Committee on NGOS

6^th Meeting (PM)

COMMITTEE ON NON-GOVERNMENTAL ORGANIZATIONS RECOMMENDS FOUR NGOS

FOR SPECIAL CONSULTATIVE STATUS WITH ECONOMIC AND SOCIAL COUNCIL

Six Applications Left Pending

Continuing its session today, the Committee on Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs) recommended special consultative status with the Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) for four NGOs, three of whose applications had been deferred from previous sessions.  It left pending six applications.

The 19-member Committee makes recommendations on an organization’s standing or reclassification with the ECOSOC using a variety of criteria, including applicant mandate, governance and financial regime.  Currently, 2,234 NGOs have such status.  Those with roster status can attend meetings; those with special status can attend meetings and circulate statements; and those with general status can attend meetings, circulate statements and propose items for the Council’s agenda.  Organizations with special and general consultative status are required to submit quadrennial reports on activities of relevance to the Council’s work.

The new request for special status granted today was for the Lassalle-Institut, a Swiss-based international organization promoting international order and a culture of peace.  An Institute representative clarified issues about the nature of its work.

Special consultative status was also recommended for three organizations whose applications had been deferred:  Jubilee Campaign, an international organization concerned with children’s human rights and with religious liberty; International Center for Not-for-Profit Law, a United States-based organization promoting not-for-profit organizations; and Millennium Institute, an international organization promoting sustainable development.

The Committee left pending requests for consultative status by the following NGOs:  the Russian Public Movement “For Civil Rights”, since requests for clarifications had not been received; World Organization for Education, Science and Development, pending further clarifications to answers already received; National Coalition to Abolish the Death Penalty, for clarification on its activities once status was granted; and Ambedkar Centre for Justice and Peace, pending receipt of clarification on the group’s activities in South Asian countries.

Also left pending were the requests for consultative status of The Heritage Foundation, for continued consideration of the application by the Cuban delegation; and Morality in Media, for further study of the application by the delegations of China and France.  Statements concerning the latter organization were made by the representatives of Germany and the Sudan.

Information about the organizations considered today can be found in documents E/C.2/2003/CRP.1 and E/C.2/2003/R.2/Add.3.  It is also available to the Committee in electronic form on laptop computers, as part of the “Paperless Committee” initiative being launched during this session of the Committee.  (See Press Release NGO/497 of 5 May.)

Current Committee members are Cameroon, Senegal, Zimbabwe, Sudan, Côte d’Ivoire, China, Pakistan, India, Iran, Chile, Colombia, Peru, Cuba, Russian Federation, Romania, Germany, France, United States and Turkey.

The Committee will meet again at 10 a.m. tomorrow, 9 May, to continue deliberations on applications for consultative standing, as well as review of quadrennial reports.

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