Unesco posts are not just about culture

The Bulgarian politician Irina Bokova was elected new Director-General of Unesco on Tuesday, thus winning the race against her controversial Egyptian rival for the post Farouk Hosny, who came under fire after making anti-Israeli remarks. The business paper Il Sole 24 Ore writes on Bokova's election: "The northern European bloc led by Germany worked in her favour. … The systematic undermining of the 'safe' candidate [Hosny] to lead the UN authority whose task it is to promote dialogue among peoples through culture, education and science started with his controversial statements. … Culture, whose international flag Unesco bears, in reality had little to do with the negotiations on the appointment of the new director. Politics, diplomacy and reason of state intersected in the hallways of the UN authority until in the end they culminated in a dangerous short circuit."

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