NEW YORK, Aug 22 (IPS) – 14 June has change into a black day for the UN Excessive Discussion board on The Tradition of Peace (HLF-CoP) convened by the successive Presidents of the UN Basic Meeting since 2012.
This exalted, excessive profile, much-celebrated, much-awaited common, productive, and purposeful gathering of the Basic Meeting was derailed in a really ailing conceived and unthoughtful method by the Workplace of the President of the UN Basic Meeting (OPGA) and the present Staff Bangladesh on the UN.
And that was finished with out even informing the civil society which has been a serious associate in organizing the day-long occasion for a decade.
Additionally, vital to recall that over the past ten years, the Tradition of Peace agenda of the UN Basic Meeting (UNGA) was taken up as an integral a part of the HLF-CoP and the annual decision on the observe up of the Declaration and Programme Motion on a Tradition of Peace was adopted.
That was purposeful and had substantive implications associated to collaboration between Member States and civil society advocating the tradition of peace.
The primary and solely event the UN has finished that.
The annual UN resolutions on the topic additionally repeated that particular position since 1997. Why then this bypassing of the civil society by the organizers of the HLF-CoP? Over the past ten years since 2012, GMCoP has labored intently with OPGA largely with optimistic outcomes.
However the 77th OPGA and Staff Bangladesh on the UN have been discovered to be not curious about collaborating with the civil society.
The occasion was truncated right into a half-day affair calling it a Plenary Assembly. The entire spirit of connecting the Members States via a day-long engagement held in two elements was completely deserted. The opposite half is thought popularly because the civil society element of the Discussion board. Within the decade-long historical past of the HLF-CoP, this has by no means occurred.
Why the Tradition of Peace is such an anathema?
The opening speech by present President of the Basic Meeting (PGA) on 14 June had no reference to the principle challenge – Tradition of Peace. Even the foundational doc was not talked about in full in his presentation.
Marvel what was the motivation? PGA talking on the agenda merchandise 14 on Tradition of Peace don’t discover it essential to say tradition of peace even as soon as, sure, not a single time. His speechwriter should have ready it to recycle it for different comparable peace-related events.
Within the part containing “Conclusion and proposals” of the “Report of the UN Secretary-Basic on a Tradition of Peace (A/77/614)” of 29 November 2022, paragraph 42 says:
“As outlined in “Our Frequent Agenda” (OCA), a tradition of peace should be based mostly on a greater understanding of the underlying drivers that maintain battle, an concept that will likely be developed additional via the Secretary-Basic’s “New Agenda for Peace” (NAP).
Neither of these two Agendas – OCA and NAP – point out “tradition of peace” in any respect, sure, no reference in any respect. This can be a gross misinformation recorded within the Report of the UN Secretary-Basic. One would once more surprise the place we now have reached by way of accuracy and thoroughness.
No one, not even the so-called tradition of peace defender Staff Bangladesh, observed as a result of the delegates don’t learn the SG’s report as totally as they’re anticipated to.
The incumbent Secreatary-Basic has the distinctive distinction of not attending a single HLF-CoP, together with the twentieth anniversary discussion board, throughout his seven years on the UN within the put up. His predecessor attended in particular person a variety of occasions to hearken to the clever phrases of the Nobel laureates and different eminent individuals.
HLF-CoP is the one Discussion board of the UN which was graced by the participation of as many as six Nobel Peace Laureates – all ladies to honor the worldwide position and work of girls for the tradition of peace. Within the UN historical past, nothing like this occurred at any annual occasion or on any event.
Pope Francis’ latest e book (English model) on conflict and peace is titled “In opposition to Struggle – Constructing a Tradition of Peace” to the good delight amongst the tradition of peace civil society organizations.
The Mayors for Peace, a multilateral group based mostly in Hiroshima with a membership of 8300 Mayors in 166 nations and areas have built-in “Selling the Tradition of Peace” as a part of its Mission Assertion in 2021.
Efforts from civil society thwarted unceremoniously
Because the Founding father of the International Motion of The Tradition of Peace (GMCoP), a coalition of the 18 civil society organizations advocating for the tradition of peace on the UN, I had taken the initiative of assembly with the PGA77 and briefing him in regards to the background of the HLF and the annual resolutions of the Meeting mandating the PGA to convene the Discussion board.
The attractive previous programme booklets and accepted UN visible identification samples have been additionally left with him. He was form and gracious. However sadly, his employees coping with tradition of peace weren’t. Thereafter, the civil society representatives reached out to employees answerable for the HLF however have been suggested to return via the related Member States.
I’m flabbergasted discovering such disdain for civil society. Civil society had collaborated and supported the OPGA since 2012. This OPGA was essentially the most unhelpful of all to the civil society representatives.
How was the HLF-CoP initiated?
The HLF was initiated in 2012 by the 66th PGA Ambassador Nassir Al-Nasser primarily to deal with the weakest space of the implementation of the UN’s personal Declaration and Programme of Motion on a Tradition of Peace adopted greater than twenty years in the past in 1999, specifically the commitments by the Member States who have been answerable for the adoption of the landmark decision by consensus.
