Edward Broadbent

Edward Broadbent is President of the International Centre for Human Rights and Democratic Development, a Canadian sponsored initiative in support of international human rights issues.

Edward Broadbent holds a Ph.D. in political science and began his career as a professor of Political Science at York University in Toronto. In 1968, he was elected to Parliament where he served until he resigned in 1989. From 1978 through 1982, Mr. Broadbent also served as Vice President of Socialist International, an organization which links social democratic parties around the world. He was particularly involved in efforts to bring peace to war-torn Central America.

Mr. Broadbent was made a member of the Canadian Privy Council in 1982. As Leader of the New Democratic Party, he struggled for an equitable tax system, equality for women, the constitutional entrenchment of aboriginal rights and relief from poverty for Canada's children. In his last years of leadership, he was often chosen as the man most Canadians wanted as Prime Minister.

"There is today a new-found vitality in the UN which must be nurtured and a potential for bold and principled action which needs to be channelled and developed. The year 1995 offers a unique opportunity to do that."

"Your 50 Communities programme is an imaginative means of illustrating the spirit and purpose of the UN and showing that the values and principles it fosters belong to all peoples, regardless of culture or history. It should also forge enduring links between citizens and this distant, New York based organization which, for too many, is little more than symbols, blue helmets, a flag, white vehicles, appearing from time to time in troubled corners of the world."