Subject: [fem-women2000 84] NGO Statement 29th Oct on ESCAP Outcome/Final Statement of the Asia Pacific NGO Caucus
From: lalamaziwa <lalamaziwa@jca.apc.org>
Date: Sat, 30 Oct 1999 23:43:29 +0900
Seq: 84

Statement of the Asia Pacific NGO Caucus


We, the members of the Asia Pacific NGO Caucus, express our appreciation
to UNESCAP for the very inclusive process in enabling NGO participation
in this important High-Level Meeting to review the regional
implementation of the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action.

While commending the excellent papers presented by the panel members and
the discussion that followed on critical contemporary issues on the
empowerment of women, we wish to express our disappointment that the
substance of these papers is somehow not well reflected in the final
draft report. We also wish to express our regret that new benchmarks for
acceleration of the pace of the implementation of the BPA have not been
set.

It is our view that the process would have been more effective if the
draft document and papers were prepared and disseminated in advance to
participants so as to enable more substantive and considered input.

We express our concern at both the presence and level of influence
exerted on the outcomes of the meeting by countries who are not part of
the region. This is in stark contrast to the effective exclusion from
the drafting process of a number of governments within the region
because translation facilities in the official UN languages were not
made available. 

We are heartened by the support of the meeting in encouraging a greater
participation of NGOs for Beijing + 5 and the recommendation that a
process of accreditation similar to that of the Social Summit + 5 be
adopted. We are also extremely pleased to hear governments express their
desire that the partnership and cooperation between governments and NGOs
established since Beijing be further promoted. We fully endorse the
sentiment.