Up to 100 religious leaders from diverse faiths including Christianity, Judaism, Hindu, Sikh, Buddhist, Islam, Indigenous Spirituality and Shinto traditions will gather in Winnipeg in June 21-23, 2010 at the invitation of Dr. Lloyd Axworthy, President & Vice-Chancellor, University of Winnipeg and the Canadian Council of Churches

It is the first time Canada will host the G8 Religious Leaders Summit which, for the past five years, has been organized to complement the meeting of G8 political leaders. G8 leaders are meeting in Huntsville, Ontario, from June 25-27, 2010.

This high profile religious leaders from around the world will gather at The University of Winnipeg from June 21- June 23 to listen and report to one another – but most importantly collaborate on sending a unified message to government leaders of the G8/G20 nations.

The message will press governments to remain true to the eight Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) ratified by the 192 member states of the U.N. ten years ago. The goals aim to halve global poverty by 2015. The G8 nations – including Canada – pledged assistance in achieving the goals, but are well behind in meeting the promised deadline.

Faith leaders are also challenging each other to “not remain silent” on the MDGs, said Rev. Dr. Karen Hamilton, Chair of the Interfaith Partnership and General Secretary of the Canadian Council of Churches.

“Society is growing ever more ambivalent about the role and influence of the world’s faiths and their leaders. This is ultimately an exercise in proclaiming what we believe together, and acting on it together,” added Hamilton.

CALL FOR LEADERSHIP

Virtually all of the world’s major faith traditions hold to some form of the Golden Rule: treat your neighbour as yourself. Together, the world’s faith traditions will issue a “Call for inspired leadership and action,” said Hamilton.

The interfaith summit will feature some high profile speakers: Canadian Senator Romeo Dallaire, whose global warning about an impending Rwandan genocide was largely ignored; Rev. Jim Wallis (USA) of Sojourners magazine and long time activist for social justice; Rwandan Dr. Andre Karamaga, President of the All Africa Conference of Churches, H.E. Sheikh Shaban Mubaje, Grand Mufti of Uganda, and John McArthur (USA), CEO of Millennium Promise, an international non-profit organization solely committed to supporting the achievement of the MDGs.

There will be two concurrent events on opening day: religious communicators will meet to hear speakers and discuss how current issues of faith are represented in the popular media; a human rights and religious freedom themed event will address these issues from the perspective of poverty, the environment and peace and security.

First Nations representatives will welcome guests to the host facility at the University of Winnipeg, which sits on Treaty 1 land, and by University of Winnipeg President Dr. Lloyd Axworthy. Numerous side events including music and musical theatre are planned to represent the theme with added culture and color.

(Note prepared by Mussie Hailu, Chairman of the Board, Interfaith Peace Building Initiative, Ethiopia, Coalition member organization)

Some of IPEC’s partners become involved by signing memoranda of understanding (MOUs), while others participate without formal agreements. Among the first group we find CARE USA, Miss Dorothy.Com (a UK organization to educate people under age 16), Peace Waves, The Province of Pisa in Italy, Susuky Academy Talent Centre, Taking IT Global (an international charitable org.) and the World Organization of the Scout Movement (WOSM), which brings together the scout organizations from around the world.

Among the second group we find Carnevalspettacolo, Education International, Firenze Festival, Le respect, ça change la vie, Pro-ballet San Remo, etc. http://


www.ilo.org/ipec/lang-en/index.htm Click on Campaign and Advocacy
Click on Scream Paragraph, and/or
Click on 12 to 12 Partnership Initiative


Within the above framework, WOSM has provided information about their implementation of the SCREAM Programme in Egypt, Zambia, El Salvador, Jordan and Lebanon. This is an on-going project since 2002 with the aim of helping educators (scouts) worldwide to cultivate young people’s understanding of causes and consequences of child labour.

The SNAMMM addressed the existing, new and emerging challenges to the promotion of a culture of peace and development.  It also reaffirmed that the common fundamental values contained in the United Nations Millennium Declaration of freedom, equality, solidarity, tolerance, respect for nature, and shared responsibility are essential to international relations.

