'Time to renew UN's role' - Cherie Blair

Cherie Blair yesterday told international law students at the University of Malta that it was time to "reaffirm" and "renew" the role of the United Nations since recent events had "exposed its weaknesses".

Delivering the first of two legal lectures in Malta yesterday, the barrister wife of British Prime Minister Tony Blair described the UN as "far from perfect".

"There needs to be a debate about what we mean by international law in the 21st century... governments are expected to be democratic if they are legitimately to exercise sovereign power."

The remnants of the overnight rainfall were still being dried up by the glistening sunshine as Ms Blair arrived in an official car at the university shortly before 11 a.m. under a welcoming blue sky with British High Commissioner Vincent Fean sitting beside her. There to meet her as the doors of the green Jaguar flung open were the head of the International Law Department, David Attard, and the president of Malta's European Law Students Association, John Ellul Sullivan, to whom she said jokingly: "Do you always wear a suit here?" as more typically-dressed students looked on.

Through the conspicuous though relatively unobtrusive security presence - made up of a combination of British and Maltese personnel - she walked to the main entrance, chatting and waving to students along the way. After a brief meeting with the university rector, it was time to start her lecture on Human Rights - a Personal Perspective.

As she launched her exposition by saying that today human rights was a widely accepted term, she added: "Speaking is easy; action is more difficult. But action is the measure of commitment. In the 21st century, many people are still denied human rights... Tyrants do not need a dictionary. They all know what we mean."

Ms Blair said there could be no debate about who qualified for human rights, adding: "They are rights, not concessions and cannot be watered down".

She included the threat from international terrorism "and those who sponsor it" among the many obstacles to human rights today before adding a diversion that was a thinly disguised defence of her husband: "It is a remarkable fact that its (Iraq's) leader was not killed." She said Saddam Hussein would instead stand trial for his crimes.

However, the main thrust of her lecture was the way various Popes had developed the concept of human rights. Although she argued that few doubted the Church's commitment to the concept, its view had gone from "rejection to proclamation" and it was only during the tenure of Pope Leo XIII, in the late 19th century, that rights were mentioned in the encyclicals for the first time.

Ms Blair said Pope Pius XII had not spoken out in favour of human rights strongly enough during World War II and that he was more of a diplomat than a Pope. "Diplomacy is a good characteristic in a Pope but in times of war it can have its limitations," she said, diplomatically.

However, she showered praise on Pope John XXIII for recognising that fact and for promoting dialogue between the Church and the wider community for the first time. "This was revolutionary for the Church," she said. Ms Blair also said he was "ahead of his time" for introducing the concept that each right had its respective duty even though it had taken people quite some time to come to terms with this argument.

"If John was writing (a list of rights) today, he might extend it to include poverty and the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction," she said.

However, she said the Church still had a "long way to go" until it lived up to that Pope's ideals of equality for all, particularly in relation to women. She said progress had been made in opening doors to more female participation in the Church but more could be done. Ms Blair even believes there is no reason why half of the Vatican's curia positions cannot be filled by women.

She concluded by saying that Pope John XXIII had left humanity with an immense legacy. However, she could then not resist the temptation to "steal" a phrase from her husband: "Much has been done, but there is still much left to do".

In the afternoon, Ms Blair addressed lawyers and judges on the more technical subject of national courts and European law at a conference on EU law held at the Mediterranean Conference Centre, Valletta. The conference was organised by the Lord Slynn of Hadley Foundation in cooperation with the Judicial Studies Committee and the Chamber of Advocates with the assistance of the British High Commission.