Overview

Since our inception, PeaceNow.com has strongly supported the establishment of Ministries & Departments of Peace in governments worldwide from the national down to the local level. We call this important effort building our world’s “Muscles of Peace.”  With this mind, The Muscles of Peace Global Resolution in Support of Infrastructures for Peace in Governments Worldwide herein was written in 2013 in a collaborative effort to help promote this Infrastructures for Peace movement and honor its long, distinguished history. In the United States, this movement’s earliest incarnations date back to 1793. In that year, Dr. Benjamin Rush, a founding father of the United States, called for the creation of a Department of Peace that would be on equal footing with the Department of War.

To honor the great work of these early peace pioneers and all who have come since, we have endeavored to unify, promote, and support other organizations which share this vision for the betterment of humankind. Some have created their own unique resolutions which reflect the nuances and challenges of the cultures and histories from which they emerged. At PeaceNow.com, we stand in joyful, wholehearted support of them all.

When you generously add your important signature to our Peace Registry that is connected to The Muscles of Peace Global Resolution in Support of Infrastructures for Peace in Governments Worldwide, it is an inclusive statement of unity and support to peacebuilders and global citizen activists in every nation on earth. By contributing to this movement, you are strengthening our world’s Muscles of Peace, so in the great endeavor to build a bright future for all people, the Muscles of Peace can be victorious. Together, this is how we accelerate the tipping point for global peace.

Summary:

We, global citizen signatories from 192 Nations, respectfully in one voice, call upon the United Nations (UN) and all countries, both nationally and in collaboration with the community of nations, to create infrastructures in their governments and in civil society to develop and implement policies, programs and practices that:

1. Promote, establish, and maintain human and environmental security and justice in the social, economic, political, educational, and legal spheres, and thus generally the Culture of Peace;
2. Create and expand Economies of Peace and “peacepreneurship” so as to “beat our swords into ploughshares and spears into pruning hooks;”
3. Are accepted and supported by and have legitimacy with the people they serve, whether at the local, regional, national, or international level;
4. Are sustainable, adaptive, and resilient;
5. And may be in the form of, but not limited to, departments of peace, government ministries, peace academies, institutes, schools, councils, and private sector enterprises that help:

• Establish peace as a primary organizing principle in society, both domestically and globally;
• Direct government policy towards non-violent resolution of conflict prior to escalation to violence and to seek peace by peaceful means in all conflict areas;
• Promote justice and democratic principles to expand human rights and the security of persons and their communities, consistent with the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, other related UN treaties and conventions, and the Declaration and Programme of Action on a Culture of Peace (1999);
• Promote disarmament and develop and strengthen non-military options for peacemaking, peacebuilding, and peace professionalism;
• Develop new approaches to non-violent intervention, and utilize constructive dialogue, mediation, and the peaceful resolution of conflict at home and abroad;
• Encourage the involvement in local, national, and global peace-building of local communities, faith groups, NGOs, and other civil society and business organizations:
• Facilitate the development of peace and reconciliation summits to promote non-violent communication and mutually beneficial solutions;
• Act as a resource for the creation and the gathering of best practices documents, lessons learned, and peace impact assessments;
• Provide for the training of all military, and civilian personnel who administer post-war reconstruction and demobilization in war-torn societies; 
• Fund the development of peace education curriculum materials for use at all educational levels and to support university-level peace studies.

Further, we call upon the UN General Assembly to reaffirm its pledge, as faithful representatives of the governments of the world, to join “We the Peoples” in creating a peaceful world in the spirit of the UN Charter, thus advancing the Culture of Peace within each nation, each culture, each religion, and each human being for the betterment of all humankind and future generations. In making this call, we gratefully acknowledge the long history of work already accomplished within the UN toward this end, including:

• All the UN documents written on the Culture of Peace since June 1945, in particular, the Charter of the United Nations, which is dedicated to saving succeeding generations from the scourge of armed conflict, calls for nations to live together in peace as good neighbours, and takes to heart its emphasis on the vital role “We the Peoples of the United Nations” are to play in “realizing a peaceful, just and compassionate neighbourhood;”
• Our Common Agenda (OCA), including the call in the 2021 OCA report by Secretary-General Gutterres for “a new agenda for peace” to accelerate the implementation of existing UN agreements;
• The Universal Declaration of Human Rights, which states that the foundation of freedom, justice, and peace is the recognition of the inherent rights of all members of the human family without exception and that all human beings should act towards one another peacefully and in the interest of the common good;
• The UN resolution 52/15 of 20 November 1997, proclaiming the year 2000 as the “International Year for the Culture of Peace, and A/RES/53/25 of 19 November 1998, proclaiming 2001-2010 the “International Decade for a Culture of Peace and Nonviolence for the Children of the World;”
• The UN resolution 53/243 adopted by consensus on 13 September 1999, and annually reaffirmed by the General Assembly High-Level Forum in which the UN Declaration and Program of Action for a Culture of Peace gives clear guidelines for governments, non-governmental organizations (NGOs), civil society and people from all walks of life to work together to strengthen the global Culture of Peace as we live through the 21st century;
• The Constitution of the UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), which states, “since wars begin in the minds of men, it is in the minds of men that the defences of peace must be constructed”, and the important role UNESCO is mandated to fulfill in promoting the global Culture of Peace;
• Security Council resolution 1325 of 31 October 2001 on Women, Peace and Security, which acknowledges for the first time the crucial importance of women’s participation in the peace processes, and the follow-up Security Council Resolution 1820 of 19 June 2008 by the same name; and
• The many other key UN Culture of Peace documents, including A/RES/52/13, 15 January 1998 Culture of Peace; A/RES/55/282, 28 September 2001 International Day of Peace; and the 2005 Mid-Decade Status Report on the International Decade for a Culture of Peace and Nonviolence for the Children of the World.
• In conclusion, we, global citizen signatories from 192 Nations, respectfully in one voice, affirm that we:
  • Are motivated by the recognition that human beings in the billions have suffered the atrocities of violent conflict, poverty, and human-induced environmental disasters, and are thus now, more than ever, committed to saving future generations from these scourges by living in peace and by building the Economies of Peace at the individual, national and global levels that will sustain these efforts;
  • Stand in solidarity with all efforts to overcome the persistence of violent conflict in various parts of the world and the proliferation of nuclear, biological, and chemical weapons, which threaten the existence of our planet;
  • Believe in the goodwill of all the Member States of the UN and in the increasing political will of each Member State to “promote social progress and better standards of life based in the growing freedoms and capabilities created by global peace;” and
  • Acknowledge the urgent need to rebuild the trust of the world’s citizens in governments and to establish effective working relationships between and among nations through the cultivation of shared interests and common ground that form the foundation of global peace. 

