[HWPL]

[HWPL] HWPL Hosted Silencing the Guns Project in Botswana

Chairman ManHee Lee is the head representative of the global peace organization HWPL (Heavenly Culture, World Peace, Restoration of Light), which is striving for the enactment and implementation of the international peace law 'Declaration of Peace and Cessation of War (DPCW)'. The  DPCW is a legal instrument comprised of 10 articles and 38 clauses that can end wars and hostilities throughout the world. HWPL is also spreading a culture of peace and implementing peace education.

Chairman ManHee Lee experienced the cruelty and tragedy of war as a veteran of the Korean War. This is one of the reasons why he founded a global peace campaign as the head of HWPL. He has traveled the globe more than 35 times to meet and persuade politicians, legal experts, journalists, professors, peace activists, civil organization leaders, heads of tribes and others to unite them for the work of peace. The significant fruits borne out of his hard work are the World Alliance of Religions' Peace (WARP) Summit and HWPL Peace Committee. The DPCW was drafted and finalised by the HWPL Peace Committee.

How, you may wonder, do I know this? About 10 years ago, when I had just been discharged from military service, I came to know HWPL and Chairman ManHee Lee while researching the topic of civil conflicts to satisfy my curiosity in ongoing global issues. At that time, the island of Mindanao in the Philippines was suffering from a major civil conflict that lasted more than 40 years, and Chairman ManHee Lee and HWPL resolved this conflict through non-violent means.

Chairman Lee brought an end to the conflict in Mindanao by holding a peace talk between the warring Catholic and Islamic groups. Before the talk, HWPL and Chairman ManHee Lee held a Peace Walk to spread the culture of peace in Mindanao with the many locals who had gathered out of a desire for peace.

Chairman ManHee Lee's pressing appeal today is that humanity unites for sustainable peace in order to pass on the legacy of peace to future generations worldwide. He doesn't just talk peace, but has worked tirelessly for it through practical peace campaigns for over a decade.

I decided to become a supporter of HWPL and Chairman ManHee Lee's peace initiatives because I also desire a world of peace for all posterity.

Today I'd like to introduce an article from HWPL official homepage regarding intergenerational dialogue on Gender-Based Violence (GBV) in Botswana. Let's read the article together :)

Silencing the Guns Project in Botswana: A Focus on Gender-Based Violence—Report Back and Intergenerational Dialogue

 

On the 13th of April 2023, Heavenly Culture, World Peace, and Restoration of Light (HWPL) and Volunteer Hub with International Peace Youth Group (IPYG) hosted an intergenerational dialogue about Gender-Based Violence (GBV) at Cresta Presidential Hotel in Gaborone. More than thirty people gathered to attend this event, which showed the heart that Botswana has for peace.

 

 

While Botswana lacks official statistics on GBV, the Botswana National Relationship Study released by UN Women in 2017 found that 37% of women had experienced GBV, including 28% during the previous twelve months. Since GBV is not only an issue that affects women and girls but also men and boys, even if at a slower rate than the former, the two organizations are working to deal with this issue at the community level. 

This is the third workshop where the outcomes of the project are presented. The event was aimed at educating youth on GBV and giving them tools on how to counter GBV through the IPYG Youth Engagement & Peacebuilding Working Group (YEPW).

 

 

The IPYG YEPW aimed to address this need by helping people understand the root causes of GBV, and how people can change their mindsets to help start finding lasting solutions to the problem. After the YEPW sessions, many participants said that their view of GBV and violence, in general, was distorted by personal experience, thus affecting how they approach resolving issues. They agreed that there needs to be a change in the approach to how to deal with GBV and the goal of changing thoughts on the matter of violence is vital.

 

 

Olerato Mathodi, the founder of Volunteer Hub and a spokesperson said, “This campaign was able to raise awareness on GBV issues, but also educate more people on the issues around GBV. However, many people are already aware of how bad GBV is in Botswana; the problem is they do not feel the current systems are working. The YEPW is one area that can offer a solution to this problem.”

Addressing the reason for the gathering and the efforts that are being placed by HWPL, guest speaker Malcolm Coetzee (IPYG South Africa / Coordinator) had this to share, “Article 10 of the Declaration of Peace and Cessation of War (DPCW), which is the document you have all been asked to support today, speaks about spreading a culture of peace. It places a responsibility on states to ensure that they are working with individuals and civil society on activities that promote peace within the communities.”

HWPL encourages and hosts peace events for resolution of conflicts and social problem to help community, state and country by spreading peace culture and education. We can help HWPL's peace work by promoting its campaigns in the internet :) How about join HWPL and work for the peace together? If you are interested in, please click following link :)

HWPL Official Homepage

https://www.hwpl.kr/language/en/home-hwpl-_en/