The opposite goal of Ambassador Al-Nasser was to construct a real collaborative channel between Member States and the civil society organizations that are the strongest and most-enthusiastic about advancing the tradition of peace. That was a visionary perspective put to motion in initiating the HLF-CoP.
The 2019 HLF-CoP was a grand event convened by PGA72 María Fernanda Espinosa Garcés to rejoice the twentieth anniversary of the adoption of the UN’s foundational doc on tradition of peace on 13 September 1999. For that, GMCoP commenced a twentieth anniversary profile build-up advocacy with its different civil society companions.
Staff Bangladesh fails miserably because the Tradition of Peace champion
It’s inconceivable when one finds the present Staff Bangladesh’s disinterest within the tradition of peace recalling that its predecessor Staff Bangladesh took the primary pioneering step on 31 July 1997 to write down to the then newly elected Secretary-Basic Kofi Annan requesting inclusion of a brand new merchandise of UNGA agenda on tradition of peace.
My very own voluntary steering and a spotlight, together with these from the civil society have been prolonged to Groups Bangladesh and OPGAs over time via many various ways in which included writing the annual draft resolutions offered by Bangladesh on the tradition of peace; inputs for remarks of PGAs on behalf of Bangladesh delegation; prepare funding for the journey and hospitality of keynote audio system often from far off cities by arranging for sources.
All these civil society helps was shunned by the present Staff Bangladesh.
Since 1996, the tradition of peace turned the flagship initiative of Bangladesh. Its management position on the tradition of peace was acknowledged by PGA67 inviting Bangladesh International Minister to chair the HLF-CoP in his place. Two International Ministers and Ministerial stage representatives of Bangladesh spoke on the Discussion board’s Panel Dialogue on completely different events.
One wonders how this chilly shoulder could possibly be given to the tradition of peace with out directions from the capital. Management of the Authorities of Bangladesh again house proceed its whole-hearted assist and encouragement to the long-standing high-profile position of Bangladesh on the tradition of peace.
On the truncated HLF-CoP on 14 June 2023, Staff Bangladesh obtained the bottom variety of co-sponsors which had no nations of Europe or US. Lowest quantity additionally for the audio system and once more no nation from Europe spoke.
OPGA wants transparency and streamlining
One wonders why OPGA is so dismissive of the initiatives and of the precious recommendations supplied by the civil society.
In actual fact, OPGA has change into one other layer of UN forms. That’s of a hybrid form invoking that it really works for the Member States via PGA management whereas reaching out to the Secretariat for all sorts of assist and help.
Earlier than this present construction of OPGA with 20+ assist employees commenced some years in the past, UN’s Division of Basic Meeting and Convention Administration (DGACM) was managing the whole lot easily and effectively. Now it spends more often than not convincing the OPGA employees who desires to say the primacy of the PGA within the affairs of GA.
When Bangladesh International Minister was PGA in 1986, I used to be his Particular Assistant with a crew of three Bangladesh colleagues. The exalted title of Chief of Cupboard of PGA was not in existence at the moment. Issues labored properly and PGA’s tasks have been carried out efficiently.
OPGA must be extra clear. In 1998, I recall as Chair of the UN’s Budgetary Committee, an quantity of US {dollars} $250,000 was accepted for OPGA. What’s its complete funds now (not simply UN’s common one however via different contributions)?
How a lot of that’s dedicated to travels for PGA and his employees? On events, the GA points take a secondary place to PGA travels. Which nations second their employees to the OPGA? In any case these years of the expertise of ever-expanding OPGA construction, there ought to be an impartial analysis of its value-added advantages, if any.
Conclusion
I imagine that the UN ought to personal the tradition of peace and internalize its implementation all through the UN system. Additionally, Secretary-Basic ought to prioritize the tradition of peace as part of his management agenda. He ought to make good use of this workable instrument that UN possess within the tradition of peace programme to advance the target of sustainable peace.
We have to keep in mind that the tradition of peace stays completely a choice of the UNGA. Nobody – a PGA or an Ambassador – can obliterate it from the eye and engagement of the worldwide group.
Any cursorily organized, hurriedly-put-together, mandate-obligated preparations for the HLF-CoP now wouldn’t get the belief and confidence of the tradition of peace group, extra in order that of the GMCoP.
Preserving in thoughts the expertise the position performed by OPGA and Staff Bangladesh in the course of the 77th UNGA session, we hope there will likely be a greater expertise on the 78th session which commences in two weeks.
The Tradition of Peace is just not a fast repair. It’s a motion, not a revolution!
Ambassador Anwarul Okay. Chowdhury, Chair of the nine-month-long negotiations ensuing within the consensus as mandated by UN Basic Meeting and presenter of the agreed textual content of this doc (A/RES/53/243) for adoption by the Meeting; Everlasting Consultant of Bangladesh to the UN (1996-2001); UN Underneath-Secretary-Basic (2002-2007).
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© Inter Press Service (2023) — All Rights ReservedOriginal source: Inter Press Service