Mercy Global Concern

Bridging The Gap between Policy and Practice October 13-24, 2008

The 2008 Bridging the Gap Conference which began on October 13, 2008 ended on October 24. This year again we managed to attract Sisters of Mercy from throughout the Mercy World to this conference.

Briefing Notes

Briefing Paper Number 2, November 2008

Women, peace and Security

Women in post-war situations need to be appreciated as agents of change not just as targets and victims of war.

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Briefing Paper Number 1, November 2008

President of the GA on the current Global crisis

We are in the midst of a complex economic crisis whose dimensions are not yet clear but whose consequences are game changing. What was once benignly described as “irrational exuberance” is now exposed for what it was: unbridled greed and pervasive corruption enabled by governments that lost sight of their responsibility to protect their citizens.

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Reports

Report Number 1, October 2008:

UN - Real (By Cathy Solano)

My first view of the UN was on a Monday afternoon and I wasn’t that impressed. The 63rd GA had just finished, the metal barricades were still (untidily) in place at the front, the flags of most nations hung limply on the poles and there was a small, dispirited demonstration by a group of Tibetans calling on Ban Ki-moon to do more to stop the torture of their people by the Chinese.

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Special Reports

September 2008

Report 1: Reaffirming Human Rights for ALL

The 61st Annual Conference for Non- Governmental Organizations associated with the UN took place in Paris, France from September 3 – 5, 2008. This was the first year that the annual conference took place outside of the UN Headquarters in New York.

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Report 2: Protection of Internally Displaced Persons – the Guiding Principles on Internal Displacement

Currently there are 26 million internally displaced people who have had to flee their homes because of conflict, climate change or because of natural disasters.

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Report 3: Keynote Address:  Ingrid Betancourt: In a world that is pregnant with threat- Where is the Hope? Who has the Courage?

Former Senator of Columbia, Ingrid Betancourt who was released from FARC Guerillas in July 2007 gave the closing keynote address. Some of the key points from her presentation follow.

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Report 4: UN Democracy Fund

At a meeting I attended at UNESCO, Paris on September 3, 2008, Mr. Roland Rich, Executive Director of the UN Democracy Fund outlined how NGOs and Civil Society can access money from the UN Democracy Fund.

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Announcements

Announcement Number 2, October 2008:

Stand Up against Poverty

STAND UP and SPEAK OUT is a joint initiative of the United Nations
Millennium Campaign and the Global Call to Action Against Poverty (GCAP).

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Announcement Number 1, October 2008:

High Level Dialogue on the MDG

“The world is still waiting for our leaders to really deliver on their promises, but time is running out,” said Salil Shetty, Director of the Millennium Campaign.

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Key Dates

United Nations Observances (pdf)

UN Calendar of Events 2008-2009

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Important days in the UN

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Submission and interventions at the UN

Submission Number 6, November 2008

Gender inequality has long been acknowledged as a cause for discrimination and violence against women and girls.  The Beijing Platform for Action in 1995, expressed a strong affirmation of the equal sharing of responsibilities for the family by men and women stating that a harmonious partnership between (women and men) is critical to their well-being and that of their families as well as to the consolidation of democracy.

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Submission Number 5, November 2008

Dear Mr President-Elect, The people of the United States have chosen you to lead them. We rejoice in their choice and we salute you. We ask God’s blessing on you as you prepare to assume the leadership of this nation and to work with the community of nations.

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Submission Number 4, November 2008

Poverty is more than inadequate income or human development. Poverty is also about lack of voice, power, and representation. One effective way to address these various dimensions of poverty is through the empowerment and participation of poor people in decision-making that affects their lives. …

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Submission Number 3, November 2008

The Beijing Platform for Action, Section L, pledges to eliminate all forms of discrimination against girls, specifically addressing violence, education, economic exploitation and harmful cultural attitudes and practices.

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Submission Number 2, November 2008

With Copenhagen we affirm that “the aim of social integration is to create ‘a society for all,’” in which every individual, each with rights and responsibilities, has an active role to play.

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Submission Number 1, November 2008

Social integration of migrants is one of the greatest challenges facing almost every government and society in the world today. Globalization increasingly requires international mobility as both developed and developing countries seek the exchange of skills and labour.

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Commissions

Commission on Social Development

Climate Change: The United Nations and the World at Work;
February 11-12, 2008 – United Nations Headquarters.

Commission for the Status of Women

Commission on the Status of Women which begins Next week in NY. February 26 - March 7, 2008 The Theme this year is:
Financing for Gender Equality and the Empowerment of Women

Mercy Global Concern, representing the Sisters of Mercy at the UN will endorse this letter as part of the Global Call to Action Against Poverty. 

This letter will be sent to all UN Government Missions in advance of the UN High Level Event on MDGs on September 25.

The letter is the result of a consultation with a number of
organisations including GCAP working groups. We hope that you will be able to add the weight of your organisations voice to these important comments and demands by signing the attached letter.

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UN Calendar of Events 2008-2009

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Important days in the UN

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