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Peace Road 2018 Held in Zambia
Written by Fabrice Djimadoum, UPF-Zambia
Saturday, August 18, 2018
Lusaka, Zambia—Peace Road 2018 in Zambia was held on Saturday, August 18, 2018, in Lusaka under the theme “Connecting the World Through Peace Road.” The event was organized by UPF-Zambia in conjunction with the Family Federation for World Peace and Unification (FFWPU), the Women's Federation for World Peace (WFWP), Youth and Students for Peace (YSP), and the Tong-Il Moo Do Federation Zambia Chapter.
The event commenced from the Civic Center with a “flag off” by Rev. David Isaac Phiri, president of the Zambia chapter of the FFWPU. Then the marchers, motorcyclists and cyclists paraded from the Civic Center to the Government Complex Building at the Freedom Statue. The march took about 40 minutes.
The Peace Road March was decorated with the 32 professional cyclists from the Zambia Peace Road Agency. The march was led by the brass band of the United Church of Zambia Boy’s Brigade of St. Paul’s Congregation and police officers assigned for clearance of the road. Among the participants were the 16 members of the youth group of the Patriotic Front Party, the ruling party, as well as youths from the main opposition, United Party for National Development, in harmony.
After all had arrived at the Freedom Statue, the master of ceremonies, the coordinator for Zambia’s Interreligious Association for Peace and Development (IAPD), Pastor Erick Kashala Mutewa, invited the brass band to play the national anthem prior to the commencement of the main event speech. Thereafter he welcomed the secretary general of the UPF-Zambia, Rev. Rudolf Faerber, to give his welcoming remarks.
In his remarks, Reverend Faerber started by explaining the initiation and the history of the Peace Road. He expounded more on the concept and the philosophy of the founders of UPF, Rev. Sun Myung Moon and his wife Dr. Hak Ja Han Moon. He said that the Peace Highway , which begins from South Africa, is intended to link nations in the world to realize true peace and live under one God as a family.
He said that freedom is a symbol, of peace and peace binds us together to become one with the cords of love. Therefore, we have to reflect how much we struggled to attain it and should treasure it. That is why the Peace Road helps us to reflect positively on why we are here on earth. In spite of having different cultures and tribes, Peace Road can help us learn from one another and live in harmony by making viable businesses with other nations. He ended by thanking all who had spared their precious time to attend the event.
After welcoming remarks, the emcee, Pastor Mutewa invited the Patriotic Front Party youth chairman of Lusaka province to greet the audience. Mr. Yona Longe reminded the audience that since we have only one Zambia, we ought to handle this fragile nation with care. He said that God will not continue creating another Zambian nation if we neglect caring for our country given to us by God.
Miss Peace Zambia 2018, Salifyanji Namonje, praised the efforts of the UPF-Zambia Chapter in promoting harmony and peace among nations. She urged all to be part and parcel of propagating peace across the world by starting from their respective homes.
The YSP resident, Mr. Andrico Tshaba, stated that youths are not merely leaders, but they are leaders of today. Therefore, youths should continue to maintain the present peace we have in Zambia otherwise in the absence of peace there will never be “One Zambia, One Nation” in future.
The president of the Zambia Peace Road Agency, Allan Friday Malawo, thanked UPF for being in the forefront of planting seeds of peace for development. He encouraged all the participants to preach the message of peace wherever they go.
The WFWP Zambia chapter president, Mrs. Sheila Chanda Mwenda, emphasized that peace starts in a home where a woman has learned to live at peace with her family. She also gave compliments on the importance of a marriage of one husband and one wife. Finally, she explained how a woman facilitates the extension of the lineage in the family.
Rev. David Isaac Phiri started his speech by informing the audience that peace must begin with each individual. Everyone is responsible to contribute to the propagation of peace in the world. In order to have peace in the world, first, each of us should have peace within ourselves. Before conquering the world, we must conquer ourselves.
Rev. Phiri elaborated that this nation belongs to God. All citizens do come and go through birth and death, but God remains, forever watching over his own nation. Therefore, all of us ought to have the perception that the people we meet in this nation belong to God. Religions and politics should not be used to divide or segregate us but to unite us to live and work together in harmony. For peace to keep on prevailing in our nation, we must take the message of peace to all the ends of Zambia.
After the speech, the emcee read out the five main core values of UPF as follows:
- We are one human family created by God
- The highest achievements of men and women are rooted in spiritual and moral development.
- The family is the “School of Love and Peace.”
- Peace comes through dialogue and cooperation.
- Service is the foundation of reconciliation.
After the speech, the emcee invited the Tongil Moo Do group to carry out its martial art demonstration. Before they came on the stage, the MC read through the background and objectives of Tongil Moo Do.
After the demonstration, Rev. Rudolf Faerber thanked all for attending the event and offered a benediction. Rev. David Phiri also thanked all participants for their patience during the event. He encouraged the ruling party of the government to open its hands to the lost sons of Zambia: All should live together as one and forget about any differences in our tribes and religions for the sake of peace.
The closing prayer was made by Mrs. Chimfwembe. After the closing prayer refreshments were served to all participants.
Peace Road 2018 in Zambia was covered and aired nationwide by CBC Television and Prime Television. It was conducted colorfully with no incident.If you find this page helpful and informative please consider making donation. Your donation will help Universal Peace Federation (UPF) provide new and improved reports, analysis and publications to you and everyone around the world.
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