FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
MADRE, An International Women's Human Rights Organization
Contact: Yifat Susskind, Associate Director
(212) 627-0444; email: madre@madre.org
MADRE Representatives Participate in Hearings on UN Reform and the Millennium Development Goals
Contact:
Irene Schneeweis,
Media Coordinator
PHONE: 212-627-0444
EMAIL: media@madre.org
June 21, 2005-New York- MADRE representatives Mirna Cunningham, Betty Murungi, and Alejandra Sard� have been selected by a joint civil society-United Nations task force to participate in the UN General Assembly Hearings with Civil Society on June 23 and 24, 2005 in New York City. The hearings are the only opportunity for civil society to voice their opinions on the Secretary General's proposal for UN reform and the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs)-a global initiative to end poverty and promote development by 2015-before the Millennium+5 Summit in September 2005.
MADRE, in partnership with an international network of women's organizations, advocates a human rights-based approach to achieving the MDGs and UN reform. While the MDGs offer some opportunities for improving the lives of women and families throughout the global South, MADRE argues that they fall far short of what is needed to address the root causes of poverty and promote sustainable development. MADRE also calls for the effective participation of civil society-including Indigenous Peoples and other groups who have traditionally been marginalized within the international arena-in the Millennium+5 Summit and throughout the UN-a prerequisite for an empowered civil society and any meaningful progress on development and human rights.
Available for interviews:
Dr. Mirna Cunningham, a trained surgeon and former Minister of Health and Governor of the North Atlantic Coast of Nicaragua, has worked for more than 30 years at the local, national, and international levels to advocate for human rights, the collective rights of Indigenous Peoples, and women's health. Dr. Cunningham's work has focused on public health issues and maternal health in particular, addressing the intersections of women's health, Indigenous rights, and the range of social and economic rights critical to eradicating poverty and ensuring sustainable development.
Betty Murungi, an international human rights lawyer from Kenya and former chair of the Executive Committee of the Women's Caucus for Gender Justice of the International Criminal Court, is an internationally recognized expert in women's human rights, governance, democracy, and international justice processes. Ms. Murungi works to bridge the gap between the international legal arena and survivors of human rights violations in communities around the world, particularly in Africa.
Alejandra Sard�, Coordinator of the Latin American and Caribbean Program of the International Gay and Lesbian Human Rights Committee (IGLHRC), has a long history of advocacy for lesbian and gay rights in the international arena, with a particular focus on economic and social rights and the rights to sexual health and reproductive health. Ms. Sard�, from Argentina, has worked within the UN to address violations of gay and lesbian human rights, providing information and testimonies to Special Rapporteurs and the Human Rights Commission. She was also a member of the NGO Coordinating Committee for the Beijing+10 Review process.
Yifat Susskind, Associate Director of MADRE, is the author of "Ending Poverty, Promoting Development," a critique of the UN Millennium Development Goals.
