Skip to content or view mobile version

Home | Mobile | Editorial | Mission | Privacy | About | Contact | Help | Security | Support

A network of individuals, independent and alternative media activists and organisations, offering grassroots, non-corporate, non-commercial coverage of important social and political issues.

UNISON Make Poverty History claims - a success or failure YOU DECIDE

earthstar says notoyourkindofpoverty | 05.02.2006 10:38 | Ecology | Globalisation | Social Struggles | World

UNISON claim joining the Make Poverty History campaign was a success - joining a coalition of organisations that allowed the distribution of white wrist bands produced by sweat shop workers in China, the agreement not to mention the war and the removal of natural resources through liberalisation and privatisation policies making it impossible for poor to access water.

UNISON success or failure you decide

UNISON claims joining the Make Poverty History Campaign has been a success.

In response to UNISON and the campaign Make Poverty History - If UNISON counts selling white wristbands to Make Poverty History made by sweat shop workers in China (the irony is not lost on big charities or big companies), a pointless rock concert now referred to as LIE 8 (Bob Geldof using a promotional rock concert to make money for musicians and himself in order to re-release long forgotten back catalogues - this was how the career of, wannabee aristocrat and personal friend of Clinton Madonna's, was revived) and an agreement not to mention an illegal war where civilian deaths are not even counted (even the Nazis counted the dead), continued privatisaton of natural resources previously freely available or the removal of resources through environmental destruction causing widespread displacement not to mention colluding with heads of states, many of which are are either corrupt, oppressive and in the case of Tony Blair, a war criminal that has yet to be tried - then UNISON alliance has definitely been a success.
To Unison - Good luck with your membership but remember you need human beings for your organisation to exist - if you continue to let such things happen then it is not surprising you and others are a failure.

The claims include the provision of HIV medicines by 2020 is a fact that many recognise to be too late as many people are dying now. This sort of deal has been on the table for some time and everything has been done to prevent the provision of essential medicines. It is clear that money and branch membership of the UNISON are the reasons for joining the campaign Make Poverty History as there is little evidence of any good impact of the campaign other than it is business as usual for companies and Government's partaking in the wanton destruction of poor people's lives by removing their resources or causing displacement by destroying their environment.

Thanks for everything you do for people's of the world. It is good UNISON state their position so anyone considering membership can see the impact of your campaigns for themselves.

This is a response to the email below

"Make Poverty History" no longer exists

04.02.2006 19:49
 http://www.unison.org.uk/news/news_view.asp?did=2444

UNISON NEWS
Make Poverty History winds up
(3/2/06) Make Poverty History, the campaign aimed at ending third world poverty, was formally wound up this week.

The decision was made at an assembly meeting of the 540 charities, trade unions and activist bodies which formed the Make Poverty History coalition.

Set up in 2004 to capitalise on the political spotlight offered by the UK’s presidency of the EU and hosting of the G8 summit, the campaign was deemed to have come to its natural close.

But UNISON has vowed to build on the legacy of the campaign and on the strides made by the union itself in seeking debt relief and trade justice.

“The response we’ve had from UNISON members has demonstrated their deep commitment to the issues of Make Poverty History,” said the union’s head of international relations, Nick Sigler. “They have also shown their enthusiasm for taking part in the fight for those issues – and to continue to do so.”

Central to Make Poverty History were the demands for a cancellation of third world debt and an improvement in the economic and trading conditions that hold back the world’s poorest countries.

UNISON was the first trade union to join the campaign, playing a significant role in its key events:

* UNISON was the only union officially represented at the Wake Up to Trade Justice vigil in London;
* 10,000 UNISON members joined the march and rally in Edinburgh ahead of the G8 Summit;
* the union played a part in the mass lobby of parliament on trade justice;
* and it campaigned for increased funding of the Global Fund for AIDS, TB and Malaria.



The union’s international committee recognised that the campaign enjoyed only limited success: although $20 billion of additional aid was pledged and 19 countries had their debt to the International Monetary Fund cancelled, these changes fell well short of the demands for 100% debt cancellation of all poor countries, and more and better aid.

However, Nick Sigler cites as further successes the commitment to provide universal access to HIV/AIDS treatment by 2010, and the increase in public awareness of third world poverty.

And for UNISON, the campaign helped to introduce many branches and individuals, including young members, to the union’s international work.

