UN to appoint former Moonie as head of World Food Program

Kofi Annan last week was set to put a former leading "Moonie" in charge of the UN's biggest humanitarian aid agency after vigorous lobbying by the Bush administration. Josette Sheeran is to be appointed executive director of the UN World Food Program (WFP), according to diplomatic and UN sources. Sheeran, also known by her married name Shiner, was a member of the Rev. Sun Myung Moon's Unification Church for more than 20 years. She became one of its most influential figures as managing editor of the Washington Times newspaper, which was founded by Moon. A US State Department spokesperson said recently that Sheeran, the under-secretary of state for economic, business and agricultural affairs, was "our candidate." He acknowledged that a pamphlet circulated in support of her application had been funded by US taxpayers and said Condoleezza Rice, the secretary of state, had "made phone calls in support of Josette's candidacy." The spokesperson said that Sheeran had not been a member, or had any association with, the Moonies for more than a decade and that it had no bearing on her work. "In America, we regard religion as a private matter," he said. However, in Rome, where WFP has its headquarters, some officials privately expressed concern. "She has never distanced herself from the views of this group which, given its extreme nature, you would think was appropriate," said one. He referred to Moon's claims that the Holocaust was a result of the death of Jesus. "It's sufficiently bizarre to warrant an explanation–that, and the duration of her involvement." Her departure from the Unification Church was reported by the Washington Post in 1997, which said Sheeran had been worshipping at an Episcopal church for the previous 18 months. Sheeran joined the Moonies as a young woman. She married another member of the Unification Church, Whitney Shiner, who trained at its Theological Seminary. They are now divorced and Shiner, a Washington professor, has also left the group. In 2001, she entered the US administration as an associate trade representative. WFP's executive directors are chosen by the UN secretary general and the director-general of the UN's Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), notionally in consultation with the WFP board. A senior western diplomat said a provisional decision was due to be forwarded to the board last week, but the process was held up to allow consultation with the incoming secretary general, Ban Ki-moon of South Korea. Ban is not related to Moon and is not linked to the Unification Church. According to a UN source, Annan and FAO director-general Jacques Diouf had discarded Sheeran before Ban's intervention. But this was denied by other UN and diplomatic sources in New York and Rome, who said she was the first choice. The WFP board is due to meet this week to approve the decision.