THE WORLD MARCH FOR PEACE & NONVIOLENCE

The World March for Peace & Nonviolence is the concerted effort of more than 1 million people in 100 countries and 7 continents who yearn for peace and who are calling out for the eradication of nuclear arms and an end to war and all forms of violence that continue to plague humanity.

Through the manifestation of thousands of locally-developed marches, actions, and events around the world, the World March aims to generate consciousness of the dangerous global situation in which we are living -- a situation marked by an extreme imbalance of wealth and resources, pervasive levels of violence and discrimination, a renewed arms race, the violent military occupation of foreign territories, and, most urgent of all, the heightened probability of nuclear conflict.

The World March is a proposal for an unprecedented social mobilization in favor of Peace and Nonviolence, put forward by the Humanist Movement through one of its organizations, World Without Wars.

THE PROPOSALS OF THE WORLD MARCH
To avoid a future nuclear catastrophe we must surpass violence today, demanding:

• nuclear disarmament at a global level
• the immediate withdrawal of invading troops from occupied territories
• the progressive and proportional reduction of conventional weapons
• the signing of non-aggression treaties between countries
• the renunciation by governments of the use of war as a means to resolve conflicts

It is more urgent than ever to awaken in people a consciousness for peace and disarmament; it is also necessary to create consciousness of the powerful truth of nonviolence, a recognition that rejects not only physical violence, but all forms of violence: economic, racial, psychological, religious, sexual, etc. Creating a new personal, interpersonal and social consciousness requires changing predisposed habits, images, and ideas and predisposing oneself and others to a new way of life.

THE MARCH IN ACTION

The World March for Peace and Nonviolence is inspiring various initiatives and activities. One will be the symbolic march of an international and intercultural team whose journey will pass through six continents. It will start on October 2, 2009 -- the International Day of Nonviolence -- in Wellington, New Zealand, and will culminate on January 2, 2010 at the foot of Mount Aconcagua in Punta de Vacas, Argentina. During this time, in hundreds of cities around the world, there will be marches, festivals, forums, conferences, and other events to create consciousness of the urgent need for Peace and Nonviolence. The development of these initiatives is open to any person, organization, school, collective, group, political party, business, etc., that shares the same aspirations and endorses the March’s proposals.
The World March is a call to all people to unite and take responsibility for changing the world, to overcome personal violence, and to work together for peace in their immediate environments and as far as their influence may reach.