The Mission of Healing: Kofi Annan's Failed Apology

Abstract

Kofi Annan traveled to Rwanda in May of 1998 attempting to repair the image of the United Nations (U.N.) and to heal the fractured political relationship between the two entities. However, the U.N. secretary general largely failed to fulfill his mission. This article analyzes the reasons why Annan's mea culpa failed. It argues that in Annan's address before the Rwandan parliament, his rhetorical choices constrained his ability to repair the U.N.'s image and U.N.–Rwandan relations. Specifically, this article demonstrates that the U.N. leader's nondiscussion of his personal culpability for U.N. action, his democratization of blame for the genocide, and the appearance of personal arrogance created by his language choices hindered his ability to fulfill his mission. The article concludes with implications for image repair theory, lessons from Annan's failure for rhetors who apologize for historical wrongdoing, and directions for further research into the phenomena of public apology.

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

An earlier version of this article was presented at the 2003 National Communication Association Conference in Miami, FL. I thank Kate Archard, Sandra Cleary, Cheryl Edwards, Mary Stuckey, the two anonymous reviewers, and editor Gary Radford for their suggestions in improving this article.

Notes

¹A number of political leaders have apologized for historical injustices committed against communities within their states or between other populations. For example, in 1997 Bill Clinton apologized to African Americans for the Tuskegee Syphilis Experiment. Tony Blair apologized to Irish citizens for Great Britain's lack of support during the potato famine of the mid-19th century. Japanese prime ministers throughout the 1990s expressed public and private remorse to Chinese, Australian, South Korean, and U.S. leaders for the atrocities they committed prior to and during World War II. For a listing of these apologies, see http://www.upenn.edu/pnc/politicalapologies.html

²The reader may wonder why I am examining an apology that was deemed a failure. I believe Annan's discourse provides important rhetorical lessons for those who engage in attempting to repair the image of their organizations and rebuilding fractured political and social relationships.

³For a timeline of the Rwandan genocide, see http://timelines.ws/countries/RWANDA.HTML.

⁴Senator Robert Kennedy faced a similar situation when he addressed Stellenbosch University in South Africa. Kennedy's audience at Stellenbosch, an all-White university, was hostile to Kennedy's message of civil rights and equal treatment to all. Kennedy, aware of his fact, adapted his address to include a message of good will and emphasized the like-mindedness between South Africa and the United States. Kennedy's ability to adapt to his surroundings enhanced his credibility with students and elicited the desired responses from those students (see Rudolph, 1983).