GO BETWEEN 80, April-May 2000


UN NEWS

FAMINE LOOMS IN ETHIOPIA
The world is in danger of failing the people of Ethiopia as drought threatens millions of lives,
according to international aid agencies. Eight million people are facing shortages of food and
water in Ethiopia; other worst-hit countries by the drought include Djibouti, Eritrea, Kenya,
Somalia and Sudan.

"There currently is a crisis but it's containable," said Catherine Bertini, Executive Director of
the World Food Programme (WFP). "What we need now is for the international community to
respond in order to prevent this summer a repeat of [famine in] 1984-1985" (see focus page
inside).


SECRETARY-GENERAL'S MILLENNIUM REPORT
Governments should spread the benefits of globalization to all people, according to UN
Secretary-General Kofi Annan's Millennium Report. The text, submitted to the General
Assembly in April, will be the main working document for the Millennium Summit in
September 2000 (see focus page inside).


ECOSOC AND SECURITY COUNCIL ON AIDS
The United Nations Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) and the Security Council held
an unprecedented joint meeting on 28 February 2000 in New York to discuss cooperation in
combating the HIV/AIDS epidemic, and to examine ways to develop cooperation through
special initiatives for AIDS and Africa. The meeting was held in the context of discussions on
the main development issues and concerns that emerged during the Security Council's 10
January meeting on the impact of HIV/AIDS on peace and security in Africa (see Go Between
79).

ECOSOC President Makarim Wibisono (Indonesia) and Security Council President Arnoldo
Listre (Argentina) both stressed the importance of coordination between the two bodies
toward improving allocation of existing resources to combat HIV/AIDS. 

United States Ambassador Richard Holbrooke, who was President of the Security Council in
January, emphasized that AIDS was a security issue. He said the devastating impact of AIDS
on all business of the UN must be acknowledged, and he stressed that member states must
carry the fight into every aspect of the organization's work. Mr. Holbrooke called for a
Security Council resolution on AIDS to be passed before 13 July 2000, when the Third
International AIDS Conference is scheduled to take place in Durban (South Africa). He said
the resolution should recognize the special risks of infection and of spreading infection posed
by UN peacekeepers, whom he noted at times had contributed to the spread of AIDS.
Regarding resources, Mr. Holbrooke challenged governments to "do better." The available
levels of international donor funds were too low, he said, and underscored his own ongoing
efforts with the US Congress to seek higher levels than amounts already committed. 

India said that AIDS was not a security problem, but rather a medical epidemic that had
become a social scourge and now had severe economic dimensions. It said the US and the
Security Council, in focusing on conflict and security, had taken the wrong perspective. India
rejected what it called "unsubstantiated allegations" that peacekeepers were a factor in the
spread of AIDS. Not one of its soldiers had spread or contracted AIDS on mission, it said.
India, which agreed with many other speakers that AIDS was a development problem,
proposed an analysis of the full economic and social costs of AIDS be commissioned by
ECOSOC. India claimed the evidence established that it was not violence or insecurity that
spread the disease, but globalization and integration. Nine of the ten most "at risk" African
countries had not experienced conflict in a decade, India said, and six were "shining examples
of democracy." 

India also underscored as "problematic" what it described as the profit-driven interests of
pharmaceutical companies; this hampered the development of a vaccine, which would be
potentially less lucrative than finding a cure. Current intellectual property agreements were
also creating problems, India said, by re-establishing the monopoly of the international
company that developed AZT drugs, for example, and by banning generic versions that cost
less than half the original. 

Cameroon said that AIDS in Africa had killed ten times more people than conflict, which
demonstrated that the disease was in fact a "threat to stability and peace on the continent."
Cameroon said it was necessary for African countries themselves to undertake measures to
support efforts against AIDS. In addition the problems of external debt, poverty and lack of
health infrastructures all had to be addressed.

Peter Piot, Executive Director of the Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS
(UNAIDS), said that national and international AIDS activities in Africa must be expanded
dramatically and rapidly. He highlighted the cases of Uganda and Senegal where between
US$2 billion and US$3 billion a year was needed for prevention activities, which were
working. Dr. Piot noted some activities that had been undertaken by the World Bank, United
Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) and the Economic Commission for Africa. He said
resources for expanded national responses were being included in the Heavily Indebted Poor
Countries (HIPC) Debt Initiative for some states. Dr. Piot noted that progress had been made
in establishing and improving partnerships for development, and he highlighted the
contributions of some corporations. He added that UNAIDS and the World Health
Organization (WHO) were working with pharmaceutical companies to seek the means to
provide medicines to all people with AIDS. 

Contact: Dominique De Santis, Press Officer, UNAIDS, 20 avenue Appia, CH-1211 Geneva
27, Switzerland, telephone +41-22/791 3387, fax +41-22/791 4898, e-mail
<desantisd@unaids.org>, website (www.unaids.org). 


MEETING ON AFRICAN PERSPECTIVES ON HIV/AIDS
A "town hall" style meeting was held on 7 February 2000 at UN headquarters in New York on
A Call to Action: African Perspectives on the HIV/AIDS Epidemic as a Security Threat,
Development Crisis and Humanitarian Emergency. The meeting was hosted by African
Amicale, a UN-based association that brings together Africans and people concerned about
the continent to promote its advancement. It was held in collaboration with the Organization
of African Unity (OAU), the UN secretariat and Africa divisions of the United Nations
Development Programme (UNDP), United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) and the
United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA). The meeting featured a panel of speakers
including Secretary-General Kofi Annan, General Assembly President Theo-Ben Gurirab, US
Ambassador Richard Holbrooke, and UNDP Administrator Mark Malloch Brown. 

"The purpose of this town hall meeting," said Djibril Diallo, President of African Amicale, "is
to call attention to the actions being taken by Africans [to combat HIV/AIDS] and to identify
specific actions that can be taken in collaboration with the rest of the world."

UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan said that while many countries, especially in Asia and
Eastern Europe, face an alarming spread of HIV/AIDS, "nowhere else has it become such a
threat to the very foundations of society as it has in Africa's southern and eastern region."  

With less than 5% of the world's population, the region is home to more than 50% of those
living with HIV. Africa is where 60% of all AIDS deaths have happened so far, noted Mr.
Annan. "And it is where a whole generation of children," he said, "is now losing its parents to
AIDS. By the end of the twentieth century, the global epidemic had left 11 million
orphans 90% of them African children." 

Mr. Annan went on to describe the landmark Security Council meeting held in January 2000
on AIDS in Africa (see Go Between 79). The council discussed the impact of HIV/AIDS on
peace and security, and the efforts of African governments and NGOs there to limit the spread
of HIV/AIDS and alleviate the suffering it causes. Mr. Annan told the town hall meeting that
he had asked African governments, UN agencies, private corporations and NGOs involved in
the fight against HIV/AIDS to formulate by May a response commensurate with the scale of
the crisis, which reviews the problem in all its aspects and proposes strategies, methods,
practical activities and measures to strengthen international cooperation in addressing the
problem.

Mr. Gurirab, who highlighted the need for resources, said in January the World Bank, UNDP
and the Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS) had joined the Security
Council to "dramatize the reality that the total sum needed annually for AIDS prevention in
Africa is in the order of US$1 billion to US$2.3 billion." He noted that Africa is receiving only
US$160 million a year in official development assistance from the world community to fight
HIV/AIDS. 

Mr. Gurirab stressed that HIV/AIDS is not only a public health problem but "a development
crisis of major proportions," as it tends to kill people in the prime of their working and
parenting lives, thereby destroying a large part of the workforce and weakening the social
fabric of society and impoverishing families. He called on the corporate sector, particularly
pharmaceutical companies, to "accept their social and moral responsibility and obligation to
find a cure for this disease and to ensure that everyone has access to the best drugs available."
Financial institutions, Mr. Gurirab said, must also be mobilized to support research and other
activities aimed at stopping the spread of the disease, mitigating its effects and finding a cure.


SPECIAL SESSION ON CHILDREN'S SUMMIT
The preparatory committee (PrepCom) for the 2001 General Assembly special session for
follow-up to the World Summit for Children held its organizational session at UN
headquarters in New York from 7-8 February 2000. Patricia Durrant (Jamaica) was elected
chair of the PrepCom, with vice-chairs Madina Ly-Tall (Mali), Anwarul Karim Chowdhury
(Bangladesh), Hanns Schumacher (Germany) and Lidija Topic (Bosnia and Herzegovina).

The special session will be aimed at providing an end-of-decade review of implementation of
the World Declaration on the Survival, Protection and Development of Children and the Plan
of Action, which were adopted by the World Summit for Children in September 1990. The
texts set forth a vision of a "first call" for children by establishing seven major and 20
supporting goals that were quantifiable and considered achievable by the year 2000. Following
a mid-decade review in 1996, the General Assembly welcomed significant progress made by
most countries in achieving the majority of mid-decade goals and objectives established by the
summit. However it noted with concern variation in the progress made across countries and
regions, and in specific areas such as malnutrition, maternal mortality, sanitation and girls'
education.

The special session is expected to provide the basis for future action for children. It is hoped
that national-level reviews, regional processes and policy discussion will assist in identification
of overall trends and lessons learned, and contribute to the work of the PrepCom in achieving
consensus on the remaining major challenges and priorities.

General Assembly President Theo-Ben Gurirab (Namibia), who opened the PrepCom, said
much had been achieved to promote the well-being of children as a result of the World
Summit for Children and adoption of the Convention on the Rights of the Child. However, so
many children were being condemned to needless death, stunted growth, unfulfilled potential
and heinous exploitation, that any opportunity to reverse the situation must not be missed.

Carol Bellamy, United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) Executive Director, said that
"unprecedented progress for child survival and development that has occurred in the last ten
years" would not have been possible without the convergence of strategy, resources and
action promoted by the UN and its agencies. Ms. Bellamy said it was necessary to expand and
strengthen the vital partnership between governments, donors, international institutions and
civil society at every level to lay the foundation for a future global agenda for children.

The PrepCom decided that its first substantive session will take place from 30 May-2 June
2000 at UN headquarters in New York. The session is scheduled to immediately follow the
UNICEF executive board meeting, which has been called upon to provide substantive input to
the PrepCom's work and at the special session. UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan will issue a
report on emerging issues to the substantive session. The report will draw on technical
consultations UNICEF has had with a range of governmental, UN agency, non-governmental
and academic experts. The session will focus on identifying key issues and trends in
conjunction with implementation of the outcome of the summit. Speakers at the PrepCom
stressed that the focus of the first substantive session should be on the review of previously
negotiated plans of action and not draw on new global agendas.

Three panel discussions will be held during the substantive session of the PrepCom. The first
will be devoted to review and assessment, including constraints encountered in implementing
goals of the summit and lessons learned. The second and third panels will deal with emerging
issues and future action for children. Arrangements for future sessions of the PrepCom will be
discussed at the first substantive session.

By the terms of several decisions approved at the end of the General Assembly organizational
session, the PrepCom decided that the special session should be open to participation of
NGOs that "are accredited in accordance with ECOSOC resolution 1996/31 of 25 July 1996
or are accredited with UNICEF." The PrepCom also decided to invite other NGOs that were
not accredited to ECOSOC or UNICEF but that collaborated with UNICEF under its mandate
to obtain technical advice and assistance from NGOs with special interest in child and family
welfare. The PrepCom also encouraged governments to include representatives of civil society
in their national and regional preparatory processes and to defer any decision on accreditation
and modalities for NGO participation in the General Assembly special session to a future
session.

During debate, several speakers expressed concern that expansion of the list of NGOs
participating in the special session would have a negative effect on the PrepCom's substantive
work. All countries, however, were committed to NGO participation both in the preparatory
process and for the special session itself. Most speakers, stressing that the World Summit for
Children was unique and required its own approach to NGO participation, agreed that it was
necessary to take into account the experience of preparatory bodies for other conferences.
They also noted the need to consider particular NGO input in the promotion of children's
interests and their active involvement in implementation of the main outcome of the summit.

A proposal that children take part in delegations of the PrepCom's substantive session met
with questions about what criteria would be used to determine the age of children taking part
in the proceedings. Karin Sham Poo, Deputy Executive Director of UNICEF, said they would
take part in activities at national and regional levels. The executive board of UNICEF would
consider the requirements and substantive issues of children's and youth participation and
leadership initiatives.

Contact: Office of UN Affairs and External Relations, UNICEF, UNICEF House, United
Nations, New York NY 10017, United States, telephone +1-212/326 7000, fax +1-212/326
7770, website (www.unicef.org).


CHILD PROTECTION ADVISERS
The United Nations announced in February 2000 the deployment of Child Protection Advisers,
who will help ensure that "the protection of children's rights is a priority concern through the
peacekeeping process and the consolidation of peace in war-torn countries."

