Lisbon, Portugal—The International Association of Parliamentarians for Peace (IAPP) was inaugurated in Portugal at a conference held in the national parliament.
Approximately 100 parliamentarians and other dignitaries attended the conference, "Perspectives for Sustainable Peace in Europe and the World: The Responsibility of Parliamentarians."
The Portuguese chapters of UPF and Women’s Federation for World Peace (WFWP), an affiliated organization, jointly organized the event, which was held on April 13, 2018, in the Assembly of the Republic.
Also supporting the event were the Lusophone University of Humanities and Technologies, the Platform for the Lusophone Diaspora, the CPLP Business Confederation, Radio Horizonte and TV Kuriakos.
The afternoon program consisted of two sessions. The first, which shared its title with that of the conference, was moderated by Dr. José Sérgio da Rosa Vieira, national president of UPF-Portugal.
The second session, "Portugal and the Question of Integration: Prospects for Mutual Prosperity," discussed Portugal's relationships with its immigrants and with its former colonies. The moderator was Dr. Marta Maria de Carvalho Rodrigues, national president of WFWP.
To preside over this event, UPF invited Dr. Katsumi Otsuka and Mr. Jacques Marion, the president and vice president, respectively, of UPF of Europe; and Mr. Giuseppe Calì, president for southern Europe of the Family Federation for World Peace and Unification (FFWPU), another affiliated organization.
The organization had the honor of welcoming as a guest speaker Dr. Ana Isabel Meira Rita, a member of Parliament from the Portuguese-speaking African nation of São Tomé and Príncipe. Dr. Meira Rita was a participant of the Africa Summit, a major event held by UPF in January 2018 in Dakar, Senegal.
Hon. Teresa Caeiro, the vice president of the Assembly of the Republic, opened the first session of this significant conference, receiving and welcoming the audience.
The highlight of the conference, the launch of IAPP in Portugal, was held at the end of the first session. The national inauguration was consecrated by all those who signed the IAPP resolution, which expresses the will of its founders toward the mission of this new association, which already has been launched in more than 60 nations.
As a UPF project, IAPP provides an informal network in which parliamentarians can work together for peace and human development. It also provides a forum for parliamentarians from all nations and political parties to unite in a spirit of dialogue and cooperation to find solutions to local, national, regional and global problems.
Earlier in the program, UPF expressed its gratitude to the Assembly of the Republic when its European president, Dr. Katsumi Otsuka, offered a flower bunch to Hon. Teresa Caeiro, the vice president of parliament. Hon. Caeiro also received from UPF a special plaque of recognition and acknowledgment for the Assembly of the Republic.
The 12 speakers included six parliamentarians (two of them leaders of the parliamentary group in the respective parties), two researchers, a former minister of Guinea-Bissau, and the vice rector of the Lusophone University. The event was covered by television, radio, and other reporters.
Also participating in the event were several Ambassadors for Peace (from UPF and WFWP), current and former parliamentarians, representatives of the diplomatic corps and municipal councils; leaders of some religious denominations and various civil society organizations and associations.
