Read the September 2010 issue here. (Download PDF)

For more information please visit: http://www.youth2010.org/

Bishop Djomo said that the legislation will help restore peace in the Democratic Republic Congo and that more actions are needed to strengthen good governance, support the legal economy, encourage peace and reconciliation, create a legal framework to revive the judicial system, and encourage citizens to engage in public life.

Bishop Djomo, who also serves as the Bishop for the diocese of Tshumbe in Kasai Oriental Province, thanked the America people and praised the American government, the U.S. Congress, faith based groups and other concerned groups who helped in passing the provisions on conflict minerals.

Conflict minerals, especially in Eastern Congo, provide the source of funding that allows armed militias to continue acts of terror, particularly widespread sexual violence and rape, while causing countless deaths.

While the resolution is not legally binding, it is an important step toward the formal recognition of the Human Right to Water by the international body. The UN Human Rights Council has been deliberating this issue for several years and advocates hope this consensus vote in favor of the right to water will stimulate that work further.

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Read the UN Resolution…

The 18th international Aids conference in Vienna ended Friday with one strong message: Despite the financial crisis the fight against HIV/AIDS must not decrease.

The International AIDS Conference is the premier gathering for those working in the field of HIV, including policy makers, persons living with HIV and other individuals committed to ending the pandemic. It is an opportunity to assess the process, evaluate recent scientific developments and lessons learnt, and collectively chart a course forward against the global HIV/AIDS pandemic. Given the 2010 deadline for Universal Access set by world leaders, AIDS 2010 coincided with a major push for expanded access to HIV prevention, treatment, care and support. With a global economic crisis threatening to undermine public investments, the conference helped keep HIV on the front burner by demonstrating the importance of continued HIV investments to broaden health and development goals.

AIDS 2010 also gave an opportunity to highlight the critical connection between human rights and HIV; a dialogue begun in earnest in Mexico City in 2008.The selection of the AIDS 2010 host city was a reflection of the central role Vienna has played in bridging Eastern and Western Europe, and allowed for an examination of the epidemic’s impact in Eastern Europe.

New data, presented in Vienna shows that HIV therapy significantly reduces more than just the consequences or effects of the disease and mortality. For a well treated person, it is practically impossible for the virus to be passed on, as heterosexual infections are reduced by more than 90 percent. At the same time TB infection is reduced dramatically due to therapy.

Read our earlier post on this issue…

Download and listen here: http://faithandimmigration.org/action/available-now-listen-national-faith-call-immigration (Please note that the audio starts at minute 1:10)

U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops Testifies before Congress on the ethical imperative for reform of the U.S. immigration system

Bishop Gerald F. Kicanas of Tucson, Arizona, Vice-president of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops testified before Congress – House Subcommittee on Immigration, Citizenship, Refugees, Border Security, and International Law – on the ethical imperative for reform of the U.S. immigration system. View the entire testimony of Bishop Gerald Kicanas of Tucson here: http://www.usccb.org/comm/archives/2010/10-134.shtml

Ways to Engage your Congregation:

Clergy Resources on Immigration. Discover “5 Ways to Engage your Congregation” on our new page for pastors and church leaders at www.faithandimmigration.org/clergy

This Alert also includes an action to Make Mercury Pollution a Thing of the Past.

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The legislation included an important provision requiring energy and mining companies to disclose how much they pay to foreign countries and the U.S. government for oil, gas, and minerals. The provision, based on the Energy Security through Transparency Act (S. 1700),  will require companies registered with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to disclose payments to foreign governments for the commercial development of oil, natural gas, and minerals. This disclosure will apply to all companies filing with the SEC, regardless of where they are based, meaning that most of the world’s top extractive industries would be covered by this law. Thanks go to Senators Dick Lugar (R-Indiana) and Ben Cardin (D-Maryland) for insuring this provision made it into the legislation. The law will set a new international standard for transparency in the extractive industry.

Inclusion of the Congo Conflict Mineral amendment in the financial reform act is another important victory, especially for the people of the Democratic Republic of Congo, faith groups and human right advocates. This provision is based on the Congo Conflict Mineral Act 2009 (S.891) and will require companies to disclose whether they source conflict minerals from Democratic Republic of Congo or neighboring countries. It will also require companies to report on steps taken to exclude conflict sources from their supply chains. These reports will be backed by independent audits.

The conflict minerals measure requires the U.S. State Department to develop a map of mines controlled by militias operating in the mining area and to develop a detailed plan to address the problem. Kudos to Senators Christopher Dodd (D-CT), Sam Brownback (R-KS), Dick Durbin (D-IL), Russ Feingold (D-WI), and Reps. Jim McDermott (D-WA), Howard Berman (D-CA), and Barney Frank (D-MA), along with many other upstanding members of Congress, who deserve special praise for leading this battle over the past two years.

President Obama will sign the Dodd Frank Reform and Consumer Protection bill into law next week. From the day, the Securities and Exchange Commission will have nine months to develop regulations implementing the new law. It will be up to all of us – especially the faith groups, community advocates and human right groups – to ensure that these regulations are as strong as possible.

The Missionary Oblates JPIC offices will be represented by Fr Tomáš Vyhnálek OMI, the current JPIC coordinator for Europe who is based in Vienna. Fr. Tomáš interned with the JPIC office in Washington D.C. and VIVAT in New York.

Catholic Organizations have scheduled a pre-conference event which is being organized by the Catholic HIV/AIDS Network and Caritas International, with local hosting by Caritas Austria. The Catholic event will encourage networking on good practices in the field, shared prayer and reflection on the values and Catholic teaching that motivate the Catholic Church’s response to the HIV pandemic, and joint learning through workshops on topics of urgent concern. The importance of sharing best practices lies in the fact that while the Catholic Church and religious communities provide a significant part of the AIDS services offered, especially in developing countries, this contribution is often unrecognized at international conferences.

For more information see: http://www.aids2010.org/

“…….The Millennium Declaration represents the most important promise ever made to the world’s most vulnerable people. The MDG framework for accountability derived from the Declaration has generated an unprecedented level of commitment and partnership in building decent, healthier lives for billions of people and in creating an environment that contributes to peace and security.”

“The Millennium Development Goals are still attainable. The critical question today is how to transform the pace of change from what we have seen over the last decade into dramatically faster progress. The experience of these last ten years offers ample evidence of what works and has provided tools that can help us achieve the MDGs by 2015. The Millennium Development Goals summit in September will be an opportunity for world leaders to translate this evidence into a concrete agenda for action….”

This report is based on a master set of data that has been compiled by an Inter-Agency and Expert Group on MDG Indicators led by the Department of Economic and Social Affairs of the United Nations Secretariat, in response to the wishes of the General Assembly for periodic assessment of progress towards the MDGs. The Group comprises representatives of the international organizations whose activities include the preparation of one or more of the series of statistical indicators that were identified as appropriate for monitoring progress towards the MDGs,

The Report is available in PDF form [80pp]. Download PDF

The report is available in PDF form in all UN languages, including: English,  French, and Spanish