They will advise relevant peacekeeping operations, and under the authority of the UN
Secretary-General's Special Representative for Children and Armed Conflict they will
coordinate with UN agencies, NGOs and national authorities to ensure that children's issues
are incorporated fully into all relevant peacekeeping and peacebuilding policies and
programmes. The advisers will also work to ensure that all personnel involved in UN
peacekeeping operations both military and civilian have appropriate training on the protection
of children's rights.

The advisers will be drawn from the ranks of experienced staff in key UN agencies and from
relevant NGOs and development agencies with expertise in the protection of children's rights.

Contact: Margaret Carey, Department of Peacekeeping Operations (DPKO), S-3720C, United
Nations, New York NY 10017, United States, telephone +1-212/963 1647, fax +1-212/963
9222, website (www.un.org/Depts/dpko).


FINANCING FOR DEVELOPMENT PREPCOM
The preparatory committee (PrepCom) for the High-Level International Intergovernmental
Event on Financing for Development approved its bureau's recommendations on participation
of all relevant stakeholders in both the substantive preparatory process and the event itself
(A/AC.257/6), as it met during a resumed organizational session from 27-31 March 2000 in
New York.

At its 54th session, the General Assembly decided that the event on financing for development
would be convened in 2001 to address national, international and systemic issues relating to
financing for development in the context of globalization and trade liberalization. The event
will address development through the perspective of finance, as well as mobilization of
financial resources for the full implementation of the outcome of the major UN conferences
and summits of the 1990s (see Go Between 79 and NGLS Roundup 50).

The PrepCom adopted without a vote a draft decision (A/AC.257/L.1/Rev.1) on preparations
for the substantive preparatory process and the high level event itself. The PrepCom approved
a three-tier consultative intergovernmental mechanism for the World Bank's active
participation in preparatory work, which it welcomed. This comprises: broad-based
consultations between the PrepCom bureau and the World Bank's board of executive
directors; inclusive and transparent informal consultations between the Bank and the United
Nations; and consultations of the bureau with a specially designated senior-level World Bank
management team. The PrepCom requested the bureau clarify the purpose and working
pattern of consultations with the World Bank team.

The PrepCom approved recommendations for continued consultations with the International
Monetary Fund (IMF) and World Trade Organization (WTO). Jorgen Bojer (Denmark),
co-chair of the PrepCom, told the meeting that steps are underway for the bureau to meet with
the general council of the WTO in the near future. The PrepCom was also informed that the
executive board of the IMF would soon be meeting to discuss its potential role in the financing
for development process.

Concerning non-governmental organizations and the private sector, the PrepCom approved
three modalities for their participation: in meetings of the PrepCom and the high-level event; in
hearings and other forms of consultation and dialogues; and in communications with the
secretariat.

Participation in the PrepCom will be open to NGOs currently in consultative status with the
Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC); other NGOs will be welcome to apply to the
PrepCom for accreditation. Such applications need to be submitted by 1 January 2001 to a
committee composed of the bureau of the PrepCom. 

The financing for development bureau, elected in February 2000, is comprised of three
member states from each geographical region: Egypt, Ghana, Sudan (Africa); Croatia, Czech
Republic, Macedonia (Eastern Europe); Guatemala, Saint Lucia, Peru (Latin America and
Caribbean); Denmark, Sweden, United States (Western Europe and other states); and Japan,
Pakistan, Thailand (Asia). The co-chairs of the PrepCom are from Denmark and Thailand.

Oscar de Rojas (Venezuela) has been appointed to serve as the Executive Coordinator of the
UN secretariat for the financing for development event, which is situated within the
Department of Economic and Social Affairs. 

The following summarizes the current timetable of events.
---  Before 15 May 2000:
--preparation of a second report by the bureau on additional modalities for participation
--convening of open-ended informal consultations in New York on the agenda of the 2001
event

---  15 May-26 May 2000:
--first substantive session of the PrepCom in New York

---  Second half of 2000:
--five regional consultative meetings hosted by the regional commissions in conjunction with
the regional development banks and the United Nations Conference for Trade and
Development (UNCTAD); the Asian regional meeting scheduled in Indonesia in the first week
of August
--two sets of hearings in New York (one with the private sector and one with NGOs) to solicit
their views on the conclusions of the financing for development process

---  First half of 2001:
--second and third substantive sessions of the PrepCom (each for two weeks) 

Contact: Harris Gleckman, Office of the Director, Development Policy Analysis Division,
Department of Economic and Social Affairs, Room DC2-2162, United Nations, New York
NY 10017, United States, telephone +1-212/963 4690, fax +1-212/963 1061, e-mail
<gleckman@un.org>, website (www.un.org/esa/analysis/ffd).


ECOSOC VISITS WORLD BANK
As a sign of further collaboration between the United Nations and Bretton Woods Institutions,
the World Bank hosted a United Nations Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) delegation
with representatives of 30 countries in Washington DC on 15 March 2000. The meeting with
the ECOSOC delegation, headed by council President Makarim Wibisono (Indonesia), is only
the third ever between the World Bank's board and ECOSOC members. It was an opportunity
for World Bank executive directors and UN ambassadors to engage in dialogue on specific
issues of mutual concern (see Go Between 78 and NGLS Roundup 40).

"No development agency can address the challenge of development alone," said World Bank
President James Wolfensohn. "Only in partnership with governments, the private sector and
NGOs can we begin to deal with these issues .The poor are assets, not liabilities; we need to
loosen bureaucratic constraints and empower the poor to join in meeting the challenge."

Topics discussed included Financing for Development; Update on Poverty
Reduction Comprehensive Development Framework (CDF) and its Linkages with Poverty
Reduction Strategy Papers (PRSP) and the Heavily Indebted Poor Countries (HIPC) Debt
Initiative; Current Issues in Microfinance; Recent Developments in Knowledge Management;
and Intensified Action Against HIV/AIDS Update on UN/World Bank Collaboration.

The Financing for Development session was addressed by co-chairs of the UN Preparatory
Committee for the High-Level International Intergovernmental Event on Financing for
Development, Ambassadors Asda Jayanama (Thailand) and Jorgen Bojer (Denmark). The
session, chaired by World Bank Vice President for External Affairs and United Nations Affairs
Mats Karlsson, discussed the creation of a more stable international financial system that is
responsive to the challenges of development, especially in developing countries. 

In the session on poverty reduction Masood Ahmed, World Bank Vice President for Poverty
Reduction and Economic Management Network, highlighted the Comprehensive Development
Framework and its linkages with Poverty Reduction Strategy Papers and the HIPC initiative.  


SECURITY COUNCIL MEMBERS IN WASHINGTON
Ambassadors from 15 countries that are members of the United Nations Security Council
visited Washington DC on 30 March 2000 for a series of meetings on Capitol Hill and at the
US State Department.

The ambassadors, who went in their personal capacities, met with US Secretary of State
Madeleine Albright and Under-Secretary of State Thomas Pickering. The ambassadors also
held a public meeting with the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, chaired by Republican
Senator Jesse Helms, and visited the White House for a briefing by Jim Steinberg, Acting
Director of the US National Security Council. The visit to Washington came at the invitation
of Senator Helms, who first proposed it during his speech to the Security Council in January
(see Go Between 79). 

"We very much appreciated the warm welcome extended to us during our visit to the United
Nations in January, and the constructive discussion at that time," said Mr. Helms and Senator
Joseph Biden, Senior Democrat, in a letter to the Security Council President for March,
Anwarul Karim Chowdhury (Bangladesh). "It will be a pleasure to repay your
hospitality....Just as the Foreign Relations Committee's UN visit was an historic moment, so
too will your visit to Washington contribute to a new beginning in US-UN relations."

Several ambassadors used the visit to criticize the US government's failure to pay its arrears to
the UN on time, in full and without condition. British Ambassador Jeremy Greenstock asked
why other member states should agree to pay their dues in full without conditions if the United
States does not.

One of the conditions stated by the US for paying its arrears is reducing its regular UN
membership and peacekeeping dues. While this has angered many member states, some
governments are now reconsidering the US proposals since the UN cannot effectively exist
without the United States' cooperation.

"We are not persuaded by your arguments," said Ambassador Peter van Walsum (The
Netherlands), "but by our own enlightened self-interest."

Some members of the Senate committee criticized the UN by complaining that it "tries to do
too much and doesn't show enough appreciation for US contributions." Senator Carl Levin
said the United Nations should complain as loudly about countries that are reluctant to
contribute troops to peacekeeping operations as it has about Washington's failures to pay its
dues. 

Senator Helms, a longtime critic of the UN, said he hoped the meetings and his January visit to
New York were "the beginning of an ongoing and permanent dialogue leading to a better
US-UN relationship. The stakes of this endeavour are high. In our success or failure lies not
only the fate of US-UN relations, but quite possibly the fate of the UN itself." Mr. Helms said
he and his colleagues "want to help the UN become a more efficient deliverer of humanitarian
aid, a more effective peacekeeper, a better weapons inspector, and a more effective tool of
diplomacy." 

He went on to stress, however, that the UN must not seek to become "the central authority of
the new international order of global laws and global governance." Senator Biden echoed the
call for UN reform but said the US should not dictate the terms. 

"I doubt there are any of us," he said, "who believe that the UN today is sufficiently equipped
to take us into the 21st century. There is a need for reform, whether the United States
suggests it or not."
Mr. Greenstock noted the value of the visit by commenting that "the mood shift [in relations
between the UN and the US] is significant. The substance shift is not yet there but one thing
leads to another."


SG LAUNCHES PEACE OPERATIONS REVIEW
On 7 March 2000 United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan announced the start of a
review of UN peace operations and called for a "clear set of recommendations on how to do
better" in the future on UN peace and security activities. 

The study will endeavour to clarify goals of the UN in peace operations and understand the
kinds of forces that are necessary and available for different goals. According to former
Algerian Foreign Minister Lakhdar Brahimi, who will chair the panel that will supervise the
study, one of the main problems faced by the UN is that the mandates it is given are not
matched by resources. 

"When such operations are being ventured," he said, "staying power, political will and
resources must be ensured until their completion." 

The study will also examine structures of the United Nations secretariat in order to ensure
clear lines of command, control and accountability, and to ensure coordination between those
carrying out different tasks. 

The study comes in the wake of the Secretary-General's report on the fall of Srebrenica and
the report on genocide in Rwanda, in which United Nations peacekeeping operations were
blamed for not having done enough to prevent atrocities (see Go Between 79).

"We must all do our utmost not to allow such horrors, and especially such appalling failures by
the United Nations, ever to happen again," said Mr. Annan. "But we must not promise too
much, or raise expectations higher than are justified by the will of governments to act."

Mr. Annan said he hoped the panel's report will be ready by July 2000, so that heads of state
and government will have time to read it before the Millennium Summit in September, when
peace and security will be a major item on the agenda. 

Members of the panel include: Brian Atwood (United States); Dame Ann Hercus (New
Zealand); Richard Monk (United Kingdom); General Klaus Naumann (Germany); Hisako
Shimura (Japan); General Phillip Sibanda (Zimbabwe); and Cornelio Sommaruga
(Switzerland).


SMALL ARMS CONFERENCE PREPCOM
The Preparatory Committee (PrepCom) for the United Nations Conference on Illicit Trade in
Small Arms and Light Weapons in All Its Aspects decided to defer its decision on the dates
and venue of the conference until the 55th session of the General Assembly, as the committee
concluded its first session on 3 March 2000 in New York.

The committee decided to hold its second session from 8-19 January 2001 in New York, and
the third from 19-30 March 2001. Kenya had offered to host the latter, and the committee
decided that the secretariat would convey to the Kenyan delegation the financial implications
of holding the third session in Nairobi, so that the General Assembly could take a decision at
its next session. 

The committee decided to continue its consideration of recommendations to the conference on
all relevant matters including objectives, a draft agenda, draft rules of procedure and draft final
documents, which will include a programme of action. No decision was made on modalities of
attendance of non-governmental organizations at the committee's sessions.

During the committee's general debate, several delegates suggested adopting a comprehensive
approach: the mandate of the conference should cover a wide range of issues such as illicit
trafficking of small arms and light weapons; legal trade in the weapons; negative effects of
widespread access to small arms on socio-economic development and human security;
increased transparency in arms transfers; and the interrelationship between illicit trafficking,
smuggling and the legal trade in small arms.

Some delegates upheld the right of state sovereignty, particularly the right of a state to
develop its own defence system for its national security needs. They maintained that efforts to
curb the illicit trade should not affect what they described as the legitimate rights of states to
own, produce and transfer small arms. They felt the conference should be a platform to
formulate the means to combat and eradicate exclusively the illicit trade in small arms in all its
aspects.

A successful outcome of the conference would be acceptance of a plan of action with a
timetable for implementation, several delegates noted. They said some elements highlighted in
such a plan might include supply and demand; state responsibility; and developing agreed
norms for the security and safe management of arms stockpiles being held by state authorities
or state-authorized entities.

