Information You Can Use: A Bi-monthly Service for the UN and Civil Society
Volume 2, Issue 1, January - February 2005

Appeal for September 10th 2005
Global Day of Mobilisation For a New World Order Against Poverty, War and Unilateralism

Dear friends,

we invite you to endorse the Global Day of Mobilisation For a New World Order Against Poverty, War and Unilateralism that will take place on September 10th 2005, at the eve of the UN Head of States meeting in New York of September 14-16 2005.

The Appeal for mobilisation we are sending you was launched on January 28th 2005 in Porto Alegre (Brasil) at the World Social Forum 2005, with the support of 140 organisations that took part in the Reclaim our UN international seminar.

The mobilisation has been decided after a long discussion process developed within the WSF International Council during the last year, which involved hundreds of civil society organisations and international networks from all over the world.

As underlined in the Appeal, 2005 will be a crucial year for the future of international democracy and of the United Nations.

The UN that was established sixty years ago to ban war, eradicate poverty and social injustice is now under attack, weakened and marginalised diminishing its historical role for peace, development, social and international justice in world governance.

On September 14-16 all heads of States of the world will be called to decide on the reform of the UN and to reaffirm and implement their commitments to eradicate poverty and to achieve, at least, the MDGs.

We believe that this agenda is too important to leave it completely in the hands of governments, themselves mostly responsible for the current critical situation of humanity and for the terrible crisis of the UN.

For this we hope you will be among the supporters of the September 10th global mobilisation, and will co-promote and coordinate with us and a growing number of international organisations the mobilisation.

Please send us an e-mail with your decision on supporting the Appeal and complete references of your organisation at: international@peacepoint.org before February 27th 2005.

In peace,

Flavio Lotti
Italian Peace Roundtable National Coordinator

For contacts:
Tavola della Pace / Peace Roundtable, Via della Viola 1, 06122 Perugia, Italy; Tel. +39 075 5736890 ­ fax +39 075 5739337; e-mail: flavio@perlapace.it - www.peacepoint.org

At the eve of the head of States meeting at the UN
September 10th 2005
Global day of mobilisation against poverty, war and unilateralism

We the peopleŠ
for a new just, peaceful and democratic world order

We, representatives of global civil society meeting in Porto Alegre at the 5th World Social Forum, are launching an urgent appeal to democratize and strengthen the United Nations and build a new just, peaceful and democratic world order.

Poverty is growing. Wars and conflicts are constantly occurring. The gap between the rich and poor is increasing. Fundamental human rights and international laws are often ignored. Use of military power is again the basis of international relations. Militarist national security doctrines continue to dominate, despite universal support for human security that encompasses the economic, social and political needs of the people. People do not believe anymore in the capacity of the market to solve social problems, but it continues to be promoted by unaccountable institutions.

The UN that was established sixty years ago to ban war, eradicate poverty and social injustice is now under attack, weakened and marginalised diminishing its historical role for peace, development, social and international justice in world governance.

Strong unilateralism and uncontrolled neo-liberal globalisation are sidelining the only ³common house² of humanity. The macro-economic functions of the UN have been taken away by the Bretton Woods institutions. A radical change of the IMF, World Bank, WTO and associated institutions, and their incorporation in the UN system is imperative.

The UN that we want is a UN of Peoples, not a UN of states. Only a comprehensive, radical and transparent reform of the UN will enable this system to fulfil its historical role for peace, development and international democratization.

The future of the UN should be everybody¹s concern. In an increasingly interdependent world we cannot expect to find solutions for our problems that are not global solutions. There are no human rights without international institutions able to enforce them.

A sustained mobilisation including the enforcing of the accountability and transparency of our governments and member states of the UN, is absolutely crucial. This should be a constituent process involving all possible actors in civil society, local authorities and parliaments. Priority must be given to ensure due representation of region, race, class, gender and all social pluralities in this process.

2005 will be a crucial year for the future of international democracy and of the United Nations. On September 14-16 all heads of States of the world will be called to decide on the reform of the UN and to reaffirm and implement their commitments to eradicate poverty and to achieve, at least, the Mdg¹s. This agenda is too important to leave it completely in the hands of governments, themselves mostly responsible for the current critical situation of humanity and for the terrible crisis of the UN.

