President’s Letter from Pal
Palmore
Friends,
I want to
thank those of you who signed
our petition or brought a guest
to our Lunch & Learn on Sept.
28th. You may remember that the
petition was addressed to our
President, our two Senators, and
our Congressman, and urged them
to oppose any cuts to the UN
budget. If you did not get a
chance to sign it, you can still
send a letter or email urging
them to continue our leadership
in the UN with full funding for
our dues and contributions.
As for our
guests, the next step is to
persuade them to join the UNA
(if they have not already).
There are many reasons to join,
and here are my favorite three:
* Joining
helps us educate the public
about the importance of
supporting the UN.
* Joining
increases our influence on
Washington to support the UN.
* Joining
increases our information about
global problems and their
solutions (including our
excellent newsletter).
Bottom line:
together we can work through the
UN for global peace and
prosperity.
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Lunch &
Learn to Present UN Foundation
Public Policy Director
Marking UN’s
66th
Anniversary
October 24 marks
the UN’s 66th
Anniversary - celebrated
annually as UN Day. Since the
world body was established in
1945, despite the seemingly
inevitable trans-boundary wars
that have taken place between
aggrieved governments squabbling
over competing territorial
claims or, in more recent years
between governments and their
internal challengers, there have
been no conflagrations to rival
the two global wars that tore
the world apart during the first
half of the twentieth century.
The UN, which was created to
maintain global peace, has, to
that extent achieved its prime
purpose. Moreover, its presence
and influence as a neutral
“third party” has foreshortened
or prevented other potential
conflicts and, through its
extensive network of Specialized
Agencies and associated
technical organizations, it has
been a potent force in helping
the world’s poorest fight their
grinding poverty and raise their
living standards. Indeed,
it’s
been said that, if there weren’t
a United Nations, the world
would have to invent one.
To learn more
about the UN’s role in the
modern world, in commemoration
of the UN’s 66th
anniversary our Lunch and Learn
meeting on Wednesday, October 26
(Noon-2PM) at Carolina Meadows
will present UN Foundation
Public Policy Director Minh-Thu
Pham to discuss "The
United Nations -- In Everyone's
Interest."
Before taking up her present
post, Min-Thu, whose family
lives in Raleigh, was Chief of
Staff for the UN
Secretary-General's Special
Envoy for Malaria, and before
that Policy Advisor in the
Executive Office of the
Secretary-General under both
Kofi Annan and Ban Ki-moon. Her
experience includes serving in
Bosnia-Herzegovina to implement
the Dayton Peace Accords, and
working on refugee issues in
Africa with the UN and several
humanitarian and advocacy
organizations. She has an MPA
from the Woodrow Wilson School
of International and Public
Affairs at Princeton University
and a BA from Duke, and is a
Term Member of the Council on
Foreign Relations and a Board
Member of the Coalition for
Asian-American Children and
Families.
Reservations for our UN Day
celebration may be made by
sending an $18 check to “UNAUSA
West Triangle Chapter,” to
Warren Glick, 83203 Jarvis,
Chapel Hill, NC 27517, by
October 21.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Education
Outreach
By
Jean and Tuck Green
Summer Activities
As
regular readers of this
Newsletter know, the Chapter
more or less hibernates during
the summer – there are no Lunch
and Learns for example. But we
are not totally inactive! Our
Committee engaged in a variety
of activities this summer and
early fall designed to educate
young people about the United
Nations. Following is a summary
of our activities, presently
programmed and past, which are
designed to familiarize students
with the United Nations and the
world:
UNOatUNC will again sponsor
miniMUNCH this fall,
a Model UN simulation about the
Arab Spring designed for
inexperienced high school
students; their college Model
UN will be in February and
their high school simulation,
MUNCH, in
March. We also discussed working
together to celebrate U.N. Day
and Human Rights Day in the
fall.
We
had dinner with the new officers
of Duke’s student-run International
Relations Association:
Emily Bailey, President,
and Ankit Jain, Secretary
General for Duke’s 2012 Model
U.N. conference, their
thirty-first. We discussed
possible ways we could
collaborate, including joint
sponsorship of our fall
conference on Fragile
States and coaching
Model U.N. Clubs in Durham high
schools.
In
late May we met with the new
officers of the three Model
UN Clubs in the Chapel
Hill-Carrboro school district.
We discussed this fall’s
miniMUNCH, the Middle
School Model UN Conference
in the spring, which will be
hosted by the high school clubs;
and the 2012 U.N.
Contest for High School
Students.
In
June we set up a display of
resource materials on the U.N.
for the annual week-long Global
Education Leaders Program
sponsored by World View.
Based on the UNC-CH campus,
World View provides
symposia, seminars, and study
abroad opportunities to the
state’s teachers.
Throughout the summer we were in
discussions with students at the
North Carolina School of
Science and Math who would
like to sponsor a Model U.N.
conference for Durham middle
school students.
Recently we sent our
announcement about the 2012
U.N. Contest for High School
Students to the social
studies coordinators in the four
school districts we serve and to
the advisors and officers of the
Model U.N.clubs we help support.
