Liaison Newsletter > LIAISON Vol. 3, No. 3, May 1999 - Articles

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Hague Appeal for Peace Hopes to Create a Culture of Peace for the 21st Century
By Elliott Spagat, Communications Officer, UNA-Canada

Over 3,000 people representing more than 1,000 international organizations, a dozen governments and the General Assembly of the United Nations are expected to attend the Hague Appeal for Peace in the Netherlands from May 11-15.

This past century has seen more and bloodier conflicts than any others. The Hague Appeal for Peace (HAP) is a campaign and conference aimed to delegitimize armed conflict and to create a culture of peace for the 21st century. The HAP coincides with the 100th anniversary of the First Hague International Peace Conference, which was held not to conclude or settle a war, but to focus on peace-building and conflict prevention efforts. Now, more than ever, the time is approaching for these goals to come into fruition. Through the HAP campaign and conference, organizers and participants will measure the successes of the peace movements of the last century, see where some had succeeded while others failed, and then define and launch actions and initiatives that will succeed in the future.

The four "strands" or topics that are to be addressed define the goals of the HAP. The first strand, International Humanitarian & Human Rights Law & Institutions, will aim to strengthen the role and rule of international humanitarian and human rights law and institutions. The second strand, Prevention, Resolution & Transformation of Violent Conflict, focuses on conflict resolution and the ways in which third parties may be used to seek peaceful alternatives to armed conflicts. The third, Disarmament, Including Nuclear Abolition, introduces the idea of the end of war in the global arena and the reduction of armed forces and weaponry to legitimate self-defence levels. Finally, The Root Causes of War — A Culture of Peace, will examine the many underlying root causes of war and seek to find ways to remedy these problems and therefore promote a culture of peace in the future. This strand will also discuss the plans for 2000 - the International Year for the Culture of Peace as declared by the General Assembly of the United Nations and for the International Day of Peace in September.

Participants of the HAP will be addressed by such notable leaders in the field of peace-building and conflict prevention as: General Secretary of the United Nations, Kofi Annan, Queen Noor of Jordan, South Africa’s first lady Graca Machel and four Nobel Peace Prize winners.Canada’s Minister of Foreign Affairs, the Honourable Lloyd Axworthy is expected to attend the HAP on behalf of Canada.

The Board of UNA-Canada has endorsed the HAP and encourages our Branches and members to support this important initiative and its follow-up recommendations.

For more information on the Hague Appeal for Peace see the World Federalists of Canada’s website at http://www.web.net/~wfcnat/hapcan.