wfn.org | JUBILEE PARTICIPANTS VISIT THE UNITED NATIONS

[PCUSA_NEWS@ecunet.org]

25-Aug-95

95291     JUBILEE PARTICIPANTS VISIT THE UNITED NATIONS 
 
                          by Eva Stimson 
 
HEMPSTEAD, N.Y.--More than 1,300 participants in the Presbyterian 
Peacemaking Jubilee took the opportunity to visit the United Nations. 
 
     On Monday, Aug. 14, about 500 people boarded a fleet of chartered 
buses for the hour-long trip from Hofstra University on Long Island to the 
six-block U.N. complex in Manhattan.  Some 150 young people went on a 
special youth tour of the U.N. the same day.  The following day about 700 
people participated in a U.N. tour for families, which included a visit to 
Ellis Island. 
 
     The adults who visited the U.N. began their tour by sitting in the 
General Assembly chamber, where ambassadors and delegates from the U.N.'s 
185 member nations have seats.  The General Assembly is "the forum of the 
world where all states can have their say," said Gillian Martin Sorensen, a 
U.N. under-secretary-general who is a special advisor on  public policy. 
 
     She and other speakers stressed the importance of the U.N. in today's 
world, where the effects of war, disease and environmental damage 
increasingly spread across national boundaries. "This is a troubling time 
for Americans who work in the United Nations," Sorensen said.  "We see a 
movement toward disengagement, toward backing away from the historic 
leadership role of the United States in world affairs." 
 
     She encouraged those who care about strengthening the United Nations 
to make their concerns known to Congress and the President. 
 
     Visitors to the U.N. also heard addresses by Marrack Goulding, 
under-secretary-general for political affairs, and Julia Alvarez, U.N. 
ambassador from the Dominican Republic. 
 
     After lunch, participants toured parts of the U.N. complex.  They 
began their tour by walking across two large Ecuadoran rugs, given to the 
U.N. by Presbyterian Women when Dag Hammarskjold was secretary general. 
Following the tours, participants were briefed by U.N. staff about the 
organization's work in a variety of areas: women, children, population, 
environment, human rights and common security. 
 
 

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