All posts by CPNN Coordinator

About CPNN Coordinator

Dr David Adams is the coordinator of the Culture of Peace News Network. He retired in 2001 from UNESCO where he was the Director of the Unit for the International Year for the Culture of Peace, proclaimed for the Year 2000 by the United Nations General Assembly.

Cameroon: Peace action: tribute to Mirabelle Lingom and Confort Tamasang

. WOMEN’S EQUALITY .

An article from Cameroun Actuel

Women’s rights organizations, including the pioneer WILPF Cameroon, gathered within the Consultation Platform “Cameroon Women for National Dialogue”, organized a workshop on September 28, 2021 in Douala. to monitor and evaluate their actions .

Created on September 10, 2019, after the announcement of the national dialogue by the President of the Republic, Paul Biya, the Women’s Consultation Platform for the National Dialogue was set up and organized with other partners, consultations of women’s associations and groups in the country and in the diaspora to discuss the process to be taken collectively to make the voice of women heard during the national dialogue. This pre-dialogue consultation was in line with the National Action Plan implemented in line with Resolution 1325 of the United Nations Security Council (UNSC).

Following the GDN, the platform embarked on a new advocacy for the holding of a new national dialogue that is more inclusive of the main stakeholders and that takes more account of the voice of women.

To this end, the convention organized by this platform appeared to be an extraordinary opportunity, a real catalyst that could have favored the government’s capitalization of initiatives such as the “Cry of Cameroon women”.

From then on, WILPF Cameroon carried out a gender analysis of conflicts, which helped them to put in place a process towards peace with the support of its members. So far, the results of the analysis have shown that women support each other in the context of conflict in Cameroon. Notwithstanding a few obstacles, the platform got involved in activities despite the difficult context marked by an increase in killings in Cameroon and fewer opportunities for solutions.

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(Click here for the original French version)

Questions for this article

Can the women of Africa lead the continent to peace?

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Out of the crisis through dialogue

The members of this platform continue to lose their brothers and sisters because of gender-based violence and war. For Sylvie Jacqueline Ndongmo, president of WILPF Cameroon and coordinator of the platform, “the workshop to evaluate the actions of this platform aims to proceed with a better structuring, coordination and also to question our associative commitment. That’s why we thought about enlisting the support of a consultant to discuss the ins and outs of our problems as members of civil society organizations and platforms.”

Regarding issues that affect women, the platform believes that the government must, among other things: put in place measures to address the issue of impunity for perpetrators of gender-based violence in a sustainable manner; concretize the institutionalization of peace education in order to promote a culture of peace in and outside school; institutionalize a simplified procedure for accessing legal birth certificates and national identity cards destroyed as a result of the crisis; improve women’s access to property; make arrangements for the establishment of a structure specializing in trauma in order to deal with the problems of sexual and gender-based violence in humanitarian contexts, etc …

End conflicts

Thanks to the support of development partners and the government, women’s movements have been structured to create more and more spaces for women. But with the rise of violence and crises in recent years in Cameroon, women have regularly risen to ask for peace.

In this case, on September 28, members of the platform “Cameroon Women for National Dialogue” recalled that this workshop was also organized for survivors and victims. In particular, thoughts are with Mirabelle Lingom and Confort Tamasang, who have paid the price for gender-based violence respectively.

“These lives are being lost for nothing, as voices are raised to call for inclusive dialogue to end conflict and combat gender-based violence.” concluded Sylvie Jacqueline Ndongmo, coordinator of the platform.

Africa, WOMEN'S EQUALITY

Fatima Al-Ansar Describes Her Vision While Launching a “Urgent Appeal” to All Malian Organizations Working in the Field of Conflict Resolution, Mediation and the Prevention of Violent Extremism to “Unite Their Efforts”

. WOMEN’S EQUALITY .

An article from Bamada Net

On the sidelines of the conference-debate on “religions, secularism and citizenship: what are the stakes for Mali? », the new director of Timbuktu Institute-Mali, gave us the first interview since taking office last week. At the head of this research-action structure, advocating the taking into account of endogenous resources and the experimentation of agile approaches in a crisis context, Fatima al-Ansar sets out her vision while launching an “urgent appeal” to all organizations of Malian women working in the field of conflict resolution, mediation and prevention of violent extremism to “unite their efforts within the framework of an inclusive coalition of actors”.


Photo of Fatima Al-Ansar from Peacetalks

The Independent: You have just been appointed to head the Think Tank, Timbuktu Institute, which is an African Center for Peace Studies. What is the scope of the establishment of this structure in Mali, especially as there are a number of other organizations also involved in this issue?

