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In his various roles, Vijay Mehta has addressed conferences and meetings in different parts of the world. Notable appearances are detailed below. |
Barcelona Forum
European Peace Conference
Global Governance Group Conference (Athens, Greece)
United Nations
World Peace Forum (Vancouver, Canada)
Make Poverty History
Fortune Forum Charity Summit
Biggest march in history
Barcelona Forum
At the Barcelona Forum (2004), an international conference which was well attended by delegates from various countries, Vijay Mehta gave presentations at three different sessions on UN reforms, terrorism and international law (‘Are rulers above the law’?) The title of the conference was ‘Towards a World Without Violence.’
The Barcelona Forum 2004 was an extraordinary event. Conceived in a sense as a follow up to the highly successful 1992 Olympics, the Barcelona, Catalan and Spanish authorities decided to embark on a joint project to revive a decaying area of the city and draw in talent and creativity from around the world. Originally billed as the Universal Forum of Cultures, under the auspices of UNESCO, it finally took shape in the months of May to September 2004 under the more modest title of the Barcelona Forum 2004.
IPB's contribution was to organise, together with local member organisation Fundacio per la Pau, a 5-day international Dialogue on the broad theme 'Towards a World Without Violence'. This took place from June 22-27. Over 1000 people participated in the conference itself, but several thousands more participated in some way or other in the 'outside-the-conference' programmes aimed at the general public.
Some of the distinguished speakers included IPB President Cora Weiss, Fundacio per la Pau President Alfons Banda, Fredrico Mayor former Director-General of UNESCO and Ramesh Thakur, Vice Rector of United Nations University.
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European Peace Conference 2003, 2005 (Prague, Czech Republic)
At the European Peace Conference in Prague (2003), Vijay Mehta spoke on the war in Iraq, entitled ‘Unite for Peace and Justice: Stop War and Terrorism.’ The speech was well received as it was the start of the Iraq war. He also attended a rally about the war on Iraq and addressed thousands of people in the centre of Prague. The conference was successful and it was a great opportunity to network with peace organizations from the Czech Republic, Ukraine, Russia and other countries from Eastern Europe.
Vijay visited Prague again in 2005 to address a conference on the remarkable women, Noble peace prize winner, Bertha Von Suttner on the 100th anniversary of her winning the Nobel peace prize. The tile of Vijay Mehta’s speech was ‘Ending war and building a just, peaceful and sustainable world.’ He spoke on international peace and security with special reference to two important documents.
1) The UN High-level Panel Report on Threats, Challenges and Change (2004).
2) The 2005 World Leaders Summit Outcome Report
Vijay emphasised that governments and civil society need to work together to ensure the recommendations of the report were implemented for a better world.
Other international speakers were, Cora Weiss from New York, Anne Kjelling from the Nobel Institute from Oslo, and Peter Van den Dungen from the United Kingdom, who also gave speeches at the conference.
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Global Governance Group conference and the New School of Athens
Vijay Mehta went to Athens, Greece 2006 to attend an international conference on the title ‘Beyond the Millennium Declaration: Embracing Democracy and Good Governance’. At the conference Mehta presented a paper ‘Revitalising Global Governance and Democracy-for a just, peaceful and sustainable world.’
For more effective global governance we have to reform the institutions (UN, IMF, World Bank, WTO, EU) of today to suit the changing needs of the 21st century. The issues of poverty, environment, diseases wars and conflict are interrelated and not stand alone threats and need to be tackled in a concerted way for the benefit of all.
In today’s world we have the knowledge of what the problems are and what are our capabilities. The issues are interdependent and we need to deal with them collectively. The world is split along two axes; between democracies and autocracies; and between countries seeking a balance of power and those that want a world organised around international law and institutions. The international community should work on reducing conflicts, protecting human rights, promoting democracy and good governance as key ingredients to sustainable development.
Vijay Mehta has served on many advisory bodies on peace and disarmament and was a member of the team of international experts who met in Greece, at the invitation of the Mayor of Athens and Global Governance Group. As a result, The New School of Athens was created on November 2004. In the classical tradition of ancient Athenian democracy, the school is determined to bridge divergent opinions so as to produce pragmatic proposals in favour of innovative international dialogue and more effective global governance.
Among the international speakers taking part were Dora Bakoyannis (Mayor of Athens), Kimon Valaskakis (President, Global Governance Group, Greece), Anuradha Mittal (Executive Director, the Oakland Institute, USA and India), Paul Collier (Professor of Economics, Oxford University, UK), Michael D. Intriligator (Professor of economics, political science and public policy, UCLA, USA), Sir Richard Jolly (Honorary professor and research associate of the Institute of Development Studies at the University of Sussex), and
Cyril Ritchie (President, Federation of International Institutions, FIIG, Geneva, Switzerland).