Social studies coordinators also
received a revised version of
our “Resources for Teaching
about the United Nations” to
share with faculty in their
schools.
During September we visited
several high schools to promote
the 2012 U.N. Contest.
Contest Winners Receive Other
Awards
Young-Eun Hyun, who along
with her team mates from East
Chapel Hill High School
received an honorable mention in
our 2010 U.N Contest for High
School Students, and Second
Prize in our 2009 Contest,
was named one of just two
North Carolina students among
141 ‘Presidential Scholars.’
She was honored in
Washington and given the
opportunity to meet and talk
with eminent scholars and
leaders in a variety of fields.
Jordan Pierce Thomas was
one of eight North Carolina
students picked by Duke
University for a Benjamin N.
Dukes Memorial Scholarship.
Jordan and his team mates won
second place in our 2010 U.N.
Contest.
Model U.N. Club News
Frank Felicelli , advisor
for the Model U.N. Club at
Cedar Ridge High School in
Orange County, reports the
number of club members is up by
a third, into the twenties. They
will be attending Model
U.N.conferences at Johns
Hopkins, Duke, and UNC this
year. David McDonogh,
President of the East Chapel
Hill High School club, reports
they will be attending the UNC
and Duke Model U.N. Conferences.
David Bennett, advisor
for the Chapel Hill High School
Club, reports they will likely
stick close to home this year,
attending miniMUNCH and the
conferences at Duke and UNC.
If you would like
to support this Committee’s
work, please check off
“Education Outreach” on the
Lunch and Learn Registration
form and send your donation in
together with your Lunch fee.
Suggestions? Please contact us
at
cgreen17@nc.rr.com.
Conference on “Fragile
States, Global Consequences”
On October 4, the West
Triangle Chapter, in
collaboration with the
Curriculum in Peace War and
Defense at UNC-CH, the
Curriculum in Global Studies at
UNC-CH, the Triangle Institute
for Security Studies, the Center
for Global Initiatives at UNC,
the UNC Center for Slavic,
Eurasian, and East European
Studies, and the student United
Nations Organization at UNC-CH,
will sponsor a major
Conference on “Fragile States,
Global Consequences”.
Adapted from a program developed
by the Stanley Foundation, a non
profit, nonpartisan, private
operating foundation focused on
promoting and building support
for principled multilateralism
in addressing international
issues, the conference will
examine the challenges posed by
such nations to the
international political order
and make recommendations on how
the global community can help to
overcome them.
For over a century the balance
of power among the world’s
strongest nations was the
dominant issue in discussions of
global security. Many of today’s
policies and international
institutions were created to
deal with conflicts between the
major powers. But today fragile
states, such as the Democratic
Republic of the Congo, Bosnia,
East Timor, and Haiti, are
emerging as the most serious
threat to global security. These
countries straddle the thin line
between survival and chaos,
suffering from weak governments,
internal conflict, ethnic
conflict, poverty and sometimes
all of these. Fragile states’
weaknesses often permit
extremist groups to thrive
within their borders, create
breeding grounds for disease
pandemics, stimulate mass
migrations, and offer safe
havens for drugs or arms traders
and for human traffickers.
This Conference aims to
encourage discussion of ways to
promote stronger nations and
deal more effectively with those
that are already on the brink of
failure.
Our conference was developed by
our Education Outreach Committee
co-Chair, Dr. Charles (Tuck)
Green, himself a former
sociology professor at the
University of Wisconsin, in
collaboration with Professor
Robert M. Jenkins, Director of
UNC-CH’s Center for Slavic,
Eurasian Studies. It will take
place at UNC’s FedEx Global
Education Center, 301 Pittsboro,
from 5:30pm to 8:00pm. Chapter
members are invited to attend
and participate (free parking
is available
after 5:30 pm in the Center’s
underground garage).
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
President Obama Addresses the
United Nations
President Obama addressed the
opening session of the "High
Level Segment" of the 66th UN
General Assembly meeting on
September 21. The session is the
UN's annual conclave of heads of
states and government where
nations announce their views on
the state of the world and their
aspirations and policies for the
future. In accordance with
tradition, the United States was
the second nation to speak
(Brazil is always first) and in
a 47-minute address, President
Obama addressed the theme: “the
Pursuit of Peace in an Imperfect
World.” Against the background
of the efforts to resolve the
long-standing Israel-Palestinian
conflict, the President
expressed support of the ideals
and the goal of universal peace
because "peace is preferable to
war, and freedom is preferable
to suppression." But, he said,
"peace is hard" and can only be
achieved by nations working
together. "This is how the
international community is
supposed to work -- nations
standing together for the sake
of peace and security; the
United Nations and its member
states must do their part to
support those basic
aspirations." But he also said
peace will not come through
statements and resolutions at
the United Nations. Ultimately,
peace depends upon compromise
among people who must live
together long after our speeches
are over. The measure of our
success must be whether people
can live in sustained freedom,
dignity, and security. And the
United Nations and its member
states must do their part to
support those basic
aspirations." Ending his speech,
he reiterated, " Peace is hard,
but we know that it is possible.
