the mediator in Palestine,
Bunche meets with his staff members
visits Cyprus, April 1964
Bunche's successful negotiation of four armistice agreements
that ended the first Arab-Israeli war in 1949, proved that the
United Nations could fulfill its peacekeeping mandate. This
was the first major challenge faced by the UN, and a great deal
was at stake for the new international organization.
Bunche believed passionately that conflicts could be resolved
through negotiation, without resort to the use of force. He
dedicated more than twenty years of his life to achieving the
goal of international peace. He worked tirelessly to resolve
seemingly intractable conflicts in such varied places as Palestine,
Yemen, Kashmir, Cyprus, Suez, the Congo, and Bahrain. In many
cases, his negotiations prevented the outbreak of hostilities
and as such did not make headlines.
An example of Bunche's use of preventive diplomacy occurred
near the end of his life, when he was asked by Secretary-General
U Thant to preside over negotiations between Iran, the British,
and Bahrain. The dispute involved Bahrain's demand for independence
from Great Britain and the control of its natural resources.
Despite his rapidly declining health, Bunche painstakingly negotiated
a settlement guaranteeing Bahrain's independence to the satisfaction
of all involved. The Bahrain mediation was so important because
it "was a textbook example of settling a dispute by quiet diplomacy
before it degenerated into conflict." *
For Bunche, the peaceful settlement in Bahrain further evidenced
the power and efficacy of mediation rather than open conflict
- the defining feature of his world view. In the end, the British
Mission believed that "the main credit goes to Dr. Bunche, whose
good will, patience and skill were truly exemplary."
on the UN's work in peacemaking and preventive diplomacy
Bunche: An American Odyssey, by Brian Urquhart