying that “seldom do [commemorations] reflect on matters of the spirit”. The event also featured performances by indigenous dancers from Hawaii and the UN Singers, and a presentation by students of the UN International School (UNIS) Middle School in New York.
Audrey Kitagawa, Co-Chair of the Spiritual Council for Global Challenges, presented to the United Nations a three-foot replica of the UN Headquarters building in New York on the occasion of its sixtieth anniversary. The celebration was organized by The Values Caucus, the NGO Committee on Spirituality, Values and Global Concerns and its special project, the Spiritual Council for Global Challenges, the Brahma Kumaris World Spiritual University, the Legion of Goodwill and the National Spiritual Assembly of the Baha’is of the United States, in cooperation with the Department of Public Information and the United Nations Staff Recreation Council.
The event was part of a series commemorating the birth of Dag Hammarskjöld, which was organized with the support of the Government of Sweden. |
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