The Rotary Club of Londonderry, in partnership with the University of Ulster’s International Conflict Research Institute, is to host a Global Peace Forum in the city from 24th-26th May 2013.
The event is part of Rotary’s year of peace through service and the theme will be ‘peace throughbuilding bridges’. The aim is to contribute to reconciliation, learning and full self-expression for those involved in peacemaking and peacebuilding throughout the world.
Among the special guests are Rotary International President, Sakuji Tanaka, Chief Negotiator for the South African National Party, Roelf Mayer, former Basque President, Juan Jose Ibarretxe, ChouChou Namagambe, a Gender Activist in Congo and John Cullinane, a US Entrepreneur involved in the Northern Ireland Peace Process. These speakers will be joined by political, business and community leaders from all over Ireland.
There will also be presentations from local and world leaders, a series of peacebuilding workshops and a gala event showcasing the new cultural regeneration space in Derry-Londonderry.
Derry-Londonderry was chosen to host the Global Peace Forum as it is marking the 400th anniversary of the city’s charter and is also the 2013 City of Culture. Derry- Londonderry is one place with two names and has an intriguing story and a special place in the history of Ireland. From Colmcille through the siege of Derry and the plantation of Ulster to World War II; from the civil rights marches through Bloody Sunday to the emerging peace process and cessation of violence, Derry-Londonderry is where these significant episodes were thought about, fought about and worked through. All this has shaped the history of Ireland, Great Britain, America and the rest of the world.
President of the Rotary Club of Londonderry, Maurice Brennan commented: “It is fitting that this major Global Peace Forum should be taking place in Derry. It will celebrate not only what has been achieved here over the last fifteen years, but throughout Ireland too, although we do recognise that there are still challenges ahead for Ireland’s citizens.
"Through our international network of Rotary clubs, we plan to invite Rotarians from parts of the world that are still locked in conflict. We hope that the visiting Rotarians will benefit from hearing first hand the experiences and challenges faced by those who were involved in bringing peace to Northern Ireland. We hope that the legacy of the Global Peace Forum will be that by sharing this knowledge, some small contribution will be made toward bringing peace to those countries too.”
