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.

Colombia: Beginning September 5, Cartagena will celebrate the Week for Peace

FREE FLOW OF INFORMATION . .

An article from Caracol

The United Nations General Assembly proclaimed 2021 as the International Year of Peace and Trust, in order to encourage member states, agencies belonging to the United Nations system and various civil society organizations to continue the efforts to promote a culture of peace and trust among nations, through political dialogue, mutual understanding and cooperation. This is in accordance with the provisions of the Declaration and Program of Action on a Culture of Peace.


(Click on image to enlarge.)

(Click here for the original article in Spanish.)

Questions related to this article:

What is happening in Colombia, Is peace possible?

On this occasion, the councils of peace, reconciliation, coexistence and human rights of Cartagena and Bolívar joined in a joint agenda that will allow the enjoyment of a series of cultural, academic and city events that will be broadcast virtually and in person with the aim that both children, youth and adults get involved in a culture of peace and city building.

The first cycle of delivery of food packages to the elderly has ended
This joint programming is made up of activities led by the different sectors of civil society that make up both councils, with the participation also in the Cartagena District of the secretary of the interior in charge of David Múnera Cavadía.

The programming will begin from September 1 and will connect with the week for peace in its 34th version that begins from the 5 of this month and has as a national message the phrase “truth that we can”; then through various symbolic acts it will run until September 25, a whole month dedicated to building peace and trust in the territory.

FREE FLOW OF INFORMATION, Latin America

Bogota, Colombia: Youth trained as facilitators of peace and reconciliation

FREE FLOW OF INFORMATION . .

An article from the Web site of Bogotá

Thanks to the coordination of the District Education Secretariat, ACDI / VOCA (North American NGO) and the Fe y Alegría Foundation, 110 students and two teachers from the towns of Kennedy and Bosa graduated as facilitators of peace and reconciliation.

This initiative that began in November 2020 was carried out under the guidelines of the ECO Program – Protective and Reliable Educational Environments, with the purpose of contributing to the construction of the District’s ecosystem of peace and reconciliation.

District Network of Facilitators for Peace and Reconciliation

As a result of this exercise, the District Network of Facilitators for Peace and Reconciliation was formed, which includes students from the Soledad Acosta de Samper, Germán Arciniegas, Ciudadela Educativa, El Porvenir, Japan and Tom Adams schools from the localities of Bosa and Kennedy.

“Schools are living and fundamental centers for social transformation, so we work to strengthen them. This group is a pioneer in the constitution of the network and, without a doubt, it will not be the last group with which we hope to advance in the local construction of peace ”, highlighted Rocío Olarte Tapia, director of Relations with the Private Educational Sector of the Ministry of Education .

(Click here for the original article in Spanish.)

Questions related to this article:

What is happening in Colombia, Is peace possible?

For this, a process involved 144 students and two teachers from these schools. The call was held openly, aimed mainly at students between grades 5 to 9, with an interest in transforming the relationship of the educational institution with the territory to which they belong and contributing to the construction of a culture of peace in their environment, on the basis of dialogue, respect and empathy.

During 15 weeks sessions were held aimed at enhancing their capacities and commitments for the strengthening of peace and reconciliation. The pedagogical strategies reflected on the daily experiences in each of their environments as a central element to understand the process in the local context.

Trained in peace and reconciliation

In this training process the participants addressed issues such as the management and transformation of conflicts, the construction of a culture of peace, the recognition and appreciation of diversity and the prevention of all forms of gender-based violence, among others.

In the case of participating teachers, the scope of their actions will be reflected in the framework of their role within the educational institution.

“The commitment to replicate is fundamental, not only in educational institutions, but in all everyday spaces where learning from the network can be made visible. From the Secretariat, our commitment is to continue working in the construction of peace ”, said the director of Relations with the Private Educational Sector.

The ECO Program will provide continuity and support to the Network of Educational Institutions that contribute to the District’s Peace and Reconciliation Ecosystem, including replication in more locations in Bogotá from a new cycle of the training process during 2022.

It is expected that more institutional and social sectors will join this project and contribute to the construction of the city.

FREE FLOW OF INFORMATION, Latin America

Past Virtual Events in September

FREE FLOW OF INFORMATION

Here are events and application deadlines in September that were previously listed on the CPNN page for upcoming virtual events. Where possible links are provided to recordings of the events. Unless otherwise noted the events are in English.

