Committee on NGOs

774^th Meeting (AM)

NGO COMMITTEE MAKES FURTHER RECOMMENDATIONS TO ECOSOC

ON DEFERRED NGO APPLICATIONS

The Committee on Non-governmental organizations this morning continued clearing its list of deferred applications from its June session by recommending to the Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) the granting of consultative status to three non-governmental organizations (NGOs), and deferring one application pending a response to its questions from the organization.

The Committee recommended granting special consultative status for Kethea – Therapy Center for Dependent Individuals and International Women’s Rights Action Watch, and roster status to Yachay Wasi (House of Learning in the Quechua Language of Peru).

The 19-member Committee on Non-governmental Organizations makes recommendations on applications from NGOs for standing with ECOSOC, and on requests for reclassification of that standing.  NGOs may be granted either general, special or roster consultative status, according to their work, with different privileges and obligations according to the different categories.

General consultative status is intended for NGOs concerned with most of the activities of ECOSOC that are broadly representative of society in different regions of the world.  Once accorded general status, NGOs can propose items for ECOSOC’s agenda, attend and speak at its meetings and circulate statements.  Organizations concerned with only a few of the fields of ECOSOC’s activity may be considered for special consultative status, which would allow them to attend meetings and circulate statements.  Roster status is accorded to those NGOs which can make occasional and useful contributions to ECOSOC or to other United Nations bodies.  Roster status NGOs can attend meetings and are available for consultation at the ECOSOC’s request.

Members of the Committee are:  Algeria, Bolivia, Chile, China, Colombia, Cuba, Ethiopia, France, Germany, India, Lebanon, Pakistan, Romania, Russian Federation, Senegal, Sudan, Tunisia, Turkey and the United States.  Levent Bilman (Turkey) is the Committee's Chairman.  The Vice-Chairman are: Mercedes de Armas Garcia (Cuba), Mihaela Blajan (Romania), Ilham Ibrahim Mohamed Ahmed (Sudan) and Munawar Saeed Bhatti (Pakistan), who is also the Committee’s Rapporteur.

After a procedural debate about the order in which it would consider applications, during which the representatives of the Russian Federation, Germany  and Algeria made remarks, the Committee decided to start with applications from NGOs whose representatives were present.

Considering the application for special consultative status from Kethea – Therapy Center for Dependent Individuals, a national organization from Greece, the representative of Bolivia said the organization’s response to a questions about its finances was very clear and that it could support the organization. She was supported by representatives of India, Germany and Cuba.  The Committee decided to recommend granting the requested status to that the organization.

Discussion then turned to an application from the International Women’s Rights Action Watch; an international organization which had applied for general consultative status but for which special consultative status was recommended.  The organization’s representative answered questions about its capacity-building actvities to assist women to participate in the work of the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW).  Parts of the CEDAW process did indeed allow for participation of women’s organizations, she explained.  NGOs had been invited to share their views with CEDAW, and International Women’s Rights Action Watch informed women of those opportunities for dialogue with CEDAW.  Responding to a question about “new criteria for women’s rights”, she said the United Nations had developed new understandings on how women’s rights could be implemented.  The organization helped women to give their views and share their ground level experience.

She said International Women’s Rights Action Watch worked in 14 countries in Asia, in partnership with other women’s groups in order to find out the local needs of women.  As for the organization’s relationship with the International Women’s Rights Action Watch Programme from Minnesota, she said relations were good, but the her organization did not implement the Minnesota NGO’s programme.  She would provide a list of organizations with which IWRAW worked.  In India, the organization worked mainly with the National Alliance for Women, but also with other women’s organizations.

The representatives of Colombia, India, Germany and Sudan supported the organization’s application.  The Committee then decided to recommend ECOSOC grant special consultative status.

The representatives of Sudan, Germany, Bolivia, the United States and Chile all said they supported the request for consultative status from Yachay Wasi (House of Learning in the Quechua Language of Peru), but wondered if roster status might not be more appropriate than the special consultative status for which it had applied, as it was a very small organization.

Yachay Wasi’s representative, addressing representatives’ requests for concrete examples of its projects, said its projects started in a village of Peru.  Currently there were two sustainable development projects based on cultural identity, and another, established in cooperation with the “Club de madres”, which was concerned with preservation of traditional textile weaving.  The organization was seeking consultative status because its work had grown, and it had now many issues it needed to bring to the attention of the United Nations.

The Committee decided to recommend roster status for the organization.

Pioneer People Trust had requested special consultative status.  The representatives of Turkey, Sudan and China had doubts about the contributions the organization could provide to the ECOSOC, as it was a religious, Christian-oriented NGO and asked questions.

The Pioneer People Trust’s representative, answering those questions, said the organization was a registered charitable trust in the United Kingdom.  Members were motivated by a “Christian ethic”.  The trust wanted to help people to transform their communities in a sustainable way, and acted without prejudice to race, creed or belief.  Addressing the issue of “evangelization", he said it was an often misunderstood word, which stemmed from the Greek, meaning “good news”.  Bringing good news was the aim of the organization.  The organization honored and respected all people of all faiths.  Religious affiliation was not a condition for receiving aid from the NGO.  The trust was part of a network of charitable trusts in the United Kingdom.  It did not receive any government funds.  Income was derived from donations, but the trust sometimes worked in partnership with government agencies.

Children had always been part of the organization, he said.  They were included in all activities that were appropriate to their age and understanding.  Children were not inducted formally as members, but participated freely, usually because their families were part of the organization.  The organization could be a networking organization for ECOSOC, because he had noticed that knowledge of ECOSOC was not widespread.  Through its network it could offer expertise where appropriate.  Members were generally resident in the United Kingdom, but were often nationals from other countries. 

He said the aims of the trust were not all applied in every case.  Rather, the specified aims were a legal matter regarding charitable trusts in the United Kingdom.  It was not seeking to impose those aims on those to whom it provided assistance.  The objectives of the trust had not changed, but its activities had developed and become international.  Non-believers could indeed become members of the NGO.

Questions were also asked by the representatives of the Russian Federation, Algeria and India.  The representative of Germany, United States and France declared their support for the application.  Sudan’s  and Algeria’s representatives requested a new application better reflecting the NGO’s expanded activities.  Pending an updated version of the organization’s application, action was deferred.

The Committee will meet again at 3 p.m. to consider new applications.

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