Abid Hussain

Abid Hussain came to diplomacy through economic administration. He served as secretary in the ministries of commerce and heavy industry and as a member of the Planning Commission. His 1984 trade policy committee urged measures to encourage exports and make rules more predictable; its recommendations helped establish three year export and import policies in place of annual revisions. ¹

As ambassador in Washington from 1990 to 1992, Hussain argued publicly for economic change in India. Economist Arvind Panagariya recalled a 1990 World Bank speech in which he criticized the damage caused by protectionism and licensing. After returning from Washington, Hussain continued reform work: his 1997 small enterprise committee recommended ending product reservations while supporting smaller firms through other measures. ^{1, 2}

He also became the UN's first special rapporteur on freedom of opinion and expression, taking up the mandate in 1993 and serving until 2002. On a January 1996 mission to Iran he met officials, journalists, and academics, examined censorship and restrictions on publication, and sought information about detained writers. His report urged legal reform, protection from intimidation, and review of cases arising from the exercise of freedom of expression. ^{3, 4}