Restorative Justice, Intergenerational Healing, and Reconciliation

Join a Religions for Peace “Faithful Conversation”:

Restorative Justice, Intergenerational Healing, and Reconciliation

Religious and spiritual leaders in Canada and from across the globe share the profound sorrow and agony of indigenous communities as unmarked graves of indigenous children are found on the grounds of residential schools in Canada. Religious and spiritual leaders join Religions for Peace Honorary President Grand-Father Dominique Rankin, who himself is a victim and survivor of the physical and sexual abuse at a residential school, in a conversation to address how to advance peace with justice, heal the old wounds, and walk together the difficult path towards reconciliation. Register here!

Read the Religions for Peace World Council Statement here.

French-English interpretation will be available.

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CoNGO Notes: For more information on the Committee of Religious NGOs at the United Nations, please visit rngos.wordpress.com. For more information on the NGO Committee on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, please visit facebook.com/NGOCoRIP. For more information on the NGO Committee on Spirituality, Values, and Global Concerns-NY, please visit csvgc-ny.org. For more information on the NGO Committee on Intergenerational Solidarity, please email the vice chair at susanneseperson@gmail.com.

International Day for the Elimination of Sexual Violence in Conflict

2021 observance: “Building back better: Supporting survivors of conflict-related sexual violence in the context of pandemic recovery”

Join us from 2:00 pm – 3:30 pm EDT on Thursday, 17 June 2021 via UN WebTV live webcast

Commemorating the 7^th official observance, this year’s virtual event is co-hosted by the Office of the SRSG on Sexual Violence in Conflict, the Office of the SRSG on Children and Armed Conflict and the Permanent Mission of Argentina to the United Nations.

The purpose of the event is to stand in solidarity with the survivors and those working to support them on the frontlines, often at great personal risk, particularly in the current climate of intersecting crises. The event will provide a platform for strategic reflection on ways to integrate the specific rights, needs and perspectives of survivors of CRSV into national and regional COVID-19 response and recovery plans, to ensure they are not forgotten in a climate of intersecting crises and constrained resources.

The impact of COVID-19 on survivors of conflict-related sexual violence

The chronic underreporting of conflict-related sexual violence, due to stigma, insecurity, fear of reprisals, and lack of services, has been compounded by COVID-19 containment measures. Lockdowns, curfews, quarantines, fears of contracting or transmitting the virus, mobility restrictions, and limited access to services and safe spaces, as shelters closed and clinics were repurposed for the pandemic response, added a layer of complexity to existing structural, institutional and sociocultural barriers to reporting.

Proactive measures to foster an enabling environment for survivors to safely come forward and seek redress have become more urgent than ever. The pandemic has laid bare the intersecting inequalities that plague our societies, as compounded by conflict, displacement, and institutional fragility. The only solution for these overlapping ills is an injection of political resolve and resources equal to the scale of the challenge.

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CoNGO Notes: For more information on the NGO Committee on the Status of Women-NY, please visit ngocsw.org. For more information on the NGO Committee on the Status of Women-Vienna, please visit ngocswvienna.org. For more information on the NGO Committee on the Status of Women-Geneva, please visit ngocsw-geneva.ch. For more information on the NGO Committee on Disarmament, Peace, and Security, please visit ngocdps.wordpress.com. For more information on the NGO committee on Human Rights, please email the co-chairs at bknotts@uua.org or bobbinassar@gmail.com.

Hybrid Commemoration of the International Day of Reflection on the 1994 Genocide Against the Tutsi in Rwanda

Dear NGO representatives,

The Permanent Mission of the Republic of Rwanda and the United Nations Office at Geneva will mark the International Day of Reflection on the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi in Rwanda during a hybrid ceremony to be held on Wednesday, 7 April 2021 from 3:00 p.m. to 4:30 p.m.

The ceremony will include the message of Mr. António Guterres, Secretary-General of the United Nations, read by Ms. Tatiana Valovaya, Director‑General of the United Nations Office at Geneva, followed by her own remarks and the statements of Ms. Ghada Waly, Director-General of the United Nations Office at Vienna and Executive Director of the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, of H.E. Mrs. Marie Chantal Rwakazina, Ambassador, Permanent Representative of the Republic of Rwanda to the United Nations Office and other international organizations at Geneva, of Mrs. Nadia Galinier, survivor of the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi in Rwanda and of Mr. Cesar Murangira, President of the Association of Genocide survivors IBUKA, Memory and Justice (Swiss section). This year’s ceremony will also include a poem read by Ms. Sarah Burckhardt. Interpretation will be provided in English and French.

You are cordially invited to this important event through this link. You can also watch live at webtv.un.org.

Provisional Program:

Introduction by the Master of Ceremonies, Ms. Alessandra Vellucci Director, United Nations Information Service
Lighting of candles
Observance of a minute of silence
Message of Mr. António Guterres Secretary-General of the United Nations, read by Ms. Tatiana Valovaya, Director-General of the United Nations Office at Geneva, followed by the Director-General’s remarks
Remarks by Ms. Ghada Waly Director-General of the United Nations Office at Vienna and Executive Director of the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime
Remarks by Mr. César Murangira President of the Association of Genocide survivors IBUKA, Memory and Justice (Swiss section)
Testimony by Mrs. Nadia Galinier Survivor of the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi in Rwanda
Reading of a poem by Ms. Sarah Burckhardt
Remarks by H.E. Mrs. Marie Chantal Rwakazina Ambassador, Permanent Representative of Rwanda to the United Nations Office and other international organizations at Geneva

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CoNGO Notes: For more information on the NGO Committee on Disarmament, Peace and Security, please visit ngocdps.wordpress.com. For more information on the NGO Committee on Human Rights, please email the co-chairs at bknotts@uua.org or bobbinassar@gmail.com.

