Smith, Arnold Cantwell

▪ 1995

      Canadian diplomat (b. Jan. 18, 1915, Toronto, Ont.—d. Feb. 7, 1994, Toronto), as the first secretary-general of the Commonwealth, organized and coordinated association activities but, more important, demonstrated aplomb while serving (1965-75) as a troubleshooter during several serious crises. During his two five-year terms in office, Smith expertly negotiated the storms that threatened to destroy the cohesion of the association, especially when the white-minority government in Rhodesia (now Zimbabwe) proclaimed independence from Britain in 1965, Britain proposed selling arms to South Africa in 1971, and Pakistan resigned from the Commonwealth in 1972. Smith, a Rhodes scholar, joined the diplomatic service in 1943 and was posted to the U.S.S.R. (1943-45) before serving in Brussels, New York City, Phnom Penh, and London. He was also ambassador to Cairo (1958-61) and Moscow (1961-63) before his appointment as secretary-general. In 1976 he was a cofounder of the North-South Institute in Ottawa, and he served as its chairman until 1991. Smith was made a Companion of Honour in 1975 and became an Officer of the Order of Canada in 1984. He published Stitches in Time: The Commonwealth in World Politics in 1981.

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