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International Summit Council for Peace

World Leaders to Address “Rally of Hope” 

August 9, 2020, at 8:40 AM (Manila time) 

PRESS RELEASE 

 

Despite material advances and the amassing of unprecedented wealth, serious global problems remain unsolved. This is all the more striking when it is seen alongside worldwide efforts to maintain peace, resolve conflicts and end poverty by major international peace-keeping bodies, public and private. 

Territorial disputes, religious and racial discord, the collapse of family values, and an aggregate of environmental issues are flaring up on all continents. Added to this is the COVID-19 pandemic which has caused catastrophic economic debt. It seems like a perfect storm. 

Just such dilemmas drew the late Rev. Dr. Sun Myung Moon and his wife Dr. Hak Ja Han Moon to speak out for the realization of an ideal world. Their vision: one human family bound together by the love of God. For decades, they have advocated the philosophy of interdependence, mutual prosperity, and universal values which challenges us with the novel concept of seeing our own purpose in life fulfilled in the well-being of others. 

To emphasize these values and help address related problems, the Universal Peace Federation (an NGO in general consultative status with the Economic and Social Council of the United Nations), will be hosting the latest in a series of on-line virtual summits. The Rally of Hope will be held August 9, 2020 beginning at 8:40 AM (Manila time). The official theme is, “One Million Rally of Hope for the Realization of a Heavenly Unified World of Interdependence, Mutual Prosperity, and Universal Values.” 

 

Ban Ki-moon, former UN Secretary-General and Chairman of the National Council on Climate and Air Quality in Korea, will give the welcome address. Following this, Rev. Paula White, spiritual advisor to President Donald Trump, will give her special remarks. Congratulatory messages from the Hon. Chuichi Date, former President of the House of Councillors of Japan, and the Hon. Newt Gingrich, former speaker of the United States House of Representatives will follow. 

Interspersed with first-class entertainment, keynote addresses will be given by H.E. Hun Sen, Prime Minister of Cambodia; H.E. Macky Sall, President of Senegal; the Hon. Brigi Rafini, Prime Minister of Niger; H.E. Dick Cheney, former Vice-President of the United States of America; and other world leaders. Finally, Dr. Hak Ja Han Moon, co-founder of the Universal Peace Federation and host of the Rally, will give her keynote address. 

E-certificates will be available upon request. In addition, all participants will have a chance to learn more about the Universal Peace Federation and its worldwide movement. 

To register for the Rally of Hope visit http://www.upfasia.org/rallyofhope-register

 

UPF is an NGO in General Consultative Status with the Economic and Social Council of the United Nations 32 Samar Avenue, Brgy. South Triangle, Diliman, Quezon City Telephone number: (63)(2)924 1833 Website: www.upf.org Email: upfphils.pr@gmail.com

Hope Shines in the Land of the Rising Sun

By George Vincent Gamayo | March 17, 2015

Sendai, the capital of Miyagi Prefecture and the largest city in the Tohoku Region, is also known as the “City of Forest” and “Academic Town” because of its generous cover of trees and universities that contribute to its high technology industry.

In spite of its population of approximately one million, no traffic jam is seen in any part of the city. Bikers’ lanes are well utilized here.

With an average temperature of 12 degrees Celsius and annual precipitation of 1,241 millimeters, Sendai enjoys a temperate climate compared to other cities in Japan. Its hottest month is in August with a mean temperature of 24 degrees Celsius, while the coldest is in January with an average of 1.5 degrees Celsius.

However, the capital’s idyllic rhythm was disrupted by the Great East Japan Quake and Tsunami that struck its coastal communities four years ago.

Noriko Kikuchi used to live in Yuriage in Natori City, one of the worst-hit areas of the tsunami. Before the tragedy, it was a lively fishery port with 7,000 residents. And as we walked through the wrecked community, Noriko unveiled her stories.

Noriko, 35, is just one of the nearly 230,000 people displaced after the tsunami. For survivors like her, the 2011 earthquake was the longest six minutes of their lives.

 

The Yuriage Elementary School used to hum with activity, with students calling it their second home. But after the quake, all that was left was an empty, damaged school filled with deafening silence. According to Noriko, one student died in the building.

 

The clock stopped at the exact time of the quake.

Meanwhile, a huge clock greeted visitors at the abandoned Yuriage Junior High School. The timepiece stopped exactly at the time when the earthquake struck. On that day, the school’s tsunami-warning device failed to function, causing the death of 14 students.

Flowers offered at the façade of the campus during the fourth anniversary of the tsunami incident

 

The hill that was once a slice of paradise in the town of Yuriage stood witness to the two fateful days in Sendai’s history.