Several delegates said the final document of the conference should include a political
declaration setting out a framework for future cooperation and action. It should identify
elements that would encourage future cooperation and facilitate regional action such as
information exchange, strengthening national laws and regulations, management of stockpiles
and improvement of tracing illicit arms flows.

In related news, ministers and senior government representatives from ten African countries
have signed an agreement aimed at halting the proliferation of small arms in the Horn of Africa
and Great Lakes region. 

The four-day meeting, held at the end of March in Nairobi (Kenya), brought together officials
from Burundi, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Djibouti, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Kenya,
Rwanda, Sudan, Tanzania and Uganda. 
In the agreement the countries agree to increase cooperation between their intelligence and
customs officials, as well as among police in combating small arms trafficking and circulation.
In order to promote human security they pledged to "encourage a concrete and coordinated
agenda for action for the subregion," and that they would ensure all states have in place
adequate laws, regulations and administrative procedures for effective gun control. Among
other things, they also urged small arms manufacturing countries to use licensing to ensure
proper regulation. 

Contact: Conventional Arms Branch, Department for Disarmament Affairs, United Nations,
New York NY 10017, United States, fax +1-212/963 1121, website
(www.un.org/Depts/dda/CAB).


COMMITTEE ON PEACEKEEPING OPERATIONS
The Special Committee on Peacekeeping Operations, which concluded its year 2000 session
on 10 March, stressed the importance of consistently applying the standards for establishment
and conduct of peacekeeping operations. It emphasized that respect for such basic principles
as consent of the parties, impartiality and non-use of force except in self-defence was
essential to success. 

The committee, whose report of the session covers the question of peacekeeping in all its
aspects, reaffirmed that regional arrangements and agencies could make an important
contribution to peacekeeping where appropriate and when their mandate and scope legally
allowed them to do so. It also emphasized that, according to the United Nations Charter, no
enforcement action should be taken without authorization of the Security Council.

The report stresses that changes in mandate during a mission should be based on thorough and
timely reassessment by the Security Council following full discussion between contributing
countries and the council. There should also be "commensurate changes to the resources
available" to a mission to enable it to carry out its new mandate.

Speakers in the general debate stressed the need for international political will and sufficient
funding, which they said were essential for timely and effective international involvement. 

The representative of Japan, Motoshide Yoshikawa, highlighted the multidisciplinary character
of recent peacekeeping operations, whose mandates included not only traditional activities by
military personnel but tasks such as those carried out by civilian police, the establishment of
local administration and economic reconstruction, humanitarian assistance, disarmament,
demobilization and reintegration of ex-combatants, and human rights monitoring. Mr.
Yoshikawa called for greater coordination at three levels: within the secretariat, between the
United Nations and related organizations, and in the field. He also pointed to the need to
coordinate the Bretton Woods Institutions, especially in peacebuilding activities. 
Alagmir Babar (Pakistan) noted that efforts were being made to expand the Security Council's
role beyond its primary responsibility and broaden its agenda to include such issues as
HIV/AIDS and the rights of children. He said that this "dangerous trend" of undermining
other bodies of the UN, particularly the General Assembly, must be curtailed.

Rod Smith, representative of Australia and speaking as the lead nation of the international
force in East Timor (INTERFET), noted that a critical ingredient of INTERFET's success had
been the strong support of the international community and that the operation had provided
some valuable lessons. These included the importance of an appropriate Security Council
mandate, the need for adequate resources, and the importance of developing practical and
cooperative mechanisms for resolving disputes.


INTERNATIONAL CRIMINAL COURT PREPCOM MEETS
The preparatory commission (PrepCom) of the International Criminal Court (ICC) held its
fourth session from 13-31 March 2000 at the United Nations in New York to continue
elaborating rules and guidelines necessary for the court's functioning.

The PrepCom, chaired by Philippe Kirsch (Canada), undertook a second reading to refine
language and eliminate inconsistencies in two key instruments the Elements of Crime, and
Rules of Procedure and Evidence and continued to work on the question of the crime of
aggression. The mandate of the PrepCom calls for completion of work on the two instruments
by 30 June 2000. 

During the course of the PrepCom, Judge Richard George May (United Kingdom) of the
International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia described the tribunal's practices
and experience in some unresolved areas under discussion, such as evidence in cases of sexual
violence; the role of the Victims and Witnesses Unit; issues arising with respect to defence
counsels; and matters relating to the enforcement of sentences. 

Judge May told the PrepCom that the tribunal's rules governing the admission of evidence in
cases of sexual assault had been consciously adapted to take into account the organized and
systematic rape of women, particularly in detention facilities. Tribunal judges have
intentionally rejected many of the evidentiary rules applied to rape trials in national
jurisdictions, adopting for example a policy precluding evidence of consent to sexual contact
when certain oppressive or coercive conditions are present. They have also precluded any
effort by the defence to introduce evidence concerning the prior sexual conduct of the victim. 

Regarding the role and protection of victims and witness, Judge May emphasized the
importance of protecting confidentiality of witnesses. Concerning the enforcement of
sentences he said that the tribunal, which has no permanent facilities to imprison convicted
persons, depends on the voluntary cooperation of states to enforce its sentences. 

Judge May said that one of the difficulties experienced with some states was that domestic law
prevented them from entering into such agreements without time-consuming amendments to
current legislation. He noted that in the case of the International Criminal Court, almost all
states would require implementing legislation, and suggested that this "would be the perfect
opportunity to make the amendments necessary to domestic legislation."

The working group on elements of crime focused on the elements of crime for genocide
during its first week, then turned its attention to war crimes. The working group on rules of
procedure and evidence held informal consultations regarding Part 2 of the Rome Statute
(jurisdiction, admissibility and applicable law), Part 5 (investigation and prosecution), and Part
6 (the trial). Much time was devoted to the question of victims, including the definition of
victims. Part 6 relating to evidence in cases of sexual violence was taken up the second week.

Representatives of NGOs also participated in the PrepCom's open meetings by contributing
recommendations and commentary. The Women's Caucus for Gender Justice called for a
general statement of gender integration. It said sexual violence should be charged as other
crimes within the jurisdiction of the court, where the acts of sexual violence meet the elements
of those crimes. 

"This would ensure that sexual violence," said the caucus, "which occurs mostly to women, is
treated with the same seriousness as crimes which are inflicted on both men and women." 

Human Rights Watch issued an analysis of elements of crime and rules of procedure and
evidence, and it made recommendations in all areas. The Lawyers Committee for Human
Rights analyzed issues of jurisdiction and admissibility in the rules of procedure and evidence.
REDRESS, a group that seeks reparation for torture survivors, issued recommendations on
reparation and other issues relating to victims.

The next meeting of the PrepCom will be held from 12-30 June 2000 in New York. The fifth
session will address completion of the texts including finalization of financial rules and
regulations, a first-year budget for the court, a relationship agreement between the court and
the UN, and agreement on the court's headquarters with The Netherlands, its host country.

Contact: Codification Division, Office of Legal Affairs, United Nations, Room 3460, New
York NY 10017, United States, telephone +1-212/963 5332, fax +1-212/963 1963, website
(www.un.org/law/icc/index.htm) or Coalition for an International Criminal Court, c/o World
Federalist Movement/Institute for Global Policy, 777 UN Plaza, New York NY 10017, United
States, telephone +1-212/687 2176, fax +1-212/599 1332, e-mail <cicc@igc.org>, website
(www.igc.org/icc/html).


COMMITTEE ON RACIAL DISCRIMINATION
The Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination concluded its 56th session on 24
March 2000 in Geneva after examining reports on France, Zimbabwe, Denmark, Malta, Spain,
Tonga, Rwanda, Estonia, Lesotho, Bahrain and Australia to implement provisions of the
International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination. 

The committee, the first body created by the United Nations to review actions by states in
fulfilling their obligations under a specific human-rights agreement, also held
question-and-answer sessions with government delegations from the above countries (except
Tonga). All 155 states Parties to the convention are required to submit periodic reports to the
committee, which consists of 18 experts. 

Among other things, the committee also made general recommendations on gender-related
dimensions of racial discrimination, and concerning the victims of racial discrimination and
their reparation. 

Mary Robinson, High Commissioner for Human Rights, told committee experts that her office
is engaged in a fundraising campaign to collect about US$4 million to cover activities related
to the Third World Conference Against Racism, Racial Discrimination, Xenophobia and
Related Intolerance, to be held in South Africa in 2001. 

UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan, in a statement to a roundtable in New York on the
International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination, observed on 21 March, stressed
the conference against racism should be action-oriented. He said the event should focus,
among other things, on new forms of racial discrimination. 

Other speakers at the roundtable noted that besides dangerous and overt racist acts, racism
also has subtle forms in which it slowly digs away at societies and causes despair. They said
the conference would provide an opportunity to survey the situation and allow crafting of
solutions to emerging problems, such as the spreading of ideas of racism and intolerance
through new information technologies.

Contact: Carmen Rueda-Castanon, Secretary, Committee on the Elimination of Racial
Discrimination, Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights, Palais Wilson, 52 rue des
Pƒquis, CH-1202 Geneva, Switzerland, telephone +41-22/917 9288, fax +41-22/917 9022,
e-mail <crueda.hchr@unog.ch>, website (www.unhchr.ch).


HUMAN TRAFFICKING AND SLAVERY
A project to improve the effectiveness of law enforcement functions and criminal justice
responses against organized crime groups involved in new forms of slavery was launched on
28 March 2000 by the Philippines and the United Nations Centre for International Crime
Prevention (CICP). 
The first phase of the programme from March to September 2000 focuses on:
--  supporting a national coordination mechanism;
--  improving functional databases;
--  strengthening cooperation between law enforcement agencies and prosecution; and 
--  training and awareness raising. 

The initiative is the first pilot project launched under the framework of the CICP Global
Programme Against Trafficking in Human Beings. Similar projects are scheduled to begin this
year in Eastern Europe, West Africa and South America. The second phase of the project will
include, among other things, support and protection of victims and witnesses. 

A signing ceremony for the agreement was held just before the opening of the Asian Regional
Initiative Against Trafficking in Women and Children, a conference that concluded in Manila
(Philippines) on 31 March. Participants represented more than 20 Pacific Rim countries and
the United States. They discussed ways to stop the trafficking of women and children, which is
organized crime's third largest source of money after illicit drugs and guns, according to the
United Nations. It says some 250,000 people in Asia are bought and sold like slaves every year
for all types of work, including prostitution. 

An action plan agreed on at the conference calls for, among other things, educating poor
women about the trafficking, support for victims, and confiscation of profits and higher fines
for traffickers.

Contact: Centre for International Crime Prevention, United Nations Office for Drug Control
and Crime Prevention, PO Box 500, A-1400 Vienna, Austria, telephone +43-1/26060 4269,
fax +43-1/26060 5898, website (www.uncjin.org/CICP/cicp.html).


FOURTH ROUND OF POPS TALKS
The fourth round of negotiations for a global treaty on persistent organic pollutants (POPs)
concluded on 25 March 2000 in Bonn (Germany), with governments reaffirming eventual
elimination as the goal of the convention. Intensive discussions also laid the basis for deciding
on technical and financial assistance at the last round of negotiations, to be held from 4-9
December 2000 in Johannesburg (South Africa). 

"Negotiators made important progress on a number of key issues," said Klaus T”pfer, UNEP
Executive Director. "They are now in a good position to reach agreement on the treaty by the
end of 2000, the deadline in the mandate from the Governing Council of the United Nations
Environment Programme."

A total of 317 delegates from 121 countries participated in the Intergovernmental Negotiating
Committee (INC) negotiation, working with 11 UN bodies and specialized agencies, seven
intergovernmental organizations and 81 NGOs and other bodies. Delegates will now consult
with their governments on proposals made and issues identified in Bonn, including technical
and financial assistance. Although they recognized that technology and funding are critical to
successful implementation of the convention, they were unable to agree on how to finance the
effort in developing countries.

New proposals for ensuring access to funding were considered including several, if adopted,
that would build on the Global Environment Facility in recognition of its potential for
addressing global environmental issues. The G-77 countries and China said the nature of the
POPs issue and experience with existing mechanisms reflect the need for a dedicated financial
mechanism, which should include an independent multilateral fund. The meeting accepted the
offer by John Buccini, INC chair, that a meeting of 20 countries be held intersessionally to
seek common ground and help bring about resolution in December.

On controls, negotiators favoured retaining the goal of ultimate elimination of production and
use of all ten intentionally produced persistent organic pollutants in the mandate. These are the
pesticides aldrin, chlordane, DDT, dieldrin, endrin, heptachlor, mirex, and toxaphene, and
industrial chemicals hexachlorobenzene which is also a pesticide and PCBs. Such exemptions
would be subject to periodic review to determine continued need.  

On DDT, negotiators continued to favour proposals eliminating production and use, but
including a public health exemption as countries adopt alternative chemical and non-chemical
strategies and reduce reliance on DDT.  

