Organization and Members
The United Nations Association Flanders Belgium ‘VVN’ was established in 1976, in continuation of the former Belgian Association for the United Nations, and has been active in Flanders ever since.
VVN’s current President is Prof. Dr. Frank Maes, Professor of International Public Law and International Organizations at Ghent University (Universiteit Gent).
Honorary members of the Board are inter alia Ambassador Alex Reyn, former Permanent Representative to the UN in New York; Prof. Dr. Em. Erik Suy, former Under-Secretary-General and Legal Counsel of the United Nations; Mrs. Ria Heremans-Van Elslande, former Chief of UNIC Brussels; Mrs. Diane Verstraeten, former Secretary-General of the Department Flanders International of the Flemish Community; Mrs. Wilma Goppel, former Chief of UNFPA EU; Mr. Eddy Laurijssen, former Director of ILO Brussels.
Other members of the Board include professors of international law and politics of the Flemish Universities such as Prof. Dr. Em. Marc Bossuyt (Antwerp University), Prof. Dr. Em. Neri Sybesma-Knol (Free University Brussels), Prof. Dr. Jan Wouters (Catholic University Leuven), Prof. Dr. Ann Pauwels (Free University Brussel/EHSAL), Dr. Sven Biscop (Egmont Institute, former Royal Institute of International Affairs), Prof. Dr. Cedric Reyngaert (Utrecht University / Catholic University Leuven).
Local VVN Youth Chapters in Antwerp, Brussels, Ghent, Leuven, and since 2012 also Hasselt, organize events locally. These youth chapters try to spread the principles of the UN among university students and encourage them to become engaged and take on a more prominent role in international matters. Each chapter has a devoted team of dynamic young people, working together to organize lectures, workshops, diplomatic training sessions, and even a Model United Nations for scholars in secondary schools.
VVN has several commissions or Working Groups: Education, Development Cooperation, Monographs, Communication, Model United Nations, and Youth. These working groups meet regularly to plan new events, prepare a new edition of our UNA’s periodical “Wereldbeeld”, publish a new monograph on a UN-related issue, etc.
Publications
Periodical
VVN’s periodical ‘Wereldbeeld. Tijdschrift voor de Verenigde Naties’ publishes four editions a year, with articles and commentaries on various United Nations events and developments, as well as news on the relationship between Flanders, Belgium and the European Union with the United Nations. Since 2012, these four numbers are related to four UN pillars, namely ‘Economic and Social Affairs,’ ‘Development,’ ‘Peace and Security,’ and ‘Human Rights.’ The main focus will be on one of these pillars, depending on the edition, without losing sight of recent developments and topicality.
Monograph series
In 2005, VVN launched a series of monographs called Wereldvisie. The first monograph was published in June 2005, De Verenigde Naties: een wereld van verschil? (“The United Nations: A World of Difference?”) and was launched at a press conference with the Belgian Prime Minister. It contains contributions from 30 experts on 60 years of UN. A second monograph, Misdaden tegen de mensheid, (“Crimes against Humanity”), published in July 2006, deals with crimes against humanity and the fight of the international community against impunity.
Meanwhile, nine other monographs have been published: België in de Veiligheidsraad 1946-2006 (“Belgium in the Security Council 1946-2006”) and Anders globaliseren (“Globalizing Differently”) in 2007; Mensenrechten. Actuele brandpunten (“Human Rights. Current Focal Points”) in 2008; Water. Bron van leven en conflicten (“Water. Source of Life and Conflict”) and Langs de vuurlijn. De VN en gewapende conflicten (“Along the Frontline. The UN and Armed Conflicts”) in 2010; Ontwikkelingslanden en de nieuwe wereldorde (“Developing Countries and the New World Order”), De gespecialiseerde organisaties van de Verenigde Naties (“The Specialized Agencies of the United Nations”), and Migratie. Winnaars en verliezers (“Migration. Winners and Losers”) in 2011.
Currently, our working group is preparing the publication of the twelfth monograph on the programmes and funds of the United Nations.
Other Publications
Every year, at the occasion of United Nations Day (October 24th), an informative educational brochure is prepared on a UN-related topic, to be distributed to all children in secondary schools in Flanders. The project has the support of the Minister of Education and the Minister of Foreign Affairs. From 1998 onwards, VVN has actively cooperated with UNRIC Brussels on the preparation of these educational brochures. Former topics include: “All Human Rights for all”; “The UN in the 21st Century”; “The UN and Racism”; “A new Development Project for the United Nations” (dealing with the Millennium Development Goals), “Child Trafficking”, “Modern Forms of Slavery”, “Migration”, “the Security Council”, and “The United Nations in the Classroom.”
VVN has regularly produced educational and information material, such as a series of videos on the work of the Belgian Permanent Missions in New York and Geneva, with the close cooperation of the diplomats of these Permanent Missions. Another recent publication (April 2011) was a Dutch flyer (and related posters) titled “Do you have five minutes for the UN?”, a brief explanation of the United Nations.
Activities and events
Colloquia and Seminars
VVN regularly organizes seminars and colloquia on subjects of special and current interest, such as the war in Iraq, the Durban Summit on Racism and its follow-up and the 10-year commemoration of the genocide in Rwanda, Transnational corporate social responsibility, Free trade agreements, UN reform “Delivering as One”. In addition, on or around October 24th (United Nations Day), VVN traditionally organizes an important colloquium on the work of the United Nations; on or around December 10th (Human Rights Day), it does so too with respect to a UN human rights topic.
