Htein Win - 1974 U Thant Incident

(Former Secretary-General of the United Nations, U Thant, passed away on Monday, November 25, 1974, in a hospital in New York City, USA. The following are the reports received from abroad by AFP, UPI and AP. Translator).

United Nations, November 25. Former UN Secretary-General U Thant died today in a hospital in New York, the UN announced. He died of lung cancer. He was 65 years old at the time of his death.

U Thant was admitted to the hospital on November 22. He died of cancer in his cheek that had been growing since he was admitted to the hospital 13 months ago.

U Thant was writing his autobiography. He had temporarily stopped writing due to ill health.

He retired as Secretary-General of the United Nations on December 31, 1971. He moved to the small town of Harrison, north of New York City.

U Thant was born on January 22, 1909, in Pantanaw, Myanmar. He served in Myanmar as an English language teacher, then as a director of the Information Department.

He was given the responsibility of serving as Myanmar's Permanent Representative to the United Nations, after carrying out major responsibilities in public relations and information work.

While serving as Permanent Representative, then-UN Secretary-General Dag Hammarskjöld died in a plane crash in Africa.

Following the death of Dag Hammarskjöld, U Thant was elected Secretary-General of the United Nations on 30 November 1963. However, he was only appointed as Acting Secretary-General until the end of Dag Hammarskjöld's term as Secretary-General.

When his term ended in 1966, U Thant was unanimously re-elected as Secretary-General by all member states and neutral countries. He served as Secretary-General for the second time until December 31, 1971, when his term ended.

U Thant's health had been failing since 1973. In December of last year, U Thant was supposed to receive an award. However, he wrote to inform me that his health was not good and that he would not be able to attend the award ceremony in person.

U Thant was loved and respected by the UN diplomatic community as a man of great devotion, generosity, calmness, and a noble heart. The UN diplomatic community and the world of UN staff and officials are deeply saddened to hear of the passing of such a great person.

U Thant was a man who forever strived for the freedom and peace of all people. He viewed any problem impartially and worked for the development of good.

However, U Thant's efforts in the Belgian Congo (now Zaire) were not as successful as expected. Later, he personally participated in efforts to negotiate an end to the Vietnam War.

Since 1967, he has been trying to justify his actions. He has faced accusations that his actions contributed to the rapid escalation of the Six-Day Arab-Israeli War.

At that time, Egyptian President Nasser (deceased) strongly demanded the withdrawal of the UN peacekeeping forces from the Gaza Strip and the Sinai Desert. U Thant was widely criticized for quickly complying with this demand.

U Thant immediately went to Cairo to stop the withdrawal of UN troops. Although the Security Council could have delayed the withdrawal by at least a day or two, U Thant's hasty decision was criticized for causing the war to escalate more quickly.

U Thant, however, still holds the belief that the deployment of UN troops on Egyptian soil was without any international agreement.

These troops were deployed in 1956 by personal agreement between UN Secretary-General Dek Hammal and President Nasser.

U Thant's 1974 U Thant Incident The autobiography that U Thant is writing is written up to the time of the Arab-Israeli Six-Day War, and it is hoped that it will also include the origins of the Six-Day War.

UN Secretary-General Quartet is on a trip to the Middle East. When he returns, the UN will hold a meeting to pay tribute to U Thant, UN officials said. Quartet is expected to return on Thursday.

Funeral arrangements have not yet been finalized. However, Quartet, who is in Damascus, is discussing the possibility of U Thant's body being kept at the United Nations. It is likely to be kept at the United Nations from Wednesday afternoon to Thursday afternoon. It is also expected that the body will be kept near the United Nations Mediation Room.

There have been suggestions that the bodies of Dag Hammarskjöld and US Ambassador to the UN Adley Stevenson be brought to the UN. However, U Thant is the first person to have his body brought to the UN and to be honored in this way.

The United Nations General Assembly, which is still holding a meeting on the day of U Thant's death, expressed its condolences. However, a separate meeting will be held to commemorate U Thant, which is likely to be held on Friday or Monday.

The Monday evening session was held late. At the session, Brad Formos (United States), Under-Secretary-General for General Conferences, read out the following message of condolence from Quartheim.

“I am deeply saddened to hear of the passing of U Thant, the third Secretary-General of the United Nations. U Thant became Secretary-General at a time when our great United Nations organization was facing many crises, and when differences and conflicts between member states were escalating.

Therefore, U Thant's first task is to build bridges between differences, to achieve stability, and to achieve unity with common views, thoughts, and beliefs.

U Thant led the United Nations for 10 years during a period of change and turmoil. His words, his calm, and his efforts were crucial in trying to defuse the dire situation.

He is also unwavering in his opinions when it comes to fundamental policies. Throughout his tenure, he has maintained the trust of all member states.

U Thant, who was a dedicated Secretary-General, was known for his ability to resolve complex political conflicts and strive to improve the economic and social well-being of the organization. He was willing to sacrifice his own interests. He even neglected his health and devoted himself entirely to his responsibilities.

Many of us have become good friends of U Thant. His humanity, love and respect for humanity, and steadfastness are beyond our praise and appreciation.

For me alone, U Thant is my true friend, and I will never forget his great wisdom, his deep compassion, his mature devotion, etc., throughout my life.

"We will all remember U Thant forever as someone who sacrificed everything for the advancement of peace and justice on this earth," Kut Wa Him's message reads.