dic.10.2007
More than 150 top notch international participants attended the first forum edition.
Under the High Patronage of H.S.H. Prince Albert II of Monaco, the first “Peace and Sport” international forum closed in Monaco, after three days of intensive work.
The forum, chaired by Joël Bouzou, Peace and Sport’s President, is a world first aiming to bring together for the first time all world actors involved in action for peace using sport.
The first success indicator is the outstanding attendance: more than 150 political, sportive, civil and economic delegations were present, among which 40 National Olympic Committees, 20 International sport Federations, 20 NGOs and not less than 25 governments originating from the 5 continents.
Numerous International Olympic Committee members, top athletes (among which Hicham el Guerrouj, Guy Drut, Pernilla Wiberg, and Lilo Ljubisic), Peace experts, as well as key international organisations working on Peace worldwide, notably the United Nations, the High Committee for Refugees and the European Counsel, had come over to participate in discussions.
The three days event was punctuated with great moments which will be kept in mind, notably a historical hand-shake between the Palestinian and Israeli State representatives.
The Forum also introduced “Peace and Sport”’s very first world ambassadors: Adolf Ogi, the Special Advisor to the General Secretary of the United Nations on Sport for Development and Peace; Mario Pescante, President of the International Olympic Committee’s International Relations Commission; HRH Prince Nawaf Faisal Fahd Abdulaziz of Saudi Arabia, member of the International Olympic Committee; and Hicham El Guerrouj, Olympic Champion and member of the International Olympic Committee.
These personalities symbolise the reunion and synergy of forces gathered around the “Peace and Sport” organisation.
After long discussions on their respective experience, achievements and the boundaries of their action, Forum participants, convinced of the essential part sport can play in peace-building processes agreed on grassroots projects, ways of improvement and principles to be implemented in 2008.
As for H.S.H Prince Albert II of Monaco, he hailed the forum as “the most comprehensive” ever organised on the subject of peace through sport, and expressed his belief that “the mere fact of having brought together this significant number of actors was already a huge step forward” and the “symbol of positive events to come”.
JOEL BOUZOU’S CONCLUSIVE SPEECH AND FORUM DECISIONS
“The time has come to draw the first teachings of this Forum. Allow me to recall its spirit as I defined it on Wednesday:
We intended this forum to be a space of free speech, exclusive of cant and waffle, in which no one would impose his version of the truth, but –in the contrary- would share his experience. Beyond discussing and exchanging, we wanted this forum to help identifying the means to render field initiatives undertaken by various parties more efficient.
I have to confess that the results obtained went beyond my expectations.
Over the last two days, more than 30 quality interventions successively unrolled, numerous personal testimonies were made with much emotion and we experienced some great moments, among which I of course recall yesterday’s historical hand-shake, which gave meaning to our action.
Many thanks to all of you for your support and encouragement.
Special thanks to the United Nations Organisation, to the IOC, and the European Counsel, for backing Peace and Sport’s action and expressing its will to build the project’s next steps with us.
As of now, the European Counsel has initiated this first idea of a pragmatic cooperation within a new Sport Enlarged Partial Agreement (SEPA) set to define concrete projects, such as the organisation of a SEPA advisory committee meeting, which would bring together NGOs as the UEFA on a yearly basis.
Such meeting could be held in Monaco.
We also received a close cooperation proposal from the United Nations Sport institution serving Development and Peace.
The contributions of each of you are so rich and varied that we must maintain and divulge them.
Therefore we will sum them up and send them to you over the coming weeks in a folder gathering the Forum minutes.
What are the first conclusions of this Forum and what the first action tracks for tomorrow?
In my opinion the most important has been precisely the convergence of the planet’s key players acting for peace and sport. One day and a half ago almost none of us here knew the others. Today we all feel we belong to the same family.
Why this prompt chemistry? Simply because we all share the same objective, the same motivation, and we are all convinced that efficiency will come from uniting and synergizing our strengths.
ACNOA has thus been able to speak with the UN, “Sport sans Frontières” thus got to meet international federations, the Colombianitos association could thus discuss with ‘Right to Play’.
It is this Forum’s appointed mission to orchestrate such synergies.
It is a success in itself. Your success.
But should we consider that enough? Certainly not. Millions of young people across the world are expecting more than words from us, tens of projects are awaiting some support and we are all perfectly aware that together we can be much more efficient.
All your accounts highlighted various key points and initiatives to be undertaken.
To me the following stand out as the most urgent:
Deciding to meet on a regular basis to make ground for more in-deep exchanges and build an active network in the framework of a meeting occurring on a yearly basis at least. I already commit to invite you all of you next year on the same period.
Preparing the second forum together and working on it as from now. In the coming weeks I will suggest an information exchange platform to you, which will enable us to work together on priority issues.
Building a network of information exchange between various actors to facilitate best practice and experience exchanges, update mutual knowledge, and provide access to a data and resource centre. I specially appreciated Ronald Andruff’s intervention of this morning on the possibilities that can be provided by Internet and late technologies.
Giving special care to the training individuals intervening in action zones. I noted in this regard Prince Faisal of Jordan’s initiative of creating a peace-dedicated Institute in Amman, whose aim will be to provide training and improvement sessions to NGOs and other sport institutions in the concerned countries. Our vocation is to work together and optimise allocated resources.
Seeking the best assessment and traceability methods to measure the efficiency of developed action. The experience of organisations like the Swiss Academy for Development can be of major help in this regard.
Acting all together with international bodies to get them to develop the consideration of sport in the action programmes they implement (UN, the European Counsel, all governments…) and requesting more resources for the latter. Let us not hesitate to say it out loud, we have a common goal because we are the bearers of values, and therefore we must organise our lobbying on a global scale.
Define an action plan aimed at major international media and world economic protagonists to raise their awareness to implemented grass roots projects.
Make optimal use of champions who can act as role models, and who wish nothing more than working on our side; and using their own networks, as the World Olympians Association.
Any suggestions on or contribution to the various themes evoked or further themes are of course welcome.
Alongside this long-term work for setting a global network of peace and sport actors, there are of course some urgent missions to be consolidated in the framework of area based projects: we are already on the verge of concretely working on projects specially designed for Haiti, Guinea, Burundi, Ivory Coast, Somalia, the Middle East, Colombia, and Timor Leste.
As of this afternoon, we will run work meetings on these dossiers.
At this point, I would like to also greet all those who, even if they are not here today, work in the world for the cause of Peace and Sport. It is our responsibility to tell them what happened here during the last three days, to share with them as well, or involve them in the future.
I would like to repeat that we work in a non political and neutral environment. The rule of sport is our asset, an asset we have to treasure because it is our tool for dialogue between communities above all ethical, social and religious differences.
It is now time to leave each other with the great satisfaction that the initial goals have been reached and that this gathering was only the first step of a long and successful story”.
PICTURES ARE AVAILABLE UPON REQUEST AND CAN BE SEEN AT http://www.peace-sport.org
For further information, please see the attached press release or contact “Peace and Sport”
Tel : +377. 9770.0245 – Fax : +377.9770.7040
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