September 7, 10:00 AM-5:45 PM Eastern Standard Time (USA)
United Nations High Level Forum on the Culture of Peace

Theme: “The Tranformative Role of the Culture of Peace: Promoting Resilience and Inclusion in Post Covid Recovery”
— Plenary segment 10:00 AM to 1:00 PM – Remarks by President of the General Assembly, UN Secretary-General and 2017 Nobel Peace Prize Laureate, followed by remarks by Member States.
— Virtual panel discussion 3:00 PM to 5:45 PM.
— Live broadcast by UN Web TV

Sep 9, 2021 9-11am Eastern Time USA, 2:00 PM in London,
Nuclear Weapons & Climate Change: In commemoration of the International Day Against Nuclear Tests

An intergenerational dialogue on nuclear-climate impacts & avenues for action. This will be a hybrid event with a limited number of guests participating in person while most others will participate via zoom online platform.
— The event is co-hosted by the Kazakhstan Embassy in London, Nursultan Nazarbayev Foundation, Parliamentarians for Nuclear Non-Proliferation and Disarmament, and Youth Fusion.
— Zoom registration

September 11 @ 3:00 pm – 6:00 pm Eastern Standard Time (USA)
Never Forget: 9/11 and the 20 year War on Terror

The world changed on September 11th 2001. The tragic deaths of almost 3,000 people and the destruction of the World Trade Center’s Twin Towers in New York City had a deep effect on the American people. 9/11 fundamentally altered the culture of the United States and its relationship with the rest of the world. The violence of that day was not confined, it spread throughout the world as America lashed out both at home and abroad. The almost 3,000 deaths of September 11th became hundreds of thousands (if not millions) of deaths from wars the US launched in retaliation. Tens of millions lost their homes. Join us, on Saturday September 11th, as we reflect on the lessons of 9/11 and the lessons of the 20 year Global War on Terror.-
— We’ll hear testimonials from Medea Benjamin, Danny Sjursen, Assal Rad, Kathy Kelly, David Swanson, Matthew Hoh, Kevin Danaher, Jodie Evans, and more!
— zoom registration

Sunday, September 12, 4:00 pm PDT/7:00 pm EDT (USA)
North American Solidarity Activists Speak Out: US Sanctions against Africa and Latin America

Instead of reversing Trump’s unilateral coercive measures, Biden has extended the sanctions, which are illegal under international law. Sanctions are a form of war. They are directed against the people from countries that will not follow the dictates of the US. The goal is to make the lives of the people in these countries intolerable so they will oppose their governments and support the US regime-change agendas in their countries. In their most severe form, as is being imposed on Cuba, Venezuela, and other countries, they deny these countries food, medicine, and trade and cause great suffering for the people of the sanction countries.
— Hear: Ajamu Baraka (Black Alliance for Peace and UNAC Administrative Committee member), Omowale Clay (December 12th Movement), Sara Flounders (International Action Center and UNAC Administrative Committee member), and Margaret Flowers, (Popular Resistance and UNAC Administrative Committee)
Sponsored by the Sanctions Kill Coalition
— Register here

Sunday, September 19, 2:30-3:45pm, Eastern Standard Time, USA
NO FIRST USE, AND BRINGING AN END TO NUCLEAR WEAPONS

The Comprehensive Test Ban, which ended nuclear testing. What are the next steps, to bring an end to these weapons of mass destruction?
Speakers:
– Ambassador Thomas Graham, Jr.
– Erin Hunt, ICAN & Canada Landmines Action
— Offered By: Coalition for Peace Action in cooperation with UNAGP and Pennsylvania PSR
— Zoom regisration

lunes 20 de septiembre, a las 17 hs. (horario Argentina)
Encuentro virtual “Homenaje a Paulo Freire”

Le invitamos a completar el presente formulario para inscribirse al tercer encuentro del Ciclo “Pensar la educación del porvenir desde las tradiciones pedagógicas latinoamericanas” organizado por el Instituto Latinoamericano de Estudios Sociales (ILES) y la Organización de Estados Iberoamericanos (OEI) en Argentina.
— El encuentro virtual se realizará por el canal de YouTube de la OEI. Se le enviará el enlace de acceso en los días previos al Encuentro al correo que nos informe en el presente formulario.
— formulario para inscribirsen

Tuesday, September 21, 2021 • 6:00 PM • Chennai, Kolkata, Mumbai, New Delhi (GMT+05:30)
Online India & Afghanistan Chapter Launch Event: Celebrate International Peace Day!

