Category Archives: Europe

Neighbours as friends, not enemies: Nordic-Russian seminar, Oslo, 3.- 4. February 2020

FREE FLOW OF INFORMATION

Statement sent to CPNN from Ingeborg Breines

A Nordic-Russian civil society seminar was organized in Oslo 3. – 4. February 2020 by the Women’s International League for Peace and Freedom, Norway, and the Norwegian Peace Association. The theme of the seminar was “Neighbours as friends, not enemies”. The seminar, which gathered some 45 participants from Denmark, Finland, Norway, Russia and Sweden was a follow up to a Nordic peace and dialogue trip to Russia in May 2018. The seminar was held at the Peace Research Institute Oslo, and was funded by the Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs. The organisers are already planning a follow up seminar in Norway in 2021.


Photo from the 2020 dialogue trip – click on image to enlarge

The main intention with the seminar was to strengthen relations between peace activists in the North, discuss common challenges and visions and contribute to mutual understanding and perhaps even help reduce the present tension. The tension between the West and Russia is one of the drivers behind the present militarization and arms’ race, involving both conventional and nuclear weapons.

Participants had open discussions on how to promote peace, disarmament and a sound environment, and agreed to seek ways to continue with practical and strategic forward-looking initiatives and solution-oriented dialogues. Many echoed the words of the Mayor of the border city of Kirkenes that our security lies in the strengthening of people to people cooperation across borders.

The use of enemy images and the demonization of leaders both in mainstream political discourse and media is dangerous as it installs fear and also is meant to influence peoples acceptance of rising military budgets.

Participants agreed that we should not accept that the world’s resources, natural, financial and intellectual, are being misused for military purposes, and that we need to prove that this thinking is dangerous, naive and obsolete. The military actually makes us less safe, both economically and ecologically, by taking so much of the resources that are needed for other purposes and by the enormous greenhouse gas emissions, the radiation and pollution it provides. We cannot allow the military to be an exception to international climate agreements. Instead we must move the money to be able to tackle the real security issues such as the threat to the very survival of humanity and the planet, be it by climate change, environmental degradation, excessive inequality or nuclear weapons.

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Question related to this article:

Solidarity across national borders, What are some good examples?

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Different alternatives were discussed of how we can contribute to changing attitudes in order to reverse the nuclear and space-arms race, reduce defence spending and get us out of the dominant growth oriented, militarized, confrontational and competitive patterns. In short, how can we build common security, human security, a culture of peace, and non-violence.

Among the concrete suggestions were to:

* continue the sharing of knowledge and ideas,

* get inspiration from each other’s culture and art,

* work for the strengthening of civil society and democratic practices,

* seek ways of producing and consuming which ensures the well being of all and the integrity of the biosphere.

* establish permanent structures for peace, such as ministries and departments for peace to promote peace at all levels,

* cherish and use the UN, diplomacy and multilateral cooperation,

* help implement the UN Sustainable Development Goals and the Paris Agreement on climate,

* strive for a non militarized and nuclear free Arctic and Baltic Sea basin,

* maintain the Arctic Council non-militarized and operational,

* gather individual signatures and cities in support of the UN Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons,

* continue to warn against nuclear and other hazardous waste and make waste management safer,

* seek closer cooperation between the peace movement and environmental organizations,

* actively learn to work across generations and share knowledge and priorities,

* cross borders and seek new partnerships with “sister” groups and organisations.

Finally, it was considered most vital to build trust between peoples, so essential for real cooperation, and for our survival.

Click here for the final report from the seminar.

Europe, FREE FLOW OF INFORMATION

Switzerland: Lutheran World Federation marks World Interfaith Harmony Week

TOLERANCE & SOLIDARITY .

An article from the Lutheran World News (non-commercial use)

During the first week of February, the Lutheran World Federation (LWF) is joining with the World Council of Churches  (WCC) and many other faith-based organizations to mark the 10th edition of World Interfaith Harmony Week.


Photo from the celebration at the United Nations

The annual event was first proposed by King Abdullah II of Jordan and adopted unanimously by the UN General Assembly in October 2010. The following year, the LWF Council responded by encouraging all its member churches to enhance understanding, harmony, and cooperation among people of different faiths in their respective contexts.

