Politics

Excellent news for the Quebecois! The organising committee of Non-violence Week in the Saguenay region in partnership with Stéphane Bédard, deputy of Chicoutimi, obtained the introduction of a bill on non-violence at the National Assembly of Quebec on November 12. This bill aims to designate 2 October every year as International Day of Non-violence.

The Peace Torch will be outside the public entrance at Holyrood from 13:00 hours, Tuesday 17th November. SNP MSP Bill Kidd has joined Minister for Parliament Bruce Crawford to welcome the World March for Peace and Nonviolence to the Scottish Parliament today, as the peace torch arrived at the Parliament at 13:00 hours.

The World March for Peace and Non-Violence base team was festively greeted by local organising teams at the Barcelona airport. Later, a delegation participated in various receptions held in Barcelona’s City Hall, the Generalitat (Catalonia’s autonomous government), and the Parliament of Catalonia. The Charter for a World without violence was given to Catalonian authorities.

Famine can be defeated using only 10% of what is currently spent on arms. This is the demand that volunteers from the international humanist organisation “World Without Wars and without Violence” put to the Presidents of the world, meeting this morning in Rome at the Summit proposed by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations.

World leaders convened at FAO Headquarters for the World Summit on Food Security today unanimously adopted a declaration pledging renewed commitment to eradicate hunger from the face of the earth sustainably and at the earliest date.
The Summit declaration vows better governance, increased investment and proactive climate change strategy.

The Zero Nuclear Weapons Forum was held in Toronto this weekend, bringing together renowned experts and activists for informative discussions on nuclear disarmament. Over 250 people attended, and what was perhaps most notable throughout all the talks was the sense of optimism and hope that achieving a world free of nuclear weapons was now becoming possible.

Representatives of the honourable municipal council of Moreno, in the province of Buenos Aires, gave Silo the title of ‘Guest of Honour’ of the municipality. The authorities also invited the founder of Universalist Humanism to participate in a caravan for non-violence that will take place on December 27th and will pass through various spots in Moreno.

Various events marked the Base Team’s first day in Madrid upon their arrival from Barcelona, including a meeting with the press, an honorary ceremony at the monument for the 11th of March victims, and a demonstration full of color and rhythm along main avenues. Thousands of people and diverse groups marched for peace and non-violence.

The Hiroshima Flame promoting the abolition of nuclear weapons was successfully carried from Paris to Perpignan form 6th to 12th of November. It will continue its journey to New York where it will arrive in May 2010 where there will be a huge manifestation for the abolition of nuclear weapons and where the 8th Review Conference for the Non-Proliferation Treaty will be held.

Humanist activists change the names of several streets in Malaga from those of military figures from the Spanish civil war. The names chosen for temporary “substitution” have been key non-violence figures such as Mahatma Gandhi, Aung San Suu Kyi or the generic “Non-violence Avenue”. This action is part of the introductory discourse from the arrival of the World March in Malaga.