STATEMENT BY DIRECTOR-GENERAL OF UNOG AT OPENING OF PHOTO EXHIBITION "WE THE PEOPLES … FAMILIES AND DEVELOPMENT"

Following is the statement delivered by Sergei Ordzhonikidze, United Nations Under-Secretary-General and Director-General of the United Nations Office at Geneva, at the opening of the exhibition of photographs entitled “We the peoples…families and development” today at the Palais Wilson:

"C'est un grand plaisir de vous accueillir pour l'ouverture de l'exposition des photographies intitulée "Nous les peuples… : familles et développement" dans le cadre du programme de événements marquant la célébration du soixantième anniversaire des Nations Unies. Je voudrais saisir cette occasion pour remercier tous les partenaires liés à cet événement, notamment la ville de Genève, la Loterie Romande, la Fondation pour Genève, le Centre d’Accueil Genève Internationale et la Fondation Hans Wilsdorf, pour leur soutien et leur contribution. Je voudrais également féliciter le photographe Monsieur Uwe Ommer pour son travail remarquable.

The Palais Wilson, home to the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, is indeed a fitting location for the opening of this exhibition, which celebrates families, their diversity and reminds us of our commitments to achieving the Millennium Development Goals. Since the text of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights reads: “The family is the natural and fundamental group unit of society and is entitled to protection by society and by the State.”

“We the peoples” is what the United Nations is all about. It is about the maintenance of peace and security, development and the application of universal human rights. But most of all, it is about people, about enabling them to live dignified lives, where the rights of individuals in families, within communities, within nations are respected and enjoyed, and where they are free from fear and free from want.

This is why the human family can be considered to be at the core of the Millennium Development Goals. Whether it is combating extreme poverty and hunger, fighting HIV/AIDS, achieving universal education, promoting gender equality, reducing child mortality or improving maternal health - the role of the family is undeniable in achieving these goals. When world leaders meet at the 2005 World Summit in New York between 14th and 16th of September, they will review the progress made in implementing commitments made in the United Nations Millennium Declaration adopted at the Millennium Summit in 2000 and it will be a historic opportunity to reiterate their commitments to achieving the goals.

These photographs which are very close to this place are a celebration of our common humanity and a tribute to families everywhere. The ways in which families are formed, function and evolve vary greatly from one country to another. However, in any culture, the family provides the natural structure in which children, adolescents, women and men receive the emotional and material support indispensable to their development. If respect, tolerance and equality instil family life, they will translate into values that shape society, nations and the world.

Lorsque vous visiterez cette exposition, je vous invite à regarder les photographies comme un album de famille mondial reflétant notre diversité culturelle et notre similarité. De plus, j’espère que les inscriptions sur les photographies serviront à nous rappeler que les objectifs du millénaire pour le développement relèvent de notre responsabilité à tous et contribuent à protéger les familles, tant il est vrai que ces objectifs sont indispensables à la survie des hommes, des femmes et des enfants. Merci beaucoup".