Recent conferences include: The Legitimacy of the United Nations Security Council, with the cooperation of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (23 October 2002, Palais d’Egmont, Brussels); The European Union and the United Nations: An Ever Stronger Partnership (18 May 2004, Palais d’Egmont, Brussels); The UN and the Fight Against Violence/The UN and Human Rights Reform (22 October 2004, Flemish Parliament, Brussels); Human Rights versus Patent Rights (5 November 2004, UNRIC, Brussels); Contemporary Forms of Slavery (10 December 2004, Leuven); Challenges and Legal Issues of the 2005 NPT Review Conference: A Transatlantic Dialogue (17 March 2005, Palais d’Egmont, Brussels); Reform of the United Nations (25 May 2005, Belgian Parliament, Brussels); Human Rights and Cultural Diversity (9 December 2005, Central University Library, Leuven); The UN Human Rights Council: Challenges and Opportunities (2 June 2006, Faculty of Law, Leuven); The Security Council anno 2007 (5 March 2007, Fortis, Brussels); Belgium in the UN Security Council 2007-2008 (3 April 2009, Chamber of Representatives, Brussels); Colloquium Linkages between Biodiversity and Climate Change (13-17 September 2010, Ghent); Symposium EU-China Conference on Environmental Law (20-22 September 2010, Ghent); Development Debate: “Has Development Aid had Its Time?” (13 December 2011, Belgian Development Agency BTC, Brussels).
Luncheon meetings
VVN has a long tradition of organizing informal Round Table luncheon meetings where current problems and issues concerning the UN are discussed with top-level diplomats and UN officials. These events are organized in cooperation with, and mostly take place in the offices of, the United Nations Regional Information Office, UNRIC, in Brussels. Approximately 40 VVN members, members of Parliament, officials of the Administration, participate.
Past speakers include the UN Special Rapporteur on Torture, the Head of the National Red Cross, the Representative of ILO to the European Union, the Representative of UNDP to the European Union, Belgium’s Permanent Representative to the United Nations in New York, Belgium’s judge at the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia, the UN Special Representative on the Prevention of Genocide and Mass Atrocities, and the Chief of the United Nations Directorate at the Belgian Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
Interuniversity Student Projects
In the four Flemish Universities, VVN annually organizes a cooperative project with some 50 students on a subject concerning the UN. In a series of workshops during the academic year, several aspects of a specific subject are discussed. Recently interuniversity study groups have inter alia studied “UN reform”, “EU-UN relations”, “Global governance”. The final report on UN reform, including recommendations to the Belgian Government, was officially presented to the Minister of Foreign Affairs in March 2002; the final report on EU-UN relations, with comments, was presented to Belgium’s Permanent Representative to the European Union.
In December 2005, VVN organized the first interuniversity Model United Nations in Belgium (Brussels). This VVN MUN entails a three day UN Security Council simulation exercise, during which the university students can practice and develop their diplomatic skills. The first MUN treated the topic of Iran and was titled ‘Iran Nuclear Case’. The participating students and university assistants were delegates from four different Flemish Universities: the Catholic University of Leuven (KUL), Ghent University (UG), the University of Antwerp (UA) and the Free University Brussels (VUB).
The success of the first edition led to new initiatives and up until today VVN organized six more Model UNs concerning the following topics:
- “‘Avoiding a slide from crisis to catastrophe’: Security Council action concerning the deteriorating situation in the Darfur region of Sudan” (2006)
- “Final Status Negotiations on Kosovo within the United Nations Security Council” (2007)
- “Negotiations in the UN Security Council on the aftermath of the ‘Georgian-Russian War’” (2008)
- “Negotiations in the UN Security Council on the continuing security provocations by North Korea” (2009)
- “Negotiations in the UN Security Council on the continuing security provocations by North Korea” (2010)
- “Somalia and Piracy in the Horn of Africa” (2011).
The VVN MUN edition 2012 will take place in Bruges from Thursday 29 November till Sunday 2 December.
As mentioned before, a VVN youth and student branch was created in 2006: VVN Youth. During the following years, VVN Youth continued to grow and increase their activities. VVN Youth now has five chapters in Antwerp, Brussels, Ghent, Hasselt and Leuven.
Website
VVN has its own website (www.vvn.be) where activities are announced, relevant information is made available, and UN and VVN news articles can be consulted. Interested visitors are of course invited to join the Association.
Visits to the UN
VVN has organized visits to the United Nations Offices in New York, Geneva, Vienna, The Hague and Paris, in close cooperation with the former Brussels UNIC, the UN Department of Public Information and Belgium’s Permanent Missions to the UN.
Co-operation with other entities
The UN
VVN has traditionally enjoyed the support of, and active co-operation with, various UN agencies in Brussels, especially with the United Nations Regional Information Centre (UNRIC).
The EU
VVN is very much aware of the growing role of the EU in the UN and the UN system. It studies this role through the aforementioned interuniversity student projects and through the organization of colloquia and lectures (such as the highly successful colloquium of 18 May 2004 in the Palais d’Egmont).
The Government
Relations with the Federal Government (the UN Desk at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs) and the Government of Flanders (Foreign Policy Division) are mutually supportive. Senior diplomats keep VVN informed on, and discuss, Belgian UN policies. VVN has been invited to organize training sessions on UN affairs for Flemish administration officials. VVN enjoys the financial support of the Federal and Flemish Governments for specific activities and projects.
NGOs
VVN exchanges information on a regular basis with a number of other NGOs, inter alia those active in the areas of human rights, development cooperation and sustainable development. Members and Board Members are mutually invited to attend meetings and activities of special interest to them.
Other United Nations Associations
VVN maintains a close relationship with the World Federation of United Nations Associations (WFUNA) of which it has been a member since its foundation. Furthermore, VVN has been an active member of the ‘EU Liaison Group’, a Group of UNAs of the Member States of the European Union, established especially to liaise with the EU.
