Region

Indigenous movements throughout the world have called for a “Global Minga for Mother Earth,” which will take place October 12-16, 2009. Its purpose is a large-scale peaceful mobilization toward the United Nations in order to put an end to global warming. Also, during its stop in Bolivia, it will inaugurate the first Climate Justice Tribunal.

In front of the monument dedicated to the great Philippine national hero, pacifist José Rizal, Mayor Alfredo S. Lim declared Manila’s support for peace and non-violence and symbolically offered the keys to the city to Rafael de la Rubia, president of World Without Wars, organizer of the three-month-long march for peace that will circle the world.

US President Barack Obama won the Nobel Peace Prize on Friday less than a year after he took office with the jury hailing his “extraordinary” diplomatic efforts on the international stage. The President said he was “both surprised and humbled” by the Nobel Committee’s decision. The decision is seen as an encouregement towards peace efforts in his nine months office.

A few kilometers from the Gaza Strip, Peace and Non-Violence Days were organized in cooperation with the socialist kibbutz movement Hashomer Hatzair and members of the World March for Peace. Jayme Fucs Bar declared: “We want to live in peace, Israelis and Palestinians, Jews and Muslims, without hatred, we want to watch our children grow up without violence and with a future…”

Rana Al-Arja and Lubna Bandak from Holy Land Trust and Patricia Arriagada from Chilean organization The Community for Human Development met with Bethlehem Governor Mr. Abed Al Fattah Hamayel in order to invite him to join the World March for Peace and Nonviolence. He wholeheartedly welcomed the idea and confirmed his participation during the March.

On Wednesday, October 7th, activists from the Humanist Movement entered the Obelisk, a national historic site located in downtown Buenos Aires, where they hung an orange banner almost 50 meters long with the logo of the World March for Peace and Nonviolence, accompanied by orange pennants. The non-violent direct action was widely reported in local newspapers.

North Korea says it is prepared to return to six-party talks on its nuclear programme as long as the US agrees to bilateral meetings first to improve “hostile relations” between the two countries. The US says it wants to restart negotiations to convince North Korea to end its nuclear programme. A planned visit by special US negotiator Stephen Bosworth is expected this month.

The World March for Peace and Non-Violence definitely experienced one of its emotional highpoints on the morning of October 7th. The base team members were invited to attend the formation, before their very eyes, of the largest human peace sign, executed to perfection by over 12,000 students from schools in the town of Lucena, in the south of the Philippines.

A report produced by the humanitarian organizations Amnesty International, Oxfam, Greenpeace and Fundació per la Pau (Foundation for Peace) reveals that Spain is currently the sixth largest arms exporter, after the United States, Russia, Germany, France and England. According to the report, in 2008 Spain made 934 million Euros worth of defense material transactions.

Gaza children’s artwork, is an exhibition of paintings and drawings done by children in Gaza following the Israeli 22 day assault earlier this year. As a result, over 300 children were killed, many more injured, 1,400 children orphaned of at least one parent, 30 percent of children suffer serious mental health problems and all the children are traumatised.