Of special interest for the DECADE Initiative is paragraph 27 of SNAMMM’s Declaration, which acknowledges “the important and significant role civil society, faith-based non-governmental organizations and media could play in promoting interfaith and intercultural dialogue and understanding towards fostering social justice, and, in particular, the attainment of the internationally agreed development goals, including the Millennium Development Goals”. Furthermore, in its Progamme of Action, SNAMMM “Encourage faith-based non-governmental organizations and civil society to support the efforts of governments as well as to develop partnerships among each other, in order to cooperate for social and economic justice, for all within the society”.

118 countries are associated to NAM, having Mr. Hosi Mubarak, President of Egypt, as its Secretary-General.

Read the Declaration and Progamme of Action

In its last paragraph the resolution …

“Requests the Secretary-General to report to the General Assembly at its sixty-fifth session on the implementation of the present resolution and, at its sixtysixth session, in coordination with the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization, to further solicit views of Member States on the possibility of proclaiming a United Nations decade for interreligious and intercultural dialogue and cooperation for peace, building on the information contained in the reports of the Secretary-General at the sixty-fourth and sixty-fifth sessions and the relevant initiatives to be taken in the course of 2010.”

Although the possibility of proclaiming a UN Decade of Interreligious and Intercultural Dialogue and Cooperation remains in the GA agenda, a decision on this matter is now likely to be postponed until 2011.

(See the full text of the revised project of resolution; the final text has not yet been published by the UN UNGA resolution A.64.L15.rev1)

UNICEF and religious groups act as advocates in a variety of programs, among them:

- educational projects for out-of-school and abused children,

- advocacy and education for HIV/AIDS awareness and prevention,

- combating sexual commercial exploitation of children and child labour,

- best possible health care for children,

- promotion and defence of children’s rights, and

- integration of child rights promotion and child protection into social action programs led by churches and religious groups.

Link:  http://www.unicef.org/media/media_4537.html

UNICEF   -  LATIN AMERICA

UNICEF and the Latin American Episcopal Confrence (CELAM) have carried out jointly programs directed at protecting the social rights of children and adolescents and their families in L.A. & the Caribbean for over 20 years. Some examples of successful projects are:

Dominican Republic

Project Name: Name and Nationality in the Dominican Republic.

The project represents a campaign “For the Right to a Name and Nationality” under the joint action of UNICEF, the Catholic Church, and the Government through the Office of Civil Registration, an agency of the Central Board of Elections (JCE).

It began in the year 2000 after UNICEF and CELAM signed an agreement to jointly attack the problem of under registration of births. It is an example of partnership work in the Diocese of San Juan de la Maguada (Southern Region of Dominican Republic), where in the year 1998 there were some 80,000 undeclared people.

Project achievements include the granting of birth certificates to 5,004 children below the age of 12 during the period September-December 2001. Another 14,300 received certification of their identity between June-October 2002, allowing them to become actual citizens and claim their rights (formal education for example) or those of their ancestry.

UNICEF Santo Domingo collaborates by financing project’s operations, preparing the legal documentation, disseminating educational material and carrying out workshops to train volunteers doing the work. The Official Clerk’s Office of the JCE files the information collected from the volunteers. The Catholic Church, through the Dominican Center for Legal and Research Advisor (CEDAIL), the legal arm of the Catholic Church, facilitates the legal documentation of children: birth certificates and official enrolment in schools.

Project has been extended to other communities of the country with great success.

Link:  http://www.unicef.org/media/media_4537.html ; go to paragraph ‘In Latin America’; pinch on ‘Read More’; and pinch Download 5 Histories (pdf).

Guatemala

Project Name: Participation

The country’s history of violations of human rights linked to the internal armed conflicts that devastated Guatemala for 36 years, are the motivating forces behind this project, a joint work of UNICEF and the Office of Human Rights of the Archbishop of Guatemala (ODHA).

