PRESS BRIEFING ON UN GOODWILL AMBASSADORS MEETING

The United Nations will be the location for a unique gathering next week of its celebrity advocates for the new millennium, Gillian Sorensen, Assistant Secretary-General for External Relations, told correspondents this afternoon at a Headquarters press briefing.

The Meeting of United Nations Goodwill Ambassadors and Messengers of Peace, to be held on 18 and 19 June, will bring together 46 prominent persons from the worlds of art, film, music, sports, literature and public affairs, she continued.  Its purpose will be to deepen their understanding of the United Nations and its many roles, to strengthen their connection to the whole United Nations system and to reinforce their roles as advocates and spokesmen, who inform, inspire and help carry the message of the Organization to a larger audience.

Included in the group, which totaled 75, she said, were Olympic gold medal winners, actors, poets, singers, writers, directors and one princess.  Some of them had served in their capacity as goodwill ambassadors for over 25 years, while others were newer to the position.  The Secretary-General will open the session at 9:30 a.m. on Tuesday in the Economic and Social Council Chamber, as well as host a luncheon in their honour later that day.

As a group, they had only met once before –- almost two years ago, she noted.  The Meeting would include briefings on humanitarian crises, the fight against HIV/AIDS and other diseases, poverty eradication, sustainable development and peace and security.  A session entitled, “Advocacy in Action”, would discuss in an open and frank way the possibilities, as well as limitations, of being a celebrity spokesperson.  It was hoped that when they left, they would feel more informed, more connected, more comfortable with United Nations issues and more prepared to speak on many occasions about the Organization. 

Among those expected to attend were Roger Moore, Danny Glover, Elie Wiesel, Harry Belafonte and Angelina Jolie, she said.  The press was invited to the opening session on Tuesday morning and interviews could be arranged through Graciela Hall in the Department of Public Information. 

Asked how goodwill ambassadors were chosen, she said they were chosen by the Secretary-General or by the heads of the funds, agencies and programmes.  They were people of high international standing and achievement with some demonstrated interest in the issues, who were ready to commit some time and effort.  It was a volunteer commitment.  In special cases, the United Nations would pick up the basic costs of travel to a frontline situation.  However, in most cases, they were “people of means” and performed their duties at their own expense.

It might be time to cap the numbers, she noted, so as not to devalue the importance of the group.  The United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), for decades, had been the only organization to have its own goodwill ambassadors –- the first appointments included Danny Kaye and Audrey Hepburn in the 1950s.  In later years, about 10 years ago, other offices had picked up on that idea and appointed their own. 

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