Swords into Plowshares is the blog of the Peacemaking Program and the Presbyterian Ministry at the United Nations of the Presbyterian Mission Agency of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.).
Seeking peace. Striving for justice. Together.
Why do followers of Jesus work in the public arena - that part of our life where communities and countries and corporations and the nations of the world make policies that shape our common life? What theological principles and Biblical stories call us to and sustain us in such ministry?
How do we witness and work in the public arena?
On Saturday, May 18, I had the privilege to explore these and related questions with an intergenerational group from Warner Memorial Presbyterian Church in Kensington, Maryland.
Certified Educator Jan Moody, Pastor, the Rev. Kirby Lawrence Hill, and Director of Music John ...
From our colleagues in the Office of Public Witness
Ask the State Department to Deny Entry to Dr. Nafie Ali Nafie
In 1989, Farouk Mohammed Ibrahim, a former science professor at the University of Khartoum, was arrested for his outspoken criticism of the Sudanese government. For twelve days, he was held in one of Sudan’s notorious “ghost houses,” where he was interrogated and tortured. “I was tortured, beaten and flogged in his presence,” Ibrahim toldLA Times reporter Edmund Sanders in 2008. “He was administering the whole thing. He did it all in such a cool manner, as if ...
Remarks by Luis CdeBaca, Ambassador-at-Large Office to Monitor and Combat Trafficking in Persons at the high-level meeting on the Appraisal of the Global Plan of Action to Combat Trafficking in Persons.
AS DELIVERED
Mr. President, ladies and gentlemen, good morning. I’m pleased to join so many partners and stakeholders today to discuss progress and the path forward on our shared commitment to combat modern slavery, what we also call trafficking in persons. We’re here today because modern slavery is a crime that hurts our countries and communities. It rips families apart, undermines the rule of law, creates instability ...
An estimated 1.2 million children all over the world are annually exploited through prostitution, pornography, and trafficking. Some travelers use tours and hotels as venues to exploit children. Without clear policies and training, staff are not equipped to identify and react to such behavior. You can take a stand against the sexual exploitation of children by informing companies about their vulnerability in the tourism industry.
The Tourism Child-Protection Code of Conduct is the only internationally accepted framework that sets a standard of responsible business practices to effectively crack down on the sexual exploitation of children. To date, over 1 ...
Below is a message from Secretary General Ban Ki-moon on World Malaria Day.
THE SECRETARY-GENERAL
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MESSAGE ON WORLD MALARIA DAY
25 April 2013
Since world leaders adopted the Millennium Development Goals in 2000, a broad partnership of governments, United Nations entities, philanthropies and businesses has combined to protect hundreds of millions of people from malaria. Increased international funding, matched by growing political commitment in endemic countries, triggered a massive increase in preventive interventions and expanded access to diagnostic testing and life-saving medicines, averting more than a million deaths.
The MDG target of halting and reversing the incidence of malaria is ...