PI/1379
19 September 2001

MULTIMEDIA WEB SITE LAUNCHED IN COMMEMORATION OF FORTIETH ANNIVERSARY OF DAG HAMMARSKJÖLD’S DEATH

NEW YORK, 18 September (UN Headquarters) -- On 18 September 1961, Dag Hammarskjöld, the second Secretary-General of the United Nations, died in a plane crash in Ndola, Northern Rhodesia, with 15 others.

Timed to coincide with the fortieth anniversary of this tragic event, the Dag Hammarskjöld Library has launched a multimedia Web site honouring his years of service to the Organization (1953-1961) (http://www.un.org/Depts/dhl/dag/)

With the aim of capturing the impact and importance of Dag Hammarskjöld’s tenure as Secretary-General, the site features a year-by-year narrative of events, challenges and accomplishments, captioned photographs, historic video and audio clips, a selection of his most notable quotations, speeches and writings, biographical information and links to additional resources.

Of particular interest are the texts of transcripts from the United Nations Oral History Project that concern Mr. Hammarskjöld. Among the interviews included are those conducted with Brian Urquhart, Sture Linner, Arthur Lall and Pauline Frederick.

Also featured is a section devoted to his legacy, including, for example, the Dag Hammarskjöld Peacekeeping Medal, the Meditation Room, the stained glass window designed in his honour by Marc Chagall and the Dag Hammarskjöld Library.

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