Join us for a online launch event to kick-off the new World BEYOND War India and Afghanistan chapters!We’ll discuss World BEYOND War’s mission and campaigns, the current state of the peace movement in Afghanistan and India, and why we need a world beyond war. We’ll have time to break out into discussion groups to talk about what anti-war issues matter to you and how we can work together to create World BEYOND War chapters in India and Afghanistan.
— registration

22 September 2021, 9:00 am – 11:00 am Eastern Standard Time (USA)
Promoting Peaceful, Just, And Inclusive Societies

Based upon the feedback and recommendations received from the first Global Webinar Series, Religions for Peace, in coordination with Regional Offices, will convene the second series of global capacity development webinars in 2021, with a view to continuing to facilitate the process of strategic Learning Exchange among IRCs across the movement. These webinars will focus on our Six Strategic Goals:
— Promote Peaceful, Just, and Inclusive Societies
Advance Gender Equality
Nurture A Sustainable Environment
Champion the Freedom of Thought, Conscience, and Religion
Strengthen Interreligious Education
Foster Multi-religious Collaboration and Global Partnerships
Simultaneous translations for Arabic, French, and Spanish will be provided for all global webinars. Following each of these, regional webinars will be organized under the leadership of the Religions for PeaceRegional Secretaries General, in coordination with the Religions for Peace International Secretariat.
— This event is by invitation only. Inquiries can be sent to pbartoli@rfp.org.

Thursday, 23 September 2021, 12:00 – 15:00 Central European Time
Launch of manual “Peace Education meets Religion

Religious traditions can play an ambivalent role: in some settings they can foster violence or act as a powerful driver of conflict, while in others they can be a resource for peaceful actions in being a ‘connector’. Faith-based actors and institutions have a central role to play in harnessing religion’s potential for building peace and transforming conflict.
— Aiming to support the efforts of faith-based multipliers, the Berghof Foundation and partners developed and piloted the ‘Peace Education meets Religion: Manual for Multipliers’ over the past two years.
— The Berghof Foundation invites you to the manual’s virtual launch and an interactive workshop introducing some of the manual’s specific methods.
— Register here

Wed. Sept 29, 7:00 pm Eastern Standard Time (Canada)
Annual Mahatma Gandhi Lecture on Nonviolence

Title: Environmental responsibility, social justice, and the Haudenosunee Great Law of Peace
— speakers
Prof. Dawn Martin-Hill, MacPherson Chair in Indigenous Studies at McMaster University
Prof. Rick Monture, Director of the Indigenous Studies Program at McMaster University`
— Zoom link: Meeting ID 948 0213 8608, Passcode: 515278

Uncategorized

United States Conference of Mayors Calls on the United States to Welcome the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons and to Act Now to Prevent Nuclear War and Eliminate Nuclear Weapons

DISARMAMENT & SECURITY .

An article from Pressenza (reprinted by permission)

At the close of its 89th Annual Meeting, held virtually due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, on August 31, 2021, the United States Conference of Mayors (USCM) Executive Committee unanimously adopted a bold new resolution Calling on the United States to Welcome the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons [TPNW] and to Act Now to Prevent Nuclear War and Eliminate Nuclear Weapons.


The resolution calls on the United States government “to welcome the Treaty as a positive step towards negotiation of a comprehensive agreement on the achievement and permanent maintenance of a world free of nuclear weapons.” It continues: “The United States Conference of Mayors welcomes the June 16, 2021 Joint Statement by President Biden and Russian President Putin in which they ‘reaffirm the principle that a nuclear war cannot be won and must never be fought’; and calls on the Biden Administration to reduce nuclear tensions through intensive diplomatic efforts with Russia and China, and to actively pursue a verifiable agreement among nuclear-armed states to eliminate their nuclear arsenals in conformity with requirements of international law preceding the TPNW by decades.”

Observing that, “according to a report by the International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons, in 2020, the nine nuclear-armed states spent $72.6 billion on nuclear weapons, with the U.S. leading at $37.4 billion, or $70,881 per minute,” the USCM resolution opens with a stark warning from the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists:

WHEREAS, on January 27, 2021, the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists announced it is keeping the hands of its Doomsday Clock at 100 seconds to midnight, the closest we’ve ever been to global annihilation, stating: “By our estimation, the potential for the world to stumble into nuclear war-an ever-present danger over the last 75 years-increased in 2020,” and noting: “the existential threats of nuclear weapons and climate change have intensified in recent years because of a threat multiplier: the continuing corruption of the information ecosphere on which democracy and public decision-making depend…[T]he COVID-19 pandemic is a wake-up call.”

The USCM resolution underscores that “tensions between the United States and Russia and between the United States and China have increased dramatically, with flashpoints in Ukraine and Taiwan that could potentially spawn nuclear confrontations.”

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Question related to this article:
 
Can we abolish all nuclear weapons?

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The USCM expresses its concern that “President Biden’s budget request for Fiscal Year 2022 increases military expenditures by $11 billion and extends funding for all nuclear warhead and delivery system upgrades in his predecessor’s budget, as well as its massive investment in the nuclear weapons infrastructure, to project nuclear weapons research, development, production, and deployment well into the 21st century, in violation of United States disarmament obligations under the 1970 Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty.”

