John Alan Beesley | |
|---|---|
| Personal details | |
| Born | August 17, 1927 Smithers, B.C. |
| Died | January 22, 2009 (aged 81) Victoria, B.C. |
| Alma mater | University of British Columbia |
| Occupation | Lawyer, civil servant, diplomat |
John Alan Beesley, OC, (Aug. 17, 1927 – Jan. 22, 2009) was a Canadian diplomat and civil servant.
Early life
editBeesley was born in Smithers, B.C. on Aug. 17, 1927. He was one of five children of Jack and Margaret Beesley. He had two brothers, Dr. Bernard Beesley and Flight Officer Terry Beesley (who died on D-Day). He had two sisters, Noreen Burvill and Elizabeth Beesley.
He spent his early years in Williams Lake, Penticton and Kamloops. He graduated from Kamloops High School in 1945.
He attended the University of British Columbia (UBC), graduating with a bachelor of arts and law degree in 1950. While attending UBC he was a founding member of the Jokers Club. He also became a member of the Sigma Chi fraternity.
After graduating Beesley practised law and Crease and Company in Victoria, B.C. for six years prior to joining the federal Department of External Affairs in 1956.
Diplomatic career
editBeesley began work with the Department of External Affairs in 1956. His early postings included Israel in 1958 and the Canadian permanent mission to the United Nations Geneva, 1964 to 1967. He was assistant under-secretary and legal adviser to External Affairs from 1972 to 1973 and the Canadian delegate to the legal committee of the Stockholm Environmental Conference in 1972.
Beesley received his first ambassadorial appointment in 1973. He was ambassador to Austria, the International Atomic Energy Agency and UNIDO from 1973 to 1976. He served as high commission to Australia from 1977 to 1980. From 1980 to 1982 he was Canada's first ambassador for disarmament in New York. From 1983 to 1987 he was ambassador to the United Nations in Geneva and GATT. Beesley was a member of the International Law Commission from 1986 to 1991.
From 1967 to 1983 Beesley was was instrumental in shaping the law of the sea as Canada's ambassador to the Law of the Sea Conference, Canadian head of delegation and chair of the conference drafting committee.
In 1987 to 1988 he took a years sabbatical as a visiting profesor at the UBC law school. He ended his diplomatic career as ambassador for marine conservation and special environmental adviser to Canada's Foreign Minister from 1989 to 1991.
Throughout his career Beesley was involved in protecting the environment and promoting peace. He was involved in major bilateral and multinational treaty negotiations in many subjects, including: outer space; the law of the atmosphere; aerial hijacking; international trade; the International Atomic Energy Agency peaceful nuclear regime; environmental law; human rights law; the law of the arctic; humanitarian law; laws of war; climate change; aboriginal law; refugee law; and international crimes.
Beesley was also an active human rights advocate in the World Health Organization (on apartheid) and led the delegation that negotiated the anti-hijacking agreement with Cuba.
Other
editBeesley was on the board of directors of the Sierra Legal Defence Fund.
Awards and recognition
editBeesley was made a Queen's Counsel in 1974. In about 1978 he was recognized as a Significaant Sig by the Sigma Chi fraternity.
Beesley was awarded the Prime Minister's Oustanding Public Service Award in 1983. In 1983 he was made an officer of the Order of Canada for his work on the Law of the Sea and the Environment.[1]
In 1993 Beesley was awarded the Admiral's Medal for contributions to Canadian maritime affairs. In 1995 he received the United Nations Association in Canada medal of honour. In 1998 he was awarded the Red Cross's Human Rights Medal of Honour, the Freie und Hansestadt Hamburg Medal, and the Human Rights Medal of Honour from the Vancouver Island Human Rights Coalition.
Beesley received an honourary doctor of environmental studies from the University of Waterloo in 1984[2] and an honourary doctor of laws from Dalhousie University in 1994[3].
Personal life
editIn 1954 Beesley married Margaret Ruth Stevens. They had two children, a daughter, Terry Beesley Phipps, and a son, S. Alan Beesley.
His first wife died in 1991. He remarried in 2002 with Ruth Lechner. He passed away in Victoria, B.C. on Jan. 22, 2009.[4]
References
edit- ^ Order of Canada; http://www.gg.ca/honours/search-recherche/honours-desc.asp?lang=e&TypeID=orc&id=108
- ^ University of Waterloo, Honorary Degrees Committee - Honorary Degrees Granted: http://www.secretariat.uwaterloo.ca/governance/Honorary_Degrees/hd_degree_DES.htm
- ^ Dalhousie University, Honorary Degree Recipients, 1892-1999: http://www.convocation.dal.ca/The%20Ceremonies/Honorary/pastrecipients.html
- ^ Former Diplomat, Father of Developer Passes Away
External links
edit- Foreign Affairs and International Trade Canada diplomatic history
- In Memoriam: J. Alan Beesley, Canadian diplomat and UBC Law alumnus, [1]
- Globe and Mail, Jan. 24, 2009: [2].
- UBC Archives [3]