The Secretary will then travel December 6 to Vilnius, Lithuania, where she will participate in the OSCE ministerial, as well as meet with Lithuanian officials and with Belarusian and a wide range of other civil society representatives from across the OSCE region.

On December 6, the Secretary will visit Geneva, Switzerland to deliver remarks commemorating International Human Rights Day, which falls later that week. On December 7 in Geneva, she will speak at the ministerial event commemorating the 60th and 50th anniversaries of the Refugee and Statelessness conventions. The Secretary will also deliver the U.S. national statement at the Biological and Toxin Weapons (BWC) Review Conference, where we hope to revitalize international efforts against biological threats.

Later that day, the Secretary will travel to Brussels, Belgium, for ministerial-level meetings of the North Atlantic Council, the NATO-Russia Council, and with ISAF partners to discuss Afghanistan on December 7-8.

The Secretary will conclude her trip with a December 8 visit to The Hague, the Netherlands, where she will deliver the keynote address at the opening of a ministerial conference on Internet freedom that will launch a cross-regional, multi-stakeholder coalition committed to promoting the freedoms of expression, association, and assembly online.

Source: www.state.gov

5 Dutch Days is a five day cultural event which takes place in New York City every November. It celebrates the continuous influence of Dutch arts and culture in New York City and brings together arts and cultural organizations from across the city. Programs include walking tours, lectures, concerts and contemporary art offerings.

It begun in May of 2005, when three directors of Dutch-American sites in New York City (Sean Sawyer, Felicia Mayro, Susan De Vries) first began discussing the possibility of a collaborative effort to mark Dutch-American Heritage Day and the continuous influence of Dutch culture in New York City. That small idea grew into a wonderful annual event.

5 Dutch Days is celebrated in all five boroughs. New York City, one of the largest cities in the world, is segmented into five boroughs; The Bronx, Brooklyn, Manhattan, Queens, Staten Island.

Brooklyn’s part in this event commences at 6:00 this Thursday evening, November 12, at Borough Hall, with a welcome from Borough President Marty Markowitz, and a preview of the HOME/LAND art project, a portion of which will be at the Old Stone House this weekend.

Thursday’s festivities then move to the Brooklyn Historical Society, Pierrepont and Clinton, for a viewing of Pages of the Past: The Breukelen Adventures of Jasper Danckaerts.

So put on your best orange and enjoy the festival at Brooklyn’s Borough Hall to kick off 5 Dutch Days 2009.