Hiroyama is a 6-meter artificial mountain built in 1829. Upon seeing the gigantic ocean waves rushing inland during the catastrophic event in 2011, residents climbed the hill. Still, not one of them survived. The tsunami was 8.2-meters tall—high enough to swallow the highest ground in the town. “200 people were killed in this coastal area,” Noriko explained.

 

Beware of Tsunami,” says these memorial stones put up after the March 1, 1933 tsunami that assaulted the same coast. These were once placed on top of Hiroyama, but were swept down the hill after the Great East Japan Quake and Tsunami in 2011.

No less than 500 casualties in Yuriage were reported with 38 still missing. A few of them were tourists. As an effect of the tragedy, the city sunk to 87 centimeters, making it more vulnerable to sea level rise and storm surges.

A few members of the older generations are having difficulties to adapt to their temporary communities, making them leave and go back to their old homes. Meanwhile, some young people are still not fully recovered from the trauma, not wanting to live in the place where they almost lost their lives.

Sustainability Starts in Sendai

The Great East Japan Tragedy was just one of the devastating natural calamities experienced in recent years. To address disaster-related issues, the United Nations gathered 40,000 leaders and disaster experts from 186 countries to revise the Hyogo Framework for Action (HFA) to be adopted from 2015 to 2025. Through these plans for disaster mitigation, resiliency and climate adaptation, the most vulnerable countries will be given due assistance as they strive to prevent economic loss and casualties during tragedies. The conference was held from March 14 to 18, 2015 in Sendai.

The Philippines sent 78 official delegates, headed by Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) Secretary Mirasol “Dinky” Soliman. The team successfully pushed the inclusion of women, youth, senior citizens, indigenous people and migrants in disaster initiatives.

 

Panahon TV interviews DSWD Sec. Soliman during the Third UN World Conference on Disaster Risk Reduction in Sendai which only happens once every ten years.

At the end of the conference, four priorities were agreed for the Sendai Framework for disaster risk reduction:

1: Understanding disaster risks2: Strengthening disaster risk governance to manage disaster risks
3: Investing in disaster risk reduction for resilience
4: Enhancing disaster preparedness for effective response, and to “Build Back Better” in recovery, rehabilitation and reconstruction

No Exceptions

With the third longest coastline in the world, enduring almost 20 cyclones per year and located in the Pacific Ring of Fire, the Philippines is one of the countries most vulnerable to climate change. On November 2013, Super Typhoon Haiyan, locally known as Yolanda, battered the country and claimed more than 6,000 lives. According to the weather bureau PAGASA, mightier typhoons with erratic tracks can happen in spite of the El Niño phenomenon this 2015.

“The Filipino spirit is waterproof.” 

But Filipinos have more to worry about. Experts are not dismissing the possibility of a 7.2 magnitude earthquake in the Greater Metro Manila Area (GMMA) due to the movement of the Valley Fault System, whose last reported tectonic incident was in 1658. Such scenario will put over 34,000 lives at risk. Likewise, the Manila Trench can generate a magnitude 8.2 quake that can trigger tsunamis in Manila and nearby areas such as Western Bataan, Zambales, Occidental Mindoro, Cavite and Batangas. It may sound like an apocalypse; but it is a possibility that must not be ignored. A killer quake or a stronger cyclone may or may not come in this lifetime. But that should not stop Filipinos for preparing for such an event.

How to prepare for possible hazards in the country.

The Sun Rises in Sendai

“No one is immune to disasters; they happen in every corner of the world,” International journalist Mari Ramos said during the Global News Forum in Sendai.

It is the utmost duty of media practitioners to disseminate accurate and simplified warnings with actionable information. Citizens must also participate to help improve community preparedness.


“Information saves lives,” Ramos enthused, a former CNN Global News Correspondent.

In Sendai, homes might have been destroyed, but its people never ceased rebuilding their lives and communities.

The new Yuriage Elementary and Junior High School are likely to be completed in 2018. New seawalls have been constructed to protect the coastal communities against hydro-related hazards. Rehabilitation also takes place in empty lands that may still be used as rice fields, and relocation sites are provided in safe areas.

 

Relocation site in Natori City. Survivors were relocated based on their original neighborhoods.

Meanwhile, Noriko now works as a tour guide in Natori City, sharing the disaster’s aftermath and the lessons they have learned from it. Her stories may be filled with pain, but they are also a reminder of humanity’s great capacity for hope and resilience.

In memory of the 15,891 people who died in the Great East Japan Earthquake.