In 2023, more than ever, we must make peace reign, insisted the Secretary-General, António Guterres, presenting his wishes in a video broadcast on Wednesday, December 28, 2022.
Mr. Guterres, however, did not fail to recall that “For millions of people, the past year still tastes like ashes”.
Citing, among other countries, Ukraine, Afghanistan, and the Democratic Republic of Congo, the UN chief, inspired by the recent report of the UN refugee agency, UNHCR, lamented “that around the world, a hundred million people have been displaced, fleeing war, fires, drought, poverty or hunger”.
evoking ” the Renaissance ” which he hopes to see in 2023, he called for a multi-faceted world peace: “peace among human beings” through dialogue and conflict resolution; peace “with nature and climate for a more sustainable world”a reference to the progress achieved by the recent UN Biodiversity Conference, COP15.
The UN chief also called for peace in the home, a source of “safety and dignity for women and girls”a topic made even hotter by new restrictions on women in Afghanistan and unrest in Iran.
António Guterres also invoked a new year of tolerance, “for peace in our streets and communities with full protection of all human rights”in places of worship with respect for everyone’s beliefs, also entrusting their hope for an Internet “without hate speech or insults”before urging the world to place “Peace at the heart of his words, and his actions…”.