UNITED NATIONS NATIONS UNIES THE SECRETARY-GENERAL MESSAGE TO THE 2002 AFRICARE BISHOP WALKER DINNER Washington, D.C. 24 October 2002 For many years, Harry Belafonte has used his talent and time to give life to the principles of the United Nations. He has campaigned for human rights and justice. He has pressured Governments to adopt policies that help those in need. He has stood at the forefront of the struggle against AIDS. He has worked tirelessly as a Goodwill Ambassador for UNICEF, raising funds, travelling across the globe, speaking out on behalf of children everywhere. He once summed up his mission with these remarkable words: "If there is one thing that we are responsible for, it is to make sure that we hold leadership — and those who influence leadership — accountable. If we do nothing more than to make leadership and power accountable for what it does -- then we would have fulfilled our task." In that mission, Harry has given voice to those who need it most. That is what motivates him to keep going ~ in his own words, "to walk into a village somewhere in the world to find a body that has been maimed, a mind that has been destroyed, or people who sit in the abyss of loneliness feeling that there is no hope in the world - and to know that a visit from us has made a difference in their plight. We are powerful. We have a voice." I know that Africare, which is honouring Harry Belafonte tonight, is driven by the same commitment. That commitment goes in hand with your belief that if enough people join forces to act on the courage of their convictions, it is possible to make the world a better place Congratulations, Harry, on receiving this year's Bishop Walker Humanitarian Award. It is richly deserved. To all those honouring you at the 2002 Africare Bishop Walker Dinner, I also extend my warmest greetings and best wishes for a memorable evening. BOARD OF DIRECTORS Honorary Chairman: NELSON R. MANDELA Honorary Vice Chajr: Africare 'MARIA WALTER Africare works to improve the quality of Chairman: life in Africa, with programs in civil-society GEORGE A. DALLEY, development and governance, food security Vice Chair: and agriculture, health and HIV/AIDS, and THE REV. YVONNE SEON, Ph.D. emergency humanitarian response. Treasurer. CLYDE B. RICHARDSON President. Loriche Productions Secretary: JOSEPH C. KENNEDY, Ph.D. May 23, 2002 LARRY D. BAILEY Partner. PricewaterhouseCoopers, LLP LAURETTA J.BRUNO Partner, Gramercy Partners, LLC His Excellency Kofi Annan DANIEL A. CARP Chairman and CEO, Eastman Kodak Company Secretary-General of the United Nations WALTER C. CARRINGTON Room 3800 Former U.S. Ambassador to Nigeria One United Nations Plaza JULIUS E. COLES Director, Andrew Young Center for International New York, NY 10017 Affairs and Professor of Political Science, Morehouse College Dear Mr. Secretary-General: ALICE M. DEAR Vice President, Africa Millennium Fund, LLC MacARTHUR DeSHAZER, Sr. I am writing to invite you to deliver the keynote address at the upcoming Africare Bishop / Vice President, Federal Government Relations, Affiliated Computer Services John T. Walker Memorial Dinner: on Thursday evening, October 24, 2002, at the Hilton ' • Washington Hotel in Washington, D.C. / / WILLIAM R. FORD : W. FRANK FOUNTAIN t Senior Vice President, Government Affairs, With 2,500 guests, $1.2 million in funds raised and extensive media coverage, this is the DaimlerChrysler Corporation JAMES M. HARKLESS, Esq. largest annual event for Africa in the United States. Arbitrator JAMES A. HARMON It is also one of the two or three most important events offering linkage between African Chairman, J.A. Harmon Associates LLC Americans and our brothers and sisters from Africa — and as such, we hope it would WILLIAM 0. KIRKER, M.D. PATRICIA WATKINS LATTIMORE offer you an excellent forum in which to reach out to African Americans, especially those Director of Human Resources, of us who are devoted to Africa and who wish to hear directly about the spirit of Washington, D.C., Public Schools commitment of the United Nations and its planned initiatives regarding Africa. DELANO E. LEWIS President and CEO, Lewis & Associates CARL J. LOWE The 2002 Africare Dinner will honor Harry Belafonte for his six decades of outstanding PRINCETON N. LYMAN contributions both to the civil rights struggle in the United States and to the liberation Executive Director, struggles in Africa, especially the movement to end apartheid in South Africa. Equally Global Interdependence Initiative, The Aspen Institute important, we will highlight the pressing need for increased world response to the crisis ROBERT L. MALLETT of HIV/AIDS in Africa: a program priority for Africare and one in which we are Senior Vice President, Corporate Affairs, Pfizer Inc. developing many creative, grassroots and national initiatives in nearly 20 countries CARLTON A. MASTERS President and CEO, GoodWorks International Africa-wide. RODNEY E. SLATER