Geneva, 11 November 2008
The United Nations Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE) was founded in 1947 “in order to give effective aid to the countries devastated by World War II”, which it began to do under the leadership of its first Executive Secretary, Mr. Gunnar Myrdal. On the other side of the Atlantic, the European Recovery Program (ERP) – popularly known as the Marshall Plan – was taking shape to help those same countries in what has been described as “the most ambitious and profound economic development initiative ever undertaken by a government outside its national borders.” Believing strongly in the power of film as a medium of change, funds from the ERP were devoted to filming the Marshall Plan in action, with the aim of effecting social change in post-Second World War Europe. UNECE and the United States Permanent Mission to the United Nations in Geneva are cooperating together to draw attention to the rare and “lost” films of the Marshall Plan. Films that have been lost from view for nearly sixty years.
A screening of selected Marshall Plan Films will take place at the Palais des Nations, Geneva on Thursday, 13 November. This event is part of the international tour “Selling Democracy – Films of Marshall Plan: 1948-1953.” What is so timely about these films? The answer lies in the historic retrospective they provide. The more than 250 titles produced between 1948 and 1953 provide an illuminating window on the Marshall Plan in action, notably the re-integration of Germany that was a prerequisite for the European community to flourish. They serve to provide a unique understanding of the Marshall Plan’s broader educational and economic objectives. The films offer myriad entertaining ways to tell the same story: “Help is on the way, there’s hope for the future, you can do it!”
Launched by US Secretary of State George C. Marshall in June 1947, the Marshall Plan began as a proposal that Europeans cooperate to structure their own recovery programme which the United States would support. Officially born in April 1948, the Marshall Plan transferred over US$ 13 billion (the equivalent of nearly US$ 90 billion today) of material and technical assistance to Europe – and therein lay the genius of the Plan in not sending money but in shipping tangible goods that were essential for life and economic recovery. Marshall received the Nobel Peace Prize in 1953 for his vision – the kind of vision still needed today.
Today, we see Governments engaged in efforts to “sell Democracy,” in the war-torn countries of the world. Similarly, UNECE continues its efforts in promoting the economic development of its member States. Mr. Marek Belka, former UNECE Executive Secretary, stated in a speech to a conference on Peacebuilding convened by the United Nations Office at Geneva and the Geneva Centre for Security Policy in November 2007, “If poverty and economic instability are so often the root causes of war, then getting the economics right is key to sustainable peace and to preventing countries from falling back into conflict. Effective governing institutions are also critical to building a lasting peace.”
While the technical and scientific activities of the United Nations regional commissions may not lend themselves to traditional notions of peace and security as in the case of, for example, regional organizations such as the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe, the North Atlantic Treaty Organization or the African Union, in fact the work of the regional commissions in improving the economic well-being of the citizens of their regions can go a long way towards building confidence, promoting mutual understanding and preventative diplomacy.
A selection of the rare Marshall Plan Films will be screened at the Palais des Nations in Cinema 14 at 6.30 p.m. on Thursday 13 November. This event is organized under the high patronage of Mr. Serguei Ordzhonikidze, Director-General of the United Nations Office at Geneva, Warren W. Tichenor, Ambassador, Permanent Representative of the United States of America to the United Nations Office and other International Organizations in Geneva, and in cooperation with UNECE. All journalists are welcome to attend. Included in the screening will be the first and flagship Marshall Plan film “Me and Mr Marshall”.
The films will be presented by Marshall Plan historian Ms. Sandra Schulberg, daughter of Mr. Stuart Schulberg, who succeeded Mr. Lothar Wolf as Chief of the Marshall Plan Motion Picture Section. Ms. Schulberg is a movie producer by training, an Adjunct Assistant Professor at Columbia University in the United States, and is pursuing a Masters Degree at the University of Southern California.
An opportunity will also be provided to journalists to interview Ms. Sandra Schulberg and Ambassador Warren W. Tichenor at 6 p.m. on Thursday in front of Cinema 14.
An accompanying exhibition is taking place in the Bar Serpentine, Palais des Nations, from 4-14 November.
For further information, please contact:
UNECE Information Service
Palais des Nations
CH - 1211 Geneva 10, Switzerland
Phone: +41 (0) 22 917 4444
Fax: +41 (0) 22 917 0505
E-mail: [email protected]
Website: http://www.unece.org
Mr. Richard M. Wilbur
Acting Counselor for Public Affairs
U.S. Mission Geneva, Switzerland
Phone: +41 (0) 22 749 4362
Fax: +41 (0) 22 749 4314
E-mail: [email protected]
Website: http://geneva.usmission.gov/
Ref: ECE/GEN/08/P02