The USCM resolution reports that “the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons (TPNW) entered into force on January 22, 2021, prohibiting the development, acquisition, possession, use or threat of use of nuclear weapons for those countries that have ratified it.” But it points out that, “while the TPNW represents the total repudiation of nuclear weapons by most of the states that do not possess them, the United States, the eight other nuclear-armed states and almost all of the countries under the U.S. nuclear umbrella boycotted the negotiations and have not joined the treaty.”

The USCM makes several concrete policy recommendations in its new resolution:

“call[ing] on the Biden Administration to fully incorporate United States obligations regarding non-use and elimination of nuclear weapons under international law into its forthcoming Nuclear Posture Review”;

“call[ing] on the President and Congress to cancel the plan to replace the entire U.S. nuclear arsenal with enhanced weapons and to redirect funds currently allocated to nuclear weapons and unwarranted military spending to address decades of inaction on infrastructure, poverty, the growing climate crisis, and rising inequality”; and

“call[ing] on the President and Congress to elevate arms control and disarmament as a federal priority by reestablishing the Arms Control and Disarmament Agency.”

As recognized in the resolution, “Mayors for Peace, founded in 1982 and led by the Mayors of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, is working for a world without nuclear weapons, safe and resilient cities, and a culture of peace, as essential measures for the realization of lasting world peace;” and “Mayors for Peace has grown to 8,043 cities in 165 countries and regions, with 219 U.S. members, representing in total over one billion people.”

Noting that, “The United States Conference of Mayors has unanimously adopted Mayors for Peace resolutions for sixteen consecutive years,” the USCM “urges all of its members to join Mayors for Peace to help reach the goal of 10,000 member cities.”

The 2021 USCM resolution was sponsored by Mayors for Peace U.S. Vice-President Frank Cownie, Mayor of Des Moines, Iowa, and co-sponsored by Nan Whaley, Mayor of Dayton, Ohio and current President of the USCM; Steve Benjamin, Mayor of Columbia, South Carolina and past President of the USCM; Patrick L. Wojahn, Mayor of College Park, Maryland; Roy D. Buol, Mayor of Dubuque, Iowa; J. Christian Bollwage, Mayor of Elizabeth, New Jersey; Jon Mitchell, Mayor of New Bedford, Massachusetts; and William Peduto, Mayor of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.

The United States Conference of Mayors  is the official nonpartisan association of more than 1,400 American cities with populations over 30,000. Resolutions Adopted at annual meetings become USCM official policy.

Click here for the full text of the resolution.

DEMOCRATIC PARTICIPATION, DISARMAMENT & SECURITY, North America

UN High Level Forum on The Culture of Peace

FREE FLOW OF INFORMATION

An announcement from the United Nations


The High-Level Forum on the Culture of Peace will be convened by the President of the 74th Session of the UN General Assembly on Thursday, 10 September 2020 as a virtual event via online platform.


Overview

The United Nations General Assembly adopted resolution 74/21 on 12 December 2019 at its 74th session, in which the Assembly requested the President, H.E. Tijjani Muhammad-Bande, to consider convening a high-level forum, as appropriate and within existing resources, devoted to the implementation of the Programme of Action on a Culture of Peace on the occasion of the anniversary of its adoption, on or around 13 September.

This is an opportunity to renew our commitment to the Declaration and Programme of Action on a Culture of Peace, our commitment to the United Nations and multilateralism, in particular under the challenging circumstances of the COVID-19 pandemic. To this end, the President of the 74th Session of the General Assembly will convene this year a virtual High-Level Forum, on 10 September 2020, to highlight the importance of the culture of peace to move forward in these trying times.
 
Background

On 13 September 1999, the UN General Assembly adopted, by consensus and without reservation, its pioneering resolution 53/243 on the Declaration and Programme of Action on a Culture of Peace. Asserting and reaffirming the commitment of all the UN membership for building the culture of peace, the General Assembly has been adopting resolutions on this issue every year since 1997. Through annual substantive resolutions for the last 20 years as well as annual High-Level Forums since 2012, the General Assembly has highlighted the priority it attaches to the full and effective implementation of these decisions and recommendations, which serve as a universal mandate for the international community, particularly the UN system, for the promotion of a culture of peace and non-violence that benefits humanity, in particular future generations.

Last year, on the occasion of the historic 20th anniversary of the Declaration and Programme of Action on a Culture of Peace, the President of the 73rd session of the General Assembly, H.E. María Fernanda Espinosa Garcés, convened a successful High-Level Forum on 13 September 2019, under the theme “The Culture of Peace: Empowering and Transforming Humanity”. The discussion reflected on the enduring value of the culture of peace, inter alia, for full and effective implementation of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and for a lasting peace.

In 2020, despite the difficulties in ensuring business continuity in the wake of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, it is of utmost importance that the United Nations continues to support the global movement to promote the culture of peace, its Declaration and Programme of Action, and that our response and recovery efforts are guided towards implementation of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.