Negotiators generally agreed on basic provisions for continuing minimization of the unwanted
by-products dioxins and furans. An annex was proposed as a basis for further negotiations
including not only dioxins and furans, but also hexachlorobenzene and PCBs when
unintentionally formed in certain processes.

Aside from a few technical issues, agreement was reached on proposals to establish scientific
criteria for identifying additional persistent organic pollutants for future international action
and a procedure for deciding on their inclusion. The mandate calls for criteria and a procedure
to give countries the means to respond to problems in the future.

Among other provisions, there was support for proposals to eliminate existing uses of PCBs
by certain dates (to be determined), ensure the environmentally sound management of POPs
wastes, require national implementation plans, promote information exchange, facilitate
technology transfer, and foster research and development.

The Bonn meeting was the Fourth Session of the Intergovernmental Negotiating Committee
(INC-4) for an International Legally Binding Instrument for Implementing International Action
on Certain Persistent Organic Pollutants.

Contact: Jim Willis, Director, UNEP Chemicals, Geneva Executive Centre, 11-13 chemin des
Anemones, CH-1219 Chatelaine (Geneva), Switzerland, telephone +41-22/917 8183, fax
+41-22/797 3460, e-mail <chemicals@unep.ch>, website (irptc.unep.ch) or
(www.chem.unep.ch/pops).


EXPERTS ON ENERGY AND SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT
The issue of energy and sustainable development is on the agenda for the ninth session of the
Commission on Sustainable Development (CSD-9), to be held in 2001.  Recognizing the
crucial and controversial nature of this topic, member states decided during the five-year
review of the Earth Summit to undertake advance preparations for CSD-9's deliberations on
energy and to establish an intergovernmental group of experts on energy and sustainable
development. 

The expert group held its first meeting at UN headquarters in New York from 6-10 March
2000. The group considered reports of the UN Secretary-General on Energy and Sustainable
Development: Key Issues, and on national submissions. A co-chairs' summary of the
discussions was prepared, which will serve as input to the ninth session of the CSD and the
second session of the expert group. The summary is available at website
(www.un.org/esa/sustdev/enrexpert.htm) together with the other relevant UN documents.

The co-chairs' summary identified the following key issues: accessibility of energy; energy
efficiency; renewable energy; advanced fossil fuel technologies; nuclear energy technologies;
rural energy; energy and transportation; technology transfer; capacity building; mobilization of
financial resources; and international and regional cooperation.

Major issues debated by the expert group included how to reduce poverty by ensuring an
increased supply of energy, while at the same time addressing local and global environmental
threats. The interests of the fossil fuel and nuclear energy lobbies conflicted with an increasing
appreciation among countries of the transformation of traditional energy supply and demand
equations necessitated by new and more sustainable development trajectories. The European
Union emphasized market reform, liberalization in the energy sector, internalization of
externalities or energy taxes, and the phasing out of environmentally harmful substances. The
Group of 77 (G-77) and China resisted the suggestion to internalize externalities since this was
perceived as a developed country issue (pricing remains a contentious issue within developed
countries) and stressed as their key concerns technology transfer, capacity building and finance
for sustainable development.

The second session of the expert group will be held in February/March 2001 in conjunction
with the intersessional meetings of CSD-9.

Contact: Division for Sustainable Development, United Nations, New York NY 10017,
United States, fax +1-212/963 4260, website (www.un.org/esa/sustdev).


SEABED AUTHORITY DISCUSSES CODE
Conflicting views on confidentiality of information and environmental protection slowed work
on a draft mining code, as the International Seabed Authority (see Go Between 66) held the
first part of its sixth session in Kingston (Jamaica) from 20-31 March 2000.

The 36-member Council of the Authority met for most of the two weeks in informal
consultations to consider the code and produced a redraft of the text, known formally as
regulations for prospecting and exploration of polymetallic nodules in the international seabed
area. This paper will form the basis of further negotiations when the authority resumes its
session in Kingston from 3-14 July.

Satya Nandan, re-elected for a second four-year term as Secretary-General of the authority,
said there was "substantial progress" toward resolving remaining issues. However some
delegations voiced disappointment that more results had not been achieved. 

Provisions revised as a result of the council's discussion related mainly to three topics:
--  environmental protection;
--  safeguarding of confidential information provided to the authority by seabed contractors;
and
--  types of information required from contractors.

These points cover most of the contentious issues still facing the council as it seeks to
complete work on draft regulations that will govern the exploratory phase leading to mining of
mineral-rich deposits on the deep seabed in ocean areas beyond the jurisdiction of any state.
The council has been working on this text since 1998; last August it set the goal of completing
the draft by the end of this year's session in July.

Contact: International Seabed Authority (ISA), 14-20 Port Royal Street, Kingston, Jamaica,
telephone +876/922 9105, fax +876/922 0195, website (www.unac.org/players/isa.html).



HEARINGS ON TOBACCO CONVENTION
The World Health Organization (WHO) has called for public hearings on issues surrounding
the Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (see Go Between 79) and invited interested
parties, including the tobacco industry, to submit written comments and testimonies. The
convention the world's first to deal entirely with a public health issue will be negotiated by the
WHO's 191 member states and is expected to be opened for signature no later than 2003.

"I invite all parties with a material interest in advancing our public health goals to work with
us in a constructive manner," said WHO Director-General Gro Harlem Brundtland at the start
of a two-day meeting on the convention, held in March in Geneva. "In this way, this debate
remains in the public domain....We have started a global debate around tobacco. Our member
states are eager to analyze the tobacco toll on individuals and government, and they are
equally eager to act on the evidence....Let us see to it that ours will be the last generation to
face this scourge without hope."

The hearings in Geneva will take place in late September or early October 2000. All
submissions as well as testimony will be made part of the public record, as well as made
available to countries negotiating the convention.

The announcement about the hearings was made, according to WHO, as pressure mounts on
countries to act on the growing evidence that tobacco is emerging as "the number one
preventable cause of death and disease in the next 30 years." Tobacco now kills over four
million people annually. By 2030 it will kill ten million people; seven in ten will be in
developing countries.

At the March meeting NGOs from around the world sharply criticized the United States and
other governments that they said advocated for a weak treaty. INFACT, a US-based corporate
accountability organization, and other members of the Network for the Accountability of the
Tobacco Transnationals called for "a tough and enforceable framework convention free of
tobacco industry influence."

"The tobacco corporations, finding no peaceful atmosphere in their home countries of the
North, are moving shops," said Oronto Douglas, an environmental rights lawyer and Deputy
Director of Environmental Rights Action of Nigeria. Mr. Douglas gained international
prominence as part of the legal defense team for the late Ken Saro-Wiwa, who challenged
Shell and other oil transnationals in Nigeria. 

Network members called on delegates to support the development of national public health
legislation by preventing tobacco industry interference in public policy debates. 

"Philip Morris and the tobacco transnationals demonstrate a lack of respect for the sovereign
right of countries to develop legislation to protect people's lives," said Lucinda
Wykle-Rosenberg, INFACT's Research Director. "The framework convention should require
the tobacco corporations to disclose their lobbying activities and political contributions, and it
should set strict limits on tobacco industry influence."

Contact: Derek Yach, Programme Manager, Tobacco Free Initiative, WHO, 20 avenue Appia,
CH-1211 Geneva 27, Switzerland, telephone +41-79/217 3404, e-mail <yachd@who.int>,
website (www.who.int). For information on the NGO network, contact INFACT, 46
Plympton Street, Boston MA 02118, United States, telephone +1-617/695 2525, fax
+1-617/695 2626, website (www.infact.org).



 DRUG CONTROL SUMMIT
Parliamentarians and senior officials of Canada, Japan, the United States, the European Union
and Andean countries met at the International Drug Control Summit in Washington DC from
8-9 February 2000. Discussions at the summit, co-organized by the United Nations Office for
Drug Control and Crime Prevention (ODCCP) and the US Congress, focused on alternative
development, law enforcement, illicit drug production, trafficking and abuse trends, and
money laundering offshore centres.

In a final statement participants said, among other things, that:
--  international cooperation is a critical part of effective drug control;
--  ODCCP has an essential role in addressing global challenges of the drug problem; and
--  legislators and parliamentarians from around the world should continue to work together
and share information about successful methods to reduce drug abuse, production and
trafficking. 

They also stressed that a balanced approach, which focuses on all aspects of drug control, is
essential. 

"Obtaining a significant reduction in the supply of and demand for illegal drugs," said the
statement, "as called for at the UN General Assembly Special Session of June 1998 [see
NGLS Roundup, July 1998] should continue to be a priority."

Contact: ODCCP, Vienna International Centre, PO Box 500, A-1400 Vienna, Austria,
telephone +43-1/260600, fax +43-1/26060 5866, e-mail <odccp@odccp.org>, website
(www.undcp.org).


NARCOTIC DRUGS COMMISSION MEETS
Governments meeting in Vienna (Austria) in March 2000 have agreed to intensify efforts in
implementing effective strategies aimed at achieving measurable results in the reduction of
both demand and supply of illicit drugs. At the 43rd session of the United Nations Commission
on Narcotic Drugs, governments decided to invite the UN General Assembly to include the
topic among agenda items of the Millennium Assembly and Millennium Summit, which will
bring together heads of state and government on 5-6 September 2000 in New York.

The 53 members of the commission include Bolivia, Brazil, Canada, Chile, China, Colombia,
Czech Republic, Denmark, Ecuador, Egypt, France, Germany, Ghana, Greece, India, Iran,
Italy, Lao People's Democratic Republic, Lebanon, Libya, Mexico, Peru, Russian Federation,
Switzerland, Thailand, United Kingdom, United States, Uruguay and Venezuela.

The commission decided to convene a high-level ministerial segment in 2003 and 2008 to
coincide with target dates to meet objectives agreed at the General Assembly special session
on the theme two years ago (see NGLS Roundup, July 1998). They also assessed progress in
reducing illicit demand for drugs and eradicating illicit drug crops. Governments, together with
the Vienna-based United Nations International Drug Control Programme (UNDCP), agreed
on measures that should ensure clear directions and a more focused approach in meeting the
targets set by the special session.

Success is possible in drug control, stressed Pino Arlacchi, Executive Director of UNDCP, in
his statement to the commission. He gave examples of reductions in coca cultivation in Peru
and Bolivia, and opium poppy cultivation in Pakistan and the Lao People's Democratic
Republic. He said that implementation of the strategies to reach special session targets was
achievable.

Among other things, the commission said it continued to view national monitoring as the
backbone of an international network to stop illicit crop cultivation. It asked UNDCP to
continue providing financial support and technical assistance to countries that have eradicated
illicit crops and seek to avoid their relocation through implementation of alternative
development programmes.

Delegates said they appreciated UNDCP activities in support of capacity building to collect
comparable and reliable data through a global drug abuse assessment programme. They
encouraged the organization to use information technology to assist countries with more
efficient submission of information on drug abuse.

In the area of demand reduction delegates agreed that, when needed, UNDCP should continue
to provide guidance and assistance to member states for development of demand reduction 
strategies and programmes, and to facilitate sharing of information on best practices. UNDCP
has increased the resources allocated to demand reduction by 40% in its budget for the
2000-2001 biennium.

The commission agreed on the need for timely action to protect children from drug abuse at an
earlier age. Delegates called on all states to implement national prevention programmes and
treatment projects targeted at young people and especially children in difficult circumstances.
Delegates also asked member states to develop services for effective prevention and early
intervention, counselling, treatment, aftercare and social integration.

On the issue of drug trafficking, delegates declared the case of Afghanistan "especially
worrisome." According to a UNDCP 1999 survey, opium harvest in the country was more
than double the previous year. Over 75% of the world's illegal opium is now produced in
Afghanistan. 

Contact: Jonathan Lucas, Commission on Narcotic Drugs, Vienna International Centre, PO
Box 500, A-1400 Vienna, Austria, telephone +43-1/26060 3400, fax +43-1/26060 5885,
website (www.undcp.org/cnd.html).


AD HOC COMMITTEE ON TERRORISM
The General Assembly's ad hoc committee on terrorism, established by General Assembly
resolution 51/210 of 17 December 1996, concluded its fourth session on 18 February 2000 in
New York. The commission is elaborating a comprehensive legal framework of conventions
dealing with international terrorism.

The session considered the question of convening a high-level United Nations conference to
formulate an international response to all forms of terrorism. It also discussed a draft
convention for the suppression of acts of nuclear terrorism, originally proposed by the Russian
Federation. 

The 20-article draft convention covers the use or threat to use nuclear material, nuclear fuel,
radioactive products or waste or any other radioactive substances with toxic, explosive or
other dangerous properties. It defines nuclear terrorism as "the use or threat to use any nuclear
installation, nuclear explosion or radiation-dissemination devices to kill or injure persons; to
damage property or the environment; or to compel persons, states or international
organizations to do or refrain from doing any act." The definition also includes the
unauthorized receipt through fraud, theft or forcible seizure of any nuclear material,
radioactive substances, nuclear installation, nuclear explosive or radiation devices belonging to
a state Party. 

