UNWTO Suspension of Russia Illegal?

UNWTOWTN | eTurboNews | eTN
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On February 28 eTurboNews learned about UNWTO Secretary-General Pololikashvili calling for Russia to be removed as a member of the World Tourism Organization.

It was noticed by WTN VP Dr. Waler Mzembi, that it’s brave for Pololikashvili to move ahead with Russia’s suspension. Pololikashvili however may be accused of a conflict of interest given the centrality of his native country Georgia getting tangled in the current Ukraine conflict.

Of course, UNWTO members are governments represented by ministers of tourism. The UNWTO is an agency of public diplomacy and should leverage people-to-people engagement or citizen diplomacy to reign in Russia. 

The World Tourism Network applauded the step UNWTO initiated but with caution. WTN’s Vice President Walter Mzembi, who himself was competing against Zurab in the 2017 Secretary-General election suggested:

  • Before the suspension, UNWTO should appoint a peace mission to Russia to plead with the administration in Russia and see the necessity of peace as an underwriter of successful travel and tourism. This may be a better approach instead of taking a divisive position, which could split the organization on opinion and eventually physically too.
  • Secondly, suspension of a member is a political decision that may not necessarily rest with Tourism Ministers and will require broader consultation with home governments. At the same time UNWTO itself is part of the UN Cabinet. It cannot act unilaterally while Russia itself sits right there in the Security Council with veto power.

WTN urged for UNWTO Secretary-General Pololikashville to designate a special envoy to handle and balance this assignment and recuse himself personally because of what he may be otherwise accused of – a conflict of interest.

UNWTO01 | eTurboNews | eTN
UNWTO1 | eTurboNews | eTN

The World Tourism Network today urged UNWTO to follow its own rules of procedure for suspending members pursuing a policy contrary to the fundamental aim of the organization. WTN in principle supports UNWTO’s intention but urged rules should be followed by an UN-affiliated agency in such a sensitive move, otherwise, such an overall supported move may backfire.

RULE 51: Procedure for suspending members pursuing a policy contrary to the fundamental aim of the organization.

The rule states:
1) Any request to suspend a member in accordance with article 34 of the Statues shall be addressed to the Secretary-General. The Secretary-General shall submit it to the Executive Council, and the Executive Council shall report on the question to the assembly.

2) Such a request must be submitted at least sixty days before the Council’s session.

3) Within thirty days from the date on which he receives a request for suspension, as provided for in paragraph 1 above, the Secretary-General shall transmit it to the members, enclosing the account of facts considered to justify suspension under article 34 of the statutes.

4) Any request to suspend a member to the assembly shall be referred to a committee set up for the purpose by the assembly and tasked with presenting a report. The same procedure shall also apply to the lifting of the suspension provided for in article 34(2) of the Statutes.

Conclusion:

It appears UNWTO is moving too fast this time. There was only a little more than a week for this request to be submitted to the Executive Council session.

The Executive Council has been called to meet this week in Madrid on March 8 to decide on this matter.

Perhaps a better move would be for UNWTO to warn the world to travel to Russia in current times and go through the procedure.

About the author

Avatar of Juergen T Steinmetz

Juergen T Steinmetz

Juergen Thomas Steinmetz has continuously worked in the travel and tourism industry since he was a teenager in Germany (1977).
He founded eTurboNews in 1999 as the first online newsletter for the global travel tourism industry.

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