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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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The Culture of Peace: Change our world for the better in the age of COVID-19

This year’s High-Level Forum is intended to be an opportunity for an exchange of views on possible ways to further promote the culture of peace, while the world is striving to recover and respond to the global pandemic and trying to address other pressing issues affecting the lives of many people around the globe. The COVID-19 situation has underscored the urgent need to leverage a culture of peace as a means of bridging divides across and within societies, as well as ensuring peaceful coexistence as a foundation for advancing the Sustainable Development Goals.

International cooperation and multilateral partnerships are necessary to tackle the pandemic and other global threats. Concrete action is needed by all stakeholders to realize this vision through education, inclusion, poverty eradication, and social cohesion, with more participation from women, the youth, and other segments of society.

The theme for the 2020 High-Level Forum will be “The Culture of Peace: Change our world for the better in the age of COVID-19”. Building global solidarity is the need of the time and can be achieved through promoting inter-cultural and inter-religious dialogue that enable communities to come together to better understand each other and stand against the spread of hate, intolerance, division, and discrimination. The resilient nature of people to overcome the challenges with renewed optimism should be strengthened and put at the core of all our collective response and recovery plans, so that this crisis does not exacerbate the already high levels of inequality and discrimination. Vulnerable populations with less access to health care, basic public services, and economic resources should be our top priority. The event will provide a platform to explore opportunities to change our world for the better after the pandemic.
 
Participation

Member States and Observers of the General Assembly are invited to participate in the virtual High-Level Forum. The meeting will be webcast and it is open to UN agencies, civil society organizations, and other stakeholders.
 
Format of the High-Level Forum

The High-Level Forum on the Culture of Peace, convened by the President of the 74th Session of the UN General Assembly, will take place on Thursday, 10 September 2020, via online WebEx platform from 10 am to 1 pm. The event will consist of an opening segment and a plenary segment. The opening segment will feature statements by the President of the Seventy-Fourth Session of the United Nations General Assembly, the Secretary-General, H.E. Anwarul K. Chowdhury Ms. Gabriela Ramos, Ms. Nihal Saad, and Dr. Francisco Rojas Aravena. The plenary segment will comprise statements by Member States and Observers of the General Assembly.

Member States are encouraged to deliver statements on behalf of a group of States, whenever possible. Member States are encouraged to limit their statements to three (3) minutes for individual delegations and five (5) minutes for statements made on behalf of a group of States. There will be a pre-established list of speakers and it will be open for registration before the event. In view of time constraints for the online plenary segment, delegations that did not have the opportunity to speak can send their statements for uploading on the PGA’s website. A President’s summary of the meeting will be circulated to Member States upon its conclusion.

FREE FLOW OF INFORMATION, global, United Nations,

English bulletin September 1, 2021

. AFGHANISTAN AND HIROSHIMA/NAGASAKI . . .

The commercial media this month was dominated by the American withdrawal (in defeat) from Afghanistan. However, it was difficult to find anything worthy of this bulletin, since we insist that articles must “promote at least one of the 8 domains of the culture of peace”.

Eventually we found something positive: the courage of Search for Common Ground to stick with their culture of peace principles and to resist the mass exodus from Afghanistan. The organization will continue working there on the grounds that “intensive and consistent dialogue between all parties is the key to building a safe, healthy, and just society.” Similar decisions were taken by a few other aid organizations, including Médecins Sans Frontières.

The defeat of the American Empire in Afghanistan has inspired renewed efforts to defend Julian Assange, who is under attack because of his courageous research and publications that predicted the defeat from the very beginning. As expressed in an article coming from his home country of Australia, “The true nature of the war in Afghanistan has long ago been revealed by Assange, Wikileaks and others, counter to the propaganda justifying and promoting the war. . . . As events in Afghanistan demonstrate, never has the call for peace and justice for all peoples been more urgent. And given Julian Assange’s situation, never has the call for his release been more urgent.”

Meanwhile, as usual, the most important events for human history are ignored by the commercial media. The greatest threat to humanity is nuclear weapons, and the media mostly ignored the calls coming from Hiroshima and Nagasaki and peace activists around the world to ensure that they will never be used again.

The mayor of Hiroshima, Kazumi Matsui, writes, “At this Peace Memorial Ceremony marking 76 years since the bombing, we offer heartfelt prayers for the peaceful repose of the souls of the atomic bomb victims. Together with Nagasaki and likeminded people around the world, we pledge to do everything in our power to abolish nuclear weapons and light the way toward lasting world peace.”

The mayor of Nagasaki, Tomihisa Taue, writes, “While extending our deepest condolences to those who lost their lives to the atomic bombs, I hereby declare that Nagasaki will work tirelessly alongside Hiroshima and all people who desire peace to spread a “culture of peace” around the world and bring about the abolishment of nuclear weapons and the realization of eternal peace.”

