On 31 October 1977 the Meditation Group held a Bazaar at U.N. New York Headquarters in honour of the International Year of the Child.

Leader of the group, Sri Chinmoy, offered a silent meditation for the success of the I.Y.C. which has been declared for 1979. Dr. Aldaba-Lim, Assistant Secretary-General, who has been recently appointed Special Representative for the I.Y.C., then spoke and cut the ribbon to open the Bazaar. Members of the Meditation Group sang Sri Chinmoy's song dedicated to UNICEF. which has been requested by the General Assembly to act as the co-ordinating agency for the activities of the I.Y.C.

Dr. Lim's talk follows:

Dr. Lim cuts the ribbon to open the Bazaar (above) and graciously offers the decoration to Sri Chinmoy (below) .

Dr. Estefania Aldaba-Lim. Assistant Secretary-General and Special Representative for the International Year of the Child: Sri Chinmoy, my dear friends in the United Nations and members of the Meditation Group, good morning. I am not going to speak very long. I just want to say how greatly I appreciate this invitation to join you on this very important occasion to raise funds for children of the world, especially children of the developing world, for which UNICEF, as you all know perhaps better than I do, has worked for all these years.

I know of what I speak for I have seen UNICEF in action in the little villages in th e Philippines and many other parts of Asia . For there the cents and the dollars which you contribute from these kinds of th ings that you have held throughout the years have gone to feeding children, not just ten,twenty or fifty, but hundreds of children, sometimes thousands of children, who probably would never have been able to receive food from their own families.
Often their parents cannot afford to give them even a glass of milk for all their lives, their poverty is so great.

This occasion takes on greater significance for several reasons. First,you are doing it in honour of the International Year of the Child, a declaration of the United Nations which will make 1979 the Year of the Child. And it is hoped that you and I from now on will continue to join hands, not only today, but in the years to come, in the next few years and thereafter, to make a better world for children, not only in the poor countries but even in the rich countries. For the International Year of the Child is not only for the poor, but as well for the rich countries of the world, for all the children of the world, to make everyone aware-rich parents and poor parents alike - of the special needs of children wherever they are, to maximize their development -psychological, emotional, cultural, moral and social development.

Therefore, on behalf of my colleagues in the UNICEF Secretariat he re, as well as in the Secretariate of Geneva, I would like to say that the International Year of the Child is all gratitude to you for participating in today's fund-raising. We shall ever be grateful to you and we hope that this is not the last time that you will be concerned for children-that your concern is not only for this month, not only for this year, but in the years to come. Thank you very. very much.