To mark this year’s event, the LWF’s Program Executive for Public Theology and Interreligious Relations, Rev. Dr Sivin Kit, is participating in a round table discussion entitled ‘Rethinking Interreligious Engagement in a Wounded World.’ The event, to be held on 7 February in Geneva’s Ecumenical Center, is sponsored by the WCC and includes religious leaders from different faith groups alongside diplomats, peace activists and members of grass-roots communities.

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Question related to this article:
 
How can different faiths work together for understanding and harmony?

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Dialogue integral to Christian life and witness

Kit, who was ordained and worked in the multifaith context of his native Malaysia, says: “Dialogue and engagement with people of other faiths, in a humble manner, is integral to our Christian life and witness.”  He adds: “Healthy interreligious relations are particularly relevant in today’s world, where we are not only aware of religious diversity and vitality in society, but also how religion is easily misused for political mileage.”

Personal relationships, practical cooperation and a shared sense of community, Kit believes, are the keys to building trust and improving interfaith harmony. To help promote greater understanding of other faith communities, the LWF is publishing an online reader with a selection of articles exploring some of the key issues at the heart of the Christian’s encounter with believers from other faith communities.

Blessed are the peacemakers

Interfaith dialogue and cooperation to build mutual understanding is a priority for the LWF and a daily reality for members of many of its member churches and World Service country programs in different parts of the globe. In 2018, World Service staff worked closely with Islamic Relief Worldwide  (IRW) to publish a practical guide entitled ‘A Faith Sensitive Approach in Humanitarian Response’. The LWF is currently working with IRW to organize an international conference in October 2020 entitled ‘Welcoming the Stranger, Shaping the Future’.

The World Interfaith Harmony Week, Kit says, is an important reminder “that we need to work harder to cultivate healthy interfaith relations by reaching out to those who are unlike us (and perhaps to those who don’t like us too). This week can serve as an opportunity for us to create safe spaces where people of different faiths can share about the rewards and challenges of living in their respective contexts.”

In some cases, he continues, “these contexts reflect highly secularized environments; in other situations, religious communities are confronted with political instability and even the threat of violence. In times like this, how do we interpret the multifaith reality we live in? Is it a threat to our religious survival or can it be an opportunity for us to be peacemakers?  The answer from the words of Jesus is clear: “Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called the children of God.”

Europe, global, TOLERANCE & SOLIDARITY, United Nations, ,

UK: Oxford City Council says “no” to nuclear weapons

DISARMAMENT & SECURITY .

An article by Rachel Cordery from Cherwell

Oxford City Council has called on the British Government to sign the International Treaty to Prohibit Nuclear Weapons (TPNW). The resolution, proposed by Councillor John Tanner, was agreed “overwhelmingly” by the City Council on Monday [January 27].

Before backing the Treaty, the City Council want the UK government to renounce its use of nuclear weapons and end the renewal of Trident.

Cllr Tanner said: “Replacing Trident missiles is costing Britain a huge £205 billion, twice the cost of the high-speed rail line, HS2.

“Nuclear weapons are costly, outdated and ineffective. Most countries, including Ireland, Germany and Japan, manage perfectly well without them.”

“I’m thrilled that Oxford is backing this treaty to begin scrapping these weapons of mass-destruction. If there was ever a nuclear war the world would be plunged into perpetual winter and the survivors would all starve to death,” he added after the meeting.

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Question related to this article:

Can we abolish all nuclear weapons?

How can culture of peace be developed at the municipal level?

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Cllr Maryn Rush, who seconded the resolution, said: “I am concerned about the huge cost to the taxpayers of nuclear weapons, the risk posed by the regular transport of nuclear weapons on Oxfordshire’s roads and the continuing threat of nuclear war.”

Britain has four nuclear-armed submarines, each with eight missiles, each of which carries five independent nuclear warheads. Each warhead is eight times more destructive than the bombs that were dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki in 1945.

