| In one of the most poignant farewell events for World Bank President James Wolfensohn during his last month in office, Cardinal Theodore McCarrick of Washington stated “you are the greatest friend of the poor in our time”. The event was a reception held on Capitol Hill on Thursday, May 26, 2005 and hosted by over a dozen leading Civil Society Organizations (CSOs) such as Oxfam, World Wildlife Fund, InterAction, and First Nations. |
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Some 100 persons attended the reception, held at the Senate’s Russell Office Building. The reception began with a cerimonial chant and drums by a member of the Lakota-Sioux Indian tribe. Nancy Pelosi, House Minority Leader, spoke first and relayed her admiration for Wolfensohn’s global leadership in attempting to bring peace around the world by promoting social justice. |
She also praised Mr. Bush’s appointment of Wolfensohn as special envoy to Gaza, as she believes that he will bring his energy and proven organizational skills to that complex situation.
| What made this event notable was the fact that it was hosted by many CSOs who were not close to the Bank before Mr. Wolfensohn took office 10 years ago. Claude Martin, Director General of World Wildlife Fund International said that his view on the Bank had changed considerably due to Mr. Wolfensohn’s leadership in promoting the Bank’s recognized environmental agenda. |
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Bruce Rich of Environmental Defense, while recognizing the many policy disagreements his organization had and still continues to have with the Bank, praised Mr. Wolfensohn for his willingness to always engage the environmental movement and for having strengthened the application of environmental safeguard standards by the Bank.
Barbara Stocking, Director of Oxfam (Great Britain) noted that she traveled from Britain just to attend this reception and that this, in itself, was a testament to the high regard with which Oxfam holds the Bank’s president. The head of InterAction, Mohammad Akhter, reiterated the important role Mr. Wolfensohn has played in bringing the two institutions closer together over the past few years to carry out policy dialogue and joint training.
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Elaine Wolfensohn was also honored by several of the speakers for having lead her own programs on behalf of girls education. Mr. Wolfensohn, who was clearly moved by the hard-earned praise he received from the CSOs, closed the reception by stating that “Without giving up our differing viewpoints and distinct roles, we were able to understand each other’s positions, identify common agendas, and work together to make our planet a better place to live in”.
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