Fatima Al-Ansar: This approach is in line with the conference-debate that we organized on Saturday September 25th. Before the creation of the Timbuktu Institute, when the various actors, national, regional or international met and consulted, they all deplored either the insufficiency of endogenous capacities or their non-development in the search for a solution to conflicts or the prevention of crises in Africa. Considering this delay in these efforts and also the deplorable scarcity of forward thinking frameworks promoting endogenous and inclusive solutions, Timbuktu Institute wants to be a regional instrument capable of compensating for this lack.

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(Click here for the original French version)

Questions for this article

Can the women of Africa lead the continent to peace?

Can a culture of peace be achieved in Africa through local indigenous training and participation?

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L’Indép: So what will be your magic recipe to achieve it when you know others have tried it before you?

F.A: It should be noted that the vocation of the Timbuktu Institute is the training of new generations in innovative methods and approaches in promoting the culture of peace as well as the capacity building of actors who can develop public policies. We look for endogenous dimension of solutions, but this does not prevent us from working with international partners on issues related to peacebuilding and conflict prevention, political violence, identity, even religious, etc. Considering our past rich with inputs from many sources, we believe that approaches are available today that can accelerate our process of reconciliation.

L’Indép: Since the outbreak of the multidimensional crisis in Mali in 2012, we have heard so many declarations of good intentions and wishful thinking. What are your assets in achieving the objectives set, namely the return of peace?

F.A: The difference is that the installation of the Institute in our country coincides with a critical moment, a turning point where we have no choice but to move forward or expose the country to an inextricable crisis in addition to the current difficulties. In fact, in my vision at the head of Timbuktu Institute-Mali, I am campaigning with Mali’s international partners to construct solutions with us that take our concerns into account.

In this spirit of a holistic and inclusive approach, our first program, which will soon be launched, is entitled “The Word to Malians: for reconciliation.” It is fully in line with strategic documents such as the National Reconciliation Strategy and the one on reconciliation and prevention of violent extremism that was recently validated. The failure of nation building strategies in Afghanistan reminds us that we must listen our own people and not impose paradigms devised elsewhere.

L’Indép: In your remarks, you put forward the idea of ​​launching a large coalition of partnerfs engaged research and action for endogenous solutions. What does it consist of?

F.A: You know, there is too much dispersion of precious efforts by the research-action structures and by Malian civil society organizations. More and more, we find a real desire for synergy. The Timbuktu Institute seeks to give substance to this desire for unity which is emerging. After making contact with many of these actors in all regions of Mali, I am starting with my team, next week, a series of meetings with organizations sharing this vision. I think now is the time to act. We must build these synergies to boost inclusive endogenous initiatives, promote them and support them through strategic thinking.

For me, this is not at odds with international cooperation; it is a simple promotion of the solutions that the Malians themselves can offer. I believe much more in this empowerment of thinking about our problems than in the desire to play on international rivalries or import conflicts. The people of Mali and their desire for peace and reconciliation are part of the solution. We need to gather together around the table of solutions and move towards reconciliation. We have the resources if we can cope with political crises. All that is needed is the will.

Africa, WOMEN'S EQUALITY

United Nations: Non-Violence Day offers prospect for ‘new era of peace, trust and tolerance’

EDUCATION FOR PEACE .

An article from the United Nations

In his message for the International Day of Non-Violence, on Saturday, the UN chief noted that the day provides an opportunity to usher in a “new era of peace, trust and tolerance”.


UN / Ryan Brown. Gandhi stamps created by the UN post for the International Day of Non-Violence.

Secretary-General António Guterres pointed out that it was no coincidence that the day coincides with the birthday of Mahatma Gandhi – leader of India’s independence movement and a founder of the principles of non-violence.

“For Gandhi, non-violence, peaceful protest, dignity and equality were more than words. They represented a guiding light for humanity, a map to a better future”, he said.

‘Template’ for the future

The UN chief also pointed to the movement as “a template” to confront today’s troubled times.  

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(Click here for a French version of this article or here for a Spanish version.)

Question(s) related to this article:

What is the United Nations doing for a culture of peace?

Can peace be guaranteed through nonviolent means?

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“Conflicts and climate change. Poverty and inequalities.  Mistrust and divisions.  All under the shadow of the COVID-19 pandemic, which continues to devastate people and economies alike”, he said.

The UN chief underscored that the solution to these challenges “is in our hands: solidarity”.    
Solutions ‘in our hands’

The principle of non-violence, also known as non-violent resistance, rejects the use of physical force to achieve social or political change and has been adopted globally in campaigns for social justice.

 “We need to recognize, as Gandhi did, that what unites us is far greater than what divides us. That peace provides the only pathway to a better future for all”, he said.

Coming together as one

Addressing global challenges means “coming together as one human family, and embracing peace like never before”, Mr. Guterres said, calling on combatants around the world to lay down their arms and “focus on defeating humanity’s common enemy – COVID-19 – not one another”.  

He underscored the urgent need to deliver lifesaving vaccines and treatment, “and support countries in the long road to recovery ahead”; intensify efforts to reduce inequalities and end poverty; and create “a bold global plan of action” to heal the planet.  