The United Nations Secretary-General, Antonio Gutteres, says he continues to be humbled by the “selfless acts of the hibakusha, the name given to those who survived and continue to bear witness. Your courage in the face of immense human tragedy, is a beacon of hope for humanity. I reaffirm the full support of the United Nations to ensuring that your voices are heard by the world’s people, and especially by younger generations.”

And the United National Antiwar Coalition (USA) writes, “Many people now believe that the bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki was not to end WWII, which was in its final days but to start the Cold War and show the Soviet Union and the world what the US could do if any country dared to oppose it. . . . the United National Antiwar Coalition sees the main danger of nuclear war coming from the United States and believes that we in the US have a special obligation to the world to oppose that danger.”

CPNN readers were invited this month to take part in three virtual conversations about Hiroshima and Nagasaki .

On August 6, a webinar on abolishing nuclear weapons was held by UNITAR, in collaboration with the UN Office for Disarmament Affairs, Hiroshima Prefecture and the Hiroshima Organization for Global Peace.

Also on August 6, peace activists associated with the United Nations in New York, including the NGO’s Voices for a World Free of Nuclear Weapons and Charter for Compassion held a webinar asking “Hiroshima Day: Have we done enough?”

And on August 5, antinuclear groups in Brisbane, Australia, commemorated the anniversary of the bombings with a webinar celebrating the work that the community has done over time in opposition to nuclear weapons. One of the speakers was the renowned Dr. Helen Caldicott.

We at CPNN join in the global chorus demanding the abolition of nuclear weapons before nuclear weapons destroy our planet.

FREE FLOW OF INFORMATION

Assange

Afghanistan and Julian Assange

TOLERANCE & SOLIDARITY

Benin

Benin: Traditional kings and religious leaders pray for peace in Parakou

SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT

IPCC
Climate change widespread, rapid, and intensifying – IPCC

DEMOCRATIC PARTICIPATION

Declaration
Declaration for the Transition to a Culture of Peace in the XXI Century

In addition to articles, we list virtual events for the culture of peace: Click here for upcoming events. Last month we registered 17 virtual events.

  

WOMEN’S EQUALITY

UNWomen

United Nations: Strengthening women’s meaningful participation in peace processes

DISARMAMENT & SECURITY

Hiroshima
The City of Hiroshima: PEACE DECLARATION

HUMAN RIGHTS


voting

58 Years After Historic Rally, Thousands March on Washington for Voting Rights, DC Statehood

EDUCATION FOR PEACE

Guernica

Childrens Message for Peace
Uncategorized

Involving the African Youth in the Biennale of Luanda

. TOLERANCE & SOLIDARITY .

An article from UNESCO

From 4 to 8 October 2021, UNESCO, the African Union and the Government of Angola are co-organizing the second edition of the Biennale of Luanda – “Pan-African Forum for the Culture of Peace”. The afternoon of the first day shall host the Intergenerational Dialogue of leaders and young people, whose central theme to be discussed will be “Cultural and Heritage Diversity of Africa and its Diasporas: Fires of Conflict or Ground of Peace?”

150 young participants from all over the world – particularly focused on the AU countries and the Diaspora – will join the Intergenerational Dialogue online and 10 people shall be participating physically with Ministers in charge of Youth and Culture to debate on the importance of cultural and heritage diversity of Africa and its Diasporas to promote the culture of peace in the continent. 

The youth and leaders shall discuss about the national appropriation of the Convention on the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage (October 2003), the Convention on the Protection and Promotion of the Diversity of Cultural Expressions (October 2005) and their positive impact on encouraging peaceful. coexistence and interaction of different cultural identities and heritage across  Africa; and, secondly, to question the relationship of young people with their culture and how they build their cultural identity in their relationship to otherness.
 

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Question related to this article:
 
Youth initiatives for a culture of peace, How can we ensure they get the attention and funding they deserve?

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In addition to the Intergenerational Dialogue, the 150 youth shall be following and actively participating to the Thematic and Good Practices Forums, focused on the following official themes:

– The contribution of arts, culture and heritage to peace

– Engaging young people as actors of social transformations for conflict prevention and sustainable development in Africa in the face of conflicts, crises, and inequalities

– Harnessing the potential of oceans for sustainable development and peace

An Online Dialogue!

These young people will be selected from among members of National Youth Councils, National Coordinating Bodies of the Pan-African Youth Network for a Culture of Peace (PAYNCOP), The African Union Youth Volunteer Corps, the ICESCO Youth Networks and other youth leaders and organizations, through a call for applications launched on 30 June and completed July 20.

