S.E.M. Bernard KESSEDJIAN

ICAED statement

The following statement of the ICAED is presented as a tribute to Bernard Kessedjian during the side event of the ICAED to the Human Rights Council on March 11 2008.

Statement on Bernard Kessedjian in English, French and Spanish

Statement French embassy to the Holy See

Bernard Kessedjian was born on June 30, 1943. He is a graduate of the Institute of Political Studies in Grenoble; graduate of the Ecole Nationale d'Administration (promoted on "André Malraux," 1977). 
         After working at the French Embassy in Paraguay, and then attached to the Cour des Comptes, Mr. Kessedjian began his diplomatic career in Mexico and Nicaragua before joining the permanent representation of France to the European Communities in Brussels. He directed the Office of the Secretary of State for European Affairs (1985-1986) and the office of the Minister of State, Foreign Minister (1989-1992). He was ambassador in Algiers (1992-1994), Athens (1995-2000) and Permanent Representative of France to the United Nations and international organizations in Geneva (2001-2005). As head of the Working Group on enforced or involuntary disappearances, a word of praise is due to Mr Kessedjian, who presided over the negotiations about the convention and who managed to secure the adoption of the text by consensus and with no reservations - a rare feat in international law.

He is an Officer of the National Order of Merit and Knight of the Legion of Honour.

Bernard Kessedjian died Dec. 19, 2007.

(This text is originally from the official French Vatican website)

Bernard Kessedjian est né le 30 juin 1943. Diplômé de l'Institut d'études politiques de Grenoble; ancien élève de l'École nationale d'administration (promotion "André Malraux", 1977).
        Après avoir été coopérant à l'Ambassade de France au Paraguay, puis attaché à la Cour des Comptes, M. Kessedjian a commencé sa carrière diplomatique au Mexique et au Nicaragua avant de rejoindre la représentation permanente de la France auprès des Communautés européennes à Bruxelles. Il a dirigé le cabinet du secrétaire d'Etat chargé des affaires européennes (1985-1986) puis le cabinet du ministre d'Etat, ministre des affaires étrangères (1989-1992). Il a été ambassadeur à Alger (1992-1994), à Athènes (1995-2000) puis représentant permanent de la France auprès des Nations Unies et des Organisations Internationales à Genève (2001-2005). En tant que président du groupe de travail sur les disparitions forcées, un mot de louange est due à M. Kessedjian, qui a présidé les négociations sur la convention et qui a réussi à garantir l'adoption du texte par consensus et sans réserves - un rare exploit dans le droit international.

Il est Officier de l'ordre national du mérite et Chevalier de la Légion d'honneur.

Monsieur Bernard Kessedjian est décédé le 19 décembre 2007.

Speech of Kessedjian to HRC

To read the speech in french of Mr. Kessedjian in front of the Human Rights Council (Geneva, June 27, 2006). Pour lire le discours prononcé par M. Kessedjan devant le conseil des Droits de l'Homme des Nations Unies (Genève, 27 juin 2006). Click here

 

Some of the reactions received:

• Patricio Rice, FEEDEFAM :
  

Friends

What a shock ! The news of Ambassador Kessedjian´s
death! I have just been sharing the sad news with
Marta Vasquez, Horacio Ravenna and Rodolfo
Mattarrollo. Amazingly he died almost on the
first aniversary of the GA approval of the Convention.

That document will be his most remembered legacy
indeed as it would never have existed if it were not
for his leadership. And we all know he would want to
be most remembered for that extraordinary achievement.

FEDEFAM and all his friends here can only express our
deep sense of loss and of sympathy to his wife and
family. And indeed pay this tribute to an
extraordinarily sensitive, humanitarian and
intelligent man who put all his talents at the service
of the families of the disappeared. We will miss him
indeed!