Mr Nigel Day, representing Oxford’s Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament (CND), spoke to councillors before the resolution was debated. He said: “Trident warhead convoys regularly travel past Oxford on the A34, supporting the UK nuclear weapons system. We are that close to nuclear weapons.”

The resolution, which had been proposed in September 2019, focused on the City Council’s long-standing commitment to disarmament. It reads: “Oxford City Council has been a long-standing member of the Nuclear Free Local Authorities (NFLA) which has been working for over three decades to promote multilateral nuclear disarmament.

“Oxford City Council is particularly concerned about the huge cost to the taxpayer of nuclear weapons, the risk posed by the regular transport of nuclear weapons on Oxfordshire’s roads and the continuing threat of nuclear war.

“NFLA has worked with Mayors for Peace and the International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons (ICAN) to promote the International Treaty to Prohibit Nuclear Weapons (TPNW). Over two thirds (122) of United Nations member states have agreed the TPNW.

“Council regrets that the Governments of the existing nuclear-weapon states, including the UK, refuse to support the Treaty. Council fully supports the TPNW as one of the most effective ways to bring about long-term and verifiable multilateral nuclear disarmament.”

With 122 nations supporting the treaty, Paris, Berlin, Sydney and Los Angeles are among the other cities supporting the TPNW. More locally, Manchester, Edinburgh and Norwich have passed similar resolutions to Oxford.

DEMOCRATIC PARTICIPATION, DISARMAMENT & SECURITY, Europe

Spain: Professor Marta Gonzalo Quiroga recognized for her impetus to the culture of peace

… EDUCATION FOR PEACE …

An article from the Universidad Rey Juan Carlos

A teacher from FCJS [Faculty of Law and Social Sciences Campus de Madrid] has recently received the ‘Medal of Professional Merit for promoting the Culture of Peace, Dialogue and Mediation’, awarded by the Spanish School of Mediation and the Journal of Mediation.

The award rewards more than 20 years of work in this field from the URJC professor who explains that she felt very grateful for this recognition.

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(click here for a version in Spanish).

Question for this article:

Mediation as a tool for nonviolence and culture of peace

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This medal falls to Marta Gonzalo for promoting mediation with its own scientific autonomy at the Spanish University. In this sense, the teacher recalled that “for a long time now the URJC has opted to introduce mediation and the Culture of Peace.” This fact is demonstrated by the existence of the Own Title of ‘Mediation Expert’ and the University’s membership in various interuniversity research networks in the field.

“We need mediation to be transversal”

Marta Gonzalo considers “very necessary” the impulse of a culture of greater dialogue and understanding, “now we are in a moment in which everything is radicalized and judicialized, we must promote dialogue and negotiation”.

For this teacher “mediation must be transversal and especially exercised by politicians to do their job better and find solutions to the problems of citizenship.”

The delivery of medals was held last Friday 17 and took place within the framework of the Chair of Social Welfare, Communication, Education and Employment UDIMA-EDAE. In the previous edition, personalities such as the former mayor of Madrid, Manuela Carmena and the journalist Irene Villa were awarded.

EDUCATION FOR PEACE, Europe

Cyprus: We have no alternative but peace, President Anastasiades tells Akinci

. .DISARMAMENT & SECURITY. .

An article from In-Cyprus

The status quo in Cyprus is not the choice of Cypriots, President Nicos Anastasiades said on Monday, adding that “there is no other choice or alternative but to bring peace to our land” while addressing Turkish Cypriot leader Mustafa Akinci.


President Anastasiades attended this morning the ‘Imagine’ Head Teachers Conference, organised by the bicommunal Technical Committee on Education, in Ledra Palace, in the presence of Akinci, the UN Secretary-General’s Special Representative Elizabeth Spehar, the heads of the Technical Committee, as well as Greek Cypriot and Turkish Cypriot head teachers.

In his address, President Anastasiades referred to the peaceful coexistence of Greek Cypriots and Turkish Cypriots, he said however that the interventions by third parties “without excluding nobody” led to the problems that followed. “What we are looking for is Cypriots, Greek Cypriots and Turkish Cypriots, to take on the fate of this country by creating the conditions for peaceful coexistence” and their future, the President added.

