The Report of the Independent Panel chaired by John Manley is now, and will continue to be, a pivotal statement in governmental debate and decision-making. There is widespread unity in Canada, including the government, the military, the public, and now the Manley Panel, that the overall goal of our presence in Afghanistan is to bring peace and better living conditions to one of the poorest and most fragile nations in the world. As the Manley Report says, (more…)

Garth Turner, MP, creates a daily video of interest to Canadians, in Parliament when it is sitting. Yesterday, Dec. 13, he interviewed Borys Wrzesnewskyj, MP(Etobicoke Centre, Vice Chair, Justice Committee), who stated that his seasonal wish is for a Ministry of Peace for Canada. Our Toronto member, Rob Acheson, met with him earlier this year to discover that Borys had called for a Ministry of Peace in April 2006, as recorded in Hansard. With allies like Borys, we are on our way!

Here is a link to the web site:
http://www.garth.ca/mptv/#current. It is the second of two videos.

If for some reason, you cannot access the video this way, find it in the archives under Latest Videos, on December 13.

Uri Avnery, the famous writer on Israel-Palestine relations, indicates, in an article in the newspaper, Gush Shalom, on Nov. 3. that, in 1946, he called for a a Peace Ministry. He states that: …”since the achievement of peace was the main task of the state, it was unacceptable that there was no professional body dealing exclusively with this matter. I proposed the creation of a special Peace Ministry. The Foreign Office, I maintained, was unsuited to this task, since its main function was to wage the international struggle against the Arab world. To popularize the idea, I said that as a counterweight to the ‘khaki General Staff’. which prepares war operations, we needed a ‘white General Staff,’ which would prepare peace operations.”

Uri repeated that call in the Knesset(Israeli Parliament) ten years later and here he does so again. Imagine how the course of history in the Middle East could have been different with an Israeli Minister of Peace in place. There is now a renewed call for Ministers of Peace in both Israel and Palestine by members of the Global Alliance in both countries.

PART 5 OF THE GREEN PARTY POLICY STATEMENT
THE PLANET NEEDS CANADA (AND VICE VERSA)

Canada’s role as global leader in peacemaking and poverty alleviation

Green Solutions (more…)

Climate Change and Peace

“…Extensive climate changes may alter and threaten the living conditions of much of mankind. They may induce large-scale migration and lead to greater competition for the earth’s resources. Such changes will place particularly heavy burdens on the world’s most vulnerable countries. There may be increased danger of violent conflicts and wars, within and between states.” Portion of the Citation awarding Al Gore and the International Panel on Climate Change (IPCC). the Nobel Peace Prize, October, 2007. (more…)

REPORT FROM THE THIRD GLOBAL SUMMIT FOR MINISTRIES AND DEPARTMENTS OF PEACE, JAPAN, SEPT. 21-26, 2007

Prepared by Saul Arbess and Penny Joy
Delivered on the International Day of Nonviolence and Gandhi’s birthday, Oct. 2, 2007.
This day was also designated the Department of Peace Day in Canada. (more…)

Post-9/11 Foreign Policy Requires Push for Peace: Axworthy
Military responses worry former foreign affairs minister

MIKE SADAVA
EDMONTON JOURNAL, OCT. 2, 2007

Canada needs a ministry of peace to offset the militaristic direction the country’s foreign policy has taken since 9/11, says former foreign affairs minister Lloyd Axworthy.
With all the emphasis on military solutions like the war in Afghanistan, which he said has made little progress in bringing peace and stability to that country, the way Canada pursues these issues should be revisited, he said Monday. (more…)

The 3rd Global Summit for Ministries and Departments of Peace took place September 21-26 in Kisarazu and Tokyo, Japan. This extraordinary event began on the International Day of Peace and Global Ceasefire declared by the UN. It featured 21 country delegations*, representing both civil society and parliamentarians, from all five continents, including Nepal, which became the second country, after the Solomon Islands, to form a Ministry of Peace, and Rwanda, a country that experienced genocide in 1994. The event was sponsored by the Global Alliance for Ministries and Departments of Peace numbering more than 25 countries and hosted by its Japanese member, Japan United for Ministry of Peace (JUMP). (more…)