Lusaka, Zambia - The International Day of Peace was observed by UPF-Zambia at the Peace Embassy in Lusaka on October 15. More than 30 people, including religious leaders, students, Ambassadors for Peace, and UPF staff gathered to commemorate the event.
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The M.C. Mr. Matthew Mumba, UPF-Zambia staff member, opened the event by welcoming all the participants. The commemoration started with an opening prayer offered by Mr. Fabrice Djimadoum, UPF-Zambia Secretary. He introduced the speakers at the head table to the Ambassadors for Peace and invited guests.
The UN Secretary-General's message was read by Dr. David Kasuba, an active Ambassador for Peace and development consultant, and Mrs. Jaqueline Mutewa from the UPF-Zambia secretariat read the UPF statement on the International Day of Peace.
Two main speakers addressed the participants. The UPF-Zambia Chairman, General Malimba Nathaniel Masheke, gave opening remarks. In his message, he encouraged participants by saying: “We can choose to understand peace as calmness and comfort of one’s mind and body. There can be many ways to understand peace. To sustain peace, you must in the first place have it. Do you have peace? For us to assemble here, we must have peace. In other words, when peace is not maintained, there is no development, no future. No future means the end of existence, extinction.” He concluded his remarks by saying: “Human beings are the only ones who destroy one another and weaken the whole.”
The second speaker, Secretary General Rev. Rudolf Faerber, gave a PowerPoint presentation on the topic: “Understanding the Root Cause of Conflicts.” In his presentation, he emphasized patterns of conflicts going back to the first human beings. After his presentation, participants asked questions related to the theme.
A closing prayer was given by Mrs. Violet Kantakaluba, Women's Federation for World Peace-Zambia coordinator.
After a group photo of participants, refreshments were served to conclude the commemoration.
Reported by Fabrice Djimadoum, UPF-Zambia Secretariat
For more reports about International Day of Peace 2012 programs click here.