Global peace and security are very essential to the socio-economic and political growth of any nation of the world. Sadly, world peace has been threatened by violence, wars, international conflicts, threat to climate change, outbreak of diseases and numerous other factors. Governments and world leaders inclusive, cannot fold hands and watch the world become unsafe. There is need to make the world a better place for generations unborn and to equally promote the continuous growth and development of all countries of the world. The need for collective action towards the numerous problems confronting the globe, prompted the United Nations to declare September 21 International Day of Peace.
International Day of Peace
In a resolution sponsored by the United Kingdom and Costa Rica, the United Nations General Assembly in 1981 declared the third Tuesday of every September as the International Day of Peace. The choice of third Tuesday of every September as observance day was owing to the fact that it equally marked the regular opening day of the United Nations General Assembly’s annual sessions. The day’s annual celebration was first observed in 1981. However, the initial date was changed in 2001 owing to the fact that the General Assembly was scheduled to hold on September 11 not the usual third Tuesday of every September. Then UN Secretary General, Kofi Annan drafted a message which recognised September 21 as the observance day for the annual celebration in 2001. With this, a new resolution sponsored by the UK, crediting Peace One Day and Costa Rica which were the original sponsors of the day, was passed by the General Assembly in 2001 to fix September 21 of every year as International Day of Peace. The new date took effect from 2002.
The annual celebration day which is unofficially referred in some occasions as World Peace Day is a day devoted to promoting and strengthening the ideals of peace among nations of the world and their citizens. It is a day set aside by the United Nations General Assembly for the world to look aside differences owing to geographical or cultural factors, and play a prominent role in building and transforming a culture of peace that will last for generations to come. Annually, the day is accompanied with a theme and is celebrated by many countries, political groups, military groups, the people, non-governmental organizations, among others.
International Day of Peace 2019
This year, the theme for observing the celebration of the International Day of Peace is Climate Action for Peace. The theme underlines the importance of protecting and promoting peace all over the world through combating climate change. In a world where natural disaster displaces three times as many people as conflicts, water salinization and crops posing threat to food security and public health, coupled with tensions over resources and mass movement of people, there is need to take concrete action in the fight against climate change.
The United Nations is convening a Climate Action Summit today (September 21, 2019) to discuss and implement concrete and realistic measures towards the fight against climate change. With focus on sectors that create the most emissions and areas where building resilience could make significant difference, the summit hopes to also serve as a platform for leaders and partners to prove their commitment towards combating the threat posed by climate change.
Today peace faces a new danger: the climate emergency, which threatens our security, our livelihoods and our lives. That is why it is the focus of this year’s International Day of Peace. And it’s why I am convening a Climate Action Summit.
António Guterres – UN Secretary-General
Sources:
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