“The aim now is to work with branches and activists to ensure that we maintain the momentum of the work we’ve done and add to its achievements,” he said.

fyi

earthstar says notoyourkindofpoverty

Comments

Display the following 2 comments

  1. lost the plot — tony barettie
  2. A bit about Nick Sigler — Paul Hewson
Upcoming Coverage
View and post events
Upcoming Events UK
24th October, London: 2015 London Anarchist Bookfair
2nd - 8th November: Wrexham, Wales, UK & Everywhere: Week of Action Against the North Wales Prison & the Prison Industrial Complex. Cymraeg: Wythnos o Weithredu yn Erbyn Carchar Gogledd Cymru

Ongoing UK
Every Tuesday 6pm-8pm, Yorkshire: Demo/vigil at NSA/NRO Menwith Hill US Spy Base More info: CAAB.

Every Tuesday, UK & worldwide: Counter Terror Tuesdays. Call the US Embassy nearest to you to protest Obama's Terror Tuesdays. More info here

Every day, London: Vigil for Julian Assange outside Ecuadorian Embassy

Parliament Sq Protest: see topic page
Ongoing Global
Rossport, Ireland: see topic page
Israel-Palestine: Israel Indymedia | Palestine Indymedia
Oaxaca: Chiapas Indymedia
Regions
All Regions
Birmingham
Cambridge
Liverpool
London
Oxford
Sheffield
South Coast
Wales
World
Other Local IMCs
Bristol/South West
Nottingham
Scotland
Social Media
You can follow @ukindymedia on indy.im and Twitter. We are working on a Twitter policy. We do not use Facebook, and advise you not to either.
Support Us
We need help paying the bills for hosting this site, please consider supporting us financially.
Other Media Projects
Schnews
Dissident Island Radio
Corporate Watch
Media Lens
VisionOnTV
Earth First! Action Update
Earth First! Action Reports
Topics
All Topics
Afghanistan
Analysis
Animal Liberation
Anti-Nuclear
Anti-militarism
Anti-racism
Bio-technology
Climate Chaos
Culture
Ecology
Education
Energy Crisis
Fracking
Free Spaces
Gender
Globalisation
Health
History
Indymedia
Iraq
Migration
Ocean Defence
Other Press
Palestine
Policing
Public sector cuts
Repression
Social Struggles
Technology
Terror War
Workers' Movements
Zapatista
Major Reports
NATO 2014
G8 2013
Workfare
2011 Census Resistance
Occupy Everywhere
August Riots
Dale Farm
J30 Strike
Flotilla to Gaza
Mayday 2010
Tar Sands
G20 London Summit
University Occupations for Gaza
Guantanamo
Indymedia Server Seizure
COP15 Climate Summit 2009
Carmel Agrexco
G8 Japan 2008
SHAC
Stop Sequani
Stop RWB
Climate Camp 2008
Oaxaca Uprising
Rossport Solidarity
Smash EDO
SOCPA
Past Major Reports
Encrypted Page
You are viewing this page using an encrypted connection. If you bookmark this page or send its address in an email you might want to use the un-encrypted address of this page.
If you recieved a warning about an untrusted root certificate please install the CAcert root certificate, for more information see the security page.

Global IMC Network


www.indymedia.org

Projects
print
radio
satellite tv
video

Africa

Europe
antwerpen
armenia
athens
austria
barcelona
belarus
belgium
belgrade
brussels
bulgaria
calabria
croatia
cyprus
emilia-romagna
estrecho / madiaq
galiza
germany
grenoble
hungary
ireland
istanbul
italy
la plana
liege
liguria
lille
linksunten
lombardia
madrid
malta
marseille
nantes
napoli
netherlands
northern england
nottingham imc
paris/île-de-france
patras
piemonte
poland
portugal
roma
romania
russia
sardegna
scotland
sverige
switzerland
torun
toscana
ukraine
united kingdom
valencia

Latin America
argentina
bolivia
chiapas
chile
chile sur
cmi brasil
cmi sucre
colombia
ecuador
mexico
peru
puerto rico
qollasuyu
rosario
santiago
tijuana
uruguay
valparaiso
venezuela

Oceania
aotearoa
brisbane
burma
darwin
jakarta
manila
melbourne
perth
qc
sydney

South Asia
india


United States
arizona
arkansas
asheville
atlanta
Austin
binghamton
boston
buffalo
chicago
cleveland
colorado
columbus
dc
hawaii
houston
hudson mohawk
kansas city
la
madison
maine
miami
michigan
milwaukee
minneapolis/st. paul
new hampshire
new jersey
new mexico
new orleans
north carolina
north texas
nyc
oklahoma
philadelphia
pittsburgh
portland
richmond
rochester
rogue valley
saint louis
san diego
san francisco
san francisco bay area
santa barbara
santa cruz, ca
sarasota
seattle
tampa bay
united states
urbana-champaign
vermont
western mass
worcester

West Asia
Armenia
Beirut
Israel
Palestine

Topics
biotech

Process
fbi/legal updates
mailing lists
process & imc docs
tech