The Non-Aligned Movement has proposed convening a high-level conference as a way of
tackling the politically-divisive issue of terrorism. It said the conference should elaborate a
definition of terrorism and address the need to distinguish terrorism from legitimate struggle in
the exercise of the right to self-determination and independence. The United States expressed
doubt about practical benefits of the conference, and said it might distract from continuing to
take concrete measures including encouraging universal adherence to the 11 existing
anti-terrorism conventions. 

The ad hoc committee will meet next from 25 September to 6 October, during the 55th
session of the General Assembly, to continue its work.


Several months after its adoption by governments, the Protocol on Liability and Compensation
for Damage Resulting from the Transboundary Movement of Hazardous Wastes and their
Disposal was opened for signature on 6 March 2000 in Bern (Switzerland). The protocol is
linked to the 1989 Basel Convention on transboundary movement and disposal of hazardous
wastes (see E&D File Treaty Series, vol. 1, no. 3).

"The Basel Convention is the first environmental treaty to establish a legally binding regime
for liability and compensation," said Per Bakken, Officer in Charge of the Basel Convention
secretariat, which is administered by the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP).
"Today's signing ceremony therefore celebrates a major step forward in global environmental
protection." 

The protocol is open for signature at United Nations headquarters in New York from 1 April
to 10 December 2000. Governments must then ratify or accede before becoming Parties. The
agreement will enter into force after it has received 20 ratifications.  

The protocol was adopted by the fifth meeting of the Conference of the Parties to the Basel
Convention on 10 December 1999 (see Go Between 79). It will provide a comprehensive
regime for determining liability and ensuring prompt and adequate compensation in the event
of damages resulting from transboundary movements and disposal of hazardous wastes,
including illegal traffic in those wastes. 

The protocol will determine who is financially responsible in the event of an incident. Each
phase of a transboundary movement, from the generation of wastes to their export,
international transit, import and final disposal, is considered. Protocol negotiations began in
1993 in response to developing countries' concerns about their lack of funds and technology
for coping with illegal dumping or accidental spills. 

Currently 133 states and the European Union are Parties to the Basel Convention. It addresses
problems posed by the annual worldwide production of hundreds of millions of tons of
hazardous wastes. The wastes are considered hazardous to people and the environment if they
are toxic, poisonous, explosive, corrosive, flammable, "eco-toxic" or infectious. 

The convention regulates movements of these wastes and obliges its members to ensure that
such wastes are managed and disposed of in an environmentally sound manner. Governments
are expected to minimize the quantities that are transported, to treat and dispose of wastes as
close as possible to where they were generated, and to minimize the generation of hazardous
wastes at source. 

Contact: Secretariat of the Basel Convention, Geneva Executive Center, 15 chemin des
Anemones, CH-1219 Chatelaine (Geneva), Switzerland, telephone +41-22/979 1111, fax
+41-22/797 3454, e-mail <sbc@unep.ch>, website (www.unep.ch/basel).


UNCCD FORUM HELD IN MALI
More than 60 experts from Africa, Latin America and the Caribbean will participate in training
courses and exchanges in partner countries on issues of relevance in the combat against
desertification including water management, soil conservation, dune fixation, reforestation,
and elaboration of national action programmes. The programme of technical and scientific
exchanges was approved by representatives of 30 countries of the two regions at the second
Africa/Latin America and the Caribbean Forum on Implementation of the United Nations
Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD). The forum, held under the auspices of
UNCCD on 6-8 March 2000 in Bamako (Mali), was a follow-up to the first forum held in
Brazil in 1998.

At the meeting in Bamako representatives of Argentina, Benin, Costa Rica, Cuba, Mali,
Mexico, Peru and Venezuela presented detailed proposals and identified participants and
partners. In the coming months further initiatives will be considered and integrated in the
programme for enhanced South-South cooperation to combat land degradation and poverty. 

"The government of Venezuela has committed US$1 million to facilitate and support the
exchange of expertise between our countries through the next three years," said a
representative of the country, which will host the third forum (date to be established). Cuba
will host the fifth forum, and the fourth will take place in an African country.

Among other things, participants in the Bamako meeting called for strengthened involvement
of bilateral and multilateral institutions in support of needs of desertification-affected
countries. 

Contact: UNCCD Secretariat, Geneva Executive Centre, 11-13 chemin des Anemones,
CH-1219 Chatelaine (Geneva), Switzerland, telephone +41-22/917 8111, fax +41-22/917
8030, e-mail <secretariat@unccd.ch>, website (www.unccd.ch).


EFA CONFERENCE ON EDUCATION
At a three-day conference on Education for All in Europe and North America, held in Warsaw
(Poland) in February 2000, 43 countries from the region decided to redefine national
approaches to basic education and lay the foundations for lifelong learning, recognized as an
indispensable instrument for individual empowerment in the emerging information-based
society. In a framework for action developed at the conference, participants also
recommended ways to update basic education and extend its availability to all people beyond
the traditional confines of childhood and formal classrooms. 

The conference was organized by the International Consultative Forum on Education for All
(EFA), which comprises the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), United
Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), United Nations
Children's Fund (UNICEF), United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) and the World Bank.

For each country, the framework recommends that basic education provide "key skills, used as
personal development tools [including] a first vocational initiation, the culture, values and
abilities that are needed for social cohesion, sustainable development...and for the exercise of
participatory and responsible citizenship in a democracy." To achieve this, it emphasizes the
need to fight against functional illiteracy, including in the most developed countries.

Regarding the allocation of resources for basic education, the framework stresses the need to
maintain, and in some cases increase, expenditure despite declining demographic trends in the
region, and to ensure that resource allocation serves to reduce inequities in access to, and the
quality of, education.

It also highlights the need to promote effective partnerships between schools, families,
communities, civil society, social services and political authorities, and the importance of basic
education in the fight against AIDS and other health risks. 

Other concerns stated in the framework include: 
--  the importance of monitoring results against both quantitative and qualitative targets, with
attention to populations that have most difficulty in attaining the desired objectives;
--  providing teachers with adequate training, notably in-service training, and with a
recognized status; and 
--  encouraging information sharing and enhancing flows of financial assistance, particularly in
Eastern and Central Europe.

The framework firmly places basic education as part of lifelong learning. "The importance of
valuing the learner's experience," it says, "in order to create both the curriculum and
opportunities for learning is paramount....We believe that participation in learning builds
self-confidence, citizenship and autonomy."

Contact: Teresa Murtagh, EFA Media Unit, UNESCO, 7 place de Fontenoy, F-75352 Paris 07
SP, France, telephone +33-1/45 68 21 27, fax +33-1/45 68 56 29, e-mail
<t.murtagh@unesco.org>, website (www2.unesco.org/wef). 


ILO GOVERNING BODY
The governing body of the International Labour Office (ILO) concluded its 277th session in
Geneva on 31 March 2000 after adopting conclusions on a wide range of subjects.

These included a decision to broaden the organization's examination of the social dimension of
globalization, expand efforts to end forced labour in Myanmar, and the first review of
follow-up to the 1998 ILO Declaration on Fundamental Principles and Rights at Work. 

The governing body also voiced unanimous support for a reinforcement of ILO technical
cooperation in favour of workers in the occupied Arab territories. It endorsed the report of an
ILO multi-disciplinary mission to the West Bank and Gaza, which outlined 19 projects with a
goal of strengthening the job and income-generating capacity of small and micro-enterprises.

The ILO's Committee on Freedom of Association reached interim conclusions on complaints
involving Australia, Bangladesh, Bulgaria, Canada, Cuba, the Republic of Korea and
Zimbabwe.

The governing body set in motion a discussion for its June 2000 conference which could result
in an appeal to its other 174 member states to review their relationship with the government of
Myanmar, and to take appropriate measures to ensure that Myanmar "cannot take advantage
of such relations to perpetuate or extend the system of forced or compulsory labour" practised
against its citizens. Invoking for the first time article 33 of the ILO Constitution, the governing
body recommended that the International Labour Conference "take such action as it may deem
wise and expedient to secure compliance" by Myanmar with the recommendations of a 1998
commission of inquiry. Article 33 is designed for use only in the event of a country failing to
carry out the recommendations of an ILO commission of inquiry, which is itself a procedure
reserved for grave and persistent violations of international labour standards. 

The 1998 commission concluded that "the obligation to suppress the use of forced or
compulsory labour is violated in Myanmar in national law as well as in actual practice in a
widespread and systematic manner, with total disregard for the human dignity, safety, health
and basic needs of the people."  

An updated report by ILO Director-General Juan Somav¡a examined new evidence of the
situation and concluded that an order issued by the government of Myanmar on 14 May 1999
does not exclude the imposition of forced labour in violation of the convention. 

"In actual practice," according to an ILO statement, "forced or compulsory labour continues
to be imposed in a widespread manner." It detailed instances of forced labour imposed
especially by the military in contradiction to the government's assertion that forced labour is
never applied. 

Contact: Bureau of Public Information, ILO, 4 route des Morillons, CH-1211 Geneva 22,
Switzerland, telephone +41-22/799 7940, fax +41-22/799 8577, e-mail <presse@ilo.org>,
website (www.ilo.org).


UNESCO REFORM
Concentration and excellence in programmes, savings, rationalization and transparency in
management have emerged as key issues in reform at the United Nations Educational,
Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), said UNESCO Director-General Ko‹chiro
Matsuura in a speech to the organization's Executive Board in Paris in February. 

Mr. Matsuura described the state of the organization and the reforms undertaken since he took
office last November. He stressed, among other things, the need to match staff skills with
requirements of the secretariat, the need for training, and the importance of transparency "the
prerequisite for sound management."

The reform measures seek to adapt policies to available resources, and may include reducing
the number of permanent field offices. The most important goal, said Mr. Matsuura, concerns
the necessary programme concentration. 

"The programme itself must be radically reviewed, in terms of a clear vision of UNESCO's
specific role within international cooperation," he said. Mr. Matsuura noted that activities need
to be refocused in order to prioritize basic and science education, water resource management,
the fight against poverty, intangible heritage preservation, cultural diversity, and access of
developing nations to new information technology.
"The work ahead over the next two years to reform our programme and modalities of action is
crucial," said Mr. Matsuura. "My ambition is to restore UNESCO's position, its full position,
as a specialized institution in the United Nations system. We can no longer claim our fields of
competence as a monopoly. It is in the exercise of expertise, of specific know-how in areas
shared with many other institutions that we will demonstrate our comparative advantage.
UNESCO's specific competence no doubt resides in its role to provide orientation and to
identify innovative approaches, to experiment with new solutions, to collect and disseminate
successful experiences. This is linked to the need for quality, not to say excellence. It must be
present in the development of approaches and solutions, rather than in concrete project
execution." 

Contact: UNESCO, 7, place de Fontenoy, F-75352 PARIS 07 SP, France, telephone +33-1/45
68 10 00, fax +33-1/45 67 16 90, website (www.unesco.org).


IFAD GOVERNING COUNCIL
The Governing Council of the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD), which
met in Rome from 16-17 February 2000, agreed on the full participation of the fund in the
enhanced debt initiative for highly indebted poor countries (HIPCs). The council, in a
resolution adopted on the subject, said that care would be taken to minimize effects on the
organization's annual lending programme.

"IFAD shall participate fully in the process of establishing poverty reduction strategies by
eligible countries," the resolution states, "given its special expertise in combatting rural
poverty." Member countries able to do so are being invited to contribute to the enhanced
HIPC debt initiative either through the HIPC trust fund of the World Bank or through the
IFAD trust fund for the HIPC initiative.

The governing council also reviewed IFAD's lending programme for 2000, which involves
US$446 million and an average loan size of US$14.8 million. Of this, 36.77% has been
allocated for Africa, 31.01% for Asia and the Pacific, 17.03% for Latin America and the
Caribbean, and 15.19% for the Near East and North Africa. Among other things, the council
approved IFAD's budget for 2000 of US$52,728,000, reviewed operational cooperation
between IFAD and the World Food Programme (WFP) and discussed the consultation on the
fifth replenishment of IFAD's resources for the period 2000-2002.

Contact: IFAD, Via del Serafico 107, I-00142 Rome, Italy, telephone +39-06/54591, fax
+39-06/5459 2141, e-mail <ifad@ifad.org>, website (www.ifad.org).


UNDP POVERTY REPORT
A new global strategy against poverty needs to be mounted with more resources, a sharper
focus and a stronger commitment, says the UNDP Poverty Report 2000, published by the UN
Development Programme in April. Based on commitments made at the 1995 World Summit
for Social Development, it says, developing countries are being encouraged to launch
full-scale campaigns against poverty. Yet despite having set ambitious global targets for
poverty reduction, donor countries are cutting back on aid and failing to focus what remains
on poverty.

