Mois : mars 2006

(Note prepared by Dr. Kashinath Pandita, Vice President, Asian-Eurasian Human Rights Forum, Geneva)
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• NGOs are initially registered in some country. ECOSOC status, a privilege, is the aspiration of almost all of them.
• ECOSOC has set forth a procedure for NGOs to apply for its status. This enables them to participate in the GA sessions and the sessions of various subsidiary bodies of the UN. It gives them exposure and provides them a vast field for activity. NGO can become the eyes and ears of the civil society.
• Existing procedure is time consuming and rather complicated. It has to be simplified and made time bound
• ECOSOC NGO Committee that recommends applications behaves in a wayward manner. It is oblivious of the implications of its waywardness. The NGO applicants are made to go through an ordeal. The Committee begins with suspecting each applicant and then behaving with it like treating criminals in a court of law.
• The worst thing is politicizing of NGOs. If the country where an NGO is registered happens to be a political rival or antagonistic or ideological opponent of another member country, then the applicant NGO is doomed.
• Influential members in the NGO Committee can manage to obtain status for the applicants in whom they are interested. It takes a few minutes to see them through whereas others with no political support are made to cool their heels for any period say 5 to 10 years. This procrastination defeats the aims and objectives of the UN.
• The Committee is supposed to take decisions in a democratic manner. But allowing politics to supervene, the Committee has laid down the tradition of obtaining consensus of opinion. When that consensus is not forthcoming, applications are deferred year after year. This leads to loss of faith in the UN principles. This trend needs to be arrested.
• The importance of NGOs as a bridge between the civil society and the managers of administration is bound to increase with the passage of time. Therefore it is necessary that the process of admitting NGOs to ECOSOC status is simplified and streamlined.

Linked with our presentation of Malalai Joya – Afghanistan, and Malalai Joya’s Historical Speech in the Loya Jirga.

Hamoon Health Center has room for three doctors, but only one doctor actually works there now because they can’t afford more. Every day 200-300 women come and wait outside the clinic for health care. It’s the only free clinic in the area. There are two other clinics, but you have to pay for them, and most of the women and children who come here have no money. So Hamoon Health Care Center is completely overcrowded and overstretched.

Continuer la lecture de « The Hamoon Health Center in Afghanistan »

Written by Kashi Nath Pandita, Secretary General of Asian-Eurasian Human Rights Forum (AEHRF), and Vice-President of the Geneva Office of AEHRF:

The need and importance of NGOs in promoting good governance has been debated for a long time. A majority of commentators has recommended further empowerment of NGOs as they are the real liaising mechanism between the civil society and the government.

However, formulation of an NGO and its accreditation to ECOSOC remain a complicated process. There is need of changing the broad approach to these aspects. Our experience is that at present an NGO seeking ECOSOC status is generally looked upon with some suspicion. Owing to political differences among member states of the UN, these differences are allowed to percolate down to lower levels and take the toll of good intentions of aspiring NGOs.

A reform in the procedures of granting ECOSOC status to aspiring NGOs is badly needed. It makes little sense that the granting of status is deferred for innumerable number of years. Procrastinating the matter badly affects the working spirit of an NGO. This trend has to be arrested. A decision about granting or not granting status to an aspiring NGO should be tie bound.

Yet one more aspect of the issue needs to be addressed. A free and fair discussion on each new application has not been witnessed in the NGO Committee. The member states are conditioned by mutual political relation syndrome. There is more of escapism rather than initiative for helping the civil society move towards good governance.

This matter needs to be discussed by the civil society with all seriousness. K.N. Pandita.

Linked with our presentation of Julien Florence Mona Saroinsong – Indonesia.

I tried to find material about this Crisis Center SAG SULUTTENG. Google presents some links, and we arrive at this:

Continuer la lecture de « Crisis Center SAG SULUTTENG »

Welcome to the Middle East! – Welcome to a life experience in the Middle East.

This year, 2006 landmarks the tenth anniversary for the establishment of the International Palestinian Youth League (IPYL). Ten years of giving and dedication towards a better world. With the end of this season, IPYL will be finishing 49 international voluntary workcamps. IPYL did not just make workcamps, but also encouraged other organizations in Palestine and the Middle East to do so, in order to triple the number of the volunteers who want to live this experience, taking into consideration the increasing demands from our partners and some individuals to visit the region.
Similar to last year, IPYL together with its twin and partner organizations; Youth Development Department at the Orient House (occupied East Jerusalem), the Baladna Youth Association in Haifa and Gudran for Art Development (Republic of Egypt) are very happy to introduce to you our joint Workcamps Directory for the year 2006.

We hope that this directory and the timetable will enable your volunteers to attend one or more workcamps in order to have a clearer idea about this region and its concerns. Wishing you and us all the best in this season. Middle East Work Camps Coalition, IPYL, Baladna ,YDD and Gudran.

Continuer la lecture de « MIDDLE EAST REGION WORKCAMPS DIRECTORY 2006 »