Newbury UN Association discusses human responsibilities at its annual general meeting

The Newbury branch of the UN Association (UNA) held its annual general meeting at the Quaker Meeting House, and covered human rights and responsibilities, as well as welcoming new members, writes Grace Clift.

The meeting began with a welcome from president Marion Paterson, and a brief report regarding relevant local and global events that had happened during the year. Then, two new members were officially enrolled.

The focus of the meeting then shifted towards climate issues.

Deputy mayor David Harman reported on the positive progress by Newbury Town Council on its climate record, including solar panels and tree planting, and it was noted that the UNA in Eastbourne had advised of their highly effective tree planting initiative in Bangladesh and Uganda.

This was very relevant to the announcement on Earth Day, April 22, 2024 – dedicated to the crucial theme of ‘Planet v/s Plastics’ for a robust UN Treaty on Plastic Pollution.

The meeting also considered a response to Lord Ahmed’s Foreign Office report on May 16 about Gaza.

Anthony Fleming of the Newbury Baha'i Community then spoke on ‘Human Rights and Responsibilities’.

Quoting from Baha’i sources, Mr Fleming stated that all human beings “have been created to carry forward an ever-advancing civilisation”, and that “world peace is not only possible, but inevitable:.

He said: “It is the next stage in the evolution of the planet.”

The Newbury UNA stated that it believes that every person, every community and every nation has a part to play in building a peaceful and prosperous global society.

Article 1. of the UN Universal Declaration of Human Rights states that: “All human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights.

“They are endowed with reason and conscience and should act towards one another in a spirit of brotherhood.”

The meeting considered the relevance of this article, and discussed how copies of the Human Rights Declaration can be circulated locally.

The question for the meeting was: “What can we do at the local level to have passed, and even appreciate, differences?”

One local initiative of the Newbury Baha’i Community was to hold monthly open house gatherings.

The subject for the next one will be ‘Global Vision; Local Action’, and participation from newcomers is encouraged.