Patricio Rice
Horacio Ravenna
Rodolfo Matarrollo
Marta Vasquez
FEDEFAM

• Gabriella Citroni:

Dear friends,
I also received the news of the death of Amb. Bernard Kessedjian with deep sadness.
Indeed, I knew about his cancer, as we met last time on 11 September in Rome at the French Embassy at the Holy See.
I was there bringing him a commemorative plaque on behalf of AFAD. There, he shared his difficult situation with me, but he asked to keep it confidential.
I can say that he was suffering but, as usual, as all of us that had the pleasure and honour to know him can immagine, he was still brave enough to struggle.
He received the commemorative plaque bestowed to him by AFAD for his great contribution to the global struggle against enforced disappearance with sincere commotion and, as we had lunch together, he commented his memories concerning the whole process of negotiation of the Convention. While he was remembering this diplomatic and, above all, personal success, his eyes were shining.
I am glad to share with you the fact that, even then, while already struggling against the illness, he was still personally concerned about the Convention, its entry into force and implementation and he told me about efforts he was undertaking to lobby on various governments to ratify the Convention.
This impressed me and I will ever consider it as an example.
He may have left, but what he has done on this earth, with devotion, humbleness and perserverance, will stay forever and I am sure that his brave spirit will accompany all those struggling to eradicate the scourge of enforced disappearance.

Thank you, Amb. Kessedjian and, as one day you personally told me: there is always room for dreaming and hoping.

Gabriella Citroni

• Mylene Bidault:

Dear all,
It is a real shock for everybody, including at the Office of the High
Commissioner for Human Rights. Most of us did not know about Bernard
Kessedjian's illness. We are very sad, and will remember him as a great man
who made a difference.
Mylène Bidault

• Olivier de Frouville:

Chers amis,

Cette nouvelle est un choc et la cause d'une grande tristesse pour tous les "amis de la salle XII" et au-delà, pour toutes les familles de disparus et tout ceux qui travaillent avec elles et les accompagnent. Bernard Kessedjian nous est apparu à tous, lors de ces trois années, comme un grand diplomate : parce que tout en portant au plus haut l'art de la diplomatie, il n' a jamais perdu de vue l'objectif final de l'exercice. Fin stratège, il est constamment resté en empathie avec les victimes. Nous savons tous que la rencontre avec Marta et avec d'autres parents de disparus l'avait profondément marqué. Il était ému - peut-on même se risquer à dire : 
révolté ? - mais toujours, bien sûr, parfaitement maître de ses émotions. "Pas trop de pathos !", m'avait-il conseillé, après une intervention qui évoquait un peu trop la détresse des victimes. Parce qu'il savait - tout comme les familles de disparus, qui en sont les premières conscientes - que l'on ne fait pas une bonne convention avec de bons sentiments. Mais entre les bons sentiments et le cynisme calculateur - le plaisir froid du technicien, ressenti à chaque négociation, quel que soit son objet - il y a une voie étroite et difficile et exigeante. C'est celle que Bernard Kessedjian avait choisie. Je lui suis personnellement très reconnaissant de cette leçon.

En mai dernier, nous l'avions invité à Paris pour une journée d'étude sur la Convention, afin qu'il vienne nous raconter "sa" vision de la négociation. Au dernier moment, il avait dû annuler, prétextant d'« ennuis de santé », sans plus de détail. Il disait beaucoup regretter de ne pas pouvoir être avec nous. Nous savons aujourd'hui à quel point nous ne pouvions lui reprocher cette absence et combien son regret était sincère. En partant aujourd'hui trop tôt, il emporte avec lui tous ces petits secrets et ces dessous de la négociation que nous voulions l'entendre nous relater ! Mais il laisse l'essentiel : 
sa contribution inestimable à la Convention et le souvenir qu'il a laissé en chacun de nous.

