“The
future of the Federation, welcomes the Federation of the Future!”
declared the Finnish youth representative in Seoul last week,
during one of the youngest General Assemblies ever.
With around 65 youth representatives and 100 young delegates
in total, Red Cross and Red Crescent youth made a significant
contribution during the 15th session of the General Assembly,
held in Seoul between 11 and 14 November. The added value of
youth in decision-making was made clear through their focused
and straightforward interventions in plenary discussions and
working groups.
The number of youth at statutory meetings is on the rise. At
the 2001 General Assembly, there were only eight youth representatives.
In 2003, around 40 youth participated. This year, one-third
of the National Societies brought a youth representative, and
many delegations included more than one young person. The Azerbaijan
delegation deserves special mention in this regard, as all three
representatives were under the age of 30, proving that youth
is not only the future, but also the present!
The importance of youth was demonstrated throughout the Assembly.
During the plenary discussions following the reports of the
commissions, 22 of the 39 National Society interventions were
youth related and 11 of these were delivered by youth representatives.
“In order to develop, we (youth) have to have the opportunity
to express our opinion to be heard in international meetings,”
said the youth representative of the Polish Red Cross. “A
well-functioning Movement is a Movement that focuses on communication.”
Youth and poverty reduction was also on the informal agenda
though a thematic meeting organized to facilitate a more in-depth
discussion on how Red Cross Red Crescent youth work is contributing
to the global efforts to reduce poverty at community level.
The poverty campaign, initiated by the German Red Cross Youth,
was presented by Birgit Hantzsch, the German Red Cross youth
president. After the presentation, a question-and-answer session
offered the participants the opportunity to learn more about
this experience and to receive inspiring input. Andres Guerrero
from UNICEF added some final comments to this meeting, linking
the issue closely to the United Nations Millennium Development
Goals.
Youth's valuable contribution was emphasized through the first
Federation “Youth Protecting Human Dignity” award,
showing how youth make a difference by providing a service to,
advocating for and working with the vulnerable people in the
communities. The award was given on regional basis: the five
youth programmes awarded were from Cameroon, Palestine, Panama,
Spain and Sri Lanka. So’ad al Biltaji from the Palestine
Red Crescent thanked the Assembly on behalf of all five recipients
and asked for its continuing support. “Our work is not
just for the present, but for all other generations as well,”
she said. “We are ready to confront the future.”
In addition to the Youth award, the Volunteers’ award
for the most innovative project was also won by a youth programme.
The Netherlands Red Cross won with the M-team (mobile team)
project, where youth help the elderly to use their mobile phones
in order to communicate with their loved ones.
The impact of youth participation in decision-making was also
evident through the nomination of the new Youth Commission of
the International Federation. In 2004, youth leaders from around
the world developed and proposed a specific profile for Youth
Commission members to ensure a true youth representation.
The Governing Board used this profile when nominating the new
members. The profile has an upper age limit of around 35 and
also requires a certain level of knowledge, experience and commitment.
Ian Courtenay of the Belize Red Cross, who also chaired the
committee of scrutiny during the Assembly elections, was chosen
as the chairman of this commission. The only continuing member,
Ian (33) went from being one of the youngest members to being
the “old man of the group” – the other members
are all in their twenties.
On the last day, a decision proposed by the youth was approved
by the Assembly. Highlighting the fact that “the future
is shaped by decisions of today”, it asked for greater
youth involvement. The main points were the importance of youth
networks, the implementation of national youth policies, and
the role of the Youth Commission.
In his closing remarks, International Federation President Juan
Manuel Suárez del Toro reinforced the importance of youth
participation, saying “we hear the voice of youth asking
for more involvement in decision-making and we have to take
them seriously!” He committed himself to ensuring youth
involvement and encouraged all to do the same.
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The
youth representatives met prior to the General Assembly
in order to get to know each other and the topics on the
agenda. (p13475)
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The
representatives of the Youth award winners who won a trip
to Seoul to participate in the General Assembly. (p13477)
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The
new Youth Commission has members from Panama, Cook Islands,
Armenia, Finland and Belize (left to right) and also fromGermany,
Senegal, Togo and Uganda (not in the picture). (p13476)
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The
Azerbaijan delegation, whose eldest delegate is aged 28,
was the youngest delegation attending the General Assembly.
(p13478)
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In
total, around 65 youth representatives participated actively
in this year’s Assembly. (p13479)
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