At the conference held in the main auditorium of Yongin Elysian Learning Center, HWPL head addressed the Convention on the Renunciation and Cessation of War and International Armed Conflicts.
The convention is a product of cooperation among international law experts from various countries, which began since the signing of the Agreement to Propose the Enactment of International Law for the Cessation of Wars and World Peace at the 2014 WARP Summit. It stresses the need to strengthen the provisions for renouncing war and other international armed conflicts and further calls on states to abide by those provisions. This project began with the intent to settle armed conflicts only by peaceful means. The convention, upon its presentation at the conference, garnered support from not only legal professionals but also youth, women, and journalists who were in attendance.
“We have greeted a new era and everyone here are the leading characters in opening the new era,” said Hee Lee, emphasizing that the Implementation of an International Convention on the Cessation of War was a brilliant work in the history of the achievement of the cessation of war and world peace and will be remembered for eternity.
Head of the International Women’s Peace Group (IWPG) told the meeting that “the 1st Annual Commemoration of the WARP Summit is the platform provided for the implementation of the international convention which is the core business of HWPL,” adding that the presentation of the first draft of the convention was an unprecedented work that drew a stroke in the history of peace.
Dr. Fathi Kemicha, a former member of the UN International Law Commission, delivered a keynote speech. “The Convention on the Renunciation and Cessation of War and International Armed Conflicts will bring us closer to a more peaceful and prosperous world. The collective might of the people here, of the women and youths that HWPL represents, could be what is needed to bring about such change. HWPL has an important role to play in developing and implementing a legal framework that protect women and children and which create a more just and peaceful world. When one imagines a world in which states have ratified this convention, one cannot help but be filled with hope.”
The conference was attended by over 300 people including international law experts as well as political, youth, women, and religious leaders from around the world. Among the attendees were Al-Haj Murad Ebrahim, the head of the Moro Islamic Liberation Front, who signed a peace agreement with the Philippine government, and Dr. Fathi Kemicha, former member of the UN International Law Commission. Also, former and current heads of state and many UN officials joined them in the work for peace.
Dr. Kamal Hossain, the vice-chair of the International Law Association, who also signed the peace agreement at the 2014 WARP Summit, conveyed his congratulatory message to Mr. Man Hee Lee and everyone who attended the 1st Annual Commemoration of the WARP Summit. “We must make our children and our grandchildren free from the scourge of war,” he said. “I would appeal particularly to youth and women that we must go back to our countries and continue with the same commitment that you have shown.”