Issued by: GCIS
DATE: Tuesday, September 14, 1999
VENUE: Goodhope Chamber, Parliament Cape Town
TIME: 12h00 - 13h00: Members of the media arrive
13h00 - 14h00: Media Briefing
14h00 - 16h00: Launch and discussions
For further details contact :
Khume Kangala
Communication Directorate
Tel: (012) 312 5030
Fax: (012) 324 6346
e-mail:kangala.k@educ.pwv.gov.za
SNIPPET
On 14 September 1999, the Minister of Education, will hold peace discussions with Cape Town high school children. These discussions will mark the launch of the International Year and Decade for the Culture of Peace.
The discussions will be held at the Goodhope Chamber of Parliament in Cape Town, at 14h00-16h00, preceded by a media briefing scheduled for 13h00 - 14h00. They will be based on the South African Youth Manifesto.
Also taking part in the discussions will be the Ministers of Arts, Culture, Science and Technology, Sport and Recreation, the Heads of the Human Rights Commission, the Commission for Gender Equality and the National Youth Commission, and United Nations Specialized Agencies
For further details contact
Dr. B. Tema
Secretary-General
South African National Commission for UNESCO
Tel: 012 312 5187
Fax: 012 325 7284
E-mail: tema.b@educ.pwv.gov.za
BACKGROUND
South Africa received an invitation from the Director-General of UNESCO,
Mr. Frederico Mayor, to mark the inauguration of the International Year and
Decade of Peace, by having a celebration on the 14th September 1999 (the
United Nations International Day for the Culture of Peace)
At the request of the Minister of Education, Professor Kader Asmal, MP, the celebration will take the form of discussions on peace between himself, the Ministers of Arts, Culture, Science and Technology, Sport and Recreation, Safety and Security, the Heads of the Human Rights Commission, the Commission for Gender Equality and the National Youth Commission; United Nations Agencies; and learners. The Secretariat of the National Commission has prepared a format for the discussion, and upon approval by the Minister, will make the necessary logistical arrangements for the event.
UNESCO, in collaboration with the French Parliament, has organized an World Youth Parliament, made up of two learners (a boy and a girl, both aged between 14 and 16), from each UNESCO Member State.
These children will meet at the UNESCO Headquarters in Paris from 21 to 23 October 1999, to collate an International Youth Manifesto, which they will present before the French National Assembly on 24 October, and at the opening of the UNESCO General Conference on 26 October 1999.
The International Youth Manifesto will represent the voice of the youth of the world. It will state their views on issues related to peace in the New Millennium, e.g. poverty, violence, child and human rights abuse, substance abuse, HIV-AIDS, and the deterioration of the environment. It will also contain their recommended solutions regarding these problems. In the Manifesto the youth further commits itself to concrete actions to assist in solving these problems.
The South African delegation consists of 14 year old Grade 10 leaner from Bokgoni Technical High School in Atteridgeville, and 15 year old leaner from Clapham High School in Queenswood, Pretoria. Both schools are part of the UNESCO Associated Schools Project, which the National Commission for UNESCO is presently piloting with five schools in the Gauteng and North West provinces. The South African Youth Manifesto was produced by the two delegates with the help of their peers in the five schools, and submitted to UNESCO on 29 June 1999.
UNESCO has requested the different National Commissions to ensure maximum publicity for the National Manifestos, prior to the delegates' departure for Paris in October.
PROPOSED FORMAT OF THE DISCUSSION
The discussion forum could consist of two panels:
(i) Ministers from Departments with which the National Commission is developing a programme of activities for the International Year and Decade of Peace. These are the Departments of Education, Health, Sport and Recreation, the Human Rights Commission, the Commission for Gender Equality and the National Youth Commission; and
(ii) a panel of 15 high school learners.
The discussion will be chaired by the Deputy Speaker of the National Assembly and the Secretary-General of the South African National Commission for UNESCO
Participants will receive the Peace Manifesto, which has been produced by the South African students, beforehand and make their comments
Comments will be made according to the following headings:
· Peace and the home
· Peace and the school
· Peace and the community
· Peace in the country
Students will make their comments first, followed by the Ministers.
A scribe will note the points of difference between the comments and these will then be opened for further discussion by the house. The idea would be to reach consensus. However, if no consensus is reached, the points of difference will highlight the different conceptions of peace.
12 September 1999