Wednesday March 19th

Unfortunately I had typed up my wed report and somehow deleted by accident and so I will try again today.

As usual I started my day in Chapel. Our numbers are fewer but  the worship is wonderful and it starts my day in a good way for me. Next comes the UN briefing where we learned that the negotiations are moving in the right direction but very slowly. Tues they worked until 11 pm  and completed only 7 pages of the 28. This will be the last review of the draft the fascilitator had stated .No more wording changes from NGOs only moral support. The speaker, The deputy director of UN Women, outlined that the "tough" subjects are sexual and reproductive rights and education,"family" the definition of it, and care-ie caring for ssomeone who is ill or disabled or old.

Lopa The head of NGO for UN Women spoke next about how some people are turning their frustrations about the slowness of progress   against UN Women. UNWomen is doing all it can to keep things on track. She suggested that instead of being angry that  we should support our delegations in any way we can, letting then know we appreciate their hard work.The oral presentations scheduled for Tues are now scheduled for thurs but not all selected may get to speak due to the intenseness of the negotiations.She warned us to be waryof rumors especially negative rumors - "We need positive rumors" UN Women tried to smooth the waters for CSW by holding regional meetings prior to CSW where the topics for CSW were discussed. The intent was that once there was agreement at a regional level that things would go more smoothly at CSW - but it seems that despite agreements that some feel the necessity to speak, often at great length, about the various items.

Because of the importance of the issues, I decided to make the trek over to "meet the Canadians" despite my cold, so that I could be up to date, Our new staffer, Erin Quibell, told us about the 7 pages from yesterday and that things were slow but moving ahead. It is her first time here and she only arrived Sunday so that I can barely imagine her stress during these negotiations.

Lst evening was our second "Ecummenical women" dinner. there were a lot less that last week but the "Indian" food was a bit spicy so I ate mostly nan bread and salad. Back in the room we had a lively discussion and then headed to bed.


 Blessings Judy