"Que Nadie se Quede Atras!" Students in the Dominican Republic celebrate "Leave No One Behind". More stories and photos from the LNOB campaign coming soon!
Dear GCAP friends and activists,
As we approach the upcoming GCAP Global Assembly in Johannesburg, national coalitions and constituency groups across the globe are meeting, skyping, chatting, emailing about the state of the world's poverty crisis and the most effective strategies for GCAP to confront it and transform the world.
To contribute to this conversation, I would like to share several reflections and resources with you in this edition of the GCAP newsletter, starting with a video of GCAP co-chair Amitabh Behar addressing the United Nations General Assembly during the "Special Event" on the Millennium Development Goals. In just three minutes, Amitabh describes two narratives - one of anger and another of people's hope and aspirations - as well as key principles for global development.
"We have enough for everybody's need, but not for everybody's greed," Amitabh told the UN, making reference to a famous quote by Mahatma Gandhi. World leaders must address "the current context of obscene inequality" if we are to truly eliminate poverty and create a life of dignity for all.
Speaking at The World We Want People's Voices Series on 17 October, GCAP co-chair Marta Benavides reminds us to place development within a historical context, "to decolonise the processes", so that we can create "the community of peoples and nations that we need".
"The UN is a precious instrument, but it can not be for show and for cosmetic things. It has to be for real things. If it is for peace and real development, it has to also be for real security."
Echoing this sentiment in another address at the UNGA, Ziad Abdel Samad calls on world leaders to stop supporting dictatorships and address the root causes of terrorism, within a human rights context.
Paul Okumu meanwhile provides perspective on UN processes, arguing that UN advocacy is not as complex as we are made to believe.
Within the UN Post-2015 discussions, there appears to be an emphasis on creating new goals, like the MDGs, which are based on quantitative results. But Amitabh cautions that 'process indicators' - such as the percentage of GDP spent on health and education - are also hugely important. Echoing this concern, GCAP Ambassador Kumi Naidoo reminds us:
"Not everything that can be counted counts and not everything that counts can be counted . . . There are potential dangers in focusing excessively on measurability as opposed to ensuring and strengthening community participation."
In Solidarity,
Michael Switow
Michael Switow has served on the GCAP Global Council since 2007 as a representative from GCAP Asia and is currently supporting GCAP communications.
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