Stand up and speak out

While flickering images on our TVs remind us that starvation still exists, and that ill health, inaccessible education and rights violations are the order of the day in developing countries, global poverty still persists as an unspoken phenomenon, often treated with indifference or simply as a distant reality.

Poverty, for many, remains simply a personal tragedy, at best to be helped through handouts, and rarely as a question of rights.

Despite more multidimensional understandings of poverty, and despite an array of development strategies, poverty persists, ravaging the lives of millions indiscriminately.

Today, over one billion people live on less than $1 a day. Every year six million children die from malnutrition before their fifth birthday, and 270 million have no access to basic health services.

Causes of poverty are extensive and may include geographic factors (access to fertile land and fresh water), inadequate nutrition and health care, conflict and wars, barriers to education, corruption, disease, and socio-economic and political barriers.

The Western contribution to the poverty equation cannot go unnoticed: 20 per cent of the developed countries' population consumes 86 per cent of the world's goods; and trade barriers cost poor countries twice as much as they receive in aid.

Also, blanket strategies spearheaded by the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund that prescribe cutbacks in public sector expenditure and liberalisation of markets as conditions for loans and repayments are major sources of impoverishment. The complexities of poverty go beyond quick-fix economic growth solutions, towards major concerns of equity and distribution.

Although awareness of global poverty is only the starting point, the need to eradicate it requires much global consciousness, if anything to put pressure on the world's leaders. To do this, the United Nations designated October 17 as the International Day for the Eradication of Poverty.

All over the world, people get together on this day to show clearly that the struggle against poverty is a struggle for peace and human rights. This day also serves as a reminder to world leaders and their citizens that the extreme poverty they committed to slash by half in the Millennium Summit remains a promise yet to be fulfilled.

The theme for this year's International Day for the Eradication of Poverty is "Working together out of poverty", highlighting the need for a truly global anti-poverty alliance, calling for concerted efforts by both developed and developing nations to work hand in hand to end poverty.

Malta too will be joining in this special day through an activity organised by the National Platform of Maltese NGDOs (non-governmental development organisations) in collaboration with STOPoverty!, KOPIN (Koperattiva Internazzjonali), Global Action Schools, with the support of the European Presidency Fund.

A conference addressing the Millennium Development Goals, the first to be held in Malta, will share knowledge on global poverty, raise awareness and foster dialogue among a wide range of stakeholders, and explore ways in which Malta can expand its contribution and contribute to the global fight against poverty.

The conference will be hosting a number of speakers with expertise in development issues, including Vince Caruana, Dr Katrine Camilleri, the refugee lawyer who was recently awarded the UN Nansen Award for her work with the Jesuit Refugee Service, and the chairperson of the Parliamentary Foreign and European Affairs Committee, Jason Azzopardi.

The conference will be participating in the 'stand-up and speak out' activity, in unison with other countries around the world. This will serve as a symbol of solidarity and an appeal to remind governments to keep the promises made seven years ago in the Millennium Development Goals. This 'stand up' will strive to set a new Guinness World Record over last year's 23.5 million who stood up to be counted. The Maltese Platform will be co-ordinating this event with other organisations, encouraging them to perform this 'stand up' at their place of work or school. Organisations may then contact the people attending the conference via e-mail, photo, or SMS.

The conference will be held at the Mediterranean Conference Centre in Valletta, on Wednesday between 9 a.m. and 4 p.m. Participation in the discussion is free of charge. For more information, contact Clayton Mercieca on tel. 7909-1984 or e-mail: claytonmercieca@gmail.com.