Peter Maurer

Peter Maurer (born  November 20, 1956 in Thun ) is a Swiss diplomat . From 2004 to 2010 he was Head of the Permanent Mission of Switzerland to the United Nations and then State Secretary in the Federal Department of Foreign Affairs . Since July 1, 2012 he has been President of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC).

Life

Peter Maurer, 2012

Peter Maurer was in 1956 in Thun in the canton of Bern was born and graduated from 1976 to 1981 at the Universities of Bern and Perugia studying in the fields of history , political science and international law . He then worked until 1986 as a research assistant and lecturer at the Institute for Contemporary History at the University of Bern, where he obtained his doctorate during this time in 1984 with a dissertation on the Swiss food supply during the Second World War .

From 1987 he held various positions in the diplomatic service in his home country, including from 1996 as a deputy permanent observer for Switzerland at the United Nations (UN) in New York . In 2000 he was appointed Ambassador and Head of Political Department IV for Human Security in the Federal Department of Foreign Affairs (FDFA), the Swiss Ministry of Foreign Affairs, responsible for the areas of peace , human rights , humanitarian policy and migration . From 2004 to 2010 he was Head of the Swiss Permanent Mission to the UN and during this time, from June 2009, Chairman of the Administrative and Budgetary Committee of the 64th session of the UN General Assembly . From March 2010 he acted as State Secretary in the Political Directorate of the FDFA.

On October 17, 2011, he was elected by the assembly of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) as the designated successor to the ICRC President Jakob Kellenberger, who has been in office since 2000 . Thus, after Jakob Kellenberger and his predecessor Cornelio Sommaruga , the ICRC members decided for the third time in a row for a high-ranking diplomat and previous state secretary and thus for a personality from outside the committee to fill the office of president. His regular four-year term began on July 1, 2012. In November 2015, he was confirmed in office by the meeting of the committee for a further four years until June 2020.

Peter Maurer belongs to the Social Democratic Party of Switzerland (SP). He is married and has two daughters.

In November 2014 he received from the University of Basel the honorary doctorate .

Publications

• Cultivation battle: agricultural policy, elections plan, cultivation plant 1937–1945. Chronos, Zurich 1985, ISBN 3-905278-03-0 . (revised version of his dissertation)
• Europe as part of the UN. European Institute of the University of Basel, 2008, ISBN 978-3-905751-09-3 . ( Online, PDF file)

literature

• Peter Maurer. Biographical information in: For Peace, Human Rights and Security. Switzerland's commitment to the world. Published by the Federal Department of Foreign Affairs, Bern 2011, p. 7

Web links

Commons : Peter Maurer  - Collection of Images

• Literature by and about Peter Maurer in the catalog of the German National Library
• Peter Hossli: I'm the monkey who does gymnastics on the treetops. In: SonntagsBlick . Edition of April 8, 2012
• Alan Cassidy, Fabienne Riklin: “I have to be able to allow feelings” ( Memento from 25 August 2014 in the Internet Archive ) Interview in: Switzerland on Sunday 24 August 2014
• Peter Hossli: "We don't understand what exactly ISIS is." Interview in: SonntagsBlick from December 7, 2014
• Documents by and about Peter Maurer in the database Dodis the Diplomatic Documents of Switzerland

Individual evidence

1. ↑ Unless otherwise noted, all information is based on: Federal Department of Foreign Affairs: CV State Secretary Peter Maurer  ( page no longer available , search in web archives )  Info: The link was automatically marked as defective. Please check the link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. ( PDF file , approx. 28KB; last accessed on January 6, 2012)  
2. ↑ ICRC names new president. Press release 11/216 of the International Committee of the Red Cross from October 19, 2011 (last accessed January 6, 2012)
3. ^ ICRC president and vice-president re-elected. Press release of the International Committee of the Red Cross from November 20, 2015 (last accessed on May 16, 2016).
4. ↑ Richard Diethelm, Christoph Münger: "You don't help anyone with whining and complaining" Interview in: Tages-Anzeiger . Edition of November 3, 2012.
5. ^ UN: Swiss bridge builder leaves New York. Published by Swissinfo on March 27, 2010 (last accessed on January 6, 2012).
6. ↑ ICRC President Peter Maurer receives honorary doctorate from the University of Basel Published by Swissinfo on November 28, 2014 (last accessed on December 5, 2014).