WORLD FORUM FOR PEACE NORMANDY KICKS OFF TODAY BY MORIN AND PRIOLLAUD

USPA NEWS - “Long live Normandy, long live France, Long live the world and long live peace“ These are the last words of the speech delivered by Herve MORIN founder and head of Normandy World Peace Forum “ Ladies' Abbey on 1 October 20 - i Caen at the Abbaye des Dames. Despite the COVID-19 pandemic, Herve Morin and his Vice President, Francois Xavier Priollaud, managed to maintain the Normandy World Peace Forum for its third edition, in respect to the sanitary measures and keeping the social distanciation. « I was elected president of the reunified Normandy region a little over five years ago. And with my friend François-Xavier Priollaud, one of the great pride of our mandate is Normandy for Peace and the Freedom Prize. Camus said: "Peace is the only fight worth fighting". Herve Morin declared. The Special Guest of Honor, Barbara Hendricks, performed on 30th of September, an amazing graceful, concert, with her Blues Band, under the very strong rain. Barbara Hendricks the committed singer, internationally recognized American and honorary ambassador of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees gave a very private concert under the giant tent of the World Normandy Forum for Peace.

“Long live Normandy, long live France, Long live the world and long live peace“ These are the last words of the speech delivered by Herve MORIN founder and head of Normandy World Peace Forum “ Ladies' Abbey on 1 October 20 - i Caen at the Abbaye des Dames. Despite the COVID-19 pandemic, Herve Morin and his Vice President, Francois Xavier Priollaud, managed to maintain the Normandy World Peace Forum for its third edition, in respect to the sanitary measures and keeping the social distanciation. « I was elected president of the reunified Normandy region a little over five years ago. And with my friend François-Xavier Priollaud, one of the great pride of our mandate is Normandy for Peace and the Freedom Prize. Camus said: "Peace is the only fight worth fighting". Herve Morin declared.The Special Guest of Honor, Barbara Hendricks, performed on 30th of September, an amazing graceful, concert, with her Blues Band, under the very strong rain. Barbara Hendricks the committed singer, internationally recognized American and honorary ambassador of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees gave a very private concert under the giant tent of the World Normandy Forum for Peace in support of the nursing staff of Normandy mobilized during the COVID health crisis- 19.The Abbaye aux Dames, likely the Abbaye aux Hommes, is the headquarters of the City of Caen, was carted by Duke Guillaume the Conqueror and his wife Queen Mathilde,of the Flanders, in the 11th of century making Can the center of the duality of Normandy few steps away fro a powerful castle. This year, the COVID-19 and like stated Herve Morin, « there is no white year for peace » justifying this forum to be maintained over the remembrance of peace rather than war, despote the CVOID-19 pandemic. This year, the program was even more intense including two plenary sessions, on 1 October and 2 October, each morning, followed by fifteen debates, up to the evening night events, (Concert, literary evening, ..) amongst many workshops (Junior Studio Press, Library and signatures of books by the authors, Jeune chambre Economique, in various tents, spread in the beautiful gardens of that Abbaye. An exception exhibition of photographies upon a journey through peace, displaying the best choose photos by Paris Match, showcasing the most famous and historic handshakes for peace. Various food trucks, offer specialties form Normandy culinary snacks, including Oysters from Isigny. We publish the full text the remarks delivered by the founder of Normandy World Peace Forum and President fo the Region fo Normandy, and is former Minister of Defence

