Peace is a right of all, and makes all other rights possible: Abp Tomasi
Geneva, 08 June 2013: ‘Peace is a right that everyone should enjoy and it is a condition
that makes it possible to integral human development’ said Archbishop Silvano Maria
Tomasi, Permanent Observer of the Holy See to the United Nations in Geneva. He was
speaking on Friday at the 23rd session of the Human Rights Council, focusing
on "The Right to peace." "Peace is the condition which makes all other rights possible
– said the Archbishop adding that ‘the realization of the fundamental rights leads
to true peace, based on freedom, justice and fraternity."
Elaborating on the
concept of peace Archbishop Tomasi said that "define peace as the absence of war would
mean reducing it to a negative value", whereas "another name for peace is development",
which involves the construction of schools, the construction of health facilities
and the existence of future prospects for the younger generation. Reiterating the
interdependence that exists today all over the planet, the Observer of the Holy See
to the UN in Geneva recalled the importance of the dignity of the person and emphasized
that "the peace and security of some cannot be guaranteed without peace and safety
of others." "Our world is not lacking in resources, but suffer from injustice."
And that is why - said Archbishop Tomasi - that today "the opposite of peace, rather
than war, fear," become the "common denominator between rich and poor, between developed
and developing countries." By defining also war as a "failure of humans and the
human," he said that we cannot defend or build a healthy society by inflicting on
other indescribable suffering. "By destroying the other, we destroy humanity itself"
warned the Archbishop. In contrast, only the values of peace, as "less spectacular,
more patient, more respectful of the other, more modest," are able to build a truly
human society. Finally, the prelate expressed appreciation for the decision to set
up an open-ended intergovernmental working group with the aim of putting in place
the official codification of the human right to peace: "A wise decision - he concluded
- that we hope will bear fruit in a statement effective and shared by all." Source:
VR Sedoc