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The most effective way of solving global threats and challenges is through a effective and reformed United Nations as it works for the world’s poor, for peace, for environment, for progress and for human rights and justice.
Vijay Mehta has written various articles and given speeches on the necessity of keeping a United Nations fit for the new century. He was also the editor of the book ‘The United Nations and its future for the 21st century.’ We must not forget that although there have been small conflicts and wars around the world, the UN have been successful in its essential mission of preventing World War III. It is very effective in the areas of peacekeeping, rebuilding communities, and protecting human rights.
In Brussels Mehta participated in the European Network for Peace and Human Rights Conference where he presented a paper, ‘The role of the UN in strengthening international peace and security.’ At a UN conference in Florence, he produced a discussion paper on reforming the UN.
Mehta has travelled to the UN headquarters in New York, to attend various conferences. In particular, the Nuclear non-Proliferation Treaty Review Conference and the DPI/NGO conference on the Millennium Development Goals.
Vijay Mehta was part of a team from CND UK attending the NPT conference. Prominent people attending from the UK were Kate Hudson (chair of CND), Dave Knight (vice president, CND), Rebecca Johnson (director, Acronym).
There were excellent opening speeches by Kofi Annan (UN Secretary-General), Mohamed El Baradei (Director-General, IAEA). However, the conference did not mount to anything as delegates could not agree to the final agenda let alone the successful outcome of the conference.
Mehta attended the UNA-UK Annual Conference 2006, which took place at Durham University's Trevelyan College from 21- 23 April. United Nations Under-Secretary-General Shashi Tharoor delivered the keynote address on 'The Future of the UN' in Durham Cathedral. Other prominent figures attending the
conference include Lord Hannay (UNA Chair), Sam Daws (UNA Executive Director), and Jim Addington (Chair of Action for UN Renewal).
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World Peace Forum (Vancouver, Canada)
In June 2006, Vijay attended the World Peace Forum which was one of the largest peace gatherings over three thousand international delegates from 97 countries attended in the beautiful, green and clean city of Vancouver.
Vijay Mehta gave talks on
a) UN reforms
b) The Danger of Arms Trade in the Global Economy and Building Civil Society
c) Ending War and Building a Just, Peaceful and Sustainable World. He gave a TV interview to Think Peace Documentary.
The panel on UN reforms discussed how to strengthen the UN’s role in maintaining international peace and security. It examined the progress of the September 2005 UN Summit of World Leaders and report back on commitments made and actions taken to date. Some additional UN reforms, not adequately addressed through the World Summit process like Security Council reforms, abolition of veto, and enhancing the role of General Assembly were also discussed.
The presenters of the panel were:
a) “UN Institutional Reform”. How can we make the Security Council more representative and work towards abolishing the veto?
Presenter: Vijay Mehta
b) “The UN, Justice and the Rule of Law”
Presenter: Jim Addington
c) “New UN Human Rights Council” and “Responsibility to Protect”
Presenter: Hon. Warren Allmand
d) “Peace building Commission”
Presenter: Bill Pace
e) “UN Peacekeeping as well as the proposal for a UN Emergency Peace Service”
Presenter: Peter Langille.
Among some of the well-known speakers were Hans Blix former UN weapons inspector, Mayor Akiba of Hiroshima - Japan, Former Vice President of World Court – Christopher Weeramantry Sri Lanka, Cora Weiss, President of International Peace Bureau from New York, Dennis Kucinich, US Congressman, Doug Roche - Chair, Middle Power Initiative, Vijay Mehta - President of VM Centre for Peace from the UK, and Jim Addington, Chair of Action for UN Renewal from UK.
More than 10,000 people lined the streets of downtown Vancouver on Saturday as activists from the World Peace Forum marched, chanting messages of peace and calling for an end to global conflict.
A great networking opportunity with organisations from Canada, US, Latin America and other countries around the world to inform, inspire and take action.
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Vijay Mehta went to the Make Poverty History march in Edinburgh, Scotland. The Make Poverty History campaign coalition of charities, religious groups, trade unions, campaigning groups and celebrities who mobilised around world politics in 2005 to increase awareness and pressure governments into taking actions towards relieving absolute poverty.
As a result of the pressure from the historic march and the G8 Summit, world leaders made a pledge to cancel the unserviceable debts of the most poorest countries of the world. He presented the discussion paper Development in Africa: Shaking the curse of poverty, hunger and disease. His recent book, ‘The Fortune Forum Code: For a Sustainable Future’, there is a specific chapter dealing with Africa and the exceptional challenges it faces where more than 1 billion people live below the poverty line and 30,000 people die each day from poverty. The book has the road map for global development. The Fortune Forum Summit also dealt with the theme of global poverty, highlighting its problems and solutions.
