Lima, Peru—UPF-Peru concluded its activities for the year with a celebration of UN Human Rights Day 2016 at the Congress of Peru.
On December 16, 2016 Ambassadors for Peace together with friends and colleagues gathered in the historic Miguel Grau room, named after the renowned Peruvian naval officer Admiral Miguel Grau Seminario (1834-1879), of the Congress. The normal capacity of the room is 100 people, but due to the popularity of the event, more than 160 attended, and staff of the Congress had to bring in more chairs for the guests.
Congressman and Ambassador for Peace Dr. Yonhy Lescano, who had been re-elected for another four-year term in the general elections that were held in Peru earlier in 2016, co-sponsored the event.
Guest speakers included human rights expert and former Director-General for Human Rights of Peru Juan Alvarez Vita.
Mr. Vita is a career ambassador who has represented Peru in Argentina, Hungary, Austria and Switzerland and at the United Nations in Vienna, Geneva and New York. He is also a linguist and a historian.
After the speeches, a tenor and a soprano sung classical songs and two well-known Peruvian musicians performed Peruvian folk songs.
The celebration concluded with the appointment of 17 new Ambassadors for Peace. Afterwards everyone gathered on the steps of the Congress for a photo and received a panetón (or panettone), a sweet bread usually enjoyed for Christmas and the New Year, before they departed.
Click here to view video coverage of the event.