He also said that his presence in the conference, together with Akinci, aims at send a message of support for the actions and initiatives of the Technical Committee for Education.

Speaking about the status quo on the island, President Anastasiades said that it does not allow fellow compatriots to enjoy the rights, freedoms and the level of prosperity other EU citizens enjoy. We acknowledge the difficulties but with respect to each other’s sensitivities and concerns and through mutual respect, we ought to merge what we consider to be the joint interests of Cypriots, he added.

The only way to achieve this is by creating a viable and functioning bicommunal federal state, securing our joint future in a united Cyprus, member of the EU, without dependencies on any third parties.

The President called on teachers to continue educating critically thinking and active citizens who will search for creative solutions to the challenges that may arise in the future.

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Question for this article:

Can Cyprus be reunited in peace?

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He also welcomed the initiatives undertaken by the Technical Committee, particularly through the ‘Imagine’ programme that brought together more than 4,000 pupils and 650 teaches in the last 2,5 years.

He also pointed to educational activities in schools against racism and in order to develop a culture of peace. Among others, the President said that pupils are being taught Turkish Cypriot literary texts translated into Greek, while Turkish lessons are optional for high school pupils.

Before attending the conference, President Anastasiades made a statement calling for respect towards Cyprus, while saying that the country can not be a vassal of any third country.

He said that without disregarding the ethnic origin, the conference aims to cultivate a culture of peaceful coexistence, “an important element in the framework of the efforts we are making for peaceful coexistence if and when conditions allow us to work as Cypriots in order to solve the Cyprus problem as an independent country.”

These are steps to the right direction, but they are not enough for a Cyprus solution, the President added and called for respect towards Cyprus.

In his address, the Turkish Cypriot leader Mustafa Akinci referred to the importance of cultivating a culture of peace in Cyprus and highlighted the value of education.

Speaking through an interpreter, Akinci said that people may have different views and goals, but it is important to have a culture of peace in order to address these issues.

He also noted the importance of dialogue while trying to solve differences and referred to the need to respect equality, multiple identities and pluralism. All these elements are essential for the federal government to work, Akinci added.

He said that the decision with President Anastasiades to form the bicommunal technical Committee back in 2015 was “the most important decision we took with my friend Nicos.”

He noted finally that the Technical Committee has a long way to go and referred to the curricula and the instruction of Greek and Turkish in the schools. We need to encourage these initiatives in order to see them implemented and have peace, Akinci concluded.

The conference was also addressed by the Heads of the Technical Committee for Education, Michalinos Zembylas and Meltem Onurkan Samani, while professor Tony Gallagher from Queen’s University in Northern Ireland delivered a speech about the transformational leadership for peace.

DISARMAMENT & SECURITY, Europe

At Major March in Madrid, Indigenous & Youth Activists Slam Global Leaders for Climate Inaction

. . SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT . .

A broadcast by Democracy Now (licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License.)

We broadcast from Madrid, Spain, where the 25th United Nations climate conference is in its second week and representatives from almost 200 countries have gathered for the final days of negotiations. The summit — known as COP25, or conference of parties — has so far focused on meeting the 2015 Paris Agreement to limit global temperature rise to “well below 2 degrees Celsius,” or 3.6 degrees Fahrenheit. But climate scientists say the talks are failing to produce the drastic measures necessary to address the climate crisis. Since the Paris Agreement four years ago, greenhouse gas emissions have risen by 4%, and this year’s summit shows no sign of arresting that trend.


Full video of broadcast

On Friday, as hundreds of thousands prepared to take to the streets of Madrid in protest, Swedish climate activist Greta Thunberg told reporters that the global climate strikes have “not translated into action” by governments. Protesters then marched through Madrid’s city center Friday night in a massive climate demonstration led by indigenous leaders and youth activists. Democracy Now! was there in the streets.

