# Do not take Democracy for granted, with Nicholas Haysom - Special Representative of the Secretary-General for South Sudan and Head of UNMISS

Page: https://stenobird.com/podcast/awake-at-night-769564/do-not-take-democracy-for-granted-with-nicholas-haysom-special-representative-of-the-secretary-general-for-south-sudan-and-head-of-unmiss
Text version: https://stenobird.com/podcast/awake-at-night-769564/do-not-take-democracy-for-granted-with-nicholas-haysom-special-representative-of-the-secretary-general-for-south-sudan-and-head-of-unmiss.md
Podcast: [Awake At Night](https://stenobird.com/podcast/awake-at-night-769564)
Published: 2025-08-08T12:42:00+00:00
Episode link: https://www.un.org/en/awake-at-night/s11-nicholas-haysom-do-not-take-democracy-for-granted
Audio file: https://traffic.libsyn.com/secure/unhcr/AAN_S11_-_Nicholas_Haysom_v1.mp3?dest-id=719614
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JSON: https://stenobird.com/v1/public/podcasts/awake-at-night-769564/episodes/do-not-take-democracy-for-granted-with-nicholas-haysom-special-representative-of-the-secretary-general-for-south-sudan-and-head-of-unmiss
Duration seconds: 2022

## Resource

As a young white activist in South Africa, Nicholas Haysom risked detention to oppose the apartheid regime, later working alongside Nelson Mandela. Now Special Representative of the Secretary-General for South Sudan and Head of the United Nations Mission there, he is still striving tirelessly in pursuit of peace and human rights. "The lesson of [Nelson] Mandela is not just being a nice person, it's perseverance in your ideals. It'll change the world." After a long and varied career, Nicholas (Fink) Haysom is supporting recovery and resilience in South Sudan, the UN's newest member state. In this episode, he reflects on helping the world's youngest nation build a better future, on why thorny negotiations are always necessary to move on from any civil war, and on why lasting peace should never be taken for granted. https://www.un.org/en/awake-at-night/s11-nicholas-haysom-do-not-take-democracy-for-granted

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