SECRETARY-GENERAL CALLS PARTNERSHIP OF NGOS, PRIVATE SECTOR, INTERNATIONAL ORGANIZATIONS AND GOVERNMENTS POWERFUL PARTNERSHIP FOR FUTURE
Press Release
SG/SM/6973
SECRETARY-GENERAL CALLS PARTNERSHIP OF NGOS, PRIVATE SECTOR, INTERNATIONAL ORGANIZATIONS AND GOVERNMENTS POWERFUL PARTNERSHIP FOR FUTURE
19990429 Following is the text of remarks made today in Berlin by Secretary- General Kofi Annan at the non-governmental organization (NGO) 'Forum on Global Issues':Thank you very much, Minister Fischer, friends. Minister, you started by thanking me for being here this afternoon and agreeing to participate in this meeting. I am the one who should thank you for asking me, and I am the one who should thank this forum for asking me to come. After all, the United Nations Charter starts with "We the peoples..." and so contacts with NGOs is for me a renewal and a return to the roots of the Organization. And as I have indicated earlier, ever since I took office, that we should strengthen this contact with civil society, with the peoples, and bring the United Nations closer to the peoples. I hope, in the past few years you have seen a bit of difference. But I am going to keep trying.
Minister and Ladies and Gentlemen, let me say that it is a great pleasure to join you for this forum. I would like to start by applauding Minister Fischer for his support of the "NGO revolution". As I can assure you from my own experience at the United Nations, not all governments are eager to promote the involvement or even the existence of NGOs. After all, the raison d'être of many NGOs is to put pressure on Governments and "hold their feet to the fire".
But recent years have proven that participation is the only way forward. Recognizing this is the mark of the confident Government and the progressive politician.
In the United Nations a few decades ago, governments were virtually the sole players. Of course, NGOs helped found the United Nations and are mentioned in the Charter. Even before that, NGOs led the charge in the adoption of the Slavery Convention of 1926. And NGOs have a long and proud history of fighting against tyranny and providing humanitarian assistance to the victims of conflict and natural disaster.
But it is only since the Earth Summit in 1992 that civil society groups have really made their mark on global society. You have played a key role at world conferences on such vital issues as human rights, population, poverty and women's rights.
Thanks to you, the year 1997 was the year of the landmine -- or should I say, the year of no more landmines? One thousand NGOs in 60 countries were linked together by a weapon that would ultimately prove more powerful than the landmine: e-mail and the Internet. And with that same weapon, and that same intensity, NGOs helped make 1998 the year of the International Criminal Court.
The Nobel committee has recognized this work, awarding its peace prize to NGOs, church and academic groups and others. But NGOs have also come in for a less welcome sort of recognition: you have been denied access to meetings and information; your representatives have been harassed, jailed and exiled, tortured and murdered. It is to your credit that such acts have failed to deter you from your chosen causes.
The United Nations is opening its doors much more widely to civil society. Through funding and other assistance, we are also promoting the emergence of NGOs in developing countries.
As we look ahead, I would like to draw your attention to two events of special importance.
The first, to be held next month, is the Hague Appeal for Peace, in which some of you may be involved.
The meeting is being held to commemorate the 100th anniversary of the Hague Peace Conference, and aims to promote a culture of peace in the 21st century. It is hard to be hopeful about peace against the backdrop of Kosovo, Angola and other conflicts. But perhaps it is significant that the first Hague Peace Conference was convened by governments, whereas this one is largely the work of civil society groups.
Second is the Millennium Assembly, as the General Assembly has decided to designate its session next year.
I am sure you agree that what the United Nations needs is not another ceremonial event, but a genuine attempt to review and renew the Organization for the challenges ahead. NGOs can provide guidance and inspiration for that effort through the "Millennium Forum" they plan to hold in May of next year, and through the hearings the United Nations will be holding around the world this spring and summer. I very much look forward to your contributions.
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NGOs have helped give life to the idea of an international community, an idea that is often questioned and mocked. The international community is, admittedly, a work in progress. And the State is not disappearing or ceding authority. But we have entered an era of ever greater partnership, and there are few limits to what civil society can achieve. I have already referred to landmines and to the International Criminal Court. I think, it is clear that there is a new diplomacy, where NGOs, peoples from across nations, international organizations, the Red Cross, and governments come together to pursue an objective. When we do -- and we are determined, as has been proven in the land mines issue and the International Criminal Court -- there is nothing we can take on that we cannot succeed in, and this partnership of NGOs, the private sector, international organizations and governments, in my judgement, is a powerful partnership for the future. I look forward to testing those boundaries with you in the years ahead.
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