To sign agreement to work together for peace and social justice
LOS ANGELES– Members of the Filipino community joined a diverse gathering of local nonprofit directors, student organizations and religious leaders addressed local issues of social justice and religious peace at the Carson Event Center on May 22 in light of April’s Nigeria schoolgirl kidnapping, reaching a resolution with a cooperative peace agreement signing.
Hosting the event was Heavenly Culture, World Peace (HWPL), an international nonprofit with a branch in Los Angeles that promotes peace initiatives through culture, arts, policy, and religion for the cessation of war. The Chairman of HWPL is Korean War veteran Mr. M.H. Lee. At 84-years-old, Mr. Lee is traveling to meet ambassadors, religious officials and youth to dialogue about peacebuilding & nonviolence and to sign the “HWPL Peace Agreement,” which has received over 500 signatures from dignitaries across 72 countries.
“It is not heaven’s will to create division and conflict, nor a principle that we should fight one another,” said Lee. “If these presidents and leaders truly care about their nations, they will work together to establish an international law for the cessation of war and violence,” said Lee
In attendance were Dr. Uche Ugwueze, CSULB Professor of Africana Studies, Elizabeth Bankole, President of CSULB Nigerian Students Association, Moshe Sayada, Director of Special Effects for Terminator series, Janice Schaefer, City of Carson Planning Commissioner and Daniel Valdez, City of Carson Public Works Commission Patricia Villasenor, Executive Director of the City of Los Angeles Commission on the Status of Women, Bridget Brigitte McDonald III, Ph. D., Director of Women’s International Center, and Venerable Dr. Pannavati, Co- Founder, Co-Abbot of Embracing-Simplicity Hermitage.
After a panel discussion addressing women’s rights and religious tension, Mr. Lee delivered the keynote address speaking on the role of religion in achieving peace and the importance of understanding one’s scriptures to create a culture of non-violence.
“I like how Chairman Lee is devoted to world peace and very vocal about what he believes in,“ said Angela Guanzon, a Filipina victim of labor trafficking who attended and helped publicize the event. “How else will people know about peace if no one speaks about it? I see him as a leader and mentor for world peace.”
At the forum’s conclusion, the room of a thousand attendees signed the peace treaty together at one time, pledging to work together for peace.
Mr. Lee is currently on his 10th World Tour having visited Washington D.C., New York and Mexico to confer with political and religious leaders. While in Mexico, Mr. Lee was honored with the title of “Messenger of Peace” by the City of Veracruz. In September, Mr. Lee and HWPL will host the World Alliance of Religions for Peace Summit in South Korea, a large-scale international forum of influential leaders from the religious, political and non-profit spheres working for peace. Presidents and leaders that Mr. Lee has met in his 10th and previous tours have expressed their unanimous support and attendance at the summit.