AMY GOODMAN: We’re broadcasting from inside the United Nations Climate Change Conference here in Madrid, Spain, where representatives from almost 200 countries have gathered for the final days of negotiations. The climate summit, known as COP25 for “conference of parties,” has so far focused on meeting the 2015 Paris Agreement to limit global temperature rise to well below 2 degrees Celsius — that’s 3.6 degrees Fahrenheit. But climate scientists say the talks are failing to take the drastic measures necessary to address the climate crisis. Since the Paris Agreement four years ago, greenhouse gas emissions have risen by 4%, and this year’s summit shows no sign of arresting that trend. On Friday, as hundreds of thousands prepared to take to the streets of Madrid in protest, 16-year-old Swedish climate activist Greta Thunberg addressed reporters.

GRETA THUNBERG: We have been striking now for over a year, and still basically nothing has happened. The climate crisis is still being ignored by those in power. And we cannot go on like this. It is not a sustainable solution that children skip school. We cannot go on like that. So, we don’t want to continue, so we would love some action from the people in power, I mean, because people are suffering and dying from the climate and ecological emergency today, and we cannot wait any longer.

AMY GOODMAN: Protesters then marched through Madrid’s city center Friday night in a massive climate demonstration led by indigenous leaders and youth activists. Democracy Now! was there in the streets.

PROTESTERS: ¡Ni una especie menos, ni un grado más! ¡Ni una especie menos, ni un grado más!

VIDYA DINKER: My name is Vidya. I’m from India, the south of India, a coastal community. Coastal communities across Asia are now, you know, getting that bad end of the stick because of the climate emergency. We are here to speak for our people. We know that our governments and everybody in the U.N. is now being controlled by lobbyists with oil companies and fossil fuel companies. This cannot be. We need to cut through, and we need to see that the voice of the people is heard here. There must be a loss and damage fund so that people can cope with climate emergencies.

PROTESTERS: What do we want? Climate justice! When do we want it? Now!

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Question for this article:

Sustainable Development Summits of States, What are the results?

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

Are we seeing the dawn of a global youth movement?

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GODWIN OJO: I’m Godwin Ojo. I’m from Nigeria, Environmental Rights Action, Friends of the Earth. We are here to stop corporate power. We are here to stop corporate capture of the state, corporate capture of the United Nations, corporate capture of resources. And we want to make the voices of local communities all over the world to count, and to put an end to climate change. Nigeria is highly impacted. All over the south, there is flooding. A lot of people are dying from climate change. And now the farmers are not able to plant because there is rainfall problems in Nigeria.

TA’KAIYA BLANEY: My name is Ta’Kaiya Blaney. I’m from the Tla’amin Nation, which is located in lands illegally occupied by Canada. And I’m here because indigenous youth are on the forefront of climate change. And the climate solutions being proposed by our government are a continuation of indigenous genocide. In the Wet’suwet’en territory, we have Coastal Gaslink invading those homelands and forcibly removing indigenous people from their ancestral territories for LNG, which is, according to these governments, a climate solution because it’s a transition from coal. So we’re here to say that, like, climate solutions and the fight for climate change has to be a fight for indigenous peoples, and it has to be a fight for indigenous rights, because, as indigenous youth, we don’t have a choice to act. This is about our survival.

PROTESTERS: What do we want? Climate justice! When do we want it? Now! What do we want? Climate justice! When do we want it? Now!

JUAN PABLO ORREGO: I’m Juan Pablo Orrego from Chile. And we are marching for fighting climate change and also for, you know, the stop of the repression in Chile, where people are getting hurt. And we are walking for deep changes in our economic systems so we stop hurting the environment and harming people. Chile is a country that is extremely vulnerable to climate change for geographical reasons. You know, we have the driest desert in the world, in the north. So we are being affected severely. We have a desertification process happening in three-quarters of the country. It’s very severe. The river that feeds water to Santiago de Chile has lost 50% of its flow in the last decade. That’s how serious this is. And, you know, this is the 25th conference, and nothing has changed. They have been talking for 25 years, a quarter of a century, and nothing has changed, really, in the ground, and carbon dioxide keeps rising in the atmosphere. So, when are we going to really act — you know, the governments — to change things in the ground? If you go to the COP, the official COP, you’re going to see that all the companies that are guilty for the situation we are in today are sponsoring the COP. So it’s a very powerful greenwashing.

