Photos: Hajat Avdovic (Webpublicapress)
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| U.N. High-Level Youth Meeting (Photo - Webpublicapress 2011) |
NEW YORK (Webpublicapress - The United Nations) -- The UN High-Level meeting on Youth went on Monday following the General Assembly last March resolution - to hold the two-day gathering in New York to discuss issues and concerns of the younger generation. Many speakers including UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon started their addresses touching upon terrible tragedy in Norway over the last weekend.
With the participation of others Heads of State, Ministers, government officials, andGeneral Assembly President Josheph Deiss, the international supermodel Alek Wek, of South Sudan – the gathering was also convened to mark the International Year of the Youth.
TWO EVENTS IN ONE
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| Romulo Dantas: Everybody was not fond by singing speech (Photo - Webpublicapress) |
The event came few days before the International Youth Day (IYD), celebrated every year on August 12. It also touched the theme of "Youth: Dialogue and Mutual Understanding." Two consecutive informal interactive thematic panel discussions were held on Monday and two plenary meetings were planed for Tuesday.
While supermodel Alek Wek used the opportunity to say few times “hurray” for her country, newest UN, 193rd member state, Brazilian youth representative Romulo Dantas addressed the event also by singing “I donot like to be a subject, but rather Citizen”.
Dantas talked about his fellow friends in “rough neighborhood in Sao Paolo”, where many of them were neglected, pointing the lack of sexual education, where condoms mean difference, since many youngsters are already HIV positive… He was the first speaker on the first panel.
PROTEST OF PRO-LIFE GROUPS
Although not naming him personaly the words of personal experience by young Brazilian were not taken easy or as a simple warning by someone:
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| Delegation of Italy at the UN Youth summit (Photo - Webpublicapress 2011) |
“I was offended to hear one of the opening plenary speakers promoting a false hope to youth, that condoms should be the first line of defense against HIV/AIDs,” said Tyler Ament, Director of the International Youth Coalition, who also spoke at the Youth gathering at the UN General Assembly.
“We were hoping to hear something new when it comes to HIV prevention, but we just got the outdated and even harmful information”, Ament added. He was among those who were upset to hear, as he said “the promotion of the homosexual agenda” on opening day. “Out of all the pressing issues for young people in the world, sexual orientation is not a top priority”, said Ament.
As they stated in the written statement sent electronically to the Webpublicapress, Ament and his colleagues have presented a Youth Statement to the UN and the World “that has been signed by 120,000 people including 57,000 under the age of 30”.
The speakers on behalf of this broad coalition were also Kristan Hawkins, president of Students for Life of America, the largest youth pro-life organization in the United States; Thomas Peters, creator of the American Papist blog, which is one of the most popular Catholic blogs on the web. Also joining the conference will be Jaime Hernandez of the Spanish group HazteOir, and Rafael Becerra of the International Youth Alliance of Mexico.
REAL ISSUES
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| Dr. Babatunde Osotomehin, director of UNFPA "Let's talk about real issues..." at the UN Panel (Photo - Webpublicapress 2011) |
The International Youth Coalition is a group of young people from around the world. In the mentioned statement, they say they "celebrate the fact that humans are made in the image of God, intrinsically relational, and are called to live a life with purpose and meaning".
The second panel of th UN Youth gathering was organized on the challenges to youth development addressing the ways for poverty eradication, and issues of employment and sustainable development.
“We should talk about real issues thet are of concern of young people”, Dr. Babatunde Osotimehin, Director UN Population Fund (UNFPA). He reminded the those gathered in UN General Assembly, that Earth will have 7 billion inhabitants in this October, out of whom 1,8 billion are young people: “Every third inhabitant of this planet will be a young person”, he said.
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| The UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon: Understands Facebook (Photo Hajat Avdovic - Webpublicapress 2011) |
The "Change our world," was the topic of the second panel which touched upon youth initiatives at all levels with the idea that “efforts at the local level can have a global impact”, especially – thanks to the modern communication technology.
Very warm welcome was given to the UN Secretary General who seems to know how to communicate with the young. He praised the way how young people communicate as well: “The Facebook generation is showing a growing resolve to change our world – and a capacity to make things happen”, Mr. Ban said, adding young people “are bringing their energy and courage to some of the most difficult issues we face”.
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