In addition to the 150 selected ones, other young people will also be able to join the activities virtually from wherever they are, as well as trough decentralized participation and by scaling up efforts through digital platforms such as social networks. These are to be facilitated by UNESCO Field Offices, AU Youth Division and  Liaison Offices, National Commissions for UNESCO, ICESCO, ideally in partnership with Universities and Schools, digital campuses of the University Agency of the Francophonie, French Institutes and any other interested structure or entity. 

Africa, FREE FLOW OF INFORMATION, TOLERANCE & SOLIDARITY

58 Years After Historic Rally, Thousands March on Washington for Voting Rights, DC Statehood

. HUMAN RIGHTS .

An article by Julia Conley from Common Dreams (licensed under Creative Commons (CC BY-NC-ND 3.0). to republish and share widely)

A summer marked by rallies, motorcades, and pressure campaigns targeting lawmakers standing in the way of voting rights legislation culminated on Saturday in the 2021 March on Washington, where thousands demanded that Congress pass far-reaching measures to protect and expand the right to vote. 
Demonstrators traveled  from across the country to mark the 58th anniversary of the historic 1963 March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom.

As groups including the Poor People’s Campaign, Stand Up America, and Public Citizen have for months, thousands of protesters called on Congress to pass the For the People Act and the John Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act and to eliminate the legislative filibuster to do so if necessary.

The  For the People Act  would grant statehood to Washington, D.C.; ban partisan gerrymandering; implement automatic voter registration for federal elections, and take other major steps to expand voting rights.
 

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Questions related to this article:

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

How should elections be organized in a true democracy?

(Article continued from the left column)

The John Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act would restore full anti-discrimination protections to the Voting Rights Act of 1965.
 
Rev. Dr. William J. Barber II, co-chair of the Poor People’s Campaign, was among  those who spoke  at the event—officially  called  “March On for Washington and Voting Rights”—as well as Reps. Cori Bush (D-Mo.) and Mondaire Jones (D-N.Y.), relatives of the late Rep. John Lewis, and family members of George Floyd.
 
Addressing the crowd about statehood for Washington, D.C., Barber said the district’s nearly 700,000 residents have “been robbed” for more than 200 years.
 
“I didn’t say a thief came in,”  said  the reverend. “A thief is different than a robber. A thief is sneaky. But a robber takes your rights right in front of you.”
 
While right-wing Democrats including Sens. Joe Manchin (D-W.V.) and Kyrsten Sinema (D-Ariz.) are threatening the passage of far-reaching voting rights legislation with their support for the filibuster and claims that the bills are too “partisan,” Republican state legislators have  introduced  more than 360 bills restricting the right to vote, and dozens are moving towards passage. 
 
Speakers including the Rev. Liz Theoharis, who co-chairs the Poor People’s Campaign with Barber, connected ongoing attacks on voting rights to the climate emergency, economic justice, and the recent actions of the right wing-led Supreme Court—which gutted the Voting Rights Act in 2013 and this week  blocked  the Biden administration’s extended eviction moratorium.

“We must protest, we must rally, we must organize and mobilize and sit in and stand up,” said Theoharis. “Not just for a day. Not just for a summer. But until all people are housed, until all people are fed, until all people earn a living wage.”

DEMOCRATIC PARTICIPATION, HUMAN RIGHTS, North America

The cost of the global war on terror: $6.4 trillion and 801,000 lives

DISARMAMENT & SECURITY .

An article from Brown University

Nearly two decades after New York’s Twin Towers fell on 9/11, the estimated cost of America’s counterterrorism efforts stands at $6.4 trillion.

That’s according to a Nov. 13 report released by the Costs of War project based at the Watson Institute for International and Public Affairs at Brown University.

According to the report, since late 2001, the United States has appropriated and is obligated to spend $6.4 trillion on counterterrorism efforts through the end of 2020. An estimated $5.4 trillion of that total has funded, and will continue to fund, counterterrorism wars and smaller operations in more than 80 countries; an additional minimum of $1 trillion will provide care for veterans of those wars through the next several decades.

“The numbers continue to accelerate, not only because many wars continue to be waged, but also because wars don’t end when soldiers come home,” said Catherine Lutz, co-director of Costs of War and a Brown professor of international and public affairs and anthropology. “These reports provide a reminder that even if fewer soldiers are dying and the U.S. is spending a little less on the immediate costs of war today, the financial impact is still as bad as, or worse than, it was 10 years ago. We will still be paying the bill for these wars on terror into the 22nd century.”

In a separate report released on the same day, Lutz and Neta Crawford, another Costs of War co-director and a professor of political science at Boston University, estimate that between 770,000 and 801,000 people have died in post-9/11 wars. The total estimate includes civilian deaths — some 312,000 or more — as well as deaths of opposition fighters (more than 250,000), members of the U.S. military (7,014) and journalists and humanitarian workers (1,343).