PROTESTERS: ¡Ni un grado más, ni una especie menos! ¡Ni un grado más, ni una especie menos!

ALETHEA PHILLIPS: [speaking Omaha-Ponca] Hello. My name is Alethea Phillips. I’m from the Omaha Tribe of Nebraska. I’m here with SustainUS’ first-ever all-indigenous youth delegation to attend the U.N. climate negotiations. It’s really powerful for all these indigenous people to be coming here to Spain, somewhere that was — that has impacted us so heavily by colonization and the continuation of colonization in the climate crisis. For us, a lot of people at COP, these countries, they have never learned how to live sustainably. They’ve always been based upon a system that takes and needs more and more, whereas indigenous people, like, our traditions have always been sustainable, and because of colonization, that’s been taken away from us. So, for us to be here, it’s not so much that we’re trying to learn how to live sustainably. We’ve always been protectors of the land. We’ve always worked with nature, not against it. So, going forward, it’s really important that we really look to indigenous people as leaders of the climate movement, and not just victims.

TOM GOLDTOOTH: We’re here to build solidarity. We’re here to stand in support of the people of Chile. We’re here to support the people of Colombia and Ecuador and Brazil who are fighting climate capitalism. We have to stand together with the people of the streets and of the forests and the land and the oceans, fighting neoliberalism, fighting imperialism. We’re fighting against the United States and its white supremacy, militarization. We have to look at these things and stand together in solidarity with the people.

AMY GOODMAN: That last voice, Tom Goldtooth, executive director of the Indigenous Environmental Network.

Europe, global, SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT, United Nations, ,

#NousToutes : Tens of thousands march in Paris to condemn violence against women

. WOMEN’S EQUALITY .

An article from Reuters

Tens of thousands of people demonstrated Saturday in Paris and other cities in France to say “stop” to sexual and sexual violence and feminicide. Among other personalities present in the procession, actresses Alexandra Lamy and Muriel Robin, as well as former minister Najat Vallaud-Belkacem claim more resources to the government.

The demonstration at the call of feminist collective #NousToutes started on Saturday, November 23, from the Place de l’Opera towards the Nation. Tens of thousands of women and men have broken the streets in Paris – 49,000 according to the firm Occurrence working for a media collective – but also in other cities in France, to say “stop” to gender-based violence and sexual.

According to the feminist collective #NousToutes, the thirty or so marches organized in France brought together “150,000 people”, including “100,000 in Paris”.

“This is the biggest step in the history of France against violence” sexist and sexual, welcomed one of the organizers Caroline De Haas, in a message to the media.

Outside Paris, police or prefectures counted 5,500 demonstrators in Lyon, 2,000 in Rennes, 1,650 in Strasbourg and 1,000 in Bordeaux.

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(Click here for a French article about this event.)

Questions for this article

Protecting women and girls against violence, Is progress being made?

How effective are mass protest marches?

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“We need a billion euros”

In the purple tide of the Parisian procession were mingled anonymous, organizations and political parties (family planning, CGT, CFDT, EELV, LFI, PS, Unef, PCF, SOS homophobia), but also many personalities including the former minister Najat Vallaud-Belkacem. “It is urgent to listen to the associations,” she said at the microphone of Alexandra Renard, France 24 journalist present in the event. “When they ask for money, it is because they know that we need to finance emergency housing, psychological support for women and children, we need justice to be better. equipped to move the files forward more quickly, “she adds.

Noting the presence of many children and young adults, the former Minister of National Education – who was also Minister of Women’s Rights from 2012 to 2014 – evokes a “real awareness”, which should have already taken place in 2017 in the wake of the #MeToo movement. “That was not the case, that’s why the street is grappling with this problem now to tell the government ‘we need a billion euros’, it’s a figure that takes into account these victims, those dying women and their children who are barely followed psychologically then. ”

At his side, the actress Alexandra Lamy also participates in the march. In his right hand, a sign says “I believe you, you are not for nothing”. “We hope that the state will provide the means for women to feel listened to, welcomed, and especially to tell them that we are here,” she told our reporter, before calling back the number for women victims of violence, 3919.