So, together, let us be resolved
to see that it is defined by our
hopes and not by our fears.
Together, let us make peace, but
a peace, most importantly, that
will last." Thus, once again, as
it has every year since the
United Nations was established,
the United States reaffirmed to
the world - albeit somewhat more
softly than UN supporters might
have wished - its support for
the United Nations. However, in
an interview with CNN
immediately before the President
made his speech to the UN, we
were reminded by Republican
House Foreign Affairs Committee
Chairwoman Ileana Ros-Lehtinen
of Florida, who seems to have
assumed the mantle of chief
Congressional opponent of the
organization formerly worn by
Jesse Helms, that a
strong
thread of opposition to the
world body is still alive and
well in Congress and a small
segment of the American polity.
Congresswoman Ros-Lehtinen has
introduced a bill that
effectively cuts U.S. assessed
contributions to the UN regular
budget by 50%; places a
moratorium on new or expanded UN
peacekeeping missions; stops
U.S. contributions to U.N.
peacekeeping operations until
management reforms are made; and
requires the U.N. to adopt a
voluntary budget model in which
countries selectively fund U.N.
agencies they prefer rather than
continue to use the long
accepted formula for universal
assessed dues (in the past, her
committee voted to cut off
foreign assistance to any
country that did not support
U.S. positions at the United
Nations, withholds funding for
the United Nations Relief and
Works Agency (UNRWA) which aids
Palestinian refugees, and pulls
the United States out of the
U.N. Human Rights Council.)
All of these steps would
drastically weaken the United
Nations and reduce US influence
in the organization, and thus
are significant threats to the
future of the world body. In
fact, so dangerous is
Congresswoman Ros-Lehtinen’s
bill that UNA-USA is undertaking
a campaign to emphasize to our
Congressional delegates that
there is a U.S. constituency for
the UN, and we’re concerned
about her bill and want them to
work to blunt it. UNA–USA
members have been urged to
schedule meetings with their
elected representatives during
the Columbus Day congressional
recess to convey that message.
The West Triangle Chapter is
planning to contact our
representatives accordingly and
ask them to protect the United
Nations appropriations.
Chapter members will be kept
informed of developments via our
List Serve so they can not only
know what is happening on this
important issue, but actively
participate.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The 112th US Congress and the
United Nations
by Amanda Conklin, UNA-WTC
Outreach Intern
The 112th Congress took office
amidst a period of relatively
good relations between the US
and the UN. In 2009, the US paid
its UN arrears which had accrued
since 2005, and in 2010 fully
funded its share of the
“Regular” and “Peacekeeping”
budgets. However, Congress still
has work to do to maintain good
relations. Most notably, payment
of dues and ratification of
several international treaties
are two important factors that
will affect the US-UN
relationship during this term.
With respect to the first,
Congress will need to arrange to
pay UN Regular and Peacekeeping
budget dues on time and in full.
The US currently pays 22%, or
$6.4 billion, of the UN’s $22.3
billion budget. However, the it
does not normally provide its
payment until October 1st, after
the Foreign Appropriations bills
pass, even though the UN’s
fiscal year begins January 1st.
This time gap puts pressure on
the UN and its organizations to
borrow money until receipt of
the US’ dues. In past years, the
US has caused further tension by
not paying the total amount due.
Moreover, recent House bill H.R.
2829 threatens to reduce funding
for the UN, as well as for
UNICEF and the World Food
Programme. Thus, passage of this
bill would severely hurt the UN
and sabotage US leadership
within the organization in
addition to limiting the UN’s
capacity to function.
Second, several international
treaties and agreements have
been pending ratification by the
Senate for a long time: The
Convention on the Law of the Sea
governs use of the world’s
oceans and would increase US
ocean territory by 4.1 million
square miles; the Convention
on the Elimination of All Forms
of Discrimination against Women
(CEDAW) - now known as the
‘International Bill of Rights
for Women’- which affirms the
universal equality and rights of
women; and the Convention on
the Rights of the Child
which recognizes the basic human
rights of children under 18
years old, are all long
outstanding international
treaties which have been pending
ratification by the Senate for
years. In addition, US agreement
to the Mine Ban or Ottawa
Treaty, which prohibits
production and use of all
anti-personnel land mines, is
under review by the Obama
administration; the decision on
it will likely also affect the
related Convention on Cluster
Munitions, which prohibits the
production and use of this
devastating type of bomb. Urgent
action by the Senate on all
these long treaties is
essential.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Archived September 2011
Newsletter
Archived May 2011 Newsletter
Archived April
2011
Newsletter
Archived March
2011
Newsletter
Archived February
2011
Newsletter
Archived January 2011 Newsletter
Archived December 2010 Newsletter
Archived November 2010 Newsletter
Archived October 2010 Newsletter
Archived September 2010 Newsletter
