4/8/10 5:28 PMGENERAL ASSEMBLY PROCLAIMS 22 APRIL ‘INTERNATIONAL MOTHER EARTH DAY’ ADOPTING BY CONSENSUS BOLIVIA-LED RESOLUTIONPage 1 of 2http://www.un.org/News/Press/docs/2009/ga10823.doc.htm
22 April 2009
General Assembly
GA/10823
Department of Public Information • News and Media Division • New York
Sixty-third General AssemblyPlenary80
th
Meeting (AM)
GENERAL ASSEMBLY PROCLAIMS 22 APRIL ‘INTERNATIONAL MOTHER EARTH DAY’ADOPTING BY CONSENSUS BOLIVIA-LED RESOLUTION
In Address, Bolivia’s President Says 60 Years after Human RightsDeclaration ‘Mother Earth Is Now, Finally, Having Her Rights Recognized’
As the United Nations General Assembly proclaimed today International Mother Earth Day,Bolivian President Evo Morales Ayma applauded the Members of the world body who had “taken ahistoric stand for Mother Earth” by acknowledging humanity’s common interest in the protection of theplanet and its environment.“Sixty years after adopting the [Universal Declaration of Human Rights], Mother Earth is now,finally, having her rights recognized,” said President Morales, immediately following the Assembly’sunanimous adoption of a resolution designating 22 April each year as International Mother Earth Day(A/63/L.69).Assembly President Miguel d’Escoto Brockmann thanked Bolivia for having taken the lead in bringingthe resolution to the Assembly and added that, by declaring the International Day, Member States recognizedtheir responsibility, as called for in the Rio Declaration, adopted at the 1992 United Nations Conference onEnvironment and Development (UNCED), also known as the “Earth Summit”, to promote harmony with natureand the planet to achieve a just balance among economic, social and environmental needs of the presentand future generations of humanity.By the text, the Assembly acknowledged that “the Earth and its ecosystems are our home”, andexpressed its conviction that, in order to achieve a just balance among the economic, social andenvironmental needs of present and future generations, “it is necessary to promote harmony with natureand the Earth”.The resolution, spearheaded by the Bolivian Government and supported by over 50 Member States, noted that Earth Day is observed each year on 22 April in many countries. The Assembly invitesall Member States, the entire United Nations system, regional and subregional bodies and non-governmental organizations “to observe and raise awareness of International Mother Earth day, asappropriate”.In his address, President Morales appealed to all Members of the United Nations to live up totheir responsibility to ensure life on the planet by working for unity, equality, dignity and, above all,humanity, which inherently involved protecting –- and restoring –- Mother Earth.
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