After months of negotiation and diplomatic wrangling, the U.N. Security Council (UNSC) on July 1 unanimously adopted resolution 2532, endorsing U.N. Secretary-General Guterres’ late March call for a global cease-fire. Diplomats in New York hailed the resolution as an overdue win for multilateralism, while Pope Francis called for the resolution to be implemented “effectively and promptly.” Coming months after the secretary-general’s original cease-fire call and the global spread of the pandemic, will the resolution help bring peace?
The U.S. government (USG) is preparing to unveil a new strategy over the coming months to tackle the underlying causes of fragility and conflict in vulnerable countries around the world. The strategy comes at an important time, just as the United States and other international donors seek to respond to rapidly increasing health, food, and other emergency needs as a result of the coronavirus outbreak. It will be critical that in line with the new strategy, this aid does not inadvertently stoke new tensions, say peacebuilding experts.
This year’s Nelson Mandela International Day has a particular poignancy. Against a backdrop of protests against racial injustice, and COVID-19 amplifying inequality, his words resonate as much as ever. Through his work as a human rights lawyer, prisoner of conscience, and the first democratically elected president of a free South Africa, Mandela has become one of the most recognized peacemakers of our time.
Read the full story here and learn more about Mandela in our video story below.
Religious leaders in northwest Nigeria are concerned about false COVID-19 information and rising tension caused by the closure of mosques and churches in the area.
In Kaduna, rumors have circulated that the virus was created by secular European countries to deny residents the right to practice their faith. Mosques and churches have been shutdown across Kaduna State to avoid community transmission of the virus for months but congregation members admit to holding secret gatherings despite the lock-down order imposed by the state government.
To fight misinformation and tackle unrest in the region, Interfaith Mediation Center members recently met with journalists at the Peace Journalism Forum. Ibrahima Yakubu, a journalist and member of the forum, said working across religious divides right now is crucial.
“We feel the need to find ways to fight fake news within our society because the false information about the virus is really causing serious damage in the fight against the pandemic,” Yakubu said.
“The information we are disseminating through the media stations we work for is helping to provide accurate information about the virus especially to those in rural areas,” he said.
The interfaith and media groups have focused on accessing information from government agencies tasked with the responsibility of providing authentic information about the virus for dissemination.
“We also carried out research through interviews with experts and other stakeholders like National Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) which is an agency providing updates on the pandemic in Nigeria,” Yakubu said.
But with residents often mistrusting wider public information, the groups are also attempting to engage residents on a personal level.
“We are trying to convince our people that all these theories [about COVID-19 being intentional] are false,” said Interfaith Mediation Centre co-chair Imam Nurayn Ashafa (pictured right). “We want our people to know that the virus has nothing to do with religion or tribe, it’s simply a natural disaster or a global pandemic,” he said.
Journalist Amos Tauna said those spreading false information about the virus are only creating unnecessary fear, and that the best way to fight the virus is to abide by the guidelines provided by health workers. “As a Muslim or Christian, not going to the mosque or church has not taken away your religion, your faith remains with you and this has been our message to the people,” Tauna said.
Pastor James Wuye, co-chair of Interfaith Mediation Centre, said closing houses of worship is an important step to protect people from contracting the virus.
“Any pastor who thinks closing the church during this pandemic was wrong is not telling the right information to the people because the Bible teaches us to stay away from dangers,” Wuye said.
After Black Lives Matter protests erupted across the USA, and throughout the global community, sparked by the death of George Floyd, it became clear that well-meaning platitudes won’t cut it. We take a look at 10 inspirational quotes that go a little further. They alone won’t change the world, but you can draw strength from them while you do.
Photo: Twitter “If you have come to help me you are wasting your time. But if you recognize that your liberation and mine are bound up together, we can walk together.” – Lilla Watson
Photo: WikiCommons/Rob Mieremet “I am where I am because of the bridges that I crossed. Sojourner Truth was abridge. Harriet Tubman was a bridge. Ida B. Wells was a bridge. Madame C.J.Walker was a bridge. Fannie Lou Hamer was a bridge.” – Oprah Winfrey
Photo: Encyclopedia Britannica “I look at an ant and I see myself: a native South African, endowed by nature with a strength much greater than my size so I might cope with the weight of a racism that crushes my spirit.” – Miriam Makeba
Photo: NASA“For those who have seen the Earth from space, and for the hundreds and perhaps thousands more who will, the experience most certainly changes your perspective. The things that we share in our world are far more valuable than those which divide us.”- Donald Williams
Photo: WikiCommons/Genevieve“The only wrong thing to say is to say nothing.” – Meghan Markle
Photo: WikiCommons/Associated Press “I refuse to accept the view that mankind is so tragically bound to the starless midnight of racism and war that the bright daybreak of peace and brotherhood can never become a reality…. I believe that unarmed truth and unconditional love will have the final word.” – Martin Luther King, Jr.
Photo: Gorupdebesanez “Ideologies separate us. Dreams and anguish bring us together.” – Eugene Ionesco
“No matter how big a nation is, it is no stronger than its weakest people, and as long as you keep a person down, some part of you has to be down there to hold him down, so it means you cannot soar as you might otherwise.” – Marian Anderson
Photo: Barack Obama Presidential Library “History has shown us that courage can be contagious, and hope can take on a life of its own.” – Michelle Obama
Photo: WikiCommons/BastienM “If you want peace, work for justice.” – Pope Paul VI
