The International Organization for Migration (IOM) has partnered with the United Nations Alliance of Civilizations (UNAOC) on an innovative youth project called the “PLURAL + Video Festival”.

Between June 1st 2009 – September 30th 2009, youth (who are the ages of 9-25 years) from around the world will be able to create and submit videos on migration-related themes to the PLURAL + Video Festival, on the theme of migration, diversity, and identity. The festival is the brainchild of the UN Alliance of Civilizations (UNAOC) and the International Organization for Migration (IOM), and is the product of collaboration with a number of other important partners.

The videos will be appraised by an international jury, with the winners of PLURAL + being announced on December 18th 2009 to coincide with International Migrants Day. Winning videos will receive broad recognition and will be widely distributed though internet, broadcast, satellite, film festivals etc. as well as receiving a small cash prize of $1,000 (USD).

The PLURAL + Video Festival aims to promote youth involvement and dialogue in the areas of migration and diversity though asking youth to be creative in recording their thoughts, feelings and experiences on related topics such as migrant integration, identity politics, human rights, social inclusiveness etc. The value of this involvement and dialogue is the discussion about migration that will be generated, encouraging youth to participate in this important topic with a tangible result. When recorded, the opinions of youth on the successes or deficiencies of present migration policy can be considered by the public and policy-makers in the youths’ home countries and abroad, and the UNAOC and IOM plan to bring selected videos to the attention of policy makers.

For more information please visit the PLURAL + Video Festival website, click here

“We may have different religions, different languages, different colored skin, but we all belong to one human race.” – Kofi Annan 

by Ms. Tan Sze Wei, APYN Coordinator

The 2009 Durban review conference was held in Geneva, Switzerland from 20 to 24 April 2009 to evaluate progress towards the goals set by the 3rd World Conference against Racism, Racial Discrimnation, xenophobia and Related Intolerance held in Durban, South Africa in 2001. As I was in Geneva to attend PSI constitutional meetings in the same period, I took some time to attend parallel events for the conference in the afternoon of 20 April 09.

The International Labour Organisation (ILO), together with International Trade Union Confederation (ITUC) and other trade unions, held the side event “Combating racism in the world of work” on 20 April 2009 at 3pm. The session was chaired by Mr Kari Tapiola, ILO Executive Director, Fundamental Principles and Rights at Work sector, ILO and the panelists were, Ms Gulnara Shahinian, United Nations Special Rapporteur on contemporary forms of slavery, Ms Kamalam from the International Trade Union Confederation, Equality Department, Mr Sipho Ndebele from the Government of South Africa and Mr Khulile Nkushubana, General Secretary of the Confederation of South African Workers Union. In total, there were more than 60 trade unions under the leadership of ITUC, together ! with GUFs such as PSI who had come to lobby for equal treatment regardless of gender, race, sexual orientation, social status etc at the workplace. All of us firmly believed that there should be employment equity in terms of recruitment, wages and promotion etc.

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