Millions stood up, will world leaders follow?

Millions of people across the world took part in meetings and rallies calling for economic and social justice for the marginalized and downtrodden in a way that perhaps the world had never witnessed before. "I am happy to announce that 39 million people have participated in this event," UN communications chief Kiyotaka Akasaka told reporters at the end of the global campaign called "Stand Up and Speak Out." This year's worldwide events coincided with the 20th International Day for the Eradication of Poverty Wednesday, which saw more than 6,000 rallies in 110 countries, setting a new Guinness World Record on participation in mass actions. From workers to peasants to students, those who joined the global campaign against poverty urged governments to fulfill their commitments on achieving the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) by 2015. The MDGs include a 50 percent reduction in poverty and hunger; universal primary education; reduction of child mortality by two-thirds; cutbacks in maternal mortality by three-quarters; the promotion of gender equality; and the reversal of the spread of HIV/AIDS, and other diseases. "Every day 50,000 people die needlessly as a result of extreme poverty," said UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon in a statement, noting that the gap between rich and poor is getting wider. Like demonstrators across the world, Ban also took the world leaders to task for their slow moves towards achieving the MDGs. "(Their) record is mixed," he said. "Many countries are still off track." UN experts on development say that worldwide, almost one billion people are still living on less than a dollar a day, some 72 million children are not in school, and every day 27,000 children die of poverty. In Ban's view, poverty can be eradicated only if governments of both developed and developing countries live up to their promises. In a statement, he reiterated that poor countries must spend more on health and education while urging the rich ones to be more generous with regard to their financial assistance. In sharing Ban's views on global poverty, the UN General Assembly president Srgjian Kerim noted that more than anywhere in the world, it was the sub-Saharan governments in Africa who are falling behind in achieving the MDGs. Kerim said the midpoint for MDGs demands the world community must recommit its efforts. He said he would use the current General Assembly session to "build consensus" for urgent actions to achieve the MDGs. Last year, some 23.5 million people symbolically "stood up" against poverty, with 3.6 million in Africa, 19 million in Asia, 55,000 in Latin America, 520,000 in the Middle East and 900,000 in Europe. In a bid to dramatize the urgency of addressing extreme poverty, this year the Global Call to Action Against Poverty (GCAP) and the UN Millennium Campaign worked with large numbers of national and local partners, from schools and universities to local community groups and women's groups, choirs and sporting clubs to faith groups, trade unions and corporations. The events planned were meant to be entertaining and engaging, while making a strong impression on national, regional politicians and governments, as well as state and global institutions. Millions of people also joined the campaign in cyberspace, posting blogs, videos and pictures on various online communities such as Facebook, MySpace, and Bebo. In Italy, Microsoft created a dedicated micro-site for the action, and in many poor countries -- in Africa in particular -- mobile phone technology enabled groups to pre-register their activities online using WAP phones and to view videos of "Stand Ups" in other countries. In Rwanda, youth groups organized a "Stand Up" soccer tournament with 20 primary schools. A youth network in Ghana appointed "Stand Up" ambassadors to lead events all over the country, including an MDGs youth delegation. In Bangladesh, an umbrella of youth movements mobilized 10,000 young people to block a busy crossroads with a human chain, and in India, a local NGO planned a march of 20,000 Dalits, focusing on land rights and the achievement of the MDGs for Dalits in the state of Madhya Pradesh. Similar events also took place all over Europe, and North and South America. In Germany, the Euro 2008 Qualifier soccer game against the Czech Republic saw fans starting the match with a massive "Stand Up" moment. In The Hague, the national anti-poverty campaign displayed 200 life-size "Avatars" representing members of the public from across The Netherlands. In London, trade union representatives, students and the UN deputy secretary-general, Asha-Rose Migiro, used a white band -- a symbol of the global anti-poverty campaign -- to call for renewed commitments on more and better aid, debt cancellation, trade justice, gender equality and public accountability. Religious leaders in many parts of the world also joined the action. During the campaign, activists highlighted the link between gender inequalities and poverty because women constitute the majority of the world's poor owing to unequal access to resources and opportunities, discriminatory laws and unequal distribution of household resources. "By standing up last year, millions around the world demonstrated their frustration with the lack of real progress in poverty eradication," said Salil Chetty of the United Nations Millennium Campaign before the event. "This year, millions more are joining this growing global movement of people who refuse to stay silent in the face of poverty or broken promises to end it."