Qatar was a new independent country in 1971. So 1972 was spent joining all the UN Agencies and getting to hear what was in it for them. In the case of the ITU, quite a bit. Swiss leadership had been pushed aside in favor of Tunisian Mohamed Ezzedine Mili, just the man to make sure a new Muslim country would get all the goodies. There is always somebody else to hand the bill to. So slip on your smoking jacket, fill your pipe, take your first sip of your adult beverage, and sit back in your most comfortable chair. Welcome to todays offering from The Philatelist.
Qatar had two issues of stamps celebrating telecommunications, one before independence and this one just after. The first issue showed off existing infrastructure for telecommunications in the UK, including the Post Office Tower. This one features UN emblems and a wish list of not yet existing in Qatar tech like a satellite and a tracking station. To bad Qatar did not go further and replace Sheik Khalifa with the smiling generous face of ITU General Secretary Mohamed Ezzedine Mili. The people had a right to know who was playing Santa Claus.
Todays stamp is issue A50, a 1 Dirham stamp issued by the State of Qatar on October 24th, 1972. It was a 6 stamp issue in various denominations showing various UN agencies and what they will be doing for newly independent Qatar. According to the Scott catalog, the stamp is worth 35 cents used.
The ITU was formed by a group of European counties in 1865 as the International Telegraph Union. It is the second longest still operating International Agency. It’s purpose was to standardize telegraphs being interoperable, the use of Morse Code and to ensure access to telegraphs by all. Over time they added radio and telephones to their purview. For the first 80 years it was a Swiss based and run Agency. In 1947, the Agency agreed to be put under the United Nations, and while still based in Switzerland began to be run by various people decided on in huge Plenipotentiary Meetings held every four years at various resorts.
In the early 70s the ITU was run by Tunisian Mohamed Ezzedine Mili. He excitedly marketed the Plenipotentiary Meeting at Telecom 71. Desks were set up to show off the high tech wares available from top companies. Imagine the excitement of a free trip to a Spanish resort only to be presented with a shopping list to be paid for on someone else dime. Makes you proud to be a third world welfare queen while you spit on the usefulness of the original agency. It really puts into context the myriad 1970s middle eastern telecommunication stamps.
Times and favored areas change. More recently the ITU was run by Hamadoun Toure’ from Mali. After a gratis education in the Soviet Union and a distinguished career in satellites, he started a new program called Connect Africa. It raised $55 billion dollars to improve Africa’s cell phone infrastructure. Now the Agency is run by a Chinaman named Houlin Zhao. No doubt he will come up with a houlingly expensive wish list for China.
Well my drink is empty and I think I will have another. Come again tomorrow for another story that can be learned from stamp collecting.