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Press Release
Interpeace, Switzerland
December 8, 2009
President Kufuor Becomes Chairman of
Interpeace
‘Peace is possible if we are willing to move
beyond our differences and if we can inspire
a new form of responsible leadership.’
President John A. Kufuor during his
acceptance speech as he became the Chairman
of the Interpeace Governing Council.
In a ceremony that took place in Switzerland
on Friday evening, 4th December, President
John A. Kufuor formally accepted the
chairmanship of the Interpeace Governing
Council from the former President of Finland
and 2008 Nobel Peace Laureate, Martti
Ahtisaari. Interpeace is an international
organization that enables societies to deal
with conflict in non-violent ways and build
lasting peace.
Martti Ahtisaari as Out-going Chair,
introduced John Kufuor to the Governing
Council members present, diplomats and
donors saying: ‘As President of Ghana,
President Kufuor built his reputation as a
solid, wise and patient leader, and
importantly, as an instinctive peacebuilder.
President Kufuor, from his experience in
Africa, has an in-depth understanding of how
to overcome internal divisions and to
promote peace and stability in societies.
His experience in this area will be a great
asset to Interpeace.’
In his acceptance speech, Kufuor stated that
he was honoured to take on the Chairmanship
of the Interpeace Governing Council from
such a distinguished and respected
peacebuilder, President Martti Ahtisaari.
Kufuor then went on to comment on his own
background. He described the region he comes
from as rich in cultural, human and material
resources, but racked by poverty, facing
challenges of governance and suffering
regularly from conflict. These combined
factors keep the region from reaching its
full potential. He went on to state: ‘But I
have also seen first-hand, peace is possible
if we are willing to move beyond our
differences and if we can inspire a new form
of responsible leadership.’
Kufuor matched his own values with the
principles of the organization saying:
‘Interpeace is an organization that truly
seeks to find local solutions, something I
believe is critical to sustain peace. I also
agree that the most important task in
building peace is to foster trust within and
between communities, and between the people
and their leaders. This can sound simple but
I know from my own experience this can be
one of the most difficult things to
achieve.’
As Scott M. Weber, Director-General of
Interpeace, formally welcomed Kufuor he
highlighted that he was looking forward to
the next chapter of Interpeace’s history
under the new chairmanship. ‘I know that all
of us around the world are looking forward
to benefiting from your first hand
experience in helping societies resolve
conflicts, your outlook that comes from your
role serving as President of Ghana and the
African Union, and your direct involvement
in numerous peace processes across Africa.’
ImageWeber thanked Martti Ahtisaari for his
support and wise leadership over the last
nine years. He stated: ‘Martti gave us the
encouragement and the confidence to work
every day to help societies around the world
build peace that will last. Despite all his
responsibilities as one of the most
prominent peacemakers and international
statesmen of our generation, he provided us
the support that has enabled us to be where
we are today.’
To close, Kufuor pledged to work hard in his
capacity to support Interpeace and the team
of peacebuilders around the world to further
increase the impact of their work. He
stated: ‘I am convinced that Interpeace has
a great deal to contribute and I look
forward to supporting this noble mission.’
Kufuor now chairs the Interpeace Governing
Council. Council members include Hind Bint
Hamad Al-Thani, Director of the Office of
the Emir of Qatar; Paddy Ashdown, member of
the British House of Lords; Zainab Bangura,
Minister for Foreign Affairs, Sierra Leone;
Judy Cheng-Hopkins, Respresentative of the
United Nations Secretary-General and
Assistant Secretary-General for
Peacebuilding Support; Thomas Greminger,
Head of Peace Policy for the Swiss Federal
Department of Foreign Affairs; Joao Honwana,
Director, Africa I Division of the United
Nations Department of Political Affairs;
Hisashi Owada, President of the
International Court of Justice, The Hague;
Jan Pronk, former Development Minister for
the Dutch Government; Mohamed Sahnoun,
former advisor to the UN Secretary-General
for Africa; Matthias Stiefel, Founder of
Interpeace, and Anthony Travis, former
Senior Partner, PriceWaterhouseCoopers.
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Interpeace Foundation
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