Peace and Disarmament

On May 15th, 15.000 youths walked in solidarity to express their civic involvement in the streets of Montreal, Canada. This event was organized by Club 2/3, the youth division of Oxfam Quebec. These young people walked in support of the populations in the poorest countries and of environmental issues. They are aware that individual and collective actions have a positive impact on their future and on future generations.

In a meeting with the Israeli Prime Minister, Obama made a proposal that marks a difference with the previous policy pushed by his predecessor George W. Bush.

Several important objections have come in, from knowledgeable and experienced observers, to my last column arguing that pronouncing oneself in favour of human rights should predicate opposition to war. One is from Professor George Kent of the University of Hawaii, who says:

*“I think it is important not to mix outrage at particular incidents within wars with opposition to war as such. The two call for quite different strategies.

Prospects for dealing with particular violations of humanitarian and human rights law seem better than prospects for banishing war altogether. New institutional arrangements are needed to ensure accountability for those violations. Having the perpetrators chant, ‘We are investigating’ is not good enough”*.

The President of Bolivia, Evo Morales, formalized his endorsement of the World March for Peace and Nonviolence in a meeting that took place with the Latin American spokesperson for Humanism, Tomas Hirsch.

These were the words expressed by Rafael de la Rubia, president of World Without Wars and coordinator of the World March for Peace and Nonviolence, in his presentation of the World March in Spain.

“The acceleration of everyday life, the growth of arms technology and the over-development of the global economy with ensuing global climate change among many other issues has left the world in a far more precarious place than ever in the history of civilization”.

Promoters of the World March for Peace and Nonviolence gather endorsements in the streets

The international organization World Without Wars gathered in downtown Santiago city center as part of the campaign to collect a million signatures for Peace.

Colombia’s main news station will periodically report news regarding the first planetary march that seeks to raise awareness on nuclear disarmament and an end to all wars.