"Ladies and gentlemen, It has been three years since Normandie pour la Paix was created and I must tell you that I still feel the same emotions when opening this new edition. Emotion because during these two days we are dealing with some of the most serious issues of human existence: life, death, self-giving, upheavals in natural balances, displacement of populations, violations of human rights. men and women, threats to democracy. Emotion because of the faces I see in this room. Usually I have veterans in front of me who rub shoulders with young students from our academy. The last witnesses of June 6 are not with us today, given the risks that were too great for their health. I can imagine that they were ready to brave the virus because when, like them, we landed in Omaha or Utah under machine gun fire and we escaped, we must say to ourselves that it is not this viral threat that will take your life. In any case, we think very strongly of them and their families. But the young people are there. In any case it seems to me. Raise your hand students !!! You can even applaud yourself. You see, Normandy for Peace is your event. You are its custodians. You are the heirs of our veterans, of those kids not much older than you who, one morning in June 1944, came to our beaches to liberate our country and Europe. Thousands were killed there and many also, fortunately, survived to then tell of the extraordinary courage of their comrades but also to transmit a message of freedom and perhaps even more responsibility. Herve Morin sated

DESPITE THE COVID-19 PANDEMIC THE NORMANDY WORLD FORUM FOR PEACE IS MAINTAINED-------------- Like the Flame of the Resistance, you will have to ensure that the Flame of the Heroes of 1944 never goes out. Yes, the veterans are counting on you Margaux, on you Théo, on you Fatoumata. Yes John, Michael, Jeff or Kerry, all those anonymous heroes, are counting on all of you who are here. They know that thanks to you, they will stay alive, standing like the thousands of white crosses in the Saint-Laurent cemetery.It is therefore emotion to speak to you on this occasion, but also pride." Herve Morin acknowledged. HE then explains how the venture started up three years ago with his Vice President of region Normandie, Francois Xavier Priollaud who never spared their efforts, in organsiing this one of a kind global event over peace remembering peace and taking over war remembrance, without forgetting about what happened on 6June 1944, D Day.: "I was elected president of the reunified Normandy region a little over five years ago. And with my friend François-Xavier Priollaud, one of the great pride of our mandate is Normandy for Peace and the Freedom Prize. Camus said: "Peace is the only fight worth fighting".This fight that I wanted to lead through Normandy for Peace, we all fought together and we can be proud of it. Each year, our forum is bigger, stronger, more nourished, more global. With more and more guests, workshops, debates ... I would like to thank all of our media partners who are very involved in the program for these two days. After our great Normans, after Tocqueville, Bernardin de Saint Pierre and his treaty of perpetual peace, Aristide Briand the “pilgrim of peace“, after Mendes France the “decolonizer“, we too wanted to advance on the path of peace that 'they had traced. We have in turn paved it so that future generations can take it and continue on the same path. Even this year, despite the health crisis, Normandie pour la Paix is “‹“‹there. We adapted the event to the sanitary rules, but for nothing in the world we would not have withdrawn. There is no white year for building peace.Thank you therefore to the organizers and participants of the Normandy for Peace World Forum.

WORLD NORMANDY FPR PEACE MATTERS TODAY HERVE MORIN SAID ----------------------------------------"Thank you for this work accomplished under obviously very specific conditions. You didn´t give up because Normandy for Peace matters today. Finally, thank you to the hundred or so agents from the Region who participated in the success of this event and to the European and International Affairs Department led by Julie Miclot. Normandy was known as a high place through which peace had returned through war. We are in the process of being recognized as a high place where people work and think about building peace. Herve Morin shared his vision about the World Forum Normandy For Peace as it evolves each year in a better way. "This year, you have noticed that the theme of our work relates in particular to new threats, climatic, social and technological threats in particular. All these negative externalities of growth that is too often disrespectful of people and the environment. This work on threats is a theme totally in line with our original objective, an objective that has never changed: to understand war in order to better build peace. A few words, if I may, on one of the topics we are going to cover: threats to the environment. The climate threat, as we know, is a very crucial subject. It´s a truism. It is only Donald Trump not to see them. Maybe it's because the visor of his red cap is a little too low and obstructs his vision." Herve Morin added,

