And so I hope that the goal of 50-50 gender distribution in the United Nations Secretariat will be embraced by all Member States. Let us also avoid pigeon-holing women as being more adept at this or that. Or, for that matter, as though we men were incapable of showing a human face. I would hope, at least, that the latter is not the case. Women are not the feel-good factors of international affairs.
Women are half of humankind.
As such, they are equally concerned with, and should be equally involved in, the work of the one Organization which works for the advancement of all humankind. Having dedicated itself to the rights of human beings, the Organization is only as good as the way it upholds the rights of its own. She points out that it is difficult to believe completely in an enterprise that requires one's own diminution. But that does not mean any of us need live under a glass ceiling. I would urge you all today not to impose limits on yourselves.