The ongoing initiatives in 2006 include working on Sustainable Disarmament for Sustainable Development. The campaign highlights wars, military spending, impact of weapons on human lives, which holds back the agenda for the urgently needed development of the poorest regions and conflict zones in the world. The campaign is started by the International Peace Bureau (IPB), Arms Reduction Coalition (ARC), World Disarmament Campaign (WDC) and supported by various other groups and organizations around the world.
Mehta, as part of the campaign, has spoken on ‘Securing Trade Justice’ at Friends House, London, and on ‘Towards the peaceful use of world resources in the 21st century’ at the House of Lords, Parliament, London.
An IPB conference took place in Helsinki on sustainable development which highlighted the need to develop a worldwide network of activists for the disarmament and development campaign, which will aim at the reduction of landmines, small arms, and nuclear weapons. Mehta is a member of the IPB council.
The International Peace Bureau is dedicated to the vision of a World without War. The IPB is a Nobel Peace Laureate (1910) and over the years 13 of its officers have been recipients of the Nobel Peace Prize.
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Fortune Forum Charity Summit
As co-founder and trustee of Fortune Forum, along with its founder, Renu Mehta, he hosted a major charity and fundraising event in September 2006. The Summit received extensive coverage by the international press and media networks. The proceeds from the event were distributed among major charities, who utilised the funds for the benefit of millions of people worldwide.
The event was attended by former US President Bill Clinton who made an urgent call for action to tackle the pressing issues of global poverty, environmental sustainability and worldwide health to a glittering array of influential entrepreneurs, captains of industry, global leaders, media moguls and celebrity activists. Former US President Bill Clinton was honoured with the British Red Cross Humanity Fellowship Award. Michael Douglas, actor and UN Messenger for Peace, made the stunning presentation. Photos of the event can be viewed at www.fortuneforum.org.
The work of the British Red Cross, African Renaissance, WaterAid and Alliance for a New Humanity were showcased side by side on a shared platform to highlight these global issues which co-exist. These formidable organisations are working to actively find solutions to the most defining challenges of our time. The campaigning of which cannot be accomplished by one nation or one organisation alone.
The evening raised awareness for and funded many projects including emergency aid relief, notably buying ambulances for the British Red Cross, purchasing tree planting for Envirotrade, providing clean water projects for WaterAid. The music legend, Yusuf Islam (formerly Cat Stevens), performed after an absence of 27 years. Deepak Chopra, the renowned spiritualist, delivered his message of instilling a culture of peace. Deepak Chopra and Dave Stewart performed a special peace music jam.
The event inspired and engaged exceptional individuals and corporations to become drivers of social change, to compliment the work of major charities and governments in a powerful way. This launch event will serve as a prelude to more focused and intimate high-level events where these leaders can join forces to harness their power, ideas and influence.
The Fortune Forum is stimulating a culture of giving by influencing philanthropic habits so that a new generation of heroes, alongside the great philanthropists, can harness personal and material resources that can ensure a sustainable future. 'The Fortune Forum Code - For a Sustainable Future' book was timely launched at this inaugural event.
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Biggest March in History
One of the most memorable events was when Vijay Mehta participated on the march against the threat of war in Iraq. Just before the outbreak of the Iraq war, a demonstration and a march took place in 2003 in which millions of people participated all over the world. The February 15, 2003 anti-war protest was a co-ordinated day of protests across the world against the imminent invasion of Iraq. Millions of people protested in approximately 800 cities around the world. According to BBC News, between six and ten million people took part in protests in up to sixty countries over the weekend of the 15th and 16th; other estimates range from eight million to thirty million.
The biggest protests took place in Europe. The protest in Rome involved around 3 million people, and is listed in the 2004 Guinness Book of World Records as the largest anti-war rally in history. Opposition to the war was highest in the Middle East, although protests there were relatively small - Mainland China was the only major region not to see any protests.
Britain's Stop the War Coalition (StWC) held a protest in London which became the largest demonstration in the city's history. Police estimated attendance at 750,000 people; the demonstration's organisers estimated that around 2 million attended. The protest was organised under the slogan "No war on Iraq - freedom for Palestine".
The StWC, who had previously held a series of demonstrations and rallies against the Afghanistan war and the upcoming Iraq war, called for a national demonstration in London for February 15, the agreed-upon international day of protest. The Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament (CND) and the Muslim Association of Britain joined the StWC for this event.
The demonstration gained widespread support. It was backed by the Mayor of London Ken Livingstone who used his position to help resolve the administrative issues. Previously the British press had taken a low view of the newsworthiness of demonstrations, with The Guardian claiming to have a general policy not to cover them. However, sections of the media came over to support this demonstration. For example, The Daily Mirror gave large coverage in the lead up to the march and provided thousands of placards. The demonstration also received sponsorship support from Greenpeace.
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