Millennium Summit to Be Co-Chaired by Finland, NamibiaPresident Tarja Halonen of Finland and President Sam Nujoma of Namibia, co-chairs of the U.N. Millennium Summit, begin their first meeting Tuesday afternoon,which is expected to nail down the final arrangements for the summit scheduled for September 6-8.The summit to focus on the role of the United Nations in the 21st century is projected to be attended by 152 heads of state or government. President Nujoma was a hero of the struggle for Namibian independence. In 1960, he was elected president of the South West Africa People's Organization (SWAPO), and later served as commander-in-chief of the SWAPO's armed forces as they challenged colonial rule in the territory which later became Namibia. Nujoma was sworn in as first president of the newly independent republic in 1990, and in March 2000, he was reelected to a third term. Tarja Halonen was elected Finland's president in February 2000, and assumed office on March 1. She previously served as minister for foreign affairs during the Finnish presidency of the Council of Europe, minister of social affairs and health, minister of justice, and minister in charge of gender equality. The co-chairs were selected by a ruling of the 54th session of the U.N. General Assembly in March this year. It was decided that the Millennium Summit would be presided over by the leaders of the countries of the presidents of the 54th session (Theo-Ben Gurirab of Namibia) and of the 55th session (Harri Holkeri of Finland). |
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