Most of all, flagged the UN chief, “we need to renew trust in one another”.

“Hatred, division, conflict and mistrust have had their day”, he said.  “It is time to usher in a new era of peace, trust and tolerance”.

Mr. Guterres urged everyone to “heed Gandhi’s message of peace and get down to the business of building a better and more peaceful future for all”.

FREE FLOW OF INFORMATION, global, United Nations,

Civic Initiative Save Sinjajevina to Receive the War Abolisher of 2021 Award

. . SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT . .

An article from World Beyond War

Today, September 27, 2021, World BEYOND War announces as the recipient of the War Abolisher of 2021 Award: Civic Initiative Save Sinjajevina. As already announced, the Lifetime Organizational War Abolisher Award of 2021 will be presented to Peace Boat, and the David Hartsough Lifetime Individual War Abolisher Award of 2021 will be presented to Mel Duncan.


A frame from their video.

An online presentation and acceptance event, with remarks from representatives of all three 2021 award recipients will take place on October 6, 2021, at 5 a.m. Pacific Time, 8 a.m. Eastern Time, 2 p.m. Central European Time, and 9 p.m. Japan Standard Time. The event is open to the public and will include presentations of three awards, a musical performance by Ron Korb, and three breakout rooms in which participants can meet and talk with the award recipients. Participation is free.  Register here for Zoom link.

 World BEYOND War is a global nonviolent movement, founded in 2014, to end war and establish a just and sustainable peace. In 2021 World BEYOND War is announcing its first-ever annual War Abolisher Awards.

The purpose of the awards is to honor and encourage support for those working to abolish the institution of war itself. With the Nobel Peace Prize and other nominally peace-focused institutions so frequently honoring other good causes or, in fact, wagers of war, World BEYOND War intends its award to go to educators or activists intentionally and effectively advancing the cause of war abolition, accomplishing reductions in war-making, war preparations, or war culture. Between June 1 and July 31, World BEYOND War received hundreds of impressive nominations. The World BEYOND War Board, with assistance from its Advisory Board, made the selections.

The awardees are honored for their body of work directly supporting one or more of the three segments of World BEYOND War’s strategy for reducing and eliminating war as outlined in the book “A Global Security System, An Alternative to War.” They are: Demilitarizing Security, Managing Conflict Without Violence, and Building a Culture of Peace.

Civic Initiative Save Sinjajevina (Građanska inicijativa Sačuvajmo Sinjajevinu in Serbian) is a popular movement in Montenegro that has prevented the implementation of a planned NATO military training ground, blocking military expansion while protecting a natural environment, a culture, and a way of life. Save Sinjajevina remains vigilant to the danger of ongoing efforts to impose a base on their treasured land. (See  https://sinjajevina.org )

Montenegro joined NATO in 2017 and the rumors began in 2018 of plans to impose a military (including artillery) training ground on the grasslands of Sinjajevina Mountain, the biggest mountain pasture in the Balkans and the second largest in Europe, a unique landscape of immense natural and cultural value, part of the Tara River Canyon Biosphere Reserve and surrounded by two UNESCO World Heritage sites. It is used by more than 250 families of farmers and nearly 2,000 people, while many of its pastures are used and managed communally by eight different Montenegrin tribes.

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Question for this article:

What is the relation between the environment and peace

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Public demonstrations against the militarization of Sinjajevina gradually arose from 2018 onwards. In September 2019, ignoring over 6,000 signatures of Montenegrin citizens that should have compelled a debate in the Montenegrin Parliament, the parliament announced the creation of a military training ground without any environmental, socio-economic, or health-impact assessments, and NATO forces arrived to train. In November 2019, an international scientific research team presented its works to UNESCO, the European Parliament, and the European Commission, explaining the bio-cultural value of Sinjajevina. In December 2019 the Save Sinjajevina association was officially launched. On October 6, 2020, Save Sinjajevina launched a petition to stop the creation of the military training ground. On October 9, 2020, farmers demonstrated at the doors of Parliament when they knew that the EU Commissioner for Neighborhood and Enlargement was at that moment in the country’s capital. Beginning October 19th, rumors started to appear about a new military training on Sinjajevina.

On October 10th, 2020, news broke and the rumors of a new military training being planned were confirmed by the Minister of the Defence. About 150 farmers and their allies set up a protest camp in the highland pastures to block soldiers’ access to the area. They formed a human chain in the grasslands and used their bodies as shields against the live ammunition of the planned military exercise. For months they stood in the way of the military moving from one side of the plateau to another, in order to prevent the military from firing and executing their drill. Whenever the military moved, so did the resisters. When Covid hit and national restrictions on gatherings were implemented, they took turns in four-person groups set in strategic spots to stop the guns from firing. When the high mountains turned cold in November, they bundled up and held their ground. They resisted for more than 50 days in freezing conditions until the new Montenegrin Minister of Defense, who was appointed on the 2nd of December, announced that the training would be cancelled.

