GYV holds reception for attendees of 70th UN General Assembly

The president of the 70th session of the United Nations General Assembly Mogens Lykketoft has given a speech in the reception by GYV. (Photo: Cİhan)
The president of the 70th session of the United Nations General Assembly Mogens Lykketoft has given a speech in the reception by GYV. (Photo: Cİhan)


Date posted: October 2, 2015

Ministers, academics, bureaucrats, entrepreneurs, opinion leaders and nongovernmental organization representatives from all over the world attended a reception held by the İstanbul-based Journalists and Writers Foundation (GYV) at the Waldorf Astoria Hotel in New York on Wednesday.

The reception, which was sponsored by the Peace Islands Institute (PII) and the African Union, came after a panel titled “Development Agenda: Contributions of Private Sector and Civil Society.” This panel was also organized by the GYV with the same sponsors and representatives of more than 60 countries at the UN headquarters in New York attended.

Former Danish Foreign Minister Mogens Lykketoft, who was elected president of the 70th session of the United Nations General Assembly, said at the reception that the UN had a wide agenda on sustainable development and that its agenda concerns all countries and people in the world. Lykketoft also said that the UN believes it is not possible to erase poverty unless people fight against inequalities both within and between countries.

Lykketoft added that climate change and environmental disasters are causing poverty and restricting sustainable development and could destroy the resources that people need to survive.

Malawian Foreign Minister George Chaponda also spoke at the reception, saying in a speech that the private sector and NGOs should work together for sustainable development. Chaponda also praised the Turkish schools and NGOs in his country, saying: “The Turkish schools are doing a great job. Education is one of the keystones of sustainable development for us. Raising the quality of education for children changes the future of a country dramatically.”

Former Beninese Foreign Minister Mariam Boni Diallo also spoke about the Turkish schools in her country, saying that she was a little worried when they schools first opened but they have won the approval of society. “Students’ parents are content with the schools,” Diallo said.

GYV President Mustafa Yeşil described the reception as an important event in which the private and public sectors came together to support sustainable development.

Speaking in the morning session of the GYV panel, Central African Republic (CAR) Education Minister Eloi Anguimate underlined the contribution of civil society to the development of countries through education. Stating that it is impossible to achieve sustainable development only via governments, Anguimate praised the activities of the Gülen movement, a civil society movement inspired by Turkish Islamic scholar Fethullah Gülen that is active throughout the world, including in the CAR.

Noting that he had traveled to Turkey two months ago and had talks with officials from Turkish charity Kimse Yok Mu (Is Anybody There?), which is also inspired by the Gülen movement, Anguimate said that he had asked them to open more educational institutions in his country, which he said provide a high-quality education.

The minister underlined that education is needed not just for development but also to establish peace and stability in the country, adding that chaos, violence and migrant tragedies witnessed in various countries across the world can only be prevented through education.

GYV Deputy President Hüseyin Hurmalı also delivered a speech at the panel, saying that the GYV has contributed to the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals for 2030. The UN’s Sustainable Development Program includes goals to improve cooperation between state institutions and the private sector, Hurmalı said, adding that the Gülen movement is supporting these goals in its activities across the world. “We organized this panel to share inputs and outcomes on this issue,” he added.

The Gülen movement is made up of volunteers engaged in interfaith and intercultural dialogue inspired by the ideas of Gülen, whose teachings promote mutual understanding and tolerance between cultures. Now residing in the US, Gülen has pioneered educational activities in a number of countries, along with efforts to promote intercultural and interfaith activities around the world.

Source: Today's Zaman , October 01, 2015


Related News

Somali students caring for the Soma orphans

The Somali students who were previously brought to Soma, Manisa, for study by Kimse Yok Mu Foundation (KYM) in 2011, recently donated stationery supplies for 105 orphans the mining disaster left behind.

Fethullah Gulen Cited among Watkins’ 2019 the Most Spiritually Influential 100 Living People

There are several factors that were taken into account when compiling the list. The person has to have made a unique and spiritual contribution on a global scale, has to be alive, is frequently googled, appears in Nielsen Data, has a Wikipedia page, and is actively talked about throughout the Internet. This list is meant to celebrate the positive influence of today’s spiritual teachers.

President Fox speaks about Fethullah Gulen and Gulen Movement

Vicente Fox served his term as President from 2000 to 2006. He was the first candidate from an opposition party to be elected president since 1920. Under his leadership, the country experienced a stretch of fundamental economic strength and stability. The perspectives of the Institute are inspired by the life and works of the distinguished contemporary scholar and civic leader Fethullah Gülen, a Turkish Muslim scholar, thinker, author, poet, opinion leader, educational activist, and preacher emeritus. He is regarded as the initiator and inspirer of the worldwide social movement of human values known as the Hizmet (Service) Movement or the Gülen Movement.

Journalists and Writers Foundation’s statement [on arrest warrant issued for Mr. Gulen]

It is a well-known fact that then-Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan had sent Bülent Arınç to Mr. Fethullah Gülen to give him the message, “We are ready to do anything you want us to do,” and that he had called on Mr. Gülen to return to the country to “put an end to homesickness” in the witness of tens of thousands of spectators in a stadium.

US Unlikely to ‘Speed Up’ Gulen’s Extradition to Turkey

Turkey has formally requested that the U.S. government extradite Turkish cleric Fethullah Gulen from the state of Pennsylvania where he has lived in self-imposed exile for 17 years. Turkey is pushing for quick extradition, suggesting that U.S.-Turkish relations are at stake. But the burden of proof rests squarely on Ankara, and if it cannot sufficiently prove its accusations against Gulen, the extradition request will be refused.

Gülen not only my hero, also a model for other religions

“He is not only my hero for what he has done for the Muslim societies but also [offers] a model for all other religions,” said Dirk Ficca, executive director of the Chicago-based Council for a Parliament of the World’s Religions.

Latest News

Fethullah Gülen’s Condolence Message for South African Human Rights Defender Archbishop Desmond Tutu

Hizmet Movement Declares Core Values with Unified Voice

Ankara systematically tortures supporters of Gülen movement, Kurds, Turkey Tribunal rapporteurs say

Erdogan possessed by Pharaoh, Herod, Hitler spirits?

Devious Use of International Organizations to Persecute Dissidents Abroad: The Erdogan Case

A “Controlled Coup”: Erdogan’s Contribution to the Autocrats’ Playbook

Why is Turkey’s Erdogan persecuting the Gulen movement?

Purge-victim man sent back to prison over Gulen links despite stage 4 cancer diagnosis

University refuses admission to woman jailed over Gülen links

In Case You Missed It

Egyptian scholar Muhammad Imara: Hira Magazine building bridges in Islamic world

Students from Turkish school send pocket money to needy ones in Nepal

Inspectors finds no flaw in Kimse Yok Mu activities

Watch out! Anatolian Tigers on the prowl

Turkey’s Erdogan vows to cut off revenues of Gulen-linked businesses

US-based Turkish NGOs launch aid campaign for Syrian refugees

Turkish aid group sending rescue team and disaster relief to Nepal

Copyright 2024 Hizmet News