Candid Annan questions Darfur, UN role

In one of his final public speeches asUN secretary general, Kofi Annan questioned Friday how a world that promised to uphold human rights can allow the "horror" of Darfur to continue.

Annanspoke toa gathering of about 500 in New York. Theeventwas organized by Human Rights Watch, in honour of International Human Rights Day on Sunday.

Annan, whose term ends on Dec. 31, reflected on his 10 years as head of the United Nations, an organization, he said, thathas "often failed" to live up to its responsibility of promoting human rights.

"I'm not sure how far I have succeeded, or how much nearer we are to bringing the reality of the UN in line with my vision of human rights as its 'third pillar,' on a par with development, and peace and security," he said.

"To judge by what is happening in Darfur, our performance has not improved much since the disasters of Bosnia and Rwanda," Annan said.

Tens of thousands of people in Sudan's Darfur region have died and more than 1.2 million have been displaced from their homes in a three-year conflict between government-backed militias and rebel groups.

"Sixty years after the liberation of the Nazi death camps and 30 years after the Cambodian killing fields, the promise of 'never again' is ringing hollow."

"How can an international community which claims to uphold human rights allow this horror to continue?"

Must prevent genocide

He praisedthe progress that has been made in holding people accountable for the world's worst crimes, including the establishment of the International Criminal Court and UN tribunals for Yugoslavia and Rwanda.

He urged his successor, South Korean Ban Ki-moon, who will be inaugurated next week, to push forward with an action plan to prevent genocide.

Annan also called on Africa to take more responsibility in its own struggle for security and development.

"Unless Africa wholeheartedly embraces the inviolability of human rights, its struggle for security and development will not succeed," he said.

"In practice, many African governments are still resisting the responsibility to protect. Many, even among the most democratic, are still reluctant to play their role in the Human Rights Council by speaking out impartially against all abuses. They can, and must, do more."

Established earlier this year, the Human Rights Council has been criticized for including countries with poor human rights records such asCuba, China, Russia, Pakistan and Saudi Arabia. Canada is a member; the U.S. didn't seek a seat.

War on terror a 'slippery slope'

In what appears to be a parting shot at U.S. President George W. Bush's war on terror, Annan said the world needs "an anti-terrorism strategy that does not merely pay lip service to the defence of human rights, but is built on it.

"We must fight terrorism in conformity with international law," he said, noting secret prisons where people are held without access to workers from human rights organizations such as the Red Cross.

"Once we adopt a policy of making exceptions to these rules or excusing breaches of them, no matter how narrow, we are on a slippery slope."

Annan has also become more outspoken on global issues.

Earlier this week, he told the BBC the current situation in Iraq is worse than a civil war. He warned the crisis threatened to spread throughout the entire Middle East.