As a first step, we invite all women and men, all movements, all civil society organisations, to mobilise to resolve this critical situation, and to organise on September 10th 2005 ­ at the eve of the head of States meeting at the UN ­ together with the Global Call to Action Against Poverty, a major Global Day of Mobilisation For a New World Order Against Poverty, War and Unilateralism, For Economic and Social Justice, Peace and Democracy.

In order to build an open, just, peaceful and democratic world order we commit ourselves to raise public awareness, to address our governments and to continue networking and promoting an open debate towards the realization of specific common goals.

World Social Forum - Porto Alegre
January 28, 2005

This Appeal has been discussed and approved by 140 organisations that attended the ³Reclaim Our UN² seminary on January 28 2005 in Porto Alegre during the V World Social Forum

Provisional list (Last Updated 9/2/2005)

Peace Roundtable (Italy), Assembly of the Peoples¹ UN, Ubuntu, Instituto Ethos (Brasil), IPS - InterPress Service, IBASE - Instituto Brasileiro de Analises Sociais e Economicas (Brasil), WSF Indian Organising Committee (India), IDEAS (Spain), Action for Economic Reforms (Philippines), Africa Peace Point (Kenya), AIDC - Alternative information and Development Center (South Africa), Alianza por un Mundo Responsable y Solidario (Peru), ANND - Arab NGO Network for Development, Articulacion Feminista MARCOSUR, Attac (Brasil), Attac (France), Bangla Praxis (Bangladesh), BGRF - Bulgarian Gender Research Foundation (Bulgaria), CAFOR (Cameroon), Centro de Investigacion para la Paz (Spain), CETRI - Centre Tricontinental (Belgium), CND ­ Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament (England), Comunidad de Paz San Jose de Apartadò (Colombia), Conseu / CIEMEN - Centre Internacional Escarrè per a Minories ètniques i les Nacions, DAWN ­ Developing Alternatives for Women, DION - Development Indian Ocean Network, Djazairouna - des familles victimes du terrorisme (Algeria), FAL - Foro de Autoridades Locales de Porto Alegre, FAMSI - Fondo Andaluz de Municipios por la solidariedad internacional (Spain), Fride (Spain), Front SIWA LIMA RMS (The Moluccas), Fundaciò per la Pau (Spain), Helsinki Process on Globalisation and Democracy, IPB - International Peace Bureau, IPS - Institute for Policies Studies (United States), Japan Network on Dept & Poverty (Japan), Jubileo Perú (Peru), Le Mouvement de la Paix / French Peace Movement (France), Peace Boat, Red Estrategia ACAA - Andina-Centroamericana-Amazónica, REPEM, Rodheci (Democratic Republic of Congo), SID ­ Society for International Development, Social Watch, Solidar, Transnational Institute, , UFPJ - United For Peace and Justice (United States), Umoja As One Kenya (Kenya), Universidad Autonoma di Santo Domingo - Facultad de Ciencias Economicas y Sociales (Republica Dominicana), WCL- World Confederation of Labour, WIDE - Women in Development Europe, World Federalist Movement, WSF Argentinian Organising Committee (Argentina), All India Peace & Solidarity Organisation (India), Brasilian Commission Justitia et Pax (Brazil), Citizen for a UN People¹s Assembly (United States), Citizen Network (France), Citizen¹s Initiative for the Europe of the Citizens (Germany), Cives - Associaçao Brasileira de Empresarios pela Cidadania (Brazil), Coalition for a World Parliament and Global Democracy (United States), CGIL (Italy), CIDSE, European Federalist Movement (Italy), FIM ­ CISL (Italy), FIOM ­ CGIL ( Italy), Jubilee South - South America, MONU - Modelo da Organizaçao das Naçoes Unidas (Brazil), Movimento dos Trabalhadores Rurais Sem Terra (Brazil), PDHRE - Peoples Movement for Human Rights Learning (United States / India), Peter Hesse Foundation Solidarity in Partnership for One World in Diversity (Germany), Revolutionary Committees Movement - Libyan Jamahiriya (Libya), Tebtebba Foundation (Philippines), Tierra Vida (Perù), Viva la Ciudadania (Colombia)

A lot of other organisations have already announced their support to the appeal. We apologise for any omission or mistakes. The complete list of organisations supporting the appeal will be published and updated on a web site we are about to open.

Please contact us to subscribe to this appeal at the following address: international@peacepoint.org ­ www.peacepoint.org
Tavola della Pace, Via della Viola,1, 06122 Perugia -Italy
Tel. +39 075 5736890 ­ fax +39 075 5739337

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