The first meeting of the GPAJ Executive Committee was held on June 13 at Le Gourmand Bistro in Ebisu in preparation for the 2018 Annual Research Convention to be held on December 8 at JICA Research Institute at Ichigaya. Nine members commenced their work to be coordinated by Professor Kurosawa as Executive Chairman. (Kenji Nakazawa)
Ambassador Simona Leskovar explains Slovenia`s Accomplishments and Challenges to Japanese Scholars and Experts on Peace and Development (26/05/2018)
At the 30th Seminar held on Saturday, 26 May 2018 at Tokyo University Komaba Campus, GPAJ members asked the Ambassador how Slovenia gained independence from ex-Yugoslavia and how Slovenia is deal with the mass inflow of refugees and migrants.
The outcome of the national elections in Timor-Leste examined by GPAJ seminar participants (26/05/2018)
Timorese Embassy Counselor Nuno ALVES made a detailed presentation on the political and economic developments since 2008, followed by Daisuke Nihei of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Japan who provided an analysis of votes received by respective political parties on May 12, 2018. (Report filed by Denishi Joshi)
Timorese voters give the Aliança de Mudança para o Progresso (AMP), a coalition of three parties, an absolute majority of 34 of the 65 seats in Parliament. (24/05/2018)
As the Global Peacebuilding Association of Japan holds a special session on the outcome of the national elections, Chairman of the AMP Xanana Gusmão sends his message affirming the commitment of Timorese political leaders to democratic governance. Please click here for his message.
Mona Ali Khalil: “The UN’s Cruz Report on Improving Peacekeepers’ Security Goes Too Far” (20/05/2018)
UN report on improving the security of all peacekeepers is viewed as pushing overwhelming and aggressive operations making the UN party to conflict and potentially undermining the security of both UN personnel and the civilians they are meant to protect. Here is her article.
East Asian Scholars and Practitioners` meeting with Heads of UN and International Organizations in Geneva (16-17/07/2018)
You can access (1) the latest provisional program from here and (2) the latest administrative and logistics information (as of 10/JUL/2018) from here. If you are interested in participating, please contact ACUNS Tokyo Deputy Director, Associate Professor Ai Kihara-Hunt. Her e-mail address is kiharahunt[*]yahoo.com (Please change [*] to @ when sending an email).
Ambassador Simona LESKOVAR of Slovenia and Counselor Nuno Alvares Moniz Marques ALVES of Timor-Leste will present challenges faced by their countries. (26/05/2018)
Slovenia became an independent country on June 25, 1991, and currently it is considered the most advanced among nation states born out of the former Yugoslavia but it still faces many challenges. Timor-Leste regained its sovereignty in 2005 and adopted its democratic form of governance but its democratic institutions remain fragile. The counselor will explain the outcome of May 12 national assembly elections.
António Guterres proposes a 50 percent increase in regular posts in the Peacebuilding Support Office at a Security Council`s High-level Briefing session on Peacebuilding and Sustaining Peace (25/04/2018)
António Guterres also calls for strong partnerships beyond the United Nations and a broad and inclusive approach with international financial institutions including the World Bank, and other multilateral donors, the business community, civil society and local actors.
Ms. Shoko Noda-Tackling Climate Change as a Representative of the UN System in the Maldives (22/04/2018)
Ms. Shoko Noda, UN Resident Coordinator and Resident Representative for UNDP in the Maldives has been featured on the “People” column of Asahi Newspaper. In the article, Ms. Noda talks about how she became interested to work for the UN as well as introducing her current work in the Maldives. You can read her article (in Japanese) here.
Delegates from China, Korea and Mongolia meet with Japanese political leaders and government officials as well as Japanese experts and scholars on UN peace operations (19-20/04/2018)
In their discussion of protection of civilians (POC) issues, East Asian groups examined the Kigali Principle and Cruz Report, and recommended that four countries should strengthen the coordination of their pre-deployment and on-site POC activities while noting progress made by the annual Khan Quest operations exercise in Mongolia.