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Question for this article:

Does military spending lead to economic decline and collapse?

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The Costs of War project, a joint effort between Brown’s Watson Institute and Boston University’s Frederick S. Pardee Center for the Study of the Longer-Range Future, was launched in 2011 with the goal of comprehensively documenting the costs of the United States’ counterterrorism wars in the wake of the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks. Unlike accounts of war costs released by the Pentagon, Costs of War financial reports take into account not only Department of Defense (DOD) spending but also spending by the departments of state, veterans affairs and homeland security, as well as the cost of interest paid on borrowed funds. The Costs of War death toll is calculated based on casualty reports released by the DOD and Department of Labor, figures provided by the United Nations, and obituaries and other news stories.

“If you count all parts of the federal budget that are military related — including the nuclear weapons budget, the budget for fuel for military vehicles and aircraft, funds for veteran care — it makes up two thirds of the federal budget, and it’s inching toward three quarters,” Lutz said.

“I don’t think most people realize that, but it’s important to know. Policymakers are concerned that the Pentagon’s increased spending is crowding out other national purposes that aren’t war.”

This month’s new reports are among the first to be published in the Costs of War project’s “20 Years of War” series, which recognizes the anniversary of the beginning of the global war on terror with new research and updates to existing papers. The research series launched thanks to a $450,000 grant from the Carnegie Corporation of New York, along with support from the Watson Institute and the Pardee Center.

All three of the Costs of War co-directors — Lutz, Crawford and Watson Institute Senior Research Associate Stephanie Savell— kicked off the “20 Years of War” series with a visit to Washington, D.C., on Wednesday, Nov. 13, where they presented their latest findings to the U.S. Senate Committee on Armed Services and an international pool of journalists.

“We have already seen that when we go to Washington and circulate our briefings, they get used in the policymaking process,” Lutz said. “People cite our data in speeches on the Senate floor, in proposals for legislation.

The numbers have made their way into calls to put an end to the joint resolution to authorize the use of military force.

They have real impact.”

DISARMAMENT & SECURITY, North America

Search for Common Ground: Engagement — Not Isolation — Offers Best Hope for Afghanistan

DISARMAMENT & SECURITY .

An article from Search for Common Ground

August 18, 2021 — Search for Common Ground expresses profound concern for the safety and well-being of the people of Afghanistan and urges the international community to engage with all parties, including the Taliban leadership, who can affect the well-being of the Afghan people. We also urge the Taliban to engage with the full diversity of Afghan society, as well as international actors, to support intra-Aghan reconciliation and the protection of the rights of all Afghan citizens.

“International isolation will hurt all Afghans by exacerbating an already-dire humanitarian crisis and raising the specter of renewed civil war” said Shamil Idriss, CEO of Search for Common Ground. “Engagement offers the best promise of securing progress toward internationally recognized standards to which Afghans – and all people – aspire, which are articulated in the UN Sustainable Development Goals and the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, including the rights of women and ethnic minorities. While international actors work to assure the safety of their colleagues and partners in Afghanistan, we ask that all who are able redouble their commitment to engaging and supporting the Afghan people and society.”

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Question related to this article:

Is peace possible in Afghanistan?

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In Afghanistan, Search for Common Ground will continue its work as guided by the Common Ground Approach. This is a process that: humanizes people using diverse methods devised by local teams who, themselves, embody the dividing lines that they seek to bridge; mobilizes people to advance common interests, understanding that shared success is the best way to build trust and make allies out of adversaries; and systematizes cooperation through changes in institutions and the culture of conflict resolution. This approach does more than resolve disputes; it changes systems.

Search for Common Ground recognizes that the Taliban, Afghan public, and international community share substantial common ground. All parties want Afghanistan to have standing and participate in the community of nations. All parties want a functioning nation-state that protects rights and dispenses services through functioning institutions. And all parties want basic security and dignity for Afghans in their daily lives. From this foundation of shared wants, peace can take shape.

“Afghanistan is facing a new and uncertain phase. Search for Common Ground encourages all parties to work towards a healthy, safe and just society. Isolation would likely lead to renewed violent conflict, and violent conflict is not a solution,” Idriss said.

(Editor’s note: At CPNN we have received an email from the Director of Search for Common Ground, Shamil Idriss, saying “We want you to know that we are not giving up. Our country director, Zuhra Bahman, and her staff are committed to continuing to work in Afghanistan. We are staying the course because we know that intensive and consistent dialogue between all parties is the key to building a safe, healthy, and just society.  . . Please send a gift today to help ensure Zuhra and her staff have the support they need — because they are needed now more than ever. All donations will be matched by a board member and worth 2X as much.”)

DISARMAMENT & SECURITY, Mideast, South Asia,