SECURITY MUST BE COMBINED TO SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT HERVE MORN DECLARED--------------------"For its part, the Normandy Region is fully mobilized on this subject through the creation of a Norman IPCC made up of the greatest researchers in our region who will report in December the results of their work they have been carrying out for a year from which we will all draw. the lessons to build the Normandy of tomorrow. The violent climatic phenomena, the water resource which decreases, the desert which gains every day; with of course behind these climatic catastrophes, populations. Since 2008, it is estimated that an average of 24.6 million people have been displaced each year due to climatic phenomena, two to three times the number of displacements linked to armed conflict and violence. It's as if a third of French people have to leave their place of life every year! I would add that these people who suffer from climate change are the least responsible for this change and that they are often the poorest. Half of the population living in what are called Low Coastal Zones, those at risk of submersion, belong to the poorest countries in the world." Herve Morin acknowledges, "Women, children, indigenous groups forced to leave their homes, their places of life: this is the human cost and the deep injustice of climate change. These "climate-displaced" are and will be the new damned of the earth. They lose their security but even more so they are cut off from their culture, sometimes from their civilization. The new “climate harkis“ must find a new land, a new home, expected by no one, desired by no one, very often rejected as undesirable. From this can arise conflict, internal and civil if it is within the same country or interstate if the climate refugees have crossed the border. Civil war at first but which then leads to the participation in the conflict of neighboring states and finally that of the great powers. We move very quickly from local to regional and from regional to international, from displacement for climatic reasons to military conflict or even ethnic persecution. Even if the causes are multiple, Darfur is a good example." Highlighted Herve Morin------------------------------------------------ "Pastures turn to desert, wells dry up and pastoral societies are forced to relocate, arguing with farming communities for access and control of pastures and water points. Beyond the fight against global warming and respect for the Paris Agreements and behind that the ardent obligation of multilateralism, a subject needs to be resolved: This is to achieve climate refugee status since we will have several hundred million by 2050. The Geneva convention does not consider environmentally displaced persons as asylum seekers because no one persecutes them. We must very quickly fill this legal vacuum which prevents these new displaced people from being welcomed with dignity and legally. The hummingbirds of the environment are also the hummingbirds of peace. The example of the environmental threat shows that security in the classic sense of the term is not enough to guarantee peace. I am even convinced that fast-growing military spending is not the best way for nations which invest so much in armaments to guarantee their peace. Security must necessarily be combined with sustainable development, with health, respect for ancestral social structures, a factor of stability. We must encourage them to invest in knowledge, to fight against ignorance, more than on nuclear fire, on schools and universities more than on military camps. This is why young people are at the forefront of Normandy for Peace, these two days of conferences and workshops being only the immersed part of a work carried out throughout the year with their teachers whom I greet and also thanks." Herve Morin said

We also welcome a renowned guest, Barbara Hendricks. It is a great honor for us to welcome her as an artist of course, sponsor of the Freedom Prize, but also as a defender of the cause of women. The concert she gave yesterday for the benefit of caregivers leading the fight against Covid19 was, I believe, a great moment that we will long remember. Thanks to her." emphasizes Herve Morin.------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------  The situation of women will be one of the highlights of our debates. The conflicts being more and more internal and civil, the women are by tens of hundreds - perhaps of thousands - sometimes invisible, often silent victims of these wars. It was important to shine the spotlight on their situation and I am delighted that the winner of the Freedom Prize is once again this year a woman committed to human rights. Women are victims but they also move the law and constitutions for more democracy as in Tunisia, Jordan or Algeria. Everyone knows how much if Tunisia did not sink, it is thanks to the place of women in Tunisian society. This is the sense of the fight led by Dr Denis Mukwege, Nobel Peace Prize 2018, that we had the honor to host here last year. Let me have a special thought for him as his life is threatened again since he denounced this summer the continuing massacres in the DRC. After these few words, now place for debates and exchanges.Long live Normandy, long live France, Long live the world and long live peace." Herve Morin concluded as he thanked the big star and diva, Barbara Hendricks to have come, singing with her Blues Band, in support to the heath workers who are deducted to the COVID-19 pandemic and delivered a message for peace as a former ambassador of Goodwill at UNHCR.