The Save Sinjajevina movement — including farmers, NGOs, scientists, politicians, and ordinary citizens — has continued to develop local democratic control over the future of the mountains threatened by NATO, has continued to engage in public education and lobbying of elected officials, and has offered its insights through numerous fora to those working in other parts of the world to prevent the construction of, or to close existing, military bases.

Opposing military bases is very difficult, but absolutely crucial to abolishing war. Bases destroy indigenous people’s and local communities’ ways of life and healthier ways to make a living. Stopping the harm done by bases is central to the work of World BEYOND War. The Civic Initiative Save Sinjajevina is doing the educational and nonviolent activist work that is most needed, and with stunning success and influence. Save Sinjajevina is also making necessary connections between peace, environmental protection, and local community promotion, and between peace and democratic self-governance. If war is ever fully ended, it will be because of work like that being done by the Civic Initiative Save Sinjajevina. We should all offer them our support and solidarity.
The movement has launched a new global petition at https://bit.ly/sinjajevina.

Taking part in the online event on October 6, 2021, will be these representatives of the Save Sinjajevina Movement:

Milan Sekulovic, a Montenegrin journalist and civic-environmental activist, and the founder of the Save Sinjajevina movement;
Pablo Dominguez, an eco-anthropologist who specialized on pastoral mountain commons and how they work bio-ecologically and socio-culturally.

Petar Glomazic, an aeronautical engineer and aviation consultant, documentary film maker, translator, alpinist, ecological and civic rights activist, and a Steering Committee Member of Save Sinjajevina.

Persida Jovanović is currently pursuing a Master’s degree in political science and international relations, and she spent most of her life in Sinjajevina. She is now working together with local communities and the Save Sinjajevina association to preserve the traditional way of life and ecosystem of the mountain.

Europe, global, SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT,

UN Urged to Declare a Global Peace Education Day

FREE FLOW OF INFORMATION

An article by Anwarul Chowdhury in IDN-InDepth News (published under Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International)

Following is the text of Inaugural Keynote Address by Ambassador Anwarul K. Chowdhury, former Under-Secretary-General and High Representative of the United Nations and Founder of The Global Movement for The Culture of Peace (GMCoP), at the First Annual Peace Education Day Conference organized virtually by The Unity Foundation and Peace Education Network.


Photo: UN Blue Helmets. Credit: United Nations

I thank Bill McCarthy, President and Founder of the Unity Foundation and Chair of this first annual Peace Education Day Conference and the Peace Education Network for organizing the conference with the excellent objective of getting the UN to declare an International Peace Education Day. I believe it would be better if it is called the Global Peace Education Day.

I am honored to be invited to speak at the conference as the inaugural keynote speaker on a subject which is very close to my heart and my persona.

As I have stated on many occasions, my life’s experience has taught me to value peace and equality as the essential components of our existence. Those unleash the positive forces of good that are so needed for human progress.

Peace is integral to human existence—in everything we do, in everything we say and in every thought we have, there is a place for peace. We should not isolate peace as something separate or distant. It is important to realize that the absence of peace takes away the opportunities that we need to better ourselves, to prepare ourselves, to empower ourselves to face the challenges of our lives, individually and collectively.

For two decades and half, my focus has been on advancing the culture of peace which aims at making peace and non-violence a part of our own self, our own personality—a part of our existence as a human being. And this will empower ourselves to contribute more effectively to bring inner as well as outer peace.

This is the core of the self-transformational dimension of my advocacy around the globe and for all ages, with special emphasis on women, youth and children. This realization has now become more pertinent in the midst of the ever-increasing militarism and militarization that is destroying both our planet and our people.

The International Congress on Peace in the Minds of Men was held in Yamoussoukro, Côte d’Ivoire/Ivory Coast in 1989 organized by UNESCO under the wise and dynamic leadership of my dear friend Federico Mayor Zaragoza, then UNESCO Director-General who is joining this conference also as a keynote speaker. It was a landmark gathering to give a boost and a profile to the concept of the culture of peace aimed at promoting a change of values and behaviors.

On 13 September 1999, 22 years ago last week, the United Nations adopted the Declaration and Programme of Action on the Culture of Peace, a monumental document that transcends boundaries, cultures, societies and nations.

It was an honor for me to Chair the nine-month long negotiations that led to the adoption of this historic norm-setting document by the United Nations General Assembly. That document asserts that inherent in the culture of peace is a set of values, modes of behaviour and ways of life.

A significant aspect of the essential message as articulated in the UN documents effectively asserts that the “culture of peace is a process of individual, collective and institutional transformation …” ‘Transformation’ is of the key relevance here.

