Global call to action against poverty
Tuesday, 16 October 2007
Concern will be participating this week in events commemorating the International Day for the Eradication of Poverty.
On 17 October 1987, people from all backgrounds came together to commemorate the signing of the International Declaration of Human Rights and to affirm that extreme poverty is one of the worst violations of these rights. The day was adopted as the International Day for the Eradication of Poverty. Twenty years on, the UN Millennium Campaign and the Global Call for Action against Poverty are calling on people all over the world to stand up and speak out against poverty and inequality on 17 October.
The campaigns are calling on governments to fulfill their promises to achieve and exceed the Millennium Development Goals by 2015; to ensure public accountability; just governance and the fulfillment of human rights; to make trade justice a reality; to ensure a major increase in the quantity and quality of aid and to cancel odious and unpayable debts.
This year, the pledge places equality high on the agenda, focusing on the link between inequality and poverty. It calls on wealthy countries to meet their commitments on gender inequality, and on poorer countries to tackle inequality within their borders. The pledge concludes with the lines: “We are asking not for charity but for justice. We are millions of voices standing in solidarity to say, no more excuses - end poverty now.”
On 17 October, the Concern Belfast office is getting together with other organisations to hold a “Stand Up Against Poverty…and Sing” event in Belfast City Centre. Following a successful event last year, this year’s action will involve distributing a call to action on aid, trade and debt and singing, led by a number of local choirs.
In Scotland, representatives of Concern will be meeting with Douglas Alexander, Secretary of State for International Development, to flag up a range of issues for him to take on board. Concern representatives will also be joining a Poverty Requiem with The Royal Scottish National Orchestra with around two hundred people, including people from partner organisations overseas.
Visit DFID site for scottish event
In London, Concern is supporting a unique event on the south bank of the Thames in front of the iconic Tower Bridge, wrapping City Hall in a white band.
Last year, Concern staff and partners around the world organised themselves in “Stand Up” events, at which a pledge was read out. To see photos from these events, click here.