Partner, Patton Boggs LLP Africare, as you may know, is the oldest and largest African-American organization PERCY C. WILSON Chairman Emeritus, Corporate Council on Africa specializing in development and emergency assistance to Africa. Founded in 1971, we CURTINWINSOR,Jr. now support more than 150 programs in 27 African countries. The annual Dinner Chairman, American Chemical Services Company provides essential funding and publicity for our work in Africa. AMBASSADOR OUMAROU G.YOUSSOUFOU Emeritus: African Americans of distinction who have played prominent roles in the Africare Dinner DONALD F. McHENRY have included Secretary of State Colin L. Powell, then Secretary of Commerce Ron Chairman Emeritus, Africare President, IRC Group Brown, Ambassador Andrew Young, the late Rev. Leon H. Sullivan, former Presidential University Research Professor of Diplomacy and International Affairs, Georgetown University Advisory Council on HIV/AIDS Chairman Ronald V. Dellums, former Mayor David Dinkins, the Rev. Jesse L. Jackson Sr., Coretta Scott King, Dr. Dorothy I. Height, Ex-Officio: Congressman Charles Rangel, Eddie N. Williams and many more. Distinguished C. PAYNE LUCAS President. Africare Africans have included then President Nelson Mandela, the heads of state of nearly a Africare • Africare House • 440 R Street, N.W. • Washington, D.C. 20001-1935 Telephone: (202) 462-3614 • Fax: (202) 387-1034 • E-mail: [email protected] • Web site: www.africare.org Printed on recycled paper His Excellency Kofi Annan • May 23, 2002 Page Two dozen other African countries, Archbishop Desmond M. Tutu, Grafa Machel and OAU Secretary-General Salim Ahmed Salim. Other Americans who have participated in the Dinner have included then President Bill Clinton, Hillary Rodham Clinton, former President Jimmy Carter, then Vice President AJ Gore, Mrs. Barbara Bush, then Treasury Secretary Robert E. Rubin, Peace Corps founder Sargent Shriver — and dozens of leaders from Capitol Hill, including Speaker of the House Dennis Hastert, House Minority Leader Richard Gephardt and Rep. Ben Oilman, Chairman Emeritus of the House Committee on International Relations. We have been privileged to have your support of this event as the Honorary Patron in 2001 (when we honored former U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services, Louis W. Sullivan, M.D.) and in 1998 (when we honored Ambassador Andrew Young). In addition, you were gracious enough to write letters for our souvenir program commemorating our honorees in 2000 (James D. Wolfensohn) and 1999 (Gra9a Machel). This year, we expect African heads of state, ministers of commerce and foreign affairs, leaders of international organizations, U.S. government leaders, top officials of major multinational corporations, NGOs, community groups and countless individuals who come because they care about Africa and seek to make a difference through Africare. In this setting, it would be truly an honor — and truly appropriate, we believe — to present a major address on Africa and the African AIDS crisis by the Secretary-General of the United Nations. For on October 24, we will not only honor Harry Belafonte but also focus the public eye on both the problems and the promise of Africa. Your remarks would inspire the audience, those of us working day-to-day in Africa, that we can overcome the threat of AIDS and go on to help realize Africa's dreams. In particular, the presence of so many African-American leaders would offer you an opportunity to reach a very special, and very caring, group of supporters. If you are interested in delivering this speech, please know that we understand that your presence would be contingent on other matters of U.N. business. The exact times of the event are: 6:00 to 7:00, the VIP Reception; and 7:30 to 10:30, the seated dinner and program of speeches and entertainment. Naturally, while hopeful that you can attend the entire event, we also offer the options of (1) coming at about 8:00 for dinner and your speech or (2) simply coming in time for your speech at about 9:00. Please contact me at (202) 462-3614 if you have any questions or to respond. If I am not available, your office should speak with the Dinner Coordinator, Ms. Libba Conger. More information is enclosed. May I close by thanking you for your past support of Africare's humanitarian mission Africa-wide and for your consideration of this request to deliver the keynote address at the Africare Dinner on October 24. Sincerely, C. C. Payne I/ufcas President cc: Gillian Martin Sorensen Enclosures UNITED NATIONS WM NATIONS UNIES D NATIONS. N.V. IDOtT i UNATIONI NKWYOHK EXECUTIVE OFFICE OF THE SECRETARY-GENERAU CABINET QU SCCRETAI RE GENERAL 9 October 2002 Dear Mr. Lucas, Further to your letter to the Secretary-General of 24 September, I have pleasure in sending you the Secretary-General's message to the 2002 Africare Bishop Walker Dinner, along with our best wishes for a successful event.