It is basic to remember that the culture of peace requires a change of our hearts, change of our mindset. It can be internalized through simple ways of living, changing of our own behavior, changing how we relate to each other, changing how we connect with the oneness of humanity. The essence of the culture of peace is its message of inclusiveness and of global solidarity.

The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development of the United Nations in its sustainable development goal (SDGs) number 4.7 includes, among others, promotion of culture of peace and non-violence as well as global citizenship as part of the knowledge and skills needed to promote sustainable development.

It also calls on the international community to ensure that all learners acquire those by the year 2030. Keeping that in focus, the theme of the UN High Level Forum in 2019 observing the 20th anniversary of the culture of peace at the UN was “The Culture of Peace—Empowering and Transforming the Humanity” aiming at a forward-looking and inspiring agenda for the next twenty years.

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Question(s) related to this article:

What is the United Nations doing for a culture of peace?

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In my introduction to the 2008 publication “Peace Education: A Pathway to a Culture of Peace”, I wrote, “As Maria Montessori had articulated so appropriately, those who want a violent way of living, prepare young people for that; but those, who want peace have neglected their young children and adolescents and that way are unable to organize them for peace.”

In UNICEF, peace education is very succinctly defined as “the process of promoting the knowledge, skills, attitudes and values needed to bring about behavior change that will enable children, youth and adults to prevent conflict and violence, both overt and structural; to resolve conflict peacefully; and to create the conditions conducive to peace, whether at an interpersonal, intergroup, national or international levels”.

Peace education needs to be accepted in all parts of the world, in all societies and countries as an essential element in creating the culture of peace. It deserves a radically different education—“one that does not glorify war but educates for peace, non-violence and international cooperation.” They need the skills and knowledge to create and nurture peace for their individual selves as well as for the world they belong to.

Never has it been more important for us to learn about the world and understand its diversity.  The task of educating children and young people to find non-aggressive means to relate with one another is of primary importance.

All educational institutions need to offer opportunities that prepare the students not only to live fulfilling lives but also to be responsible, conscious and productive citizens of the world. For that, educators need to introduce holistic and empowering curricula that cultivate a culture of peace in each and every young mind.

Indeed, this should be more appropriately called “education for global citizenship”. Such learning cannot be achieved without well-intentioned, sustained, and systematic peace education that leads the way to the culture of peace.

If our minds could be likened to a computer, then education provides the software with which to “reboot” our priorities and actions away from violence, towards the culture of peace. The Global Campaign for Peace Education has continued to contribute in a meaningful way towards this objective and must receive our continuous support.

For this, I believe that early childhood affords a unique opportunity for us to sow the seeds of transition from the culture of war to the culture of peace. The events that a child experiences early in life, the education that this child receives, and the community activities and socio-cultural mindset in which a child is immersed all contribute to how values, attitudes, traditions, modes of behavior, and ways of life develop.

We need to use this window of opportunity to instill the rudiments that each individual needs to become agents of peace and non-violence from an early life.

Connecting the role of individuals to broader global objectives, Dr. Martin Luther King Junior affirmed that “An individual has not started living until he can rise above the narrow confines of his individualistic concerns to the broader concerns of all humanity.” The UN Programme of Action on the Culture of Peace pays special attention to this aspect of an individual’s self-transformation.

In this context, I would reiterate that women in particular have a major role to play in promoting the culture of peace in our violence-ridden societies, thereby bringing in lasting peace and reconciliation. Women’s equality makes our planet safe and secure. It is my strong belief that unless women are engaged in advancing the culture of peace at equal levels with men, sustainable peace would continue to elude us.

We should always remember that without peace, development is impossible, and without development, peace is not achievable, but without women, neither peace nor development is conceivable.

The work for peace is a continuous process and I am convinced that culture of peace is absolutely the most essential vehicle for realizing the goals and objectives of the United Nations in the twenty-first century.

Let me conclude by urging all of you most earnestly that we need to encourage the young people to be themselves, to build their own character, their own personality, which is embedded with understanding, tolerance and respect for diversity and in solidarity with rest of humanity.

We need to convey that to the young people. This is the minimum we can do as adults. We should do everything to empower them in the real sense, and such empowerment is going to stay with them for life. That is the significance of the Culture of Peace. It is not something temporary like resolving a conflict in one area or between communities without transforming and empowering people to sustain peace.

Let us—yes, all of us—embrace the culture of peace for the good of humanity, for the sustainability of our planet and for making our world a better place to live. 

FREE FLOW OF INFORMATION, global, United Nations,

Israeli and Arab women demand peace between Israelis and Palestinians

. WOMEN’S EQUALITY . .

An article from Prensa Latina

Some 1,000 Israeli and Arab women marched in Jerusalem to demand peace between Palestinians and Israelis, whose Government currently keeps the door closed to any negotiation.


