Committee on NGOs

7^th & 8^th Meetings (AM & PM)

NGO Committee Recommends One Organization for Consultative Status

with Economic and Social Council

 

Takes Note of 99 Reports, Postpones Decision on 7 Reports;

Closes One Application for Consultative Status, Postpones 8 Applications

During today’s two meetings of what representatives praised as a “smoothly and quickly proceeding” 2007 session, the Committee on Non-Governmental Organizations took note of 99 quadrennial reports, while postponing a decision on 7 reports.  It further recommended one non-governmental organization (NGO) for consultative status with the Economic and Social Council, closed one application and postponed a decision on eight applications.

A standing Committee of the Council, the 19-member body uses various criteria to recommend general, special or roster status with the Economic and Social Council, including the applicant’s mandate, governance and financial regime.  Organizations that have general and special consultative status can attend meetings of the Council and circulate statements of a certain length.  Those with general status can, in addition, speak at meetings and propose items for the Council’s agenda, while NGOs with roster status can only attend meetings.

Non-governmental organizations with general and special consultative status must submit a report to the Economic and Social Council every four years.  The Committee can request a special report in certain instances, such as after receipt of a complaint from a Member State about the behaviour of an NGO during a meeting of a United Nations body to which it was accredited.

At the outset of the meeting, the Chief of the NGO Section in the Department of Economic and Social Affairs, Hanifa Mezoui, announced that the Committee had before it 100 quadrennial reports, an unprecedented amount.  That significant increase had been a result of allocation of staff.  Where in the past, one person had been responsible for the preparation of the reports, the current effort had been undertaken by a team of seven people.  Reminder letters sent out in 2006 had included emphasizing the probability of loss of status as a result of non-compliance with the reporting obligation.  Guidelines had been posted on the NGO website to help NGOs in preparing their reports.

The Committee took note of 98 quadrennial reports for the period from 2002-2005 contained in:

-- document E/C.2/2007/2:  American Society of Criminology; China Disabled Persons’ Federation; Families of victims of Involuntary Disappearance; Ordo Supremus Militaris Templi Hierosolymatani; and Teresian Association;

-- document E/C.2/2007/2/Add.1:  Association des Etats Généraux des Etudiants de l’Europe; Brahma Kumaris World Spiritual University; International Research Foundation for Development; Maryknoll sisters of Saint Dominic, Inc.; and School Sisters of Notre Dame;

-- document E/C.2/2007/2/Add.2:  Asian Indigenous and Tribal Peoples Network; Assembly of First Nations; Church World Service; Dominican Leadership Conference; and Hong Kong Federation of Women’s Centres;

-- document E/C.2/2007/2/Add.3:  Conference of NGOs in Consultative Relationship with the United Nations; ECOPEACE Middle East Environmental NGO Forum; Federation of Women Lawyers Kenya; IPAS; and Network of East West Women;

-- document E/C.2/2007/2/Add.4:  Dominicans for Justice and Peace (Order of Preachers); Indonesian Child Welfare Foundation; International Center for Research on Women; The International College of Surgeons; and World Information Transfer;

-- document E/C.2/2007/2/Add.5:  Anti-slavery International; International Council for Research and Innovation in Building and Construction; International Fund for Animal Welfare; Lions Clubs International; and National Center for Missing & Exploited Children;

-- document E/C.2/2007/2/Add.6:  Association internationale des mouvements familiaux de formation rurale; Centre for Women, the Earth, the Divine; Friends World Committee for Consultation; Indonesian National Council on Social Welfare; and International Health Awareness Network;

-- document E/C.2/2007/2/Add.7:  General Confederation of Trade Unions; International Federation of Inspection Agencies; Netherlands Centre for Indigenous Peoples; Peace Boat; and World Road Association;

-- document E/C.2/2007/2/Add.8:  Asian Institute of Transport Development; Association d’assistance aux grands handicapés à domicile; Cohort for Research on Environment, Urban Management and Human Settlements; International Environmental Law Research Centre; and Population Reference Bureau;

-- document E/C.2/2007/2/Add.9:  AFS Inter-cultural Programs; Chinese Women’s Association of America; International Union of Psychological Science; and Womankind Worldwide;

-- document E/C.2/2007/2/Add.10:  International Communities for the Renewal of the Earth; Junior Chamber International; Kitakyushu forum on Asian women; and Kiwanis International;

-- document E/C.2/2007/2/Add.11:  Canadian HIV/AIDS Legal Network; The Federation of National Representations of the Experiment in International Living; International Society of Doctors for the Environment; MAMTA-Health Institute for Mother and Child; and Oxfam International;

