..Press Release................................ UNESCAP News Services

Date 19 September 2006
Note to Editor: N/32/2006

UN INTERNATIONAL PEACE DAY EXAMINES ROLE OF RELIGION IN PEACE

BANGKOK (United Nations Information Services) – The link between peace and religion is the theme of this year’s UN International Day of Peace at the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (UNESCAP).

UNESCAP, in collaboration with the Interreligious and International Federation for World Peace in Thailand, will observe the International Day of Peace at the UN Conference Centre in Bangkok on Thursday, 21 September 2006.

“The International Day of Peace is meant to get people not just thinking of peace, but doing something about it,” UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan said in a statement issued on the occasion of International Peace Day.

“For some of us, peace is a day-to-day reality. Where the fabric of society is strong, the precious gifts of peace can almost go unremarked. But for far too many people in the world today, those gifts are only an elusive dream,” he said.

“This is an appropriate time to highlight the collective efforts of the UN system in carrying out its mandate to maintain international peace and security and to encourage individual and community action in the quest for peace,” said UNESCAP’s Executive Secretary Kim Hak-Su.

The observance will include a forum on the theme “The Relationship between Religion and World Peace” by representatives from various religions, including the Baha’i, Buddhist, Catholic, Hindu, Islamic, Jewish and Sikh faiths. The programme will include:

• A musical performance by the Ruam Rudee International School choir;
• A statement by Kofi Annan, followed by opening remarks by Kim Hak-Su, Under-Secretary-General of the United Nations and Executive Secretary
  of UNESCAP; and
• A keynote address on “Solutions for World Peace” by H.E. Kasit Pirom, former Thai Ambassador to the United States.

Note to Editors: You or your representatives are invited to attend the observance of International Day of Peace on Thursday, 21 September, starting at 8:30 hrs at the ESCAP Hall, the UN Conference Centre, Bangkok.

In order to facilitate the entrance and limited parking space, we would appreciate it if you could please confirm your attendance together with your transportation details (plate number, make, model & colour) to unisbkk.unescap@un.org or fax: 02 288 1052.

For further information, please contact:
UN Information Services Bangkok
Tel: +(66-2) 288-1864-67, Fax: +(66-2) 288-1052
E-mail: unisbkk.unescap@un.org

P.S. After the official ceremony at UNESCAP, a youth rally “Peace for the Nation, Peace for the World” will gather at 14:00 hrs. at Wat Makut and start the peace rally at 16:30 hrs., passing the UN Building to the Bangkok Metropolitan Administration for a reception with the Governor of Bangkok, a candlelit vigil and a mini-concer.

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