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The deadly sanctions against Iraq are steadily losing their public support, exactly as predicted by Denis Halliday in his talk that we sponsored in March. Among our postings this week is "A Call To Action on Sanctions" a statement published in the New York Times and signed by Noam Chomsky, Edward Herman, Edward Said, Howard Zinn and many others. The statement criticizes both the UN and the US for genocide in the name of peace in the Middle East. Many religious and humanitarian organizations are pressing for an end to these sanctions and their numbers grow daily.
The Security Council remains divided on the issue, with the United States and the UK insisting that sanctions continue, while most of the rest of the members favor change. Russia, along with France and China, has offered a resolution to lift the oil embargo once a system to monitor Iraq's weapons programs can be put in place. Britain and the Netherlands have proposed a different resolution that remains close to the US position, but makes a few small concessions to the Council majority. US officials say they cannot agree to the concessions. The US has also rejected a proposal by Canada. So the Iraq crisis continues.
The crisis in Kosovo reveals another deadlock on the Security Council, with terrible daily consequences. Among our offerings this week, James Galbraith recalls a World War II study that revealed the ineffectiveness of air strikes. In response to the bombing of the Chinese Embassy, Sir John Weston -- the UK's permanent representative to the UN from 1995-1998 -- argues for the participation of Russia and the UN Security Council in a negotiated settlement of the crisis. A respected establishment figure, Weston ridicules Blair and Clinton's war, using to good effect, his well-known wit and erudition.
On May 14, the UN convened a briefing for NGOs on Secretary-General Kofi Annan's "Global Compact for the New Century," a proposal that the UN work in partnership with major transnational corporations to promote labor standards, environmental goals and human rights. Secretariat Economist Georg Kell and ILO Deputy Representative Gareth Howell made presentations that reflected a chillingly neoliberal world view. They defended Annan's initiative by insisting "corporate behavior merely responds to consumer preferences," "we all are owners of corporations," "corporations are the greatest wealth- and job-creating engines ever known," and similar apologetics. A number of NGO leaders present at the meeting questioned transnational corporations' capacities to become "global corporate citizens" and whether the UN should be entering into such "partnerships" with business firms that are well-known for their negative impact on the environment, labor and human-rights.
The UN Financial Crisis continues to make the news. We post a report by the New York Times of James Gustave Speth's remarks on leaving his post as head of UNDP. A genial southerner, Speth aimed sharp criticisms at Washington for its non-payment of UN dues, before heading off to New Haven to take up a deanship at Yale University.
Under the heading of Social and Economic policy we have added a current report of the widening gap between rich and poor nations as well as a statement affirming the importance of sustainable development that was presented at the NGO Dialogue on the Agenda for Work by Doug Hunt.
One of our interns, Jarrod Lynn, attended the Hague Appeal for Peace this past week in the Netherlands. The conference brought together more than 5,000 activists from all over the world, seeking to implement the founding purpose of the first International Peace Conference held at the Hague a hundred years ago. The 1899 Conference made advances in the development of international law, provided inspiration for the League of Nations, and established groundwork for the United Nations and the World Court. The 1999 conference received shockingly little press attention in the US, but it too marked an important milestone - especially as it was organized entirely by NGOs. It provided a forum for discussions about peace, even though its deliberations reflected sharp differences over the Kosovo conflict and what to do about it. Congratulations to our friends Cora Weiss and Bill Pace for their leadership of this historic gathering!
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