Olivier

• Nassera Dutour

Chers amis,

C’est avec beaucoup de tristesse que nous avons appris la mort soudaine de l’Ambassadeur Bernard Kessedjian. Porteur du projet de la Convention internationale pour la protection de toutes les personnes contre les disparitions forcées, il a su écouter la voix des victimes tout en menant à bien et avec beaucoup de diplomatie, de réflexion, et d’intelligence les négociations en faveur de ce texte si important.

Pour cela, la FEMED, incarnation de la lutte contre les disparitions forcées dans la région Euromed lui sera toujours reconnaissante.

C’est aujourd’hui à un grand diplomate attentif à la non-répétition des crimes que la FEMED rend hommage.

Avec notre meilleur souvenir,

P/La FEMED
Nassera Dutour
Présidente

• ASIAN FEDERATION AGAINST INVOLUNTARY DISAPPEARANCES (AFAD)

HIS EXCELLENCY AMBASSADOR GERARD CHESNEL
Embassy of France
Manila, Philippines,

His Excellency Chesnel,

     Warmest greetings for the New Year!

     As the year 2008 enters, we are profoundly grieved by the sad news about the untimely death of His Excellency Ambassador Bernard Kessedjian, former Chairperson of the then United Nations Inter-sessional Working Group to Elaborate a Draft Legally-binding Normative Instrument for the Protection of All Persons from Enforced or Involuntary Disappearances.

     The three-year negotiation process for the then draft treaty was triumphantly concluded in Room X11 of Palais des Nations in Geneva, Switzerland through the late Ambassador's excellent and very able leadership.  His mastery of the subject matter, his photographic memory, his unparalled diplomatic skill to wield unity in the midst of the diversity of positions of various members of the then United Nations Commission on Human Rights vis-a-vis the then draft treaty and most of all, his heart for the families of the disappeared - all these had contributed to bringing to a successful conclusion the whole drafting process and to the finalization of the text of the United Nations Convention for the Protection of All Persons from enforced or Involuntary Disappearance on September 22, 2006.

     The last time we personally met him was on February 7, 2007 during the historic signing by 57 governments of the treaty against enforced disappearances.  The announcement of every government signifying its intention to sign the treaty was a hard-earned reward for his indefatigable struggle to give birth to the final text of the convention which was adopted without a vote by the United Nations General Assembly on the 20th of December 2006 in New York.

     The death of His Excellency Ambassador Bernard Kessedjian, who championed the cause of the disappeared and their families, is indeed, a great loss to the international movement against enforced disappearances.  The whole world, especially the families of the disappeared terribly miss him - his commitment to the disappeared and their families, his extraordinary leadership ability and intelligence and his unequalled capacity to wield unity amidst conflicting positions of UN member-states and, lest we forget, his good sense of humor.  How could we ever thank him very much for the great gift to humanity, i.e. the United Nations Convention for the Protection of All Persons from Enforced Disappearances he had bestowed upon thousands upon thousands of families of the disappeared all over the country.  No words can say.

     We express our sincerest condolences to the wife of the late His Excellency Bernard Kessedjian for the demise of a man who spent his life so that others may life.  May she find comfort in his exemplary life and in the great legacy he left behind.  We likewise condole the government of France for the loss of a very dedicated and able Ambassador, colleague and friend.  Our hearts literally ache and our tears shed profusely for the death of a man who had left an indelible legacy to all the disappeared and their families worldwide.

     May this gret man, whom we shall never forget, rest in peace.  His memory will never be erased in our minds and in our hearts.

    Our most humble yet concrete expression of gratitude to our beloved Ambassador Kessedjian is our never-ending struggle for the disapeared and their families.  In the immediate, we vow to work hard for the entry into force of the United Nations Convention for the Protection of All Persons from Enforced Disappearance and its implementation in as many countries as possible.

    Kindly accept our heartfelt condolences and please convey our sympathies to the family of the late His Excellency Ambassador Bernard Kessedjian.

    Thank you very much.  More power!

 Sincerely yours,

MUGIYANTO                                                                      MARY AILEEN D. BACALSO
Chairperson                                                                        Secretary-General