A United Peoples Advocates and Global Virtual Assembly World Peace
Conference is to be held November 7-8 at DreamHouse in Chicago IL USA
and sponsored by the United Planetary Federation (a world peace
organisation). This conference, with an attendance fee of only $20, is
meant to help coordinate and facilitate the distillation and combination
of efforts, information, and accomplishments of movements that support a
viable peoples assembly. The UPF is an organisation that acts as a
clearinghouse for any and all information concerning world peace. It is
hoped that through continued input into the content, structure, and
function of their web site (http://www.upf.org), it will become a
unified peace foundation for the sharing of ideas that can used to
facilitate a lasting world peace in the near future.
One might think that another effort to support the development of a
peoples assembly would seem redundant, but the UPF is working closely
with any effort that supports world peace. In 1993, the UPF formed to
bring the idea of unifying the world peace movement to the Internet via
sub-nets such as Intellec. From 1994 to 1996, they developed a web site
and posted messages to various newsgroups in an attempt to gather as
many opinions as possible. In 1997, the UPF continues to post to
newsgroups and mailing lists and will contribute its research and
experience to the World Peace movement by organising a United Peoples
Advocates and Global Virtual Assembly Conference at DreamHouse in
Chicago. This conference is meant to help unify and distill the various
movements that support the creation of a peoples assembly.
For an entrance fee of only $20, there will be numerous activities and
discussions planned for the conference that include a Dinner Dance -
Cocktail Hour (Eating and Socialising); Panel Discussions about a
Unified Planetary Assembly, Consensus, a Federal Democratic Republic,
Global World Citizenship, Framing a World Constitution (Articles of
Assembly), Peacemakers as Heroes, Corporate Honesty and Fairness, Unity,
NGOs as viable and effective organisations, Unifying the World Peace
Movement itself, and Assisting in the Coordination of Various Efforts to
establish a viable peoples assembly; and finally Workshops on Equity and
Development, Weaponry and Armed Forces, Peaceful International
Institutions and Global Relations, Nonmilitary Technological
Applications and Nonmilitary Economics (Changing tax spending away from
fossil fuels, military, and toxic chemical agriculture), Environmental
Degradation and Universal Acceptance of All Life, Non-violent Conflict
Resolution (Ending Institutionalised Violence and Teaching Peaceful
Resolutions), and Freedoms, Rights, and Responsibilities (Recognition of
Basic Rules to Live By).
While the United Nations itself seems too weak to bring about rapid
change in terms of the elimination of global problems, there are
movements toward creating a peoples assembly that will strengthen the
existence of a viable globally governing empowerment and help pressure
nation-states to fulfil their commitments, obligations, and
responsibilities to a better future. Any and all forms of a peoples
assembly must be truly representative and legitimately empowered by
those involved. Not only is empowerment an issue, but funding is a
valid concern and would not come substantially from the UN because of
its already tight budget. Some of the funding might come from NGOs and
the large metropolitan cities of the world as well as from national
governments and international corporations. Because new sources of
revenue are needed to boost the UN, these sources could also contribute
a peoples assembly that would exist as a parallel assembly to the UN
general assembly, not necessarily entirely within the UN’s walls.
Although not necessarily a direct outgrowth of the present day UN, a
peoples assembly might be a combination of efforts inside and outside of
the UN, both physically and virtually.
The main argument for a peoples assembly would be to accelerate the
transition from a world of competition to one of cooperation. Although,
logically, a peoples assembly would be the result of NGO involvement
with both the UN and the world's largest metropolitan cities, it must
also be the result of ideas and opinions of all the Earth’s people.
This is exactly why a viable peoples assembly must not only include
efforts both in and out of the UN, but also include both a virtual as
well as a physical presence in the form of a Global Virtual Assembly.
The UPF began to facilitate a GVA's existence with the cooperation of
those on the world.gov mailing list when an election for a board to
coordinate a virtual peoples assembly protocol was held. Ultimately,
everyone would be able to input into the structure and function of a
viable peoples assembly. That is why a variety of attendees and
opinions are needed at the Conference in November which will represent
the first step toward a viable Unified Planetary Assembly, in whatever
form it will eventually take. The next step, which will be represented
by a second conference next year, is to promote the idea of an Advisory
Council as a viable “Third House”. Of course, these ideas are open to
debate by anyone who wishes to contribute. Whoever wants to attend the
conference is welcome to do so. Also welcome is anyone who wishes to
speak at the conference in a formal fashion.
In addition to the UPF, there are a number of NGOs working toward a
viable peoples assembly including CAMDUN, Earth Council, Earth Action,
and ACGC. The concept of a peoples assembly has been variously referred
to as a “Global Peoples Assembly”, a “UN Peoples Assembly”, a “UN
Citizens Assembly”, a “United Peoples Assembly”, and a “Peoples
Advocates Council”. We must help to create a viable peoples assembly by
definition that would exist as a direct outgrowth of the people on this
planet. It would seem very logical for such a movement to include
efforts that support both an evolution of the UN and a revolution of the
people. Why can we not marry these two efforts to facilitate a viable
overarching peoples assembly movement? With the increasing involvement
of NGOs in the UN, one could say that a prototype of a peoples assembly
already exists though its structure, yet it cannot be described as a
truly democratically elected entity. It is for this reason that we must
go beyond the present model to include any and all opinions. The time
has come for the voices of all the Earth’s peoples to be heard. It is
our hope that the Peace Conference in November at DreamHouse will help
facilitate the eventual existence of a viable peoples assembly, with
both physical and virtual components, by distilling and combining the
findings of all the efforts that support a peoples assembly, in whatever
final form it takes. For more information, write to UPF, PO Box 17470,
Chicago IL 60617-0470, call 1.800.484.8027.6093 or send email to
conference@upf.org.
--
Your Friend in Peace,
Glen Nuttall
"Courageous People, United World, Committed Future"
UPF
http://upf.org
upf@upf.org
"Out of Respect for Diversity comes Recognition of Fundamental Freedoms,
Individual Rights, and Legitimate Responsibilities"
"In the common interest of a Lasting World Peace through a Unified
Planetary Assembly"