Three existing documents/reports plus the Peace Agreements constitute the basis for this project about education for peace. These reports are: ‘Guatemala: Never Again’, of the Interdiocesian project; ‘Guatemala, Silent Memory’ of the Committee for the Clarification of History (CEH); and the Pastoral Letter ‘A True Peace is Urgent’ from the Guatemalan Episcopal Conference.

The basic premise of this joint program is that national reconciliation and harmony would require a profound effort of cultural transformation, and that could only be accomplished through an active policy of education for peace, in a way that ‘never again’ …

The project aims at developing pedagogical materials for primary school teachers and for the first three years of basic education, whereby a culture of peace can be built based on historical memory and civic values. It is considered that the historical memory, both individual and collective, form the basis of the national identity, and that the dissemination of new civic values in the education of children and young people is needed to build sustainable peace. Among these values are: self-esteem, the truth, respect and tolerance, the capacity of dialogue, justice, cooperation and solidarity.

The ultimate goal is to develop the critical capacity of children and young people in the face of the current value system and to promote the creation of fairest forms of living together.

The Catholic Church is not only centered on awareness of the historical memory but in an understanding of the causes behind internal armed conflict, in a reflection upon the pain and fear, the loss of the tragedy. They are also interested in creating a new type of citizen, more committed, more aware of their own reality and capable of implementing and making changes toward building a different Guatemala.

UNICEF, in its work with the Church, provides technical assistance and funding resources.

Link:  http://www.unicef.org/media/media_4537.html ;  go to paragraph ‘In Latin America’ ;  pinch on ‘Read More’; and pinch Download 5 Histories (pdf).

Colombia

Project Name: Faces of the Children’s Friendship School.

This project takes place in some towns of the municipality of Ayapel, Cordoba Department, a northern region of Colombia.

This unique concept of Friendship School is quite different from the ones normally found in rural areas. They are more like ‘living spaces’ where children’s rights are fostered and protected. From a perspective of rights they contribute to the children’s holistic development and wellbeing, thus focusing on a model of democratic participation with emphasis on integration and coherence elements in terms of inclusion, permanence, and scholastic success. The educational process is applied to shaping the conscience of the students, their respect for the rights of others, participation, mobilization of the community, creativity and daily practices.

In 2002 UNICEF, through an agreement with CELAM and, in some cases with the Local Secretary of Education, has contributed more than one million US dollars to transform 23 schools into Friendship Schools. They basically help children displaced by the armed conflict, having bebefitted more than 2,000 children.

Children learn what is necessary to develop their greatest potential, through participation and awareness of being able of the capacity to act as a community involved in their own evolution.

In the midst of an armed conflict, the alliance between the Catholic Church and UNICEF began to bear fruits (year 2003): children happily studying.

Link:  http://www.unicef.org/media/media_4537.html ; go to paragraph ‘In Latin America’; pinch on ‘Read More’; and pinch Download 5 Histories (pdf).

UNICEF  -  ASIA

Afghanistan

Project Name: Mobilizing Religious Leaders in Afghanistan.

A report of May 2003 indicates than in Afghanistan Islamic leaders have being developing positive partnership with UNICEF to promote core services and programs for women and children. In most communities, especially those in rural parts of the country, imams and mullahs are seen as both spiritual and religious leaders, and also a trusted source of guidance and advice on issues of the day.

UNICEF has taken up the potential of the religious community in the country to assist in the promotion of messages relating to children’s rights. In May 2003, UNICEF supported the first national workshop on children’s issues for religious leaders from across the nation. This 3-day seminar brought together religious leaders from all 32 provinces to discuss the role and importance of children within an Islamic context. High on the agenda was the issue of education for all, along with health and basic services for women and children.

Link:  http://www.unicef.org/media/media_13249.html

http://www.wcrp.org/files/RfP%20Annual%20Report%202007.pdf

The Role of Religious Communities in Addressing GBV and HIV

http://geotourism.changemakers.com/en-us/node/8022