Development Dossier
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Robert HarrisCONGO Education International Chemin Moise-Duboule 57 CH-1209 Geneva, Switzerland Tel:+41-22/788 7300; Fax:+41-22/788 7330 The Cousteau SocietyI stand before you at this great gathering, what is called a "summit of hope, commitment and action." I pray it will be so. I remember such feelings of hope before‑‑in the passions of the corridors at Rio, in the unprecedented gathering of heads of state, in the tangible excitement that something momentous was being achieved. I heard hope in the voices of the people. I even felt it physically in the black‑and‑blue marks on my own arms from the crowds, as they pressed together in a surging parade, shouting their expectation of change. I myself wrote that a "great hope, fragile but immense, had been born at Rio." there, too, commitments were made. I did everything I could to help propagate my hope‑‑I even signed all my letters, "in the spirit of Rio." I carried my feelings to Cairo, where against the odds, a remarkable consensus was forged that recognized human dignity, education and equality between men and women were the ingredients needed to stabilize population growth. But, in the meantime, with billions of people inevitably joining the world, I asked, "how shall we greet them?" Never did I imagine what the answers would be. Never did I imagine that I would live to hear, in the post‑Rio world, foreign assistance referred to as "pouring money down a rathole". Never did I imagine that the very basis of funding the United Nations would be called into question in the 50th anniversary of its birth. Never did I imagine that the richest countries in the world would, in effect, turn their backs on the poorest. In a world awash in luxury items, bombarded with advertising for Hollywood living standards, and nearly a trillion dollars a year available to spend on military matters, only four countries have reached the UN target of 0.7% of GNP, despite promises made at Rio. These four should be Congratulated. But, in the absence of other nations following suit, they are, with the exception of Denmark, our host, reducing their contributions. Can we blame them, if we condemn the most generous nations to be generous alone? Only six countries have exceeded 0.35 percent of GNP. Eleven countries are below 0.35 percent. In a world rushing to free trade and free capital to flow in the freest market in modern history, I say the overseas development assistance statistics are a shame, even a disgrace. Of course, even the 0.7% target does not represent all the money needed to eradicate poverty and achieve the goals of this summit, let alone the Rio goals, or the goals of the world summit for children, or Cairo, or any number of other important commitments already made and still unfulfilled. But overseas assistance is vital to the most poor countries, and important to all. Recently, in a most important speech, it was declared that the huge help to Mexico by the united states was not only in the interest of Mexico, but in fact also in the interest of the united states. this was probably inspired by the vicinity of Mexico and the united states. But all the nations of the world are neighbors today. Sharing also transcends the dollar amounts‑‑help from the rich to the poor is proof that we are a community of nations, and that people finally understand that security of the world is only as strong as that of each human being, no matter where that person lives. But even in rich countries, citizens feel insecure, fearing crime in their streets, the loss of their jobs, pensions and health benefits. They fear they no longer matter and, frankly, often they don't matter at all. People who are otherwise generous retrench, stifling their instincts to compassion. only strong visionary leadership can rekindle these instincts and, to avoid a generalization of violence, it is an obligation of leaders in rich countries to do so. Leaders in poor countries must also re‑examine their priorities, and shift their budgets toward meeting human needs, mainly to develop education and reduce military expenditures. Otherwise, they succumb to a useless game of waiting for the rich to act, while their own people languish. The social development summit contains magnificent ideas, commitments to inspire the soul of the human race. There is reference to many principles i hold dear and have worked for. There is progressive language on debt relief, social safety nets, equality for women, even hard‑to‑promote admission that military expenditures must be reduced. Dedicated delegates worked until two or three in the morning for many days to prepare papers that will be signed here. But why? Why prepare this summit, if its outcome cannot be insured? Why prepare this summit, if its fate is left to drift on a sea of political emptiness? As long as people cannot be inspired to share, as long as nations cling stubbornly to a narrow view of sovereignty and an obsolete view of national security, we exist in a state of peril. When I first explored the oceans, and literally gasped at the beauty before my eyes, none of the thoughts I have today would have seemed possible to me. for I believed then that in a natural world as magnificent as ours, surely the motivation of the human being would be as magnificent. I could never have predicted my own pessimism and near despair, just as I could never have predicted the environmental degradation and economic inequities we have come to take for granted, or as normal and acceptable, in just my lifetime. I beg the leaders of the world to have the courage to lead their people toward the realities of a post‑Rio world‑‑a world where natural resources decrease while human numbers increase; a world where wealth accumulates for the rich, but the poor are left further behind. I beg the leaders of the world to remember their promises at Rio, as they sign new promises at Copenhagen. I beg the leaders of the world not to negate the hope they ignited in 1992, for to do so is to feed the cynicism and distrust of government that is already starting to poison the well of democracy. Let this summit, perhaps our last chance in this decisive century, prove that the united nations can catalyze truly global actions for global betterment. let this summit generate results, as if it were taking place in the very presence of the future generations whose interests it claims to protect. And let this summit, finally, be truly the people's summit so that this decade may be remembered as the one that indeed rescued the world.
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