President’s Letter
Friends:
Welcome back from your summer
vacation.
Among my trips this Summer, I
went to Arlington, VA, to attend
the Annual UNA/USA meeting and
to sign our Affiliation
Agreement on behalf of the West
Triangle Chapter. So we are now
officially affiliated with the
Better World Fund and the UN
Foundation. This will give us
access to more UN educational
literature and help with
advocacy, as well as half of all
dues the UNA collects from our
members.
A
highlight of the meeting was an
inspiring address by the US
Ambassador to the UN, Susan
Rice, who addressed both the
problems and opportunities
facing the UN this year. She
urged us to redouble our efforts
to get Congress to continue
paying our dues and assessed
contributions to the UN. We also
heard challenging remarks from
Kathy Calvin, CEO of the UN
Foundation, and our new “boss.”
Also I picked up several useful
documents including our new
Chapter Handbook, the new
Standard Operating Procedures,
and the 2011 Briefing Book on
the US and the UN in the 121st
Congress. During the “Day on the
Hill” I had a conference with
our representative, David Price,
who agreed to come talk to one
of our Lunch and Learn meetings.
The
important local news is
SEPTEMBER 28 IS BRING A GUEST TO
LUNCH & LEARN DAY. We hope every
member will bring a guest and
introduce them to our members.
Our board has also agreed to try
a plan providing more incentives
to our members to recruit new
members: for each new member
recruited, the recruiter is
entitled to a FREE LUNCH. (Don’t
believe “there is no such a
thing as “a free lunch.”:--).
I
look forward to seeing you again
and meeting your guest at the
L&L.
Pal
Palmore
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Lunch and
Learn Will Focus on Millennium
Development Goals and
Environment
Promulgated in 2000 at an
extraordinary meeting of the UN
General Assembly, the Millennium
Development Goals (MDGs) are,
collectively, a global
development strategy that guides
all governments, the United
Nations and non-governmental
development agencies’ efforts to
combat global poverty and
hunger. Its eight goals -
reducing income poverty, hunger,
disease, lack of adequate
shelter and exclusion — while
promoting gender equality,
health, education and
environmental sustainability,
aim at lifting the world’s
poorest people from abject
poverty. While some progress has
been made, much remains to be
done by the Goals’ target date
of 2015.
Professor Norm
Christensen, founding Dean,
and research professor, at Duke
University’s Nichols School of
the Environment, will discuss
"Meeting the United Nations
Millennium Development Goals in
a Changing Environment" at
our Lunch and Learn meeting on
Wednesday, September 28, from
Noon-2PM at the Carolina Meadows
retirement community in Chapel
Hill. Reservations should be
made by $18 check to UNAUSA West
Triangle Chapter and sent to
Warren Glick, 83203 Jarvis,
Chapel Hill, NC 27517, by
September 23. Details
www.una-westtriangle.org.
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Chapter to Present A Strong L&L
Program Through Rest of 2011
Continuing its tradition of
surveying world conditions and
informing West Triangle Chapter
members and the people of our
broader community about the
latest developments globally and
at the United Nations, our Lunch
and Learn series will be
presenting a number of
challenging and provocative
programs throughout the
remainder of our 2011 - 2012
“year”. We’ve already identified
the following speakers for the
final months of 2011:
September 28:
Professor Norm Christensen,
founding Dean, and Research
Professor, at Duke University’s
Nichols School of the
Environment, will discuss
"Meeting the United Nations
Millennium Development Goals in
a Changing Environment."
October 26: Ms Minh-Thu
Pham, Director
of Public Policy at the United
Nations Foundation, previously
Policy Advisor in the Executive
Office of the UN
Secretary-General, will focus on
the UN Association's
commemorative theme for this
year, "The United Nations --
In Everyone's Interest" and
also touch on UNA’s new alliance
with the UN Foundation.
November 16: Well-known UNC
Emeritus Professor William
Leuchtenberg will discuss
the relationship between Eleanor
Roosevelt and the United
Nations.
December 14: Congressman
David Price will give us his
"take" on the House of
Representatives’ attitudes
toward the United Nations under
a Republican majority and tell
us about the latest developments
in his work with the House
Democracy Partnership.
Our
meetings in September and
October will take place, as
usual, on the fourth
Wednesday of the month, and in
accordance with our custom of
leaving members plenty of time
for any travel they might wish
to do during the holiday
seasons, on the third
Wednesday in November and
December. All will take
place, as usual, between Noon
and 2PM. in the Carolina
Meadows Auditorium.
We’ll let members know about our
first-half 2012 schedule as soon
as we finalize it.
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Exploring ECOSOC
By
Amanda Conklin, UNA-WTC Outreach
Intern
(This
is the second installment of a
series addressing the purposes
and functions of the UN’s
intergovernmental Councils,
and the relationships among
them.)
ECOSOC (Economic and Social
Council) is the United Nations’
principal organ to coordinate
work on economic, social, and
related issues. It is
responsible for promoting higher
standards of living, full
employment, and economic and
social progress; identifying
solutions to international
economic, social and health
problems; facilitating
international cultural and
education cooperation; and
encouraging universal respect
for human rights and fundamental
freedoms. To achieve these
goals, it coordinates the UN’s
“specialized agencies” and
commissions and formulates
policy recommendations to the UN
system and its Member States.