Effective governance is often the "missing link" between national anti-poverty efforts and
poverty reduction, according to the report. For many countries "it is in improving governance
that external assistance is needed" but "not with a new set of poverty-related conditionalities
imposed on top of the existing economic conditionalities."

Anti-poverty plans, which help focus and coordinate national activities, must be
comprehensive and more than a few projects "targeted" at the poor. And they need adequate
funding and effective coordination by a government department or committee with
wide-ranging influence. Most critical, says the report, they should be nationally owned and
determined, not donor driven. 

Among other things, many national programmes lack a good management structure. A
multidimensional problem, poverty should be addressed by a multisectoral approach cutting
across government ministries and departments. But most programmes hand the responsibility
for poverty reduction over to a ministry of social affairs, which generally lacks authority over
other ministries. Where a central coordinating committee is set up to overcome this problem, it
rarely has enough power to get the job done, notes the report.

A review of national anti-poverty plans underscores the importance of developing a new
generation of programmes that focus on making growth more pro-poor, target inequality and
emphasizing empowerment of the poor. 

"The old-school prescriptions of supplementing rapid growth with social spending and safety
nets," according to UNDP, "have proved inadequate."

In countries with widespread poverty too many programmes still rely mistakenly on targeted
interventions. It is better to concentrate on building national capacity for pro-poor policy
making and institutional reform the areas where external assistance should also concentrate its
resources. This focus, says the report, will also help provide greater coherence to national
programmes and overcome the tendency to rely on a disjointed set of small-scale projects.

Among other things the report recommends that:
--  countries link their poverty programmes not only to their national policies but also to their
international economic and financial policies;
--  holding governments accountable to people is a bottom-line requirement for effective
governance;
--  decision-making power should be shifted closer to poor communities; and 
--  civil society organizations can play a valuable role within poor communities, and by
engaging in policy advocacy on behalf of the poor and influencing national policy making. 

Contact: Social Development and Poverty Elimination Division, Bureau for Development
Policy (BDP), UNDP, 1 UN Plaza, New York NY 10017, United States, telephone
+1-212/906-5046, fax +1-212/906-5313, e-mail  <radhika.lal@undp.org>. To order, contact
UN Publications, Room DC2-853, 2 UN Plaza, New York NY 10017, United States,
telephone +1-212/963 8302, fax +1-212/963 3489, e-mail <publications@un.org>, website
(www.un.org/pubs/sales.htm).


WORLD BANK: VOICES OF THE POOR
A study on the causes and effects of global poverty, published by the World Bank in March,
presents detailed personal accounts from over 60,000 men and women in 60 countries about
the realities of living with poverty, and what the poor need to improve their lives.

Voices of the Poor: Can Anyone Hear Us? chronicles the daily struggles and aspirations of the
poor, and how their lives are shaped by common hardships such as hunger, powerlessness,
social isolation, state corruption and gender inequality. The book, based on discussions with
tens of thousands of poor people across five continents, concludes that poverty is much more
than lack of income. Poverty also means having no voice in influencing key decisions that
affect their lives, or representation in state and national political institutions. 

"What poor people share with us is sobering," said World Bank President James Wolfensohn
and British International Development Secretary Clare Short in the book's foreword. "[The
book]...raises major challenges to both our institutions and to all of us concerned about
poverty." 

The study, a result of ten years of intensive consultations with the poor, aimed to gather
first-hand research about their lives and drive new World Bank policies to reduce poverty.
Among other things the study found that poverty is multidimensional, with its persistence
linked to a web of recurring factors. 

First, while poverty is rarely about the lack of only one thing, the "bottom line" is that the
poor constantly live with hunger. Second, poverty has important psychological dimensions
such as powerlessness, voicelessness, dependency, shame and humiliation. Third, the poor lack
access to basic infrastructure such as roads, transportation and clean water. Fourth, people
realize education offers an escape from poverty, but only if the quality of education and
economic environment in the society at large improve. Fifth, illness is especially feared because
of exorbitant health care costs and not being able to work. And finally, the poor rarely speak
of income but instead focus on managing assets physical, human, social and environmental as
a way to cope with their vulnerability.

The state has been largely ineffective in reaching the poor, observes the study. While
recognizing the role of government in providing infrastructure, health and education services,
the poor feel that these government interventions should go much further. Too many
interactions with state representatives are marred by rudeness and humiliation as the poor seek
services such as health care, education for their children, social and relief assistance, police
protection or justice from local authorities.

The study found that corruption and distrust emerge as core poverty issues; poor men and
women often do not trust government officials. This is based on their daily experiences with
often corrupt civil servants, their attempts to get teachers to educate their children, trying to
get medicines from health clinics even after they have paid for them, seeking justice, or trying
to get police to protect them. 

Households are crumbling under the stresses of poverty, notes the study; they can disintegrate
as men, unable to adapt to their "failure" to earn adequate incomes under harsh economic
circumstances, often turn to alcoholism or domestic violence, leading to a breakdown of the
family structure. In contrast, women tend to swallow their pride and do demeaning jobs or
anything that puts food on the table for their children and husbands.
 
Gender inequity remains remarkably stubborn economic empowerment for women does not
necessarily lead to social empowerment or equality within households. "Social insurance" the
bonds of reciprocity and trust that the poor depend on in the absence of material assets is
unraveling, says the report. Difficult to reverse, the breakdown in social solidarity and social
bonds leads to increased lawlessness, violence and crime, to which the poor are most
vulnerable.

"Around the world, poor people's experiences highlight the role of power and social
structures in determining who has opportunity and who is excluded," said Deepa Narayan,
author of Voices of the Poor and Senior Social Development Specialist at the World Bank.
"The central challenge of the 21st century is to create governance systems from the local to
the global level that include and respond to the priorities and concerns of the poor. This
requires investment in their organizations so they can negotiate directly with governments,
NGOs, traders, and international agencies."

Contact: Ben Jones, Poverty Group, Poverty Reduction and Economic Management Network,
World Bank,1818 H Street NW, Washington DC 20433, United States, telephone +1-202/473
9475, e-mail <bjones1@worldbank.org>, website
(www.worldbank.org/html/extpb/voices.htm).


REPORT CALLS FOR IMF AND WORLD BANK REFORM
In November 1998, as part of legislation authorizing approximately US$18 billion of
additional funding by the United States for the International Monetary Fund (IMF), the United
States Congress established the International Financial Institution Advisory Commission. It
aimed to consider the future roles of seven international financial institutions: the IMF, World
Bank Group, Inter-American Development Bank, Asian Development Bank, African
Development Bank, World Trade Organization, and the Bank for International Settlements. 

On 8 March 2000, the 11-member bipartisan panel chaired by economist Allan Meltzer
released its report. It recommends an overhaul of the institutions and calls for full cancellation
of debts owed by heavily indebted poor countries (HIPCs) to the World Bank and IMF.

A majority on the commission agreed that "the institutions should continue if properly
reformed to eliminate overlap and conflict, increase transparency and accountability, return to
or assume specific functions, and become more effective." The commission focused attention
on the IMF and the multilateral development banks. It voted eight to three that the IMF,
World Bank and regional development banks should write off in their entirety all claims
against HIPCs that implement an effective economic and social development strategy in
conjunction with the World Bank and regional development institutions; and the IMF should
restrict its lending to the provision of short-term liquidity and should end the practice of
extending long-term loans for poverty reduction and other purposes.

In its criticism of the IMF, the report says that the frequency and severity of recent crises raise
doubts about the system of crisis management now in place and the incentives for private
actions that it encourages and sustains. 

"The IMF has given too little attention to improving financial structures in developing
countries," says the report, "and too much to expensive rescue operations. Its system of
short-term crisis management is too costly, its responses too slow, its advice often incorrect,
and its efforts to influence policy and practice too intrusive."

The report recommends that the IMF cease lending to countries for long-term development
assistance and for long-term structural transformation, and that the Enhanced Structural
Adjustment Facility and its successor the Poverty Reduction and Growth Facility be
eliminated. The commission proposed that the IMF should serve as quasi-lender of last resort
to emerging economies and limit its lending operations to the provision of short-term funds.
The report also states that in its new limited role "there would be no need for detailed
conditionally that has burdened IMF programmes and made such programmes unwieldy,
highly conflictive, time consuming to negotiate and often ineffectual."

According to the report "there is a wide gap between the Bank's rhetoric and promises and
their performance and achievements." The report criticizes the World Bank for focusing its
non-aid resources to 11 countries that "enjoy substantial access to private resource flows."
The report also criticizes overlap between regional development banks and the World Bank in
competing for donor funds, clients and projects.

In its recommendations for the development banks, the report suggests they be transformed
from capital-intensive lenders to sources of technical assistance, providers of regional and
global public goods, and facilitators of an increased flow of private sector resources to
emerging economies. The report recommends that the focus of their individual financial efforts
should be on the world's 80 to 90 poorest countries, which lack access to capital markets.

The commission proposes that lending frameworks, with incentives for implementation, be
redesigned to fit needs of the poorest countries that do not have access to capital markets.
Within the framework, the government of each developing economy would present its own
reform programme, and if the development agency concurs in the merit of the proposal the
country would receive a loan with a subsidized interest rate.

Critics of the report say its recommendations go too far and take a "slash-and-burn" approach,
rather than reform. Economist Fred Bergsten, one of the three dissenting commission
members, said the suggestions would undermine the world economy and hurt US economic
interests. 

"The majority of proposals would sharply increase the risk of international economic
disorder," he said, "and dash the prospects of economic development for millions of poor
people." 

While some NGOs embraced the commission's call for total cancellation of debt of the world's
poorest countries to the World Bank and IMF, they also said the report did not address
fundamental problems at the two institutions. 

"Until the IMF's chronic lack of accountability and democracy are also dealt with," said Carol
Welch of Friends of the Earth, "any reforms are unlikely to have a lasting positive impact."

Contact: All papers prepared for the commission and unedited transcripts of all meetings and
public hearings are available on website (phantom-x.gsia.cmu.edu/IFIAC). 


DESA REPORT ON REPLACEMENT MIGRATION
The Population Division of the UN Department of Economic and Social Affairs (DESA) has
released a report entitled Replacement Migration: Is it a Solution to Declining and Ageing
Populations?. Replacement migration refers to the international migration that a country
would need to prevent population decline and population ageing resulting from low fertility
and mortality rates. 

United Nations projections indicate that between 1995 and 2050, the population of Japan and
virtually all countries of Europe will most likely decline. In a number of cases including
Estonia, Bulgaria and Italy, countries would lose between one-fourth and one-third of their
population. Population ageing will be pervasive, bringing the median age of population to
historically unprecedented high levels, according to DESA. For example, in Italy the median
age will rise from 41 years in 2000 to 53 years in 2050. The potential "support ratio" the
number of persons of working age (15-64 years) per older person will often be halved.
 
The report examines the cases of eight low-fertility countries (France, Germany, Italy, Japan,
Republic of Korea, Russian Federation, United Kingdom and United States) and two regions
(Europe and the European Union). In each case, alternative scenarios for the period
1995-2050 are considered, highlighting the impact that various levels of immigration would
have on population size and population ageing. 

In the next 50 years, according to the report, populations of most developed countries are
projected to become smaller and older as a result of low fertility and increased longevity. In
contrast, the population of the United States is projected to increase by almost one-fourth.
Among the countries studied in the report, Italy is projected to register the largest population
decline in relative terms, losing 28% of its population between 1995 and 2050. The population
of the European Union, which in 1995 was larger than that of the United States by 105
million, will become smaller by 18 million in 2050. 

Population decline is inevitable in the absence of replacement migration. Fertility may rebound
in the coming decades, but few believe that it will recover sufficiently in most countries to
reach replacement level in the foreseeable future, says the report.

Some immigration is needed to prevent population decline in all countries and regions
examined in the report. However, the level of immigration in relation to past experience varies
greatly. For the European Union, a continuation of the immigration levels observed in the
1990s would roughly suffice to prevent total population from declining while for Europe as a
whole, immigration would need to double. Italy and Japan would need to register notable
increases in net immigration. In contrast France, the United Kingdom and the United States
would be able to maintain their total population with fewer immigrants than in recent years. 

The new challenges of declining and ageing populations will require a comprehensive
reassessment of many established policies and programmes with a long-term perspective,
according to DESA. Critical issues that need to be addressed include:
--  the appropriate ages for retirement;
--  the levels, types and nature of retirement and health care benefits for the elderly;
--  labour force participation;
--  the assessed amounts of contributions from workers and employers to support retirement
and health care benefits for the elderly population; and
--  policies and programmes relating to international migration.
 
Contact: Population Division, Department of Economic and Social Affairs, United Nations,
New York NY 10017, United States, telephone +1-212/963 3179, fax +1-212/963 2147. The
report may be accessed on (www.un.org/esa/population/unpop.htm).


