Kabul, 24 September
2010 - School children and local community
leaders were among the participants in a
day-long walk in the Afghanistan's Central
Highlands held today by the United Nations
Environment Programme (UNEP) to mark the
International Day of Peace in 2010.
The trek is the culmination
of a wider UNEP environmental awareness
campaign, undertaken in conjunction with
the UN Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA), designed
to raise awareness of the significance of
the Central Highlands' unique environment.
The message of peace
and reconciliation was highlighted at today's
trek and during a variety of arts, cultural
and outdoor activities, including a Ceremony
for Peace, staged in the countdown to Peace
Day by UNAMA, UNEP and the Provincial Peace
Committee of Bamyan.
"This is a crucial
year in which we can together try to help
the Afghans to find their own peace. So
21 September cannot be a celebration day
but a day of thinking and re-motivating
ourselves in order to help the Afghans to
find peace after so many years of violence
and difficulties", said Staffan de
Mistura, UN Special Representative and Head
of UNAMA.
Today the Trekking for
Peace campaign finale began with speeches
from the Governor of Bamyan Province, Habiba
Sorabi, and representatives of the national
Ministry of Agriculture, Irrigation and
Livestock (MAIL), the National Environmental
Protection Agency (NEPA), the Department
of Youth and UNEP, as well as local community
leaders.
Kite-flying on the mountains
by local children ended the opening ceremony
before the group set off on their five-kilometre
alpine trek to over 3,500 meters above sea
level.
Held annually on 21
September, the theme for Peace Day in 2010
was "Youth, peace and development".
UNEP's work in Bamyan Province brings these
themes together in a practical way by fostering
awareness and action by young people to
maintain a healthy local environment through
dialogue and mutual understanding at the
community level, UNEP said. UNEP is working
to help communities come together to manage
their natural resources. Working in partnership
to manage natural resources as an effective
tool for building peace within and between
communities and has been at the heart of
the Peace Day campaign.
The Central Highlands
area includes Band-e-Amir, one of Afghanistan's
most remarkable natural landscapes and the
country's first national park, as well as
the Ajar Valley Wildlife Reserve.