Ms. Shoko Noda- Series: “Thinking about Sustainability Issues in the Maldives” (19/04/2018)
Ms. Kaoru Nemoto, United Nations Information Centre Director, visited the Maldives from 10 to 16 March 2018, observing the frontlines of climate change adaptation and mitigation. She also met with the Resident Coordinator, Ms. Shoko Noda, and reported on the impacts of climate change to the people of the Maldives, including unpredictable weather patterns and rising sea levels. Ms. Nemoto’s reports on Huffpost Japan (in Japanese) can be read from here.
The Liberal Democratic Party Foreign Affairs Research Committee and the World Federation Japan National Diet Committee briefed about the current UN reform efforts. (11-12/04/2018)
At the request of Mr. Seishiro ETO, Chairman of both Committees, the President of the Global Peacebuilding Association of Japan explained the development of UN reform efforts carried out by Secretaries-General of the United Nations, Boutros Boutros-Ghali, Kofi Annan, Ban Ki-moon and António Guterres.
[Obituary] Katsuhide Kitatani (1931-2018) (09/04/2018)
Mr. Kitatani passed away at 6:00 a.m. April 6, 2018 in Tokyo with his wife, Akiko, at his side. The funeral took place at the Minato Citizens’ Funeral Hall “Yasuragi Kaikan” in Minami Aoyama, Tokyo, at 11:30 a.m. on Monday, April 9. Mr. Kitatani was 86 and 6 months old and was survived by Akiko, his wife of 56 years, his twin sons Jun and Ken, their wives Nicole and Nina (Mami) and Jun and Nicole’s two children, Noah and Laila.
Mr. Katsuhide Kitatani passed away. (06/04/2018)
Mr. Kitatani passed away at 6:00 a.m. April 6, 2018 in Tokyo with his wife, Akiko, at his side. The funeral will take place at the Minato Citizens’ Funeral Hall “Yasuragi Kaikan” in Minami Aoyama, Tokyo, at 11:30 a.m. on Monday, April 9.
Sukehiro HASEGAWA “United Nations Peacebuilding – What is needed to build a world without conflicts?” NOW ON SALE (23/03/2018)
The author who has stood on the front line of UN peace operations reflects the path travelled by Boutros-Ghali with his Agenda for Peace, Kofi Annan In Larger Freedom, Ban Ki-moon`s HIPPO panel and António Guterres` Conflict Prevention, and identifies what makes decisive difference in conflict resolution and prevention.
Former Japanese Ambassador and UN Under-Secretary-General Kenzo OSHIMA emphasizes the leadership of Secretary-General is indispensable. (17/03/2018)
Oshima found significant Secretary-General António Guterres` assessment that the UN suffered from “Fragmented structures, Byzantine procedures, Endless red tape.”
East Asian Forum on UN Peace Operations @UNU (20/04/2018)
The Academic Council on the United System (ACUNS) and the Friedrich-Ebert-Stiftung (FES) will hold the East Asian Forum on UN Peace Operations entitled New Directions and New Approaches in UN Peace Operations: The Primacy of Politics and Protection of Civilians at the Elisabeth Rose Conference Hall, 5th floor, the UN University on 20th April 2018. If you are interested in participating in this forum, please contact Associate Professor Kihara-Hunt, kiharahunt[@]yahoo.com by email (Please change [@] to @ when sending an email). Please click here for detail.
Secretary-General Antonio Guterres introduced his report on “Peacebuilding and Sustaining Peace” (05/03/2018)
Guterres found it necessary to sustain peace efforts not only once conflict had broken out but also long beforehand, through the prevention of conflict and addressing its root causes.
Former Japanese Ambassador explains the humanitarian and peacebuilding challenges in South Sudan from his field perspective (28/01/2018)
Professors Mitsugi Endo of Tokyo University and Daisaku Higashi of Sophia University as well as Mr. Takaki Imai, Representative of Japan Volunteers Center, commented on the causes of conflicts and the prospect for overcoming the challenges.
Japan Earth Charter Committee meets in Tokyo (27/01/2018)
Former Minister of Environment Wakako Hironaka moderates a discussion on how to promote the Earth Charter in Japan.