WOMEN WAGING PEACE ROUNDTABLE
Although advances have been made toward real equality for women in the last decade, there is
still a lot of work to do to make the equal rights of one half of humanity a reality, according to
speakers at a roundtable on Women Waging Peace, held at the UN in Geneva on 8 March
2000. The event, organized by the United Nations, was held to coincide with International
Women's Day.

Speakers stressed, among other things, the importance of law as a powerful instrument in the
struggle for social justice and equality, and legal instruments aimed at consolidating women's
rights; the need to move beyond "gender blindness" and introduce a gender perspective in war
and peacemaking; and the importance of overcoming stereotypes, which act as barriers to
growing realization about women's equality. 

Among initiatives discussed during the roundtable, organizers of the World March of Women
2000 said over 3,000 groups from almost 150 countries have become involved. As the world
enters the new millennium "the main problem is not poverty the problem is the unequal
distribution of riches," said Lorraine Guay, representative of the march. "There are 2000 good
reasons to march for change; the World March of Women will present demands to the planet's
decision makers and solutions to the problems of poverty and violence against women." The
initiative, coordinated internationally by the Federation des femmes du Quebec, includes a
signature campaign, educational workshops and conferences, and marches around the world
aimed at raising awareness of women's reality and convincing governments to institute the
changes necessary to improve women's status. It will conclude on 17 October 2000, when
women will gather in communities around the world and at the United Nations in New York.

Contact: Department of Public Information, Palais des Nations, CH-1211 Geneva 10,
Switzerland, telephone +41-22/917 1234, fax +41-22/917 0030, e-mail
<dpi_geneva@unog.ch>.

World March of Women, Federation des femmes du Quebec, 110 rue Ste.-Therese, Room
307, Montreal, Quebec, Canada H2Y 1E6, telephone +1-514/395 1196, fax +1-514/395 1224,
e-mail <marche2000@ffq.qc.ca>, website (www.ffq.qc.ca/marche2000/).


UNESCO/WORLD BANK STUDY ON EDUCATION
Higher education in developing countries is inadequate and falling further behind, an
independent panel of world experts in education and international development warned in
March, adding that without swift action these countries will be unable to compete in the
knowledge economy. 

Higher Education in Developing Countries: Peril and Promise is the final report of the Task
Force on Higher Education and Society, an autonomous body of specialists convened two
years ago by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO)
and the World Bank. 

"Well-educated people from the developing world can be a powerful force for change," said
World Bank President James Wolfensohn, "but they need schools and academic opportunities
in their own countries. This is especially true in the face of such staggering problems as the
HIV/AIDS pandemic, and the need to build up basic infrastructure and telecommunications in
poor countries."
 
The report, which examines reasons for renewed public interest in supporting higher
education, also suggests specific areas for emphasis by developing countries. These range from
improving scientific and technological capacity, to respecting principles of good governance
and supporting both general and specialized education. 

The report observes that higher education in developing countries is in crisis: it is generally
overcrowded, chronically under-funded, poorly managed and beset with inadequate faculty
and curricula. The task force underscores the need for a holistic approach to education policy,
emphasizing that poor countries should view higher education as a vital part of their overall
human development strategy. The report argues that advanced education is crucial for
developing countries if they hope to engender the capacity required to overcome serious
problems such as hunger, persistent poverty, environmental degradation and economic
under-performance. 

Demand for higher education is rising rapidly, compounding the challenges for countries that
hope to improve quality, reduce public cost and increase access to all strata, according to the
report. It advocates a policy of systemic reform emphasizing planned diversity, where both
public and private actors coordinate their actions within a clear strategic framework.

"There is no way we can succeed in the eradication of poverty if the developing world is not a
part of knowledge creation," said Mamphela Ramphele, task force co-chair and vice
chancellor of the University of Cape Town in South Africa. Higher education, she stressed, "is
a critical factor in making this possible and must be part of any development strategy."

Contact: Komlavi Francisco Seddoh, Director, Division of Higher Education, UNESCO, 7
place de Fontenoy, F-75352 Paris 07 SP, France, telephone +33-1/45 68 10 00, fax +33-1/45
68 56 28, website (www.unesco.org/education) or Andrew Kircher, Chief, News Bureau,
Media Relations, World Bank, 1818 H Street NW, Washington DC 20433, United States,
telephone +1-202/473 6313, fax +1-202/522 2632, e-mail <akircher@worldbank.org>,
website (www.worldbank.org).


ANGOLA SANCTIONS COMMITTEE REPORT
On 15 March 2000 Ambassador Robert Fowler (Canada), chair of the Security Council
committee established to investigate the situation of Angola, presented to the council a final
report of the panel of experts that investigated violations of Security Council sanctions against
the UNITA rebel movement. 

"This report will, if acted upon, have a real and substantial impact on UNITA's ability to wage
war," said Ambassador Fowler, "by reducing its revenues, increasing its costs and choking off
its supply. If, that is, the council acts on it with the same clear-eyed sense of purpose that
informed the work of the panel."

A ten-member independent panel of experts was established in May 1999 to inform the council
how the sanctions against UNITA were being violated, who was violating them, and what
could be done to make the sanctions more effective (see Go Between 79). The sanctions at
issue were:
--  prohibit the sale or delivery of arms and military equipment to UNITA; 
--  prohibit the sale or supply of petroleum and petroleum products to UNITA; 
--  prohibit the sale or export of diamonds by UNITA; 
--  require the seizing of bank accounts and other financial assets of UNITA; 
--  mandate the closing of UNITA representation offices abroad; and 
--  place restrictions on travel by senior UNITA officials and adult members of their immediate
families. 

The report chronicles how UNITA was able to import large quantities of arms and military
equipment through the cooperation of neighbouring states Zaire, Togo and Burkina Faso, as
well as the willingness of some arms-supplying countries, notably Bulgaria, to sell weapons
with "little or no regard for where those arms would actually end up."

With regard to sanctions relating to petroleum, the panel concluded that a number of former
and current heads of state in Africa helped UNITA circumvent such sanctions. Those
implicated include the former President of Zaire, Mobutu Sese Seko; former President of the
Republic of the Congo, Pascal Lissouba; former Prime Minister of the Republic of the Congo,
Gen. Joachim Yhombi Opango; and the President of Burkina Faso, Blaise Compaore.

The panel found that diamonds have a uniquely important role within UNITA's political and
military economy. It said UNITA continues to be able to sell its diamonds and/or exchange
them for commodities it needs. The panel concluded that UNITA's ability to sell diamonds is
based on three key elements: its ability to get rough diamonds; the safe and protected access
that UNITA has had to locations where diamond deals can be transacted; and the ease with
which illegal diamonds can be sold and traded on major diamond markets, particularly the
largest and most important one in Antwerp (Belgium).

Mr. Fowler said the report made clear recommendations that public censure must be followed
by decisive action in the Sanctions Committee, Security Council, and in the states concerned.
He said he looked forward to a series of mandatory UN resolutions to implement the report's
recommendations.

A number of member states mentioned in the report argued that the accusations against them
were based on "unverified evidence." Ambassador Joseph Mutaboba (Rwanda) charged the
experts with having made "wild" allegations against Rwanda by citing his government as
having provided military cooperation and arranging diamond sales. "The Rwandan
government," he said, "wishes to state categorically that these allegations have no foundation
and are merely hearsay."

Ambassador Andre Adam of Belgium responded to charges of his government's "apparent
inability or unwillingness...to police the smuggling of illegal Angolan diamonds" by saying that
Belgium set up a task force in January 2000 to examine ways to trace the origins of diamonds.
He added that Belgium is the only European Union country "with a binding licensing system
for the import and export of diamonds," therefore the "unwillingness" cited in the report "does
not reflect reality." 

Ambassador Fowler defended the report by saying that "it does name names, including, in a
few instances, at the highest level. This, of course, makes everyone nervous because, frankly,
 it's not done'."

Contact: The report can be found on the UN website (www.un.org/peace). For those without
access to Internet, a copy can be obtained from NGLS in New York. 


UNU STUDY ON KOSOVO CRISIS
A profound change in world politics emerged from NATO's military intervention in Kosovo,
according to a United Nations University (UNU) study: nations can temporarily forfeit
sovereignty on humanitarian grounds. However, unless world powers agree on principles to
guide interventions in similar circumstances, that precedent "will have dangerously undermined
international order."

The study on Kosovo and The Challenge of Humanitarian Intervention offers a compendium
of viewpoints on dimensions of the 1999 crisis and on recommended follow-up steps. The
steps include promotion of "an international consensus about the point at which a state forfeits
its sovereignty," and removal of veto power in the Security Council in exceptional
circumstances "so that the support of a majority of the great powers is all that is required to
permit states to engage in humanitarian war." 

"Kosovo confronted us with an abiding challenge of humanitarian intervention: namely, is it
morally just, legally permissible and militarily feasible?" said Ramesh Thakur, Vice Rector of
UNU and co-editor of the study. "In today's dangerously unstable world full of complex
conflicts, concerned countries and citizens face the painful dilemma of being condemned if
they do and damned if they don't. To use force unilaterally is to violate international law and
undermine world order. Yet to respect sovereignty all the time is to be complicit in human
rights violations sometimes. And to argue that the UN Security Council must give its consent
to humanitarian war is to risk policy paralysis," among other things. 

The important question, according to Mr. Thakur, is: Faced with another holocaust or
Rwanda-type genocide on one hand, and a Security Council veto on the other, what would we
do?" He said a new consensus on humanitarian intervention is urgently needed. Contributors
to the study cited the need to reform the Security Council, including possible removal of veto
power from the council's five permanent members Britain, China, France, Russia and the
United States in such circumstances as those presented by the clash over Kosovo.

"The permanent members and their interests should not prevent the Security Council from
getting involved and stall the UN's attempts to provide assistance to those in need," said study
co-editor Albrecht Schnabel. "Otherwise we might see more NATO-style actions with less or
no UN involvement and thus less order and less justice in our global community. It is good
that the international system can tear down the walls of state sovereignty in cases where states
kill their own people. Organizations like the UN, however, need to be willing and able to
confront these catastrophes wherever they occur."

NATO's 1999 bombing of Yugoslavia proceeded without UN sanction. In view of the 1994
Rwandan genocide (during which UN intervention was stalled in the Security Council) and
similar recent internal conflicts, the Kosovo intervention "while morally right, demonstrated a
dangerous  selective indignation' towards humanitarian crisis," according to a UNU statement.

"Many of today's wars are nasty, brutish and internal," said Mr. Thakur. "The world
community cannot help all victims, but must step in where it can make a difference. Selective
indignation is inevitable, for we simply cannot intervene everywhere, every time. But we must
still pursue policies of effective indignation. Humanitarian intervention must be collective, not
unilateral. And it must be legitimate, not in violation of the agreed rules which comprise the
foundations of world order."

Among other things, the study says continuing fallout from Kosovo has potential to redraw
the landscape of international politics with significant ramifications for the UN, major powers
and regional organizations, and the way in which world politics are understood and
interpreted. The study presents interpretations of the Kosovo crisis from diverse perspectives
including the conflict parties, NATO allies, and the region surrounding the conflict.

Contact: UNU, 53-70 Jingumae 5-chome, Shibuya-ku, Tokyo 150-8925, Japan, telephone
+81-3/3499 2811, fax +81-3/3499 2828, e-mail <mbox@hq.unu.edu>, website
(www.unu.edu). 


ONLINE VOLUNTEERS INITIATIVE
Netaid, launched by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and Cisco Systems
in October 1999 (see Go Between 77), has teamed up with United Nations Volunteers to
establish a database for "online volunteers" on its website (www.netaid.org).

The initiative aims to offer NGOs and civil society organizations (CSOs) working in human
development an opportunity to collaborate with volunteers who carry out tasks that can be
transferred over the Internet. These include technical assistance, translations, data analysis,
research, computer programming, online teaching, and moderating a discussion list. NGOs and
CSOs can post their assignments on the searchable database by filling out a form available on
the website. 

Contact: UNV/Netaid Team, Haus Carstanjen, Martin Luther Kingstrasse 8, D-53175 Bonn,
Germany, telephone +49-228/815 2215 or 815 2224, e-mail <netaid@-unv.org>, website
(www.netaid.org).


WORLD ENVIRONMENT DAY
The main international World Environment Day celebrations, celebrated every year on 5 June,
will be held in Adelaide (Australia), according to the United Nations Environment Programme. 

"This is the first time that this important United Nations Day will be held in the Pacific region,
and UNEP is indeed honoured that Australia has generously offered to host this event in
Adelaide," said Klaus T”pfer, UNEP Executive Director. "The theme for this year's World
Environment Day 2000 The Environment Millennium: Time to Act is a rallying cry to each
and every one of us to become responsible trustees of the planet and to renew our pledge to
protect the amazing web of life that sustains us."