Policy recommendations come from
consultations that ECOSOC holds
with academics, business sector
agents, and NGOs during annual
meetings. ECOSOC holds an annual
four-week substantive session
with representatives to discuss
key issues on the international
agenda in the area of economic,
social and environmental
development. Gender equality and
the empowerment of women were
key themes at the 2010 meeting.
Since 1988, ECOSOC has also held
an annual meeting with finance
ministers heading key committees
of the Bretton Woods
institutions (World Bank,
International Monetary Fund,
etc.), and since 2005, it has
also been charged with holding
Annual Ministerial Reviews to
assess progress in achieving
development goals arising out of
major conferences and summits
and organizing an annual
Development Cooperation Forum to
enhance the coherence and
effectiveness of activities of
different development partners.
The
first session of ECOSOC was held
in January 1946. Since that
time, the Council has expanded
to include 54 Member States,
which are elected in accordance
with geographical representation
guidelines by the General
Assembly for overlapping
three-year terms. The Presidency
of the Council changes yearly,
and Ambassador Lazarous Kapambwe
of Zambia currently holds the
seat.
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Ban Ki-Moon Elected to Second
Term
Following a unanimous
recommendation by the UN
Security Council Ban Ki-Moon was
unanimously elected by the UN
General Assembly this summer to
a second five-year term as the
United Nations’ Secretary
General.
With
no rival for the post, Ban’s
reelection came as no surprise,
although he had been criticized
for being too deferential to
major powers and too timid to
confront human rights abusers.
On the other hand, he had
demonstrated a strength of
purpose and tenacity during his
first term of office and won
praise for his commitment to
climate change, nuclear
disarmament and women's issues,
and for his encouragement of the
pro-democracy protests which
have swept the Middle East and
North Africa. By the time of his
election, Mr Ban had already
secured the crucial backing of
the five veto-holding members of
the Security Council - the US,
UK, France, Russia and China - a
sine qua non for
election to any United Nations
position.
On
being notified of his
reelection, Mr Ban who was on an
official visit to Brasilia, said
: "It's an immense privilege to
serve this great organization as
Secretary General, and I am
grateful for the confidence and
support" [placed in me]. "In the
21st Century, the United Nations
matters in a different and
deeper way"[and] "I am motivated
and prepared to continue our
work together with the member
states, upholding the principles
enshrined in the [UN] charter."
Also
unanimously elected by the
General Assembly, as its
president for the coming 65th
annual General Assembly (GA), is
veteran Qatari diplomat Nassir
Abdulaziz al-Nasser. Mr. Nasser,
who has been Qatar’s ambassador
to the United Nations since
1998, will take over the UN job
in mid-September. The post of
President of the General
Assembly is basically
ceremonial, with little real
power. But it has a high profile
in chairing the annual GA, which
brings the world’s now-193
leaders together and gives them
the opportunity to explain and
advocate their international
policies. Moreover, its occupant
brings prestige to his country,
a not inconsequential thing in
international diplomatic circles.
The
General Assembly job rotates
among geographic areas. This
year, it is the turn of the Asia
Group, which includes countries
in Asia and the Middle East.
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West Triangle Chapter Sponsors
Multi-Event U.N. Month
The
West Triangle Chapter will
celebrate the 66th anniversary
of the founding of the U.N. with
a series of events throughout
October. The first event will be
a conference on October 4th
called “Fragile States,
Global Consequences.”
Open to the public, the
conference is based on a video
prepared by the Stanley
Foundation, a non-governmental
organization that focuses on
international affairs. The
meeting will examine four
politically teetering countries
- The Democratic Republic of the
Congo, East Timor,
Bosnia-Herzegovina, and Haiti.
Break-out discussion groups will
be led by teams of discussion
facilitators consisting of
Chapter members as well as
faculty and students from Duke
University and the University of
North Carolina at Chapel Hill (UNC-CH).
Seven local organizations are
co-sponsoring the event.
Later in the month the Chapter’s
monthly Lunch and Learn event
for members and guests will
feature Minh-Thu Pham,
Director of Public Policy at the
United Nations Foundation. Her
experience also includes serving
in Bosnia-Herzegovina
implementing the Dayton Peace
Accord and working on refugee
issues in Africa with the UN and
several humanitarian and
advocacy organizations. Her talk
will focus on the UN
Association's commemorative
theme for this year, The
United Nations -- In Everyone's
Interest.
