Secretary-General Commemorates Portugal’s Late President, Special United Nations Envoy, Calling Him ‘a Good Man’ Devoted to Improving Lives of People Worldwide

Following are UN Secretary‑General António Guterres' remarks at the event to commemorate late President Jorge Sampaio of Portugal, in New York today:

I am pleased to join you to honour the memory of my dear friend and compatriot, Jorge Sampaio. We all mourned Jorge Sampaio's passing on 10 September this year. Portugal lost an extraordinary leader, one of the country's best. The world lost a great statesman who will be remembered for his compassion, empathy, intelligence and wisdom.

Jorge Sampaio left an impressive legacy. He was a good man who devoted himself to noble causes and improving the lives of people worldwide: a courageous champion of democracy and social justice; a human rights defender; and a passionate advocate for vulnerable people everywhere.

Jorge Sampaio was a man of integrity, humanism and cordiality. Gentle and open, he showed respect for everybody. As well as dedicating his life to bringing democracy and prosperity to Portugal, Jorge Sampaio was a committed global citizen and multilateralist.

I was proud to work with him on many issues, but especially on the question of Timor-Leste regaining independence. And I greatly admired his efforts as United Nations Special Envoy to Stop Tuberculosis. Working far from the limelight, he took up the cause of ridding the world of one of its most dangerous contagious diseases. As Special Envoy, he worked closely with the Stop Tuberculosis Partnership and the World Health Organization's Global Tuberculosis Programme.

Humble and determined, he was as comfortable on the frontlines with patients and health professionals as he was advocating for them in the corridors of power. Subsequently, as the first High Representative of the United Nations Alliance of Civilizations, Jorge Sampaio was the successful architect of an important United Nations mechanism.

The Alliance's goal is both simple and complex - to promote preventive diplomacy and build bridges of dialogue and understanding between cultures and religions. This effort remains of utmost importance today.

At the end of his mandate in 2013, Jorge Sampaio could have rested. Instead, his passion for fighting for the right cause led him to launch the Global Platform for Syrian Students, providing a lifeline to Syrian students to continue their education under an emergency scholarship programme.

For his lifelong efforts, the United Nations General Assembly awarded Jorge Sampaio the first ever Nelson Mandela Prize, in 2015, along with Dr. Helena Ndume, of Namibia. Accepting the award, he spoke not of himself but all the people, communities and movements he had worked alongside to improve lives around the world. This was typical of a man who devoted his life to promoting the common good.

I would like to leave you with a quotation from Jorge Sampaio's Mandela Prize speech, which very much sums up my own feelings about our future. "I really do believe," he said, "that what our twenty-first century is missing is this vision, this optimism about humankind, grounded in the extraordinary power of the soul that makes men and women capable of compassion, hope, resilience, pride and sacrifice. This is what we need to do to build hope in the future - to infuse public life and international relations with a bit of magic."

As we work together to address humanity's many common challenges, let us be inspired by these words. Let us find a bit of magic in our relations with each other - as nations and as people. Jorge Sampaio will be sorely missed in Portugal and beyond.

Eu queria exprimir a minha profunda solidariedade a todos os seus amigos e familiares aqui presentes. Thank you, muito obrigado.

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