Dr. Ponzio explained the significance of the Secretary-General Antonio Guterres’s Our Common Agenda (OCA) report issued in 2021. He identified major goals for addressing global governance challenges, notably conflict prevention and management for building peace, COVID-19, representation, and human rights promotion, climate action and governing the global commons, promoting a collaborative economy and global public goods, and confronting the implications from rapid development of AI technology. Please view the video recording.

Tokyo Peacebuilding Forum 2022 held on 6 November 2022: Keynote Speaker: Professor Tshilidzi MARWALA, Vice-Chancellor and Principal, University of Johannesburg and United Nations University Rector-Designate spoke about technology and interstate conflict. Please view the video recording.

The second session of the Tokyo Peacebuilding Forum 2022 was held to make a “Critical assessment of Japan’s policy on refugees and migrants”. Mr. Ken Inoue, Vice President of GPAJ, moderated the session, and Mr. Akio Nakayama, former Country Director, IOM Myanmar, and Ms. Khadiza Begum, Area coordinator of “Online learning support for Rohingya children in Tatebayashi City”. Please read more in detail.

The Global Peacebuilding Association of Japan with the support of the ACUNS Tokyo Liaison Office and the Kyoto Peacebuilding Center will hold the Tokyo Peacebuilding Forum 2022 on 5 November 2022. Please click here and ascertain the final version of the program and the location of the JICA conference hall in Ichigaya, Tokyo.

The Global Governance Promotion Committee (chaired by Sukehiro Hasegawa) and the United Nations Reform Subcommittee (chaired by Takahiro Shinyo), which is a subordinate body of the Diet Committee for World Federalist Movements (Chairman Seishiro Eto and Secretary General Masaharu Nakagawa), held an information exchange meeting on “United Nations Security Council Reform” at the House of Representatives members’ meeting room on 6 October 2022. It was attended by more than 15 parliamentarians and several participants from government and civil society organizations. From the GPAJ Association, in addition to President Hasegawa and Ambassador Takahiro Shinyo, Ambassador Tadamichi Yamamoto and Professor Takaaki Mizuno attended. Click here for details.(Reported by Tanimoto)

The International Day of Peace is observed in Tokyo on 21 September and the Peace Bell Ceremony was held at Meiji Jingu Shrine with the attendance of Governor Yuriko KOIKE of the Tokyo Metropolitan City who expressed her appreciation of the significance of holding it in Tokyo. Professor Sukehiro HASEGAWA, Chair of the Organizing Committee noted in his opening remarks that “achieving peace rests with the spirit of respecting and accommodating each other`s differences.”

Professor Hiroko AKIZUKI, member of the United Nations Commission on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW) joined by Professors Misako TAKIZAWA, and Ai KIHARA-HUNT, discussed the current status and issues taken up by CEDAW, followed by a lively exchange of opinions with the participation of experts and scholars. Please click here for the gist of the remarks. (Organized by Akiko ABE)

Mr. Naoto Hisajima, Director-General, Secretariat of the International Peace Cooperation Headquarters, Cabinet Office, Government of Japan stated, that Japan marked the 30th anniversary of Japan’s involvement in international peace cooperation activities, looking back the past experiences and at the way ahead. The seminar was organized by Mr. Daiki Inoue and its report was compiled by Mr. Maciej Witek.

ACUNS Tokyo, Kyoto Peacebuilding Center and Global Peacebuilding Association of Japan will hold a Seminar on Japan`s National Peace Cooperation Activities. Please click here for the full program. If you are interested in participating, please fill in the registration form here by Tuesday, 26 July.

President Tadic started the presentation from his view on Kosovo. In his address as a president in 2008, at the 63rd session of the UN General Assembly, he warned that Kosovo is a crisis that threatens world peace. He underlined that Kosovo’s potential precedence represents a huge problem for international peace and stability. That addressing was in the context of seeking support for the Serbian resolution requesting an advisory opinion on Kosovo’s independence from the International Court of Justice (ICJ).

Ambassador Tsuneo stated that it is not the stage where we are just discussing very small details. Why? Because we should not be unrealistic. Are the US, Russia, and China so different? No, they are not different. For example, the democratic US government said that war criminals must be punished. At the same time, the US was not a member of the ICC. We need a special tribunal if we want to punish those who are responsible for these atrocities. Once you have already killed so many people, negotiations are always needed, but we should pursue justice. Do you place Mr. Putin and welcome new permanent members with nuclear power and veto in the next 10 years? This is not acceptable. How people can believe in a reform of the UN with Putin and nuclear weapons there? We are talking about the realistic approach, but these realistic options are not realistic at all. Only to make an extension of what we have agreed upon immediately after World War II. What we are experiencing is not a second Cold War, this is a hot war, a total invasion by a big country into the neighboring country. Are we supposed to agree on some small compromise and say thank you, welcome again? That is not a reform. We are not talking about the past, but the coming generations.

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Former Foreign Minister and Ambassador to Japan Charles Murigande of Rwanda to Japan made a critical review of the developments in Rwanda since its genocide in 1994. He was joined by Hiroshi KATO, Former Vice President of Japan International Development Cooperation Agency (JICA) and Professor at the International University of Japan. Please click here for its video recording.

Former General Manager of the North Eastern Army of the Ground Self-Defense Force, Goro Matsumura, presented the current and future prospect of Japan’s international peace cooperation activities, the global trend of partnership peace cooperation activities, two approaches to national security, and the relationship between Japan’s national security in general and international peace cooperation activities as well as the future prospect.

Professor Suzuki, President of the National Federation of UNESCO Association of Japan, explains the challenges faced by Southeast Asian countries, particularly Indonesia and Malaysia. His presentation was followed by a lively discussion participated by Ambassadors Shinyo and Yanagisawa as well as Messrs Nakayama and Kuroda, and Ms. Elizabeth Gamarra.

Professor Aigul Kulnazarova will explain why revolutions take place in the post-Soviet region, most recently in Kazakhstan, on Tuesday 8 February 2022 from 20:00～21:30 Japan Standard Time. She will be joined by David Chikvaidze, Chef de Cabinet, UN Office at Geneva and Lise Howard, President of ACUNS. For participation, please register from the link below by February 7.　https://forms.gle/oPRwsLY4Jg411A7V9

Global Peacebuilding Association of Japan (GPAJ), and Kyoto Peacebuilding Center (KPC)
present Mr. Koji SAKANE, Chief Representative, Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) Sudan Office and Director of GPAJ, “Democratic Crisis in Sudan” Saturday,12 February 2022 at 20:00 hours Tokyo time. If you are interested in, please contact Fujiko AMANO (fujiko.amano[@]gmail.com) for registration.

Please click here for a full report in English which was compiled by Maciej Witek.