In
addition, the Chapter and
student organizations at Duke
and UNC-CH will conduct “Trick
or Treat for UNICEF”
fund-raising drives throughout
the West Triangle area, which
includes the cities of Durham
and Chapel Hill and their
surrounding counties.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
(From the UN Foundation)
Poll Shows Overwhelming American
Support for the United Nations
85% of voters say it is
important the U.S. maintain an
active role in the UN - The
majority of Americans maintain a
favorable perception of the UN
A large majority of
American voters continues to
demonstrate strong support for
the United Nations. Results of
public opinion research carried
out this year under the auspices
of the UN Foundation revealed
that American voters still
overwhelmingly believe the
United Nations is an important
global forum that is still
needed today, and that the
United States needs to maintain
an active role in it. These
views of Americans’ current
attitudes toward the UN are
consistent with their attitude
toward the world body over the
years, and contrast markedly
with those of our
representatives in Congress who
have traditionally used the UN
as a political whipping boy.
Moreover, a majority of
Americans say they continue to
maintain a favorable image of
the organization. Two-thirds of
the poll’s respondents,
including half of the
Republicans polled as well as
majorities of Democrats (84%)
and Independents (63%), believe
the United Nations is still
needed today, and eighty-five
percent say they believe it is
important for the United States
to play an active role in the
organization.
“Anyone who wants to perpetuate
myths about negative American
perceptions about the United
Nations is ignoring the data,”
said Peter Yeo, Vice-President
of the United Nations Foundation
and Executive Director of the
Better World Campaign. “American
voters want the U.S. to take a
lead role in addressing the
world’s toughest challenges, and
they know that leadership starts
with a purposeful, strong
presence at the United Nations.”
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Know Your UN
International Maritime
Organization (IMO)
by
Gregory Flood, Vice President,
West Triangle Chapter
This is part five of a series
that will address the work of
each of the UN Specialized
Agencies within the United
Nations system and the
relationships among them.
Earlier articles in this series
dealt with the general
background of the UN specialized
agencies and the particulars of
three of them: the Food and
Agriculture Organization of the
UN (FAO), the United Nations
Educational, Scientific and
Cultural Organization (UNESCO)
and the World Intellectual
Property Organization (WIPO).
This article will deal with the
International Maritime
Organization (IMO), formerly the
Inter-governmental Maritime
Consultative Organization
(IMCO).
Following World War II, several
countries proposed that a
permanent international body
should be established to promote
maritime safety more
effectively. The IMO was thus
created by a Convention adopted
at the UN Maritime Conference in
1948. The convention came into
force in March 1958, after it
was ratified by 21 countries.
The
agency is mandated to develop
international treaties and other
mechanisms on maritime safety,
to discourage discriminatory and
restrictive practices in
international trade and unfair
practices by shipping concerns,
and to reduce maritime
pollution. Headquartered in
London, the IMO has 169 member
countries. It is headed by a
Secretary-General who serves a
four-year term and oversees a
secretariat staff of
approximately 300 (making it one
of the smallest UN agencies). It
does its work through a number
of intergovernmental committees
dealing with specific issues
such as maritime safety,
environmental and legal matters,
transport of dangerous goods,
radio communications, fire
protection, ship design and
equipment, lifesaving appliances
and cargos and containers.
Since its creation, the IMO has
developed legal conventions for
the Safety of Life at Sea;
training, certification and
watch-keeping for seafarers; the
marine environment;
environmentally sound recycling
of ships; an International
Safety Management Code; and
others designed to improve the
operation and safety of shipping
on the high seas. The IMO's
Global Maritime Distress and
Safety System, which integrates
satellites and terrestrial radio
communications to provide aid to
ships in distress, was
established in 1992. Another key
strand of IMO's work is its
Technical Cooperation Program to
help developing countries
improve their ability to comply
with international rules and
standards relating to maritime
safety and the prevention and
control of maritime pollution.
Key
issues on the IMO agenda
include: responding to the
scourge of modern-day piracy,
including developing the modern
legal capacity and frameworks in
international law necessary to
defeat piracy; and addressing
climate change issues and the
reduction of greenhouse gas
emissions from ships.
IMO
is a technical, rather than
political, agency and operates
under consensus decision-making
rules. As such, it serves as an
effective forum for making
shipping safer and more secure.
Like all UN agencies, it cannot
legislate binding national laws
and it, therefor, strongly urges
nations to take legislative,
judicial and law enforcement
actions to implement the rules
and laws they approve through
it. Moving ahead in the 21st
century, the IMO will continue
to provide the machinery for
cooperation among governments in
the maritime field, while
keeping the safety of life at
sea and the human element,
especially the seafarer, at the
heart of its work.
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United Nations Has A New Member
Republic of South Sudan Becomes
UN’s 193rd Member
On
July 14, the Republic of South
Sudan took its place as the
United Nations’193rd member
government. Oil rich, but at the
same time one of the world’s
poorest countries, the new
nation ranks at the bottom of
almost all human development
indicators following a painful
and violent two-decade civil war
that resulted in its secession
from its “mother” Republic of
Sudan. It was a separation that
would not have been possible
without the midwifing of the
United Nations and which will be
virtually impossible to sustain
without the presence of a
now-7,900-person UN military and
police international
peacekeeping force composed of
troops from African nations to
protect civilians in the infant
nation and to facilitate the
distribution of humanitarian
aid, tasks with which the United
Nations is very familiar. South
Sudan is the first new UN member
state since Montenegro was
admitted in 2002.
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