Click on image to enlarge

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Question related to this article:
 
Do women have a special role to play in the peace movement?

Presenting the Palestinian side of the Middle East, Is it important for a culture of peace?

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Convened by Women Wage Peace, the women on Thursday (September 21) formed a human chain along the walls of the Old City of Jerusalem before assembling for a rally in Jaffa Gate square, The Jerusalem Post informed.

Tel Aviv’s continued military operations failed to achieve the promised security, Women Wage Peace member Nadia Hamdan stressed, referring to the Israel Defense Forces’ successive attacks on Palestinian territories, especially the Gaza Strip.

Founded in the summer of 2014 following the Israeli attack on Gaza, Women Wage Peace has some 45,000 members in the Israeli state.

Since Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett took office in June, he has repeatedly refused to negotiate with the Palestinian National Authority and has shown his opposition to establish a state for that people.

DISARMAMENT & SECURITY, Mideast, WOMEN'S EQUALITY

USA: Women Rally for Abortion Justice Amid ‘Unprecedented Attack’ on Reproductive Rights

. HUMAN RIGHTS .

An article from Common Dreams (licensed under Creative Commons – CC BY-NC-ND 3.0. )

Amid an escalating Republican assault  on reproductive rights and a looming U.S. Supreme Court reckoning, women and allies across the United States and around the world took to the streets Saturday to #RallyForAbortionJustice and defend Roe v. Wade.



(frame from video by @Molly JongFast)

Tens of thousands of demonstrators marched in Washington, D.C, New York City, Los Angeles, and more than 600 other cities and towns, according to Women’s March, the event organizer.

“No matter where you live, no matter where you are, this moment is dark—it is dark—but that’s why we’re here,” Alexis McGill Johnson, president of Planned Parenthood, told  participants at the Washington, D.C. protest. “It is our job to imagine the light, even when we can’t see it. It is our job to turn pain into purpose. It is our job to turn pain into power.”

At the Houston rally—where signs read “Abort Abbott” in protest of S.B. 8, Texas’ draconian abortion law signed earlier this year by Republican Gov. Greg Abbott—more than 10,000 people turned out, with many chanting, “Our bodies, our choice.”

In Washington, D.C., Women’s March executive director Rachel O’Leary Carmona described the wave of GOP anti-choice laws in at least 16 states as an “unprecedented attack” on reproductive rights.

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Questions related to this article:

The struggle for human rights, is it gathering force in the USA?

How effective are mass protest marches?

Abortion: is it a human right?

(Article continued from the left column)

“For a long time, groups of us were ringing the alarm bell around abortion access and many of us were told we were hysterical and Roe v. Wade will never be overturned,” Carmona told  USA Today. “But now it’s clear that our fears were both rational and proportional.”

Women’s March  says  that by refusing to block the Texas law—which bans abortions after six weeks  without  exceptions for rape or incest, and offers $10,000 bounties for vigilantes who successfully sue anyone who “aids or abets” the medical procedure—the Supreme Court “effectively took the next step towards overturning Roe v. Wade.”

In May, the Supreme Court announced it will hear a challenge to Mississippi’s near-total abortion  ban , a case that author Lauren Rankin  warned  “may very well be the death knell for Roe v. Wade” given the high court’s conservative supermajority.

 Nearly all  House Democrats  came together  last week to pass the  Women’s Health Protection Act  (WHPA) in response to the Texas law and amid  mounting fears  that the Supreme Court will overturn Roe.  According to  the advocacy group Equal Access to Abortion, Everywhere, the WHPA would establish “a statutory right for health care providers to provide, and their patients to receive, abortion care free from medically unnecessary restrictions, limitations, and bans that delay, and at times, completely obstruct, access to abortion.”

However, the bill faces an uphill battle in an evenly split Senate in which anti-choice Democrat Joe Manchin of West Virginia and Sen. Bob Casey (D-Pa.)  oppose  the measure.

Sen. Elizabeth Warren tweeted Saturday that Americans “support the right to a safe, legal abortion.”

Speakers at Saturday’s rallies emphasized the harm caused by anti-choice laws. Planned Parenthood of Illinois senior director of public policy Brigid Leahy  told  the Associated Press at the Springfield march that women started traveling to Illinois two days after the Texas law took effect.

“They are trying to figure out paying for airfare or gas or a train ticket, they may need hotel and meals,” she said. “They have to figure out time off of work, and they have to figure out childcare. This can be a real struggle.”

HUMAN RIGHTS, North America

Our future, our decisions: young activists call for seat at climate table

. . SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT . .

Our future, our decisions: young activists call for seat at climate table

An article from Reuters (reprinted by permission)

Sept 30 – Young activists attending this week’s climate talks in Milan are asking for a seat at the table during the upcoming U.N. COP26 summit in Glasgow to have a say in how decisions shaping their future are made.


