29 May 2001

FICSA Update No. 22 2001

FICSA Undertakes a New Round of Advocacy Activities in New York

  1. On his way back from Washington, D.C., FICSA President Bernard P. Grandjean stopped in New York for two days on 8 and 9 May 2001 to press some of FICSA's requests to Member States.

    The staff wants to meet with the Security Council
  2. On 8 May, together with Ms. Judey Austin, FICSA Regional Member of the Executive Committee for the Americas, and Ms. Anne Marie Pinou, FICSA Research and Liaison Officer, Mr. Grandjean met with Ambassador James B. Cunningham, Acting Ambassador of the United States of America and President of the Security Council during May 1991. Also present at the meeting, on the US side, were Ambassador Cunningham's political advisers and Ms. Laurie Lerner Shestack, Assistant to the Ambassador for Humanitarian Affairs.

  3. The discussion focussed on the possibility for FICSA to address the members of the Security Council on the security of United Nations and associated personnel, thus giving effect to the request made by more than 14,000 staff members through the petition launched by FICSA and CCISUA in the fall of last year.

    FICSA calls for action on HIV/AIDS policy in the workplace
  4. It is FICSA's wish that the United Nations General Assembly's Special Session on HIV/AIDS (UNGASS - 25 to 27 June 2001) leads to a strong commitment of the United Nations system towards its own staff. To that end, the FICSA delegation met with the following:

    1. Ambassador Penny A. Wensley, Permanent Representative of Australia to the United Nations and Co-ordinator of the special session;

    2. Ambassador Ibra Deguene Ka, Permanent Representative of Senegal to the United Nations and Co-ordinator of the special session;

    3. Mr. Hugh Dugan, Advisor and Representative of the United States of America on the Fifth Committee;

    4. Mr. Gareth Howell, Director a.i. of the ILO Liaison Office in New York, and Ms. Cindy Berman, Focal Point for HIV/AIDS in the said office.

    FICSA liaises with its members
  5. Mr. Grandjean also used the occasion of his visit to New York to meet with Mr. Dimitri Samaras, Chairman of the UNDP/UNFPA/UNOPS Staff Association. Among the problems discussed were, in particular, the reprofiling of UNDP's country offices and the administration of justice.