GLOBAL RESOLUTION HISTORY

The drafting of The Muscles of Peace Global Resolution in Support of Infrastructures for Peace in Governments Worldwide was a collaborative effort between United Nations Culture of Peace working groups, the Global Movement for the Culture of Peace, the Global Alliance for Ministries & Infrastructures for Peace, The Peace Alliance, and PeaceNow.com. 

192 Nations Represented By Global Citizen Signatories

Afghanistan, Albania, Algeria, American Samoa, Andorra, Angola, Antiqua & Barbuda, Argentina, Armenia, Australia, Austria, Azerbaijan, Bahamas, Bahrain, Bangladesh, Barbados, Belarus, Belgium, Belize, Benin, Bhutan, Bolivia, Bosnia & Herzegovina, Botswana, Brazil, Brunei Darussalam, Bulgari, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Cambodia, Cameroon, Canada, Cape Verde, Central African Republic, Chad, Chile, China, Columbia, Comoros, Costa Rica, Cote d’Ivoire, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Democratic Republic of Congo, Denmark, Djibouti, Dominica, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, Egypt, El Salvador, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Estonia, Ethiopia, Faroe Islands, Federated States of Micronesia, Fiji, Finland, France, Gabon, Gambia, Georgia, Germany, Ghana, Greece, Grenada, Guatemala, Guinea-Bissau, Guyana, Haiti, Honduras, Hungary, Iceland, India, Indonesia, Iran, Iraq, Ireland, Isle Man, Israel, Italy, Jamaica, Japan, Jordan, Kazakhstan, Kenya, Kiribati, Kurdistan, Kyrgyzstan, Laos, Latvia, Lebanon. Lesotho, Liberia, Libya, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Madagascar, Malawi, Marshall Islands, Mauritania, Mexico, Moldova, Monaco, Mongolia, Montenegro, Morocco, Mozambique, Myanmar, Namibia, Nauru, Nepal, Netherlands, New Zealand, Nicaragua, Niger, Nigeria, Norway, Oman, Pakistan, Palau, Palestine, Panama, Papua New Guinea, Paraguay, Peru, Philippines, Poland, Portugal, Puerto Rico, Republic of Macedonia, Romania, Russia, Rwanda, Sao Tome & Principe, Saudi Arabia, Senegal, Serbia, Seychelles, Sierra Leone, Singapore, Slovakia, Solomon Islands, Somalia, South Africa, South Korea, South Sudan, Spain, Sri Lanka, St. Kitts & Nevis, St. Lucia, St. Vincent & the Grenadines, Sudan, Suriname, Swaziland, Sweden, Switzerland, Taiwan, Tajikistan, Tanzania, Thailand, Timor-Leste, Togo, Tonga, Trinidad & Tobago, Tunisia, Turkey, Turkmenistan, Tuvalu, U.A.E., U.S.A, Uganda, Ukraine, United Kingdom, Uruguay, Uzbekistan, Vanuatu, Venezuela, Vietnam, Yemen, Zambia, Zimbabwe.

SUPPORTING ORGANIZATIONS

AGNT Association for Global New Thought

Ashland Culture of Peace Commission

United States Department of Peacebuilding Campaign

Children of the Earth

Civilian Peace Service Canada

Education For Global Peace

Findhorn Foundation

GAIA Education

Global Alliance for Ministries and Infrastructures for Peace 

Global Movement for the Culture of Peace

Global Campaign for Peace Education 

HOPE Coalition 

House of Pax Culture Civil Association

International Cities of Peace 

International Institute on Peace Education

Kosmos Associates Inc.

Lifebridge Foundation

Love for Life

Meditation Groups Inc 

METTA Center 

National Peace Academy USA 

Pathways to Peace 

Peace Crane Project 

Peace Day Philly 

PeaceJam

PeaceNow.com 

Peace One Day

Peace through Unity

Rasur Foundation International

River Phoenix Center for Peacebuilding

Source of Synergy Foundation

Spiritual Caucus at the UN

The Center for Nonviolent Solutions

The Hygeia Foundation for Health, Science and the Environment

The National Association for Community Mediation-NAFCM

The Peace Alliance

The Peace Alliance Educational Institute

The Shift Network

Uniting for Peace

We, The World

Wholeworld-view.org

World Beyond War

World Business Academy

World Goodwill NGO