2021 Shine the Light Human Trafficking Conference: Root Causes & Intersections on Human Trafficking

Dear Colleagues,

We invite you to our VIRTUAL 2021 Shine the Light Human Trafficking Conference: Root Causes and Intersections on Human Trafficking. The conference, which is free of charge, will be held over two afternoons, March 8 (12noon to 3:00 pm EST), and March 9 (12noon to 1:30 pm EST). We also are organizing a Call to Action Day on Trafficking for March 9.

Register at http://bit.ly/2021traffickingconference

Building on the success of our previous in-person Human Trafficking Conferences in 2018 and 2019, this year’s participants will hear from survivors, service providers and other experts. An additional advocacy panel will share easy and ongoing actions that can be taken to combat trafficking.

Our co-sponsors this year are the Columbian Center for Advocacy and Outreach, the Leadership Conference of Women Religious, the Sisters of Mercy of the Americas – Justice Team, the U.S. Coalition of Sisters Against Human Trafficking, and the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, Office of Migration and Refugee Services.

Monday, March 8, 12:00 – 3:00 pm EST & Tuesday, March 9, 12:00 – 1:30 pm EST

Advance registration required. Register online here or call 301-622-6838

On Day 1, we will begin with an overview of human trafficking that speaks to the various root causes. Panel presentations on both sex and labor trafficking with domestic and international components will follow. On Day 2, we will focus on advocacy campaigns and how all of us can make a difference. Additional details are available on our Conference webpage.

Conference attendees will have the opportunity to engage in Q&A with panelists both days.

Speakers confirmed to date include:

Sr. Norma Pimentel, MJ, Executive Director, Catholic Charities of the Rio Grande Valley; Sr. Winifred Doherty, RGS, United Nations Representative for the Congregation of Our Lady of Charity of the Good Shepherd; Diana Fimbres, Program Manager for Strategic Initiatives on Labor Trafficking, Polaris; Hilary Chester, PhD, Associate Director, Anti-Trafficking Program, United States Conference of Catholic Bishops; Lawrence Couch, Director, National Advocacy Center of the Sisters of the Good Shepherd; Sr. Ann Scholz, SSND, PhD, Associate Director for Social Mission Leadership Conference of Women Religious; Scott Wright, Director, Columban Center for Advocacy and Outreach; and current Members of Congress. As in previous conferences, trafficking survivors with their powerful stories will be pivotal contributors to the day.

We also encourage you to spread the word – share this invitation with your colleagues and networks and share this postcard on social media. If you would like further information, please reach out to Fran Eskin-Royer (associatedirector@gsadvocacy.org) or me (nacdirector@gsadvocacy.org). Thank you.

Sincerely,

Lawrence E. Couch, Director

National Advocacy Center of the Sisters of the Good Shepherd

301-622-6838 (o) | 240-463-0660 (c) | www.gsadvocacy.org

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CoNGO Notes: For more information on the Committee of Religious NGOs at the United Nations, please visit rngos.wordpress.com. For more information on the NGO Committee on Children’s Rights, please visit childrightsny.org. For more information on the Alliance of NGOs on Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice, please visit crimealliance.org.

[Webinar] Affirming an Interreligious Response to Supporting Peaceful, Inclusive, and Just Societies

Affirming an Interreligious Response to Supporting Peaceful, Inclusive, and Just Societies: Building on a Historic Interfaith Statement on ISIL Accountability in Iraq

Dear Esteemed Leaders and Partners of Religions for Peace, UN OSAPG and UNITAD,

We are pleased to cordially invite you to join the Webinar on “Affirming an Interreligious Response to Supporting Peaceful, Inclusive, and Just Societies: Building on a Historic Interfaith Statement on ISIL Accountability in Iraq”, co-hosted by Religions for Peace (RfP), United Nations Office on Genocide Prevention and the Responsibility to Protect (UN OSAPG) and the United Nations Investigative Team to Promote Accountability for Crimes Committed by Da’esh/ISIL (UNITAD) on Thursday, 16 July 2020 at 9:00 – 11:10 am EDT.

Please register here or by clicking on the following link by Wednesday, 15 July 2020: https://religionsforpeace.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_Ej3s6SDORbCmLeulMT7fHQ

You will receive the link to join the Webinar after your registration. If you have any questions, please contact Ms. Sarah van Bentum at svbentum@rfp.org. The webinar will applaud the step taken by Iraqi religious leadership representing various faith traditions in adopting the historic Interfaith Statement on the Victims and Survivors of ISIL, while also addressing critical issues of interreligious collaboration around Agenda 2030 for Sustainable Development and the promotion of accountability as a basis for reconciliation. The webinar will primarily be conducted in English. However, Arabic and Kurmanji simultaneous interpretation will be available. We warmly welcome you to attend this important webinar.

With respect and appreciation,

Prof. Dr. Azza Karam
Secretary General, RfP

Mr. Adama Dieng
UN Under-Secretary-General and Special Adviser on the Prevention of Genocide (UN OSAPG)

Mr. Karim Asad Ahmad Khan
Special Adviser and Head of the United Nations Investigative Team to Promote Accountability for Crimes Committed by Da’esh / ISIL (UNITAD)

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CoNGO Notes: For more information about the Committee of Religious NGOs at the United Nations, please visit rngos.wordpress.com. For more information on the NGO Committee on Freedom of Religion or Belief, please visit unforb.org.

survivors