Dusseldorf, Germany - UPF-Germany held a Day of Peace event on September 18 in Dusseldorf to raise awareness about the UN Millennium Development Goals. There was music, dance, interactive learning about conflict resolution, and intercultural exchange.
“Peace by piece-Contribute Your Part!" was the motto of the program in the recently constructed citizens' hall in the Bilker shopping center. The audience of some 110 people, mostly youth, wanted to call attention to the upcoming International Day of Peace and the Anti-Poverty Summit at the UN.
In her welcoming address, Ambassador for Peace Petra Heuwind-Saidy expressed her delight at the large participation of young people and emphasized the importance and hope for the future that they are holding in their hands. Clemens Hoffman, age 24, a student at Dortmund University, introduced UPF`s five guiding principles for peace with interreligious and intercultural cooperation as the central pillars of peace work.
The highlight of the event was joining in the worldwide initiative to "STAND UP-Take Action" in front of the hall of the shopping mall. Guests and passers-by joined to form a human chain creating the word “PEACE.”
Herbert Beier and Werner Fehlberg announced on a megaphone the official proclamation of the UN about the Millennium Development Goals. The proclamation was targeted at representatives at the Anti-Poverty Summit in New York and other politicians who have not kept their promises to reduce poverty.
The first musical contribution of the afternoon came from a youth band from Frankfurt called “April.”
The main speaker, Karl-Christian Hausmann, President of UPF-Germany, outlined the role of both donor and receiving countries. The challenge for the rich countries is to keep their promises; for the poor countries it is to fight corruption. Furthermore, world peace can be achieved only by overcoming national, religious, and cultural barriers. He challenged each person to take personal responsibility for caring for others and contributing to the whole.
Marianne Butzlaff, a sociologist, biographer, and coach for personal development and team training, explained how important it is to be centered and united in one’s own mind and conscience as prerequisites for doing something for others. She gave examples of how psycho-social insights apply to everyday life.
Based on the topic of character formation was the next lecture of the Ghanaian teacher and social worker Yakubu Iddrisu, founder and director of the after-school project of the Community Partnership for Youth and Women's Development in Tamale, northern Ghana. After a short overview of the basic facts of the country and the community, economy, the social and family life and education, he introduced the project, inviting young people to Ghana to do social work there for short periods or during longer stays, enabling them gain experience while helping people there.
Maartje Bos, a social worker from the Netherlands accompanying Jakubu, described her six-month experience in Ghana. "We sometimes are too arrogant to want to help the poor Africans," she commented, "but we can also learn from them their family values and close relationships."
Then two youths, Kathrina Schmidt, age 21, and Gracia Fehlberg, age 22, spoke about their year of voluntary service with the Dutch-based Youth Service International, during which they visited Ghana for three weeks.
After a longer break for sushi, soup and sandwiches, the audience enjoyed a traditional Tamil dancing group from Neuss. Five girls aged six to eight delighted the audience with their graceful and earnest performance. It was followed by a song by BAM, with the lead singer Regina Spari and Viola Hara on the keyboard.
To begin the second part we distributed cards on which everybody could express his personal meaning of peace. The cards were then pinned on a board forming the peace sign. At the end, the two MCs, Abirami Paramanatham and Verena Hoffmann, read some of the most beautiful ones.
To reflect on what we heard that day, Herbert Beyer gave us three questions to ask the person sitting next to us. The evening ended by standing and joining hands to sing together “Where Peace Begins.”
In conclusion, Anja and Sergio Brina, heads of UPF-Düsseldorf, expressed appreciation to all who made the event possible—not only those on the stage but also all who helped in the background with the preparation.
“After such a successful event,” said Sergio Brina, “we are not at the end, but at the beginning of new possibilities to strengthen our work on the local level. In the future UPF-Dusseldorf wants to focus more on the local reality and embrace the youth, because they have the potential to live up to the challenges we face around us.” Local high school students collected donations to support the evening program.
To read about UPF-Netherlands support for Community Partnership for Youth and Women's Development in Ghana, click here.