*Ø* Blogmanac | Vale Sergio Vieira de Mello

I'm deeply shocked and saddened to hear that the top UN envoy to Iraq, Sergio Vieira de Mello was among many United Nations peace workers killed in an explosion at the UN headquarters in Baghdad yesterday.

Just three months ago, he'd bravely taken leave from his post as the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights to become chief UN envoy in Iraq. Mr de Mello had had a long record of commitment to human rights, and worked tirelessly for justice for people in trouble, all around the world. If there was a dangerous hot-spot, de Mello was there.

Brazilian-born de Mello was a very impressive man, quiet and gently spoken, obviously committed to the disadvantaged. He was a remarkable scholar, with four degrees to his name, including two doctorates from the Sorbonne in Paris. He was known as one of the most impressive of all UN directors, and many thought him likely to become Secretary-general sometime in the future.

I had coffee with him once in Sydney when he was Director of the Regional Bureau for Asia and Oceania, United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR). He was charming, but it was his sincerity and not just his good looks that charmed men and women alike. It is said that he was adored by his staff. In more recent years, he worked in Kosovo, Cambodia and East Timor, running United Nations efforts in those trouble spots.

People sometimes forget that United Nations staff are flesh and blood human beings who often take enormous risks on behalf of their fellow creatures. Sergio Vieira de Mello was a nice bloke, and one hugely dedicated individual, and it brings home to me how brave even some bigshots in the UN are.