Opinions

In a tribute to Martin Luther King from the World March for Peace and Nonviolence, Tomas Hirsch honors Dr. King’s dream. Mr. Hirsch spoke at the Lincoln Memorial, in Washington, and referred to present dreams for a world without nuclear weapons and without wars. He declares his disappointment for President Obama’s decision to send more troops to Afghanistan.

“In the next 60 seconds, 10 children will die of hunger,” says a United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) online video. It continues, “For the first time in humanity, over 1 billion people are chronically hungry.” In addition to this online campaign, United Nations is hosting the World Summit on Food Security in Rome this week

Exactly one year ago, Pressenza was relaunched as an international press agency exclusively dedicated to peace and non-violence. The place and the occasion could not have been more inspirational. We were in the Park for Study and Reflection in Punta de Vacas, on the mountain frontier between Argentina and Chile for the symposium “Ethics in Knowledge”.

I had the honor to participate in the X Summit of Nobel Peace Laureates in Berlin 10-11 November. The Summit, entitled “Breaking down new walls and building bridges to ensure a World of Human Rights and a World without violence” brought together Nobel laureates who have made a significant contribution in breaking down the walls of conflict, poverty and human rights violations.

The artists will cover a 1,000 meter long wall, located in Santiago de Chile, with graphics on the themes of peace, nonviolence, and nuclear disarmament. Something never seen before!… The current Guinness record, set in 2007 for a 700 meter long wall created in Spain, is not even remotely the principal motivation for the participants, but it will be broken.

The following is the complete text of Silo’s speech made at the Tenth World Summit of Nobel Peace Laureates that took place November 11, 2009 in Berlin, Germany. After an introduction by Irish pacifist and Nobel Peace Laureate Mairead Corrigan Maguire, Silo spoke as the founder of Universalist Humanism and the inspiration behind the World March for Peace and Nonviolence.

This declaration, to be taken to the Nobel Peace Laureates Summit that will take place in Berlin on November 10th and 11th, requesting them to promote it from there, is signed by Patricia Arriagada and Roberto Kohanoff, in the name of the Middle East Team of the World March for Peace and Non-Violence, and Giorgio Shultze, Humanist European Spokesperson.

A report prepared by Marco Gandásegui, professor at the University of Panama and researcher associated with the CELA, demonstrates that the United States approved a military budget of 626 billion dollars in October 2009, the highest sum for a country in all of history. Alarming statistics and tendencies for a world that is on the brink of a possible nuclear tragedy.

“Why isn’t the arms industry threatened by strike?” asks Nobel Prize laureate in Literature José Saramago, at the release of his new book “Caim” at Casa da América in Madrid. Breaking his personal rule of silence, Saramago revealed the theme of his next novel, which will question the lack of protest among arms industry employees.

War correspondent Hernán Zin, echoing the words of Gervasio Sánchez on receiving the Ortega y Gasset award, in this article condemns the military agreement to be signed by the Governments of Israel and Spain that suggests the implicit support of an occupational army (that of Israel) and a betrayal of leftist ideals by Zapatero’s Government.