“The deal is changed because we are many and numerous, but we must already apply the law,” says meanwhile humorist Muriel Robin. “The Council of Europe has pointed out ‘There are huge shortcomings, things that should be done and not done’, she adds, ‘what are we being told?’ ”

The one who played Jacqueline Sauvage on screen is demanding results. “It falls every two days! Our sisters, our colleagues, our friends, our mother … It is no longer possible, they are assassinations!”

“We have not reached the end yet”

“This is a phenomenon that crosses all our societies and we are more or less advanced, from one country to another, in the repression of this phenomenon,” said Najat Vallaud-Belkacem. “France is not the worst in this area, we have adopted many laws that allow better protection

Europe, WOMEN'S EQUALITY

Pope Francis’ declaration in Hiroshima marks another historic step in the fight for the total elimination of nuclear weapons

DISARMAMENT & SECURITY .

A press release from 7ZEIZH

Pope Francis’ declaration in Hiroshima is another historic step in the fight for the total elimination of nuclear weapons, Roland Nivet and Edith Boulanger, national co-spokespersons of Mouvement de la Paix, have jointly declared.

The declaration of Pope Francis in Hiroshima on November 23, 2019 in which he states that “the use of atomic energy for military purposes is a crime” and that “a world without nuclear weapons is possible and necessary” and finally that “The time has come to renounce nuclear weapons and build a collective and concerted peace” is another historic step in the struggle for the total elimination of nuclear weapons. In his time the academician Jean Rostand speaking of the atomic weapon said “to prepare a crime it is already a crime”.

(Click here for the French version of this article.)

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Question related to this article:

Can we abolish all nuclear weapons?

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Six months into the beginning of the work of the review conference of the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) at the UN in May 2020 which will bring together all states, we can only welcome the fact that the Pope also calls “To support all international instruments of nuclear disarmament, including the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty and the Nuclear Weapons Banning Treaty” adopted at the United Nations on 7 July 2017.

Pope Francis’ proposal for the money devoted to these works of death to be devoted to human development and the struggle for the climate corresponds to the slogan adopted by the 160 or so organizations of the Collective On the Move for Peace, which called for September 21 (International Day of Peace) to march “for peace, climate, social justice and nuclear disarmament”.

All peace-loving people, regardless of their ideological, religious, trade union or political beliefs or affiliations, will, we believe, find an additional reason to act for a world without nuclear weapons.

A few days ago we sent a letter to all French Parliamentarians proposing the adoption, as part of the preparation of the Budget 2020 of France, an amendment to this Finance Act to freeze the credits planned in 2020 to the modernization of nuclear weapons.

While the majority of the government has voted to double the funds earmarked for atomic weapons, we hope that the Pope’s statement will perhaps cause them to reflect and take into consideration our amendment proposal.

DISARMAMENT & SECURITY, East Asia, Europe, global, ,

In a major win for the environment, world’s largest bank says goodbye to fossil fuel financing

. . SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT . .

An article from Nation of Change

Environmentalists have a reason to celebrate this week. The European Investment Bank (EIB) announced on Thursday that it will phase out its financing completely for fossil fuels within the next two years.


A power station in Poland. Photo: Sean Gallup/Getty Images

The bank’s decision to end all financing of oil, gas, and coal projects after 2021 will make it the first multilateral lender to rule out financing for projects that contribute to the climate crisis.

EIB’s board voted on the decision on Thursday. They hope that this step will make EIB, which is the world’s largest multilateral financial institution, the world’s first “climate bank.”

“Climate is the top issue on the political agenda of our time,” said the bank’s president, Werner Hoyer. “We will stop financing fossil fuels and launch the most ambitious climate investment strategy of any public financial institution anywhere.”

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Question for this article:

Divestment: is it an effective tool to promote sustainable development?

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EIB’s vice president, Andrew McDowell, went even further, calling this step “an important first step – not the last step, but probably one of the most difficult.”

Environmentalists are praising the bank’s decision. Bill McKibben of 250.org called it a “truly amazing win” and Friends of the Earth Europe said  the decision is a “significant victory for the climate movement.”