World Environment Day, observed in more than 100 countries, aims to draw attention to some
of the ways in which humanity is endangering its own habitat. It also helps to emphasize the
urgent need to change attitudes and behaviours toward the environment. The day encourages
actions by governments, individuals, NGOs, community and youth groups, business, industry
and the media to improve the environment. These include clean-up campaigns, tree planting,
street rallies, exhibitions, concerts, essay competitions in schools and recycling efforts.

The day is also an occasion to make pledges leading to the establishment of permanent
structures that deal with environmental management and economic planning, and it provides
an opportunity for governments to take steps to sign or ratify international treaties and
conventions.

Contact: Elisabeth Guilbaud-Cox, Coordinator, Special Events,  UNEP, PO Box 30552,
Nairobi, Kenya, telephone +254-2/623401, e-mail <cpiinfo@unep.org>, website
(www.unep.org).


UN AND NGO NEWS

BIOTECHNOLOGY/FOODS TASK FORCE
Over 200 people attended the first session of the Codex Ad Hoc Intergovernmental Task
Force on Foods Derived From Biotechnology, held in Chiba (Japan) from 14-17 March 2000.
Participants represented 33 member countries of the Codex Alimentarius Commission and 24
international observer organizations from consumer, industry and environmental groups. The
task force was established in June 1999 by the Codex Alimentarius Commission, which was
created in the 1960s to develop global standards for food safety by the United Nations Food
and Agriculture Organization (FAO) and the World Health Organization (WHO).

The task force set out a four-year programme of work, which will include development of
"over-arching" general principles for risk analysis of foods derived from biotechnology. These
concern issues such as science-based decision making, "pre-market" assessment procedures,
transparency, and post-market monitoring.

The task force will also prepare guidelines on:
--  the risk assessment of foods derived from biotechnology for food safety and nutrition; 
--  application of the concept of "substantial equivalence;" and 
--  consideration of long-term health effects and non-intentional effects arising from genetic
modification. 

The first priority will be on foods of plant origin, followed by micro-organisms used directly in
foods, and then foods of animal origin. "Adequate and appropriate definitions" will be used,
and when possible those already developed and agreed to in other texts such as the Cartagena
Protocol on Biosafety (see Go Between 73) or by other bodies such as the Committee on
Food Labelling. Methods of analysis will also be compiled for the detection and identification
of foods derived from biotechnology.

Two ad hoc working groups were established in order to develop the programme of work as
quickly as possible. The first will develop the proposed draft general principles, guidelines and
definitions mentioned above. The second will compile a list of appropriate analytical methods
for consideration by the task force, together with their performance characteristics and the
status of their validation.

The second session of the task force will be held in Japan in March 2001. 

The commission was charged with attempting to undermine the Biosafety Protocol by over
200 organizations and individuals from 31 countries. In an open letter to the chair of the
commission on 8 March, the groups noted that documents prepared for government delegates
in Chiba included a summary review of the Cartagena Biosafety Protocol. The letter charges
that "mischaracterizations of the [protocol] that appear in document CX/FTB/00/3 Add, dated
February 2000" are "deliberate, considering that the full document is well-known to
governments and NGOs alike. Thus, we are concerned that the Codex Secretariat and
Executive Committee are attempting to undermine the Biosafety Protocol....As written, the
Codex summary of the Cartagena Protocol could be viewed as preparatory to a World Trade
Organization action intended to force nations to accept genetically modified organism imports
or pay penalties for lost trade revenues, contrary to the provisions of the protocol." 

Consumer action on genetically modified (GM) food was the theme of this year's World
Consumer Rights Day, observed on 15 March. Actions around the world highlighting the issue
included dumping GM foods in government doorways and letter writing campaigns, according
to the global federation of Consumers International.

The group also issued a information kit on Our Food, Whose Choice: Consumers Take Action
on Genetically Modified Food. It highlights concerns about the safety of GM food,
implications for the environment, and the potential socio-economic consequences of its use,
particularly in developing countries. 

"All food in which there are ingredients from GM sources should be labelled," according to
Consumers International. "This requires the creation of global labelling rules and, if possible,
an internationally recognized symbol for GM foods." The federation also called for proper
guidelines and protocols to ensure GM foods are safe.

Contact: Secretariat of the Joint FAO/WHO Food Standards Programme, FAO, Viale delle
Terme di Caracalla, I-00100 Rome, Italy, telephone +39-06/57051, fax +39-06/5705 4593,
e-mail <codex@fao.org>, website (www.fao.org/waicent/faoinfo/economic/esn/codex).        
For information on World Consumer Rights Day  contact: Consumers International, 24
Highbury Crescent, London N5 1RX, United Kingdom, telephone +44-20/7226 6663, e-mail
<consint@consint.org>, website (www.consumersinternational.org). 


SECOND GLOBAL KNOWLEDGE CONFERENCE
The second Global Knowledge Conference, held in Kuala Lumpur (Malaysia) in March 2000,
focused on the themes of information technology and access, empowerment and governance,
and produced an action plan. Participants from over 100 countries discussed, among other
things, the challenges to communities and nations in the rapidly-changing context of
information and communication technologies (ICTs).

"The action plan," said Marlee Norton of the National Telephone Cooperative Association, "is
the result of a process of interaction and learning by [Global Knowledge] partners and a
consensus on the priorities for action over the next two to three years. The actions fall into
two main categories: strategic corporate initiatives generally they are projects of the
partnership as a whole and then there are regular Global Knowledge Partnership initiatives,
which involve a group of partners interested in specific issues." 

The action plan includes:
--  an initiative for sharing local content (to counterbalance the heavy influence of the North
on the Internet);
--  creating innovative financing such as venture capital funds so that local innovators can
drive the information and communication technologies marketplace in their countries; and 
--  integrating technology skills into schools and informal education systems to build skills
needed to compete in today's high-tech economies.

The Global Knowledge Partnership is an evolving, informal partnership of public, private and
not-for-profit organizations. Partner organizations are committed to sharing information,
experiences and resources to promote broad access to, and effective use of, knowledge and
information as tools of sustainable, equitable development. The partnership emerged from the
cooperation of organizations in sponsoring the conference on Knowledge for Development in
the Information Age, held in Toronto (Canada) in June 1997 (see Go Between 65). Partners
include the World Bank; Cisco Systems; International Institute for Communication and
Development, based in The Netherlands; and International Institute for Sustainable
Development, based in Winnipeg (Canada).

The work of the Global Knowledge Partnership is rooted in the conviction that access and
effective use of knowledge and information are increasingly important factors in sustainable
economic and social development for individuals, communities and nations; that the
information revolution can be a positive force for empowering the world's poor; and that
effective action to assure inclusion of the poorest individuals, communities and nations in the
global information economy requires increased partnership and mutual learning among public,
private and not-for-profit organizations. 

Members of the partnership cooperate through a variety of initiatives: pilot projects;
conferences and workshops; capacity building initiatives; information sharing; and project
coordination. The work of the Global Knowledge Partnership is coordinated by a small
secretariat, currently located at the World Bank Institute.

Contact: Global Knowledge Partnership Secretariat, World Bank Institute, 1818 H Street
NW, Washington DC 20433, United States, telephone +1-202/458 8196, fax +1-202/522
1492, e-mail <globalknowledge@worldbank.org>, website (www.globalknowledge.org).


MENTAL HEALTH OF EUROPEAN YOUTH
A symposium on Rejuvenating Mental Health for Youth in Europe was jointly organized by
the NGO Forum for Health and World Federation for Mental Health on 13 March in Geneva.
The event, held in collaboration with the World Health Organization (WHO), brought together
UN and NGO representatives, among others, to discuss promotion of mental health among
children and adolescents in the region. 

One and a half billion people suffer from mental, neurological and psychological disorders
worldwide, said Eric Ram, Director of World Vision International Health Programmes and
chair of the NGO Forum for Health. "This year it is estimated that some 20 million people will
attempt suicide; one million will succeed. Previously suicide was attributed to the elderly, but
it has now become one of the three leading causes of death among people in the 15-35 year
age group." He said recent studies show shocking suicide rates in Europe, including 38.7
suicides per 100,000 people in Finland, 30.9 in Switzerland, 73.7 in Lithuania, 72.9 in Russia,
and 48.7 in Belarus. (The global average is 16 suicides per 100,000 people.) 

The portion of the global burden of disease attributable to neuropsychiatric disorders is
expected to rise from 11.5% in 1999 to 15% by the year 2020, according to Benedetto
Saraceno, Director of the Department of Mental Health at WHO. In a keynote address he said
groups at special risk of mental illness include extremely poor people, children and adolescents
experiencing disrupted nurturing; abused women; abandoned elderly; refugees and people
traumatized by violence; and indigenous people. Dr. Saraceno observed that the greatest
barrier to implementing the abundance of knowledge about mental health is the lack of policy
implementation.
 
Among other things, roundtable sessions focused on the magnitude of global challenges in
mental health and WHO's strategy to meet them; the role of NGOs in dealing with mental
health issues at the community level; and priorities in Europe. Case studies were presented on
community-based services for children at risk in Lithuania; adolescents as facilitators of mental
health in Bulgaria; community responses to the mental health needs of youth in Belarus;
mental rehabilitation of children traumatized by war in Croatia; and challenges and actions to
promote mental health of young people in Poland.

Marten De Vries, Secretary General of the World Federation for Mental Health, noted that in
general children are physically healthier today (except in regions such as Eastern Europe).
However mental disorders are a major and rising cause of the world's burden of disease, with
extensive economic cost and impact in human suffering. He predicted the burden, which is
greatest in the developing world, will continue to grow. 

"By the year 2025," said Dr. De Vries, "three-fourths of all elderly persons with
dementia some 80 million of them will live in low-income societies. Some 70%-90% of
patients with epilepsy a treatable condition for which cost-effective drug therapy is
available do not receive anticonvulsant drugs."

More than one-third of the global burden of illness is preventable, he said, by changing
behaviors that increase risk for illness. Meeting this challenge will require large-scale social
interventions using the media, public education and primary health care systems. Among other
things, he stressed the importance of ensuring that projects aimed at promoting mental health
are sustainable; developing youth-based mental health media strategies; and using low-cost
focus groups to identify and understand youth problems. 

Pirrko Lahti, President Elect of the World Federation for Mental Health, said challenges in the
new millennium for NGOs and others will be to provide the mental-health care sector with
high standard services; sound information and dissemination to support prevention of mental
health problems; and "packaging" messages to convince governments, among others, to
change outmoded practices and attitudes.

Contact: Eric Ram, Chairman, NGO Forum for Health, care of World Vision, 6 chemin de la
Tourelle, CH-1209 Geneva, Switzerland, telephone +41-22/798 4183, fax +41-22/798 6547,
e-mail <wvi.gva@iprolink.ch>.


ANTI-TB DRUG RESISTANCE REPORT
New data on levels of drug resistant tuberculosis in 38 regions shows some alarming results,
according to the World Health Organization (WHO). Anti-Tuberculosis Drug Resistance in
the World, Report No. 2, was prepared by the Global Project on Anti-Tuberculosis Drug
Resistance Surveillance, headed by WHO and the International Union Against TB and Lung
Disease. 

The report says that in regions of China (Henan and Zhejiang), India (Tamil Nadu), Iran,
Mozambique and Russia (Tomsk) over 3% of new TB cases have multidrug-resistant
tuberculosis (MDR TB). In Israel, Italy and Mexico (Baja California, Oaxaca and Sinaloa)
over 6% of both new and previously treated cases combined are multidrug resistant. 

A "particularly alarming" trend was identified in Estonia, where MDR TB increased from 14%
of all cases in the first report in 1997 report to 18%. Other important trends include in
Germany and Denmark, where the percentage of TB patients resistant to a single drug
increased by 50% in 1996. 

"While cases resistant to a single drug are still curable," according to WHO, "this represents a
troubling development as it indicates the disease is moving closer to becoming multidrug
resistant."
 
The report includes data from 72 geographical settings covering 28% of the world's TB
burden. Over 100 laboratories worldwide were responsible for gathering data, and some
68,000 people suffering from TB were tested.

The global spread of drug-resistant TB is caused primarily by the inappropriate use of
otherwise effective drugs such as improper intake of the five main drugs used to cure TB.
When these drugs are prescribed properly and taken regularly without interruption for the
entire six to eight months required to treat the disease, there is virtually no chance that the
patient will acquire resistance. However, if a patient takes only some of the drugs but not
others, or prematurely stops treatment, the strongest bacilli surviving in the lungs are given
opportunity to reproduce and create equally-strong offspring. 

As the report shows, it is becoming increasingly common in some countries for new TB cases
to be resistant to one of the five most effective and affordable first-line drugs used to treat the
disease. 

"The good news," according to WHO, "is that monodrug resistant strains are usually still
curable by substituting another drug. The worrisome news is that this puts health services one
step away from needing to resort to second line drugs, which are 100 times more expensive
and 20 times less effectiv