Date: Mon, 19 Jun 2000 15:48:07 -0400
Subject: Fwd: NGOs irresponsible, credential them!




-------- Original Message --------
Subject: NGOs irresponsible, credential them!
Date: Mon, 19 Jun 2000 11:52:46 -0400
From: Doug Henwood <dhenwood-AT-panix.com>
Reply-To: lbo-talk-AT-lists.panix.com
To: lbo-talk <lbo-talk-AT-lists.panix.com>

Financial Times - June 18, 2000

Pressure groups warned on public scrutiny
By Rosemary Bennett, Political Correspondent

Greenpeace and other pressure groups must open up to public scrutiny 
or risk losing all credibility, a government-sponsored think tanks 
warns on Monday.

The Foreign Policy Centre, whose president is Robin Cook, chief 
foreign minister, said that London's Mayday riots, the siege of 
Seattle and the row over Brent Spar have robbed many non-governmental 
organisations of their legitimacy.

The report is published to mark the five year anniversary of the 
Brent Spar "fiasco" in which Greenpeace dramatically over-estimated 
the amount of hydrocarbons that could be expelled into the sea if the 
oil rig was scuppered.

Michael Edwards, author of the report and former head of research at 
Save the Children, said NGOs that agree to minimum standards of 
accountability should be rewarded with a place at the negotiating 
table at IMF and other international con-ferences.

He proposes a code of conduct for NGOs and a programme of 
self-regulation with independent verif-ication.

A similar system exists in the Philippines where an umbrella body, 
the Philippine Council for NGO certification, can recommend 
withdrawal of recognition and tax privileges for those who fall short 
of minimum standards of conduct.

Under the new regime, NGOs would be obliged to be certified by the 
regulatory body and sign up to standards of transparency, 
accountability, internal democracy and "helpful knowledge", a measure 
of its expertise.

Once a certified system was up and running, the accredited 
organisations should have rights to sit at conferences.

Mr Edwards said the World Bank had already accepted the principle of 
consulting pressure groups, but the next step would be giving 
relevant NGOs the right to monitor its Poverty Reduction Strategy 
Papers, country by country.

However, the World Trade Organisation had further to go to reverse 
the "feelings of exclusion from processes and procedures" that 
contributed to the failure of the last round of talks in Seattle.

He proposes a special, five-year meeting of the IMF with NGOs, and 
calls on Tony Blair, prime minister, to host the first "World 
Financial Forum" in Britain.

"NGOs must put their house in order and prove they properly represent 
the people they claim to champion," said Mr Edwards.

"Governments have responsibility to channel the energies of NGOs so 
that they don't have to use tear gas, pepper spray and batons to deal 
with the frustrations of those who feel excluded."