Page 359 - 100 Reflections that Crafted Geneva International_V-Petrovsky_private special edition

Bringing the Concept to Life

bathrooms and was graced with an exceptional view of Lake Geneva and the
Alps in the distance. Forty-five years later, the hotel took on a very different
function. Following a request made by professor William Rappart, envoy and
observer of the Federal Swiss Council to the seat of the Conference on Peace
located in Paris, Geneva's hotel National became the League of Nations's first
home. In 1924, the building was baptised the Palais Wilson in honour of
Woodrow Wilson, the president of the United States whose idealism and
international consciousness-raising helped bring about the birth of the League
of Nations. Geneva quickly became a city renown as an international center for
conference diplomacy. In 1931, a pavilion was added to the Palais Wilson's
structure in order to house the newly created Conference on Disarmament
which still operates today in the Palais des Nations. In 1937, the Palais Wilson
was purchased by the Swiss Confederation and the State of Geneva and then
later by the City of Geneva in 1967. In 1991, the building underwent extensive
renovation in order to accommodate an international organization of the UN
family. And in 1998, the Palais Wilson opened its doors to the Office of the
High Commissioner for Human Rights and the Secretariat of the International
Decade for Natural Disaster Reduction.

The inauguration of the Palais Wilson as the seat of the Office of the High
Commissioner for Human Rights during the celebration of the 50th Anniversary of
the Universal Declaration for Human Rights is a clear illustration of the Palais
Wi1son’s important place in the advancement of the ideas of internationalism.

The exposition you will see today accompanies us along the journey from
the early days of the hotel National, all the way to the re-inauguration of this
past year, an event which has contributed to strengthening Geneva's image as a
capital of human rights and humanitarianism in all its aspects.

Thank you for your attention.

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