The decision is part of the bank’s new energy lending policy, passed with overwhelming support, and doesn’t outright ban fossil fuel projects but makes most of them impossible by instilling the following guidelines:

“Energy projects applying for EIB funding will need to show they can produce one-kilowatt hour of energy while emitting less than 250 grams of carbon dioxide, a move which bans traditional gas-burning power plants.”

According to Reuters, “Gas projects are still possible, but would have to be based on what the bank called “new technologies,” such as carbon capture and storage, combining heat and power generation or mixing in renewable gases with the fossil natural gas.”

Although the announcement is a year later than climate activists were hoping for, it calls for limited approval for projects already under appraisal by the bank. This could cause massive problems for the oil and gas industry, which according to The Guardian  has more than $200 billion in liquified natural gas projects planned over the next five years.

Regardless of the timing, the blow to fossil fuel industries is sure to be massive. Environmental groups have estimated that between 2013 and 2018 EIB handed out €6.2m every day to fossil fuel companies.

In the words of 350 Action Germany campaigned Kate Cahoon, this is “the beginning of the end of climate-wrecking fossil fuel finance.”

Europe, global, SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT,

Cyprus: Salpy Eskidjian Weiderud: “Work for a world that’s a better place”

TOLERANCE & SOLIDARITY .

A article by Susan Kim for the World Council of Churches

Salpy Eskidjian Weiderud, leader of the Religious Track of the Cyprus Peace Process, received an International Religious Freedom Award from the US Department of State on 17 July. She paused to speak with WCC Communication with a word about what has inspired her life’s work for peace.


Photo: Kyriakos Arkatides

Q: You are fresh from receiving the International Religious Freedom Award. How did the ceremony move you?

Weiderud: It was extremely overwhelming and it’s a huge honor. I’m humbled. It’s important because it will help shine a light on the joint efforts of the religious leaders in Cyprus to advance religious freedom, and also inspire others working on issues of religious freedom around the world.

Q: Have you always been passionate about being a peacemaker?

Weiderud: Yes! I myself grew up with stories of my ancestors being persecuted, deported and massacred. My family came as refugees from Turkey to Cyprus. My grandmother was five at the time, and my great-grandparents brought her and her siblings to Cyprus. I grew up hearing their stories of pain, fear and violence. Yet at the same time my family did not choose hatred. There was so much pain; still they chose to talk about faith, hope and love. They practiced what they preached. Their stories of coexistence and friendships inspired me. I grew up on a divided island where conflict and its transformation became an existential reality. To me, there was no other option: you worked for a world that was a better place. A world that was free and safe for all, where everyone’s human rights were respected. So nothing else made sense to me.

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Question related to this article:
 
How can different faiths work together for understanding and harmony?

Can Cyprus be reunited in peace?

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Meeting amazing committed people in the ecumenical movement was another inspiration for me to be a peacemaker.

Q: In 2017, the Religious Track of the Cyprus Peace Process released a joint statement of the religious leaders of Cyprus condemning all forms of violence against women and girls. What do you think is the best way to address gender-based violence?

Weiderud: In my area, working with faith leaders, especially in Cyprus, the biggest step has been to take responsibility through  joint action so that religious leaders don’t feel they are taking steps by themselves. Together, they advocate for each other’s rights and religious freedom. For the first time ever, Christian and Muslim religious leaders of Cyprus made a commitment against this violence.

Q: How has the Religious Track followed up on this statement with action?

Weiderud: We continuously facilitate the process to ensure that the statements and actions keep their unity, and that statements and actions are well-rooted and owned by the religious leaders. We have helped religious leaders make new alliances with women’s organizations in both the Greek Cypriot and Turkish Cypriot communities and take full responsibility of their own commitments. We are working to ensure safe spaces for sharing of information and developing joint action.  It’s very important to ensure that everyone feels feel connected and that they are working together — victims and religious leaders.  Our work takes time, it requires patience, sensitivity and service but it’s worth it because we ensure that there is unity and ownership to move statements into action.  It’s been exciting for us to organize events that have been unheard of, such as the social media campaign 16 Days of Activism for the Elimination of Violence against Women and Girls.

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