ICPC Welcomes its New President, Raymonde Dury

At ICPC's recent meeting in Brussels, our Board of Directors unanimously approved the nomination of Mme. Raymonde DURY as President of the ICPC.  Mme. DURY will be taking over from Mme. Myriam EZRATTY, who did outstanding work in this position over the past four years (see Terrance HUNSLEY’s acknowledgment in this issue). We take this opportunity to congratulate and welcome Mme Dury on board, and are pleased to feature an interview with her in this issue of the International Observer.

ICPC – Mme. DURY, it is a great pleasure for us to welcome you as Chair of the Board of Directors of ICPC. Can you tell us a little bit about yourself?

Raymonde DURY – Well, I started out in Sociology.  I worked for several years for a health insurance co-op on issues relating to society and technology, such as the introduction of information technology.  I then turned to European politics, as I became a member of a political organization, and was a Member of the European Parliament from 1982 to 1998. I have also been a Governor in Belgium and, finally, I’ve worked for a Belgian insurance company in international relations. So as you can see, my professional life has mainly focused on social problems and public affairs, while at the same time keeping up to date in the field of Sociology, which I find fascinating.

ICPC – As a Sociologist and as someone very involved in politics and social issues, what do you think are the greatest challenges facing society today?

RD – I think that the most important challenge for today and tomorrow is equal opportunity.  I know that this covers a lot of issues, but this is precisely why I find it so interesting.  Equal opportunity is a challenge in many different areas such as education, security, the economy, etc.  As you know, the point of equal opportunity is to give as many people as possible the best chances for the future. Quite clearly, safety and crime have everything to do with equal opportunity.  Indeed, how can you get a good education in an unsafe environment?  A decent job in an unfair world?  How can you stay healthy in an unhealthy environment?  All these issues are interrelated, which is what led me to the field of crime prevention.

ICPC International Crime Prevention Institute