-- document E/C.2/2007/2/Add.12:  Centre Europe-Tiers Monde; International Center for Research on Women; Native American Rights Fund; Rehabilitation International; and Society for International Development;

-- document E/C.2/2007/2/Add.13:  Chinese People’s Association for Peace and Disarmament; Family Health International; International Commission on Irrigation and Drainage; International Council of Chemical Associations; and Medico International;

-- document E/C.2/2007/2/Add.14:  Africa Legal Aid; African American Islamic Institute; Association européenne contre les violences faites aux femmes au travail; Collectif sénégalais des Africaines pour la promotion de l’éducation relative à l’environnement; and Couple to Couple League International;

-- document E/C.2/2007/2/Add.15:  Development Alternatives with women for a New Era; International Federation of Training and Development Organisations; Korea Freedom League; Parliamentarians for Global Action; and World Organization of the Scout Movement;

-- document E/C.2/2007/2/Add.16:  Canadian Race Relations Foundation; ICLEI – Local governments for Sustainability; International Investment Center; International women’s Writing guild; and National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers;

-- document E/C.2/2007/2/Add.17:  Association pour la Formation et l’Insertion Sociale de l’Adolescent et de la Femme; Comité d’Action pour les Droits de la Femme et de l’Enfant; International Women’s Year Liaison Group; INTERSOS Humanitarian Aid Organization; and Rainforest Foundation United Kingdom;

-- document E/C.2/2007/2/Add.18:  The Becket Fund for Religious Liberty; CARE (Christian Action, Research & Education); Maryknoll Fathers and Brothers; United Nations Watch; and Women’s Intercultural Network; and

-- document E/C.2/2007/2/Add.19:  Family Research Council; International Association for Human Values; Mennonite Central Committee; Open Family Australia; and Organization for the Solidarity of the Peoples of Asia, Africa and Latin America.

The Chairman of the Committee, Pedro A. Roa Arboleda (Colombia), highlighted and praised the “sterling” work of the Conference of NGOs in Consultative Relationship with the United Nations; Junior Chamber International; Korea Freedom League; and CARE(Christian Action, Research & Education).

The Committee postponed consideration of the reports of:

-- International PEN, contained in document E/C.2/2007/2/Add.9, as Cuba’s representative asked why the organization, which did such laudable work, especially in developing countries, exposing hatred because of race, religion and xenophobia, did not cover developed countries that could also be targets of criticism; and

-- International Confederation of Free Trade Unions, contained in document E/C.2/2007/2/Add.10, because the representative of Colombia needed more time to study the report.

The Committee then turned its attention to quadrennial reports that had been deferred from previous sessions, taking note of the report of Mediterranean Women’s Studies Centre (document E/C.2/2005/2/Add.14).

Consideration was postponed of the quadrennial reports of Christian Democrat International (document E/C.2/1999/2/Add.13), because Cuba’s representative was not satisfied with the answers received to his questions and demanded specific answers to specific questions.  The representative of the United States pointed out that the report had been examined several times and urged the Committee to take note of it, as much Committee time was being spent.  Colombia’s representative asked for more time to study the material.

Consideration was also postponed of the quadrennial reports of Federación de Asociaciones de Defensa y Promoción de los Derechos Humanos (document E/C.2/2005/2/Add.10) and National Council of Women of Thailand (document E/C.2/2005/2/Add.19), because answers to questions had not yet been received.  As Colombia’s delegation needed more time to study the report of International League for the Rights and Liberation of Peoples (document E/C.2/2006/2/Add.6), consideration was postponed.

Regarding the quadrennial report of the International Press Institute (document E/C.2/2006/2/Add.9), China’s representative noted that, during the NGO’s annual meeting in 2001, the Dalai Lama had been invited to the closing ceremony.  The Dalai Lama had long been a promoter of separation of Tibet from China.  His behaviour ran counter to the United Nations principles of territorial integrity and sovereignty.  He hoped the NGO would refrain from becoming a platform that could be used by separatist movements and asked for the organization’s response to the issue.

The Committee recommended special consultative status for Club of Madrid, an international organization with headquarters in Spain, aiming to strengthen democracy, good governance, human rights and the rule of law around the world by drawing on the unique experience and resources of its members.

