JONATHON LUCAS APPOINTED AS SECRETARY OF INTERNATIONAL

UNCLAS UNVIE VIENNA 000038 SIPDIS ONDCP WASHINGTON DC for Rich Baum E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: SNAR APER UN XA SUBJECT: JONATHON LUCAS APPOINTED AS SECRETARY OF INTERNATIONAL NARCOTICS CONTROL BOARD -------------- SUMMARY -------------- ¶1. International Narcotics Control Board President Sevil Atasoy announced the appointment of Jonathan Lucas (Seychelles) as Secretary of the INCB and Chief of the INCB Secretariat on February ¶3. Lucas succeeds Koli Kouame (Ctte d'Ivoire) who retired from the organization on January 31. Prior to his appointment as Secretary of INCB, Lucas served as the Regional Representative of the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) in Pretoria. He is expected to take up his new assignment in Vienna on March 22. END SUMMARY -------------- BACKGROUND -------------- ¶2. Lucas has been an "international diplomat" his entire professional career. Following work early on in his career as a Consultant with the International Labour Organization (ILO) in Switzerland, Lucas joined the United Nations in 1984 as Associate Social Affairs Officer. He continued serving in various capacities, including Legal and First Officer for the policy-making organs of the United Nations International Drug Control Programme, and Senior Programme Management Officer in the Office of the Executive Director/Director-General of the then Office on Drug Control and Crime Prevention/United Nations Office at Vienna. More recently he has served as Secretary of the Commission on Narcotic Drugs, and Secretary of the Commission on Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice. Lucas holds a Master's degree in Political Science from Acadia University, Canada, and a Ph.D. degree in International Law/Economics from the Graduate Institute for International Studies (IUHEI),Geneva, Switzerland. ¶3. INCB Secretariat interlocutors, as well as retired U.S. Ambassador Melvin Levitsky (who serves in his personal capacity on the INCB),speak highly of Lucas and are optimistic that he will be a valuable addition to the INCB. UNVIE will continue to work closely with the INCB Secretariat, and will endeavor to cultivate a similarly close and constructive relationship that we enjoyed with former Secretary Kouame. Lucas will have big footsteps to fill, as Kouame proved to be a good custodian of the INCB, advancing the prominence of the Board, while also protecting its integrity. We would not be surprised if Kouame returns soon to the international drug policy arena, perhaps even seeking a seat on the INCB itself during next year's elections. DAVIES