Mail Call.(Letter to the editor)

A Tough Job

Readers of our March 5 cover story on the the United Nations' new chief protested that it was unfair. "You're writing him off before he's even settled in," wrote one. Another said, "Give him a chance, his task is crucial."

In Defense of Ban and the U.N.

As the former president of a Vienna-based NGO on U.N.-related affairs and as a political analyst, I am deeply saddened by the fact that NEWSWEEK is writing the new U.N. chief Ban Ki-moon off before he has even had a chance to settle into his new position ("Why This Man Will Fail," March 5). The United Nations and its secretary-general are only as effective and influential as the five permanent members of the Security Council allow them to be. This has always been a drawback, but it does not negate the raison d'etre of the United Nations as an essential institution to maintain world peace and improve the human condition. Founded right after World War II, and therefore more than 60 years old, it is inconceivable that such a world forum could be created today. The only thing the "P5" can agree upon is that the world needs the United Nations, which is why the U.N. has outlived its predecessor, the League of Nations. And it is still possible that Ban Ki-moon will succeed, if only the world's major powers let him. NEWSWEEK should encourage the new secretary-general and the long-overdue reforms of the U.N. Charter and its modus operandi instead of being as negative as ...