Speech for the International Day of Peace

21 September

Daniel Myszka

A worker

Greetings, friends and comrades. Thank you all for joining me here today. I would like to begin by acknowledging the traditional owners of this land, the Wurundjeri people of the Kulin Nation and to pay respect to its elders, both past and present.

As I’m sure you are all aware, today is the International Day of Peace as sanctioned by the United Nations. It is a day in which the peoples of all nations come together in the celebration of peace and the rejection of war and conflict. However, sadly, today is far from a peaceful day, as countless conflicts continue to rage on around the world right now as we speak.

Read more: International Day of Peace Rally in Melbourne – 21 September - Daniel Myszka

Speech at Independent and Peaceful Australia Network Adelaide Rally

22 September

by Stephen Darley

Convenor IPAN (SA)

What's the difference between 10,000 people being killed in air strikes and a bunch of missiles taking out an oil processing facility?

The difference is that only the one which threatens the markets will "not be tolerated" by the Trump administration.

Scott Morrison, PM of Australia is in the US exploring how far he can kis Donald Trump's bum.  Morrison is following a long tradition – remember Harold Holt's “all the way with LBJ” as the Vietnam War built up? So will this be part of the preliminaries to a new war, against Iran?

Read more: International Day of Peace Rally in Adelaide – 22 September - Stephen Darley

International Day of Peace - "Peace Day" address

21 September

by Alexia Fuentes

Migrante Melbourne

Today is September 21st. International Day of Peace or "Peace Day"! I have to ask though. Do we live in a peaceful society? Do we live in a peaceful world?

We are all peaceful people. We all yearn for peace. It is the aspiration of all peaceful-loving peoples and nations. But what does turning away refugees who come here to escape war and poverty, aspiring for peace, tell us? To many of us here today, including the ones who came here to escape the ravages of the second world war, we’ve been lucky enough. To those who came here because they simply had the means to start a new life, even luckier. Many of you probably feel unaffected by the present situation.

Read more: International Day of Peace Rally in Melbourne – 21 September - Alexia Fuentes

Speech at Independent and Peaceful Australia Network Rally

21 September

by Oneal Waromi

West Papuan student

You will all have seen the media reports over the last few weeks, showing horrific human rights abuses in West Papua. Not just of people in West Papua but also of university students and other West Papuans living in Indonesia.  As a West Papuan post-graduate student here in Australia, I am asking your help on behalf of the many West Papuans who are suffering – ordinary people, shot, tortured, forced to flee from their villages simply because of wanting to achieve self-determination for their own country.

Read more: International Day of Peace Rally in Melbourne – 21 September - Oneal Waromi