A combination photo shows climate activists Gyuree Lee from South Korea, Hoor Ahli from the UAE, Steven Setiawan from Indonesia, Daniele Guadagnolo from Italy, Mark Muravec from Slovenia, Archana Soreng from India, Kamaal Hassan Adnan from Somaliland, Marie-Claire Graf from Switzerland, Ignacio Villarroya from Argentina, Elizabeth Wathuti from Kenya, Eduarda Zoghbi from Brazil, Jeremy Raguain from the Seychelles posing for a photo during the Youth4Climate pre-COP26 conference in Milan, Italy, September 28, 2021. REUTERS/Guglielmo Mangiapane/a>
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Thousands of young campaigners, including Sweden’s Greta Thunberg, converged on Milan this week to have their voices heard and put an end to what she described as “30 years of blah blah blah” in the almost three decades of climate talks. (Editor’s note: Reuters considers that Thunberg is a leading candidate for this year’s Nobel Peace Prize).

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Questions for this article:

Are we seeing the dawn of a global youth movement?

Despite the vested interests of companies and governments, Can we make progress toward sustainable development?

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“What we really want is that we’re part of the decision-making process to be able to write the documents, to be able to have our thoughts channelled there,” Eduarda Zoghbi, 28, a delegate from Brazil, told Reuters.

On Wednesday they tabled a slate of proposals for inclusion in the COP26 agenda that will be vetted by climate and energy ministers over the next days. read more

“Our thoughts definitely have to be shared … we are the future generations,” said 16-year-old Hoor Ahli from the United Arab Emirates.

Their concern is that much has been promised but little done to tackle global warming. Those fears were exacerbated by a U.N. report in August which warned the situation was dangerously close to spiralling out of control. read more

The Glasgow conference aims to secure more ambitious climate action from the nearly 200 countries who signed the 2015 Paris Agreement and agreed to try to limit human-caused global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius.

“My message to world leaders is that they include youth,” Zoghbi said, adding each delegate represented the particular challenges faced by countries as a result of climate change.

Among them was Jeremy Raguain, 27, from the Seychelles, who called for more financing for smaller states, and Achana Soreng, 25, a member of the Kharia tribe in Eastern India, who advocated for more rights for indigenous communities in the debate.

“We need those views reflected in the main texts and we need leaders to listen to us,” Zoghbi said.

global, SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT

English bulletin October 1, 2021

. INTERNATIONAL DAY OF PEACE .

In our survey of the Internet this year we found actions for the International Day of Peace in 628 communities located throughout the world. This total is similar to what we found last year, with the greatest number of actions taking place in Europe.

In Western Euope we found reference to actions in 191 communities. The greatest number was recorded in Belgium where 114 towns and municipalities participated in a campaign to fly the peace flag on official buildings, calling for a Belgium without nuclear weapons in a world without nuclear weapons. In France, the Collective for 21 September coordinated and described actions in 46 communities, including marches and demonstrations, often linked to the struggle to preserve the planet from global warming. The Collective is composed of 35 French organizations, led by Mouvement de la Paix.

Mikis Theodorakis, who passed away on September 2, was honored in Athens by dancers celebrating the Day of Peace, with the following quote from him, “”We are a vast, deep river that is constantly deepening, that is constantly widening and enriching as it moves towards this endless, wide sea, which is global cooperation in a world of peace.”

In the former Soviet countries of Eastern Europe, especially Russia, and the Ukraine, we found actions in 157 communities, most of them involving the children in schools. Following the tradition of recent years, the children made paper doves and wrote their wishes for peace, sometimes attaching them to balloons to fly into the sky and travel across the earth. This year many of the schools prepared videos of their actions and wishes.

As was the case last year, many of the actions took place in communities across the two sides of the armed coflict in the Ukraine. One of the celebrations, in Yasinovataya, took place despite being under an artillery attack. In one school after another, the war was mentioned, for example in Markivka it was said that “In the conditions of the war in the East of Ukraine, this holiday acquired a special, at the same time sublime and tragic significance. ”

In North America we found actions in 159 communities, of which 122 were coordinated and listed on the website of the Campaign Nonviolence, mobilizing “across the country and around the world for a culture of peace, economic equality, racial justice and environmental healing.” 48 of the 50 states of the United States were represented, along with the Canadian provinces of Manitoba, Nova Scotia, Ontario and Quebec.

As usual, the most intensive celebration was in Philadelphia (Peace Day Philly) with 15 events, including four events with colorful flyers for which links are provided.

Ongoing wars and recent peace accords were addressed by the day’s celebrations in the rest of the world.