Because delegates needed more time or asked for more clarifications, the Committee postponed consideration of the applications from:

-- Armenian Constitutional Right-Protective Centre, a national organization based in Armenia, which aims to contribute to the development of the legal culture in Armenian society through scientific activity, education, information dissemination and advocacy;

-- Association Sahel Solidarité Action -- a national organization in the Niger, promoting the human rights of the Touareg indigenous population -- because the Observer of Algeria asked if the NGO allowed membership from other countries, was involved with Touaregs from other countries and if it realized that Touaregs in Algeria were not seen as indigenous but as fully fledged Algerians like everybody else.  She suggested that indigenous Touaregs should be replaced by Touaregs residing in the Niger, and asked for more financial information;

-- Asian Centre for Human Rights, an international organization with headquarters in India, aiming to advance human rights education and secure the observance of the United Nations Universal Declaration of Human Rights and other international human rights covenants and instruments in the Asian region;

-- Asian Pacific Women’s Watch, an international organization based in Thailand that monitors the implementation of the United Nations Beijing Platform of Action, the Convention on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women, the Millennium Development Goals and any international and regional convention, agreement or action for the advancement of women;

-- People to People International, an international NGO with headquarters in the United States, with the mission of promoting and enhancing peace and understanding between all nations, without distinction as to race, sex, language or religion, as China’s representative sought assurances that the NGO continue to use standardized United Nations nomenclature.

An interactive dialogue took place with the representative of the European Centre for Law and Justice/ Centre Européen pour le droit, le justice et les droits de l’homme -- an international organization with headquarters in France that promotes freedom in the area of religion and speech in the international forum through the judiciary, legislative process and international institutions.  Turkey’s representative asked about litigation and the apparent focus on Turkey.  The NGO representative answered that his group was active in numerous other countries, including France and Germany.  It only helped other lawyers file lawsuits regarding human rights, in particular in the area of religious freedom.

Responding to a question from the representative of Qatar, he said the Association’s Statute had been deposited in 1998.  Addressing Burundi’s representative’s question about activities in New York regarding Nigeria, he said his organization had been approached by a group in Nigeria regarding certain situations.  His organization had then had contact with the Nigerian Mission in New York to verify facts.  In reply to a question from the Russian Federation, he said his organization had contact with two lawyers in Moscow, as his Centre only had expertise with Western European countries, not with Eastern European countries.

Although the representative of Turkey had no objection to the application, and the representative of the United States expressed his support, the representative of the Russian Federation asked for more time.  Consideration of the application was, therefore, postponed.

Consideration was also postponed on the application of Africa Action -- a national organization in the United States, striving to change United States foreign policy and the policies of international institutions in order to support African struggles for peace and development.  The Sudan’s representative claimed that the NGO had not answered two questions asked and that it was involved in political activities against a State, namely by organizing a rally in front of the United States Mission on Darfur asking for regime change.  Also, in December last year, the NGO had published a report, appealing to the international community to start a political campaign against the Sudan.  He recalled how NGOs had been dealt with who had unfurled a flag in the United Nations Human Rights Commission.  This NGO had demonstrated in front of a Mission to the United Nations.

The representative of the United States said the NGO had demonstrated in front of the United States Mission with a permit.  That was a privilege in the United States.  The NGO’s activities also included activities regarding AIDS and debt relief in Africa.  The activities of the NGO did include advocacies, including the stopping of genocide, which took place in Darfur.  That was not political activity but advocacy, namely the right of all citizens to influence policymakers.  There was no analogy between the NGO in the Human Rights Commission, whose representatives had physically and illegally attacked the United States ambassador with the flagpole, and a legal rally in New York.

On the request of Colombia’s representative, the application of International Trade Union Confederation -- an international organization based in Belgium, with as primary mission the promotion and defence of workers’ rights and interests -- was deferred until May in order to give an ongoing dialogue with the organization a chance.  The application was the result of a merger between the International Confederation of Free Trade Unions (ICFTU) and World Confederation of Labour (WCL), both organizations with general consultative status with the Economic and Social Council.   Colombia wanted to continue positive bilateral contacts and asked for deferral until May.

The application of Nonviolent Peaceforce -- an international organization with headquarters in Belgium, aiming to implement proven non-violent peacekeeping techniques -- was also deferred, in order to permit continuation of bilateral contacts between the Chinese Mission and the NGO.  The United States representative expressed the hope that a positive solution would be reached.

The Committee recommended that World Sindhi Institute -- an international organization with headquarters in the United States, aiming to elevate awareness of Sindh, Pakistan -- not be granted consultative status because the organization, as pointed out by the representative of Pakistan, was involved in activities contrary to the principles of the United Nations, i.e., working against the territorial integrity of Pakistan.  In that regard, he was supported by the representatives of Turkey, Sudan, China and Cuba.

The Committee will meet again Monday, 29 January, at 10 a.m. to discuss its working methods.

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For information media • not an official record