The BYU-Hawaii Human Rights Organization hosted a forum for visiting Executive Director for the United Nations Patrick Madden to speak about the U.N. and its impact on improving human rights issues. Vaianui Iro, a junior in political science from Tahiti, attended the lecture as a teaching assistant in the Political Science Department as well as a student interested in a future career within the United Nations. Although Iro started out as a business major, he said he felt drawn to the Political Science Department after taking a U.S. Political System class taught by Professor Troy Smith. “I just felt like I needed to be a part of social change and to interact with others who were in that line of work,” said Iro. When asked what social issue presses most on Iro’s mind, he said, “Coming from an island nation, an issue I feel particularly passionate about is the ocean rising. I’d like to look at more of the ways I can make an impact environmentally with promoting green energy and reversing some of the already rising tides through global warming.” Iro will be interning in May with graduate students from the University of Hawaii as part of the Human Rights groups and looks forward to being a change agent within politics in the future.Working for the United Nations Association, Madden is in the process of touring the country visiting various campus chapters to inform students about the important impact the United Nations has in bringing together governments and NGOs and the ways they can get involved in making a difference. Combatting issues such as poverty, disease, and women’s rights in 2000 the United Nations works to bring together governments and NGOs to collaborate on setting goals for global development. Madden informed students about new opportunities interning at the General Assembly in the U.N. and encouraged them to follow internal news sources like “The Interdependent” that highlights issues and initiatives being taken on by the United Nations.Andre Obata, a senior majoring in ICS and communication from Brazil, said he came to the lecture because he hopes to work in matters of diplomacy. After having witnessed some of his own country’s political issues, Obata felt empowered to study the social politics of government. Obata said, “Personally I feel more attention needs to be paid to land rights as many governments infringe upon natives by taking their land away.” Obata is looking forward to an internship this summer with the Democratic Office in Honolulu, all the while keeping close ties with the Human Rights Club back at BYUH to keep informed about how he can apply his cultural studies into the political consciousness. “Recently, the [Brazilian] government took a big portion of land to build a hydroelectric plant and right now, many people just don’t seem to care. It’s a big issue though because thousands of people have been displaced which has resulted not just in a loss of land, but in a loss of culture,” said Obata. Ashton Rummler, a senior in political science from Idaho, was one of those who helped organize the event. “The purpose of the Human Rights Club is to raise awareness on campus about these issues and to go home to our friends and families and teach them what we have learned and how we can go about making a difference.” Iro agreed with Rummler in showing the power one voice can have in making a difference in the world around us. “There’s politics in everything, and if you want your voice to be heard, going into political organizations like the UN or even other NGO’s is the best avenue to get out and really make a change in the world,” he urged.
Writer: Sydney Odell~Multimedia Journalist