In Africa we found celebrations in 36 communities in 19 countries, many of them torn by violent conflict. In the Democratic Republic of the Congo, the Youth Parliament of the Beni region declared ““We launch a vibrant appeal to all young people in the province of North Kivu to dissociate themselves from the armed groups in order to make possible the return of peace and security in our region.” In Cameroon, thousands who marched in several cities and towns said they were tired of burying civilians caught up in the fighting. They called for a cease-fire between the military and separatists. In Abuja, Nigeria, the Institute for Peace and Conflict Resolution called on all Nigerians to work assiduously to return peace to the country. And the African Union repeated its call for “Silencing the guns.”

In the Middle East and North Africa, we found actions in 18 communities in 12 countries. In Taiz, Yemen, the Abductees’ Mothers Association spoke of the suffering of mothers and families of the abducted, arbitrarily arrested, and forcibly disappeared individuals while waiting for peace resolutions leading to their sons’ freedom. In South Sudan, the Ecumenical Network on South Sudan called upon the leaders of South Sudan, both in government and in opposition, the security forces and citizens to finally take responsibility and resolve conflicts both national and locally through nonviolent means. In Jerusalem, some 1,000 Jewish and Arab mothers gathered for a number of events held by Women Wage Peace, including creating a human chain and a rally, demand that the government do everything possible to resolve the conflict with a political agreement. And the Arab League called on all nations and peoples, especially Arab countries experiencing armed conflicts, to immediately cease fire, abide by the cessation of hostilities, and resort to a political solution, as it is the only way to settle conflicts and disputes

In Latin America we found actions in 29 communities and 11 countries. Celebrations in Colombia were linked to commemoration of the fifh year since the signing of the peace agreement. In Bogota, the Unit for Victims reiterates its commitment to those most affected by the violence, working to implement all the actions that are the central axis of the Final Agreement with the FARC. In Medellin, the Mayor’s Office noted that the city is becoming an epicenter for the implementation of the Peace Accords, above all, putting in the center to the victims and their right to access justice, truth and guarantees of non-repetition. And in Nariño, the Third World Summit announced that San Bernardo and Tablon de Gómez iare now free of antipersonnel mines.

In Asia and the Pacific we found actions in 42 communities in 13 countries. The plight of Rohingya refugees was addressed by the Center for Peace Studies in Dhaka, Bangladesh and by the NRS Relief in refugee camps. The plight of the people of Kashmir was addressed by the Kashmir Parliamentary Peace Conference. And the Office of the Presidential Adviser on the Peace Process in the Philippines called for strengthening institutional an popular support for this effort.

As mentioned above, women are playing a leading role in peace efforts in Yemen and Jerusalem. Similarly, in the Ukraine, the “Women for Peace” “demonstrated and demanded fulfillment of promises by the government and Supreme Council to establish peace in the country. “We very much hope that once again the demands of our women, which we set out in our appeal, will be heard and measures will be taken.” And in Casamance, Senegal, it is the Platform of Women for Peace that is most active.

Summing up the sentiments of Peace Day participants, and repeating a phrase of young activist Greta Thunberg, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres concluded “We need peace to recover from the pandemic and re-build shattered systems and shattered lives. We need peace to level the playing field and reduce inequalities. We need peace to renew trust in one another — and faith in facts and science. And we need to make peace with nature — to heal our planet, build a green economy, and achieve our net-zero targets. Peace is not a naïve dream. It’s a light in the darkness. Guiding us to the only pathway to a better future for humanity. Let’s walk the pathway of peace as if our lives depended on it. Because they do.”

      

GLOBAL

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What has happened this year: International Day of Peace

UNITED STATES AND CANADA

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United States and Canada: International Day of Peace

EUROPE

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Europe: International Day of Peace

ASIA AND PACIFIC

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Asia and Pacific: International Day of Peace

EX-SOVIET COUNTRIES

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Ex-Soviet countries: International Day of Peace

ARAB STATES AND MIDDLE EAST

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Arab and Middle Eastern States: International Day of Peace

LATIN AMERICA & CARIBBEAN

Peru
Latin America: International Day of Peace

AFRICA

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Africa: International Day of Peace

Uncategorized

What has happened this year (2021) for the International Day of Peace

FREE FLOW OF INFORMATION
This year we give links to 191 actions carried out in 1O countries of Western Europe and 157 in 7 countries in Eastern Europe that were once part of the Soviet Union. We link to 159 actions in 5 Canadian provinces and 48 of the 50 states of the United States. There are 42 actions cited in 13 countries of Asia and the Pacific, 29 from 11 Latin American and Caribbean countries, 36 from 19 African countries, and 18 from 12 Arab and Middle Eastern countries. See the CPNN bulletin for October for a synopsis.

Detailed data may be found on the following CPNN articles:

Europe: International Day of Peace

Ex-Soviet Countries: International Day of Peace

United States and Canada: International Day of Peace

Asia and Pacific: International Day of Peace

Arab and Middle Eastern States: International Day of Peace

Latin America and Caribbean: International Day of Peace

Africa: International Day of Peace

FREE FLOW OF INFORMATION, global