Press Release

Un Ponte Per: Stop the war, let's make peace!

After 35 days since the start of the war in Ukraine, the Caravan of peace and solidarity of Italian civil society leaves on 1 April, heading towards Lviv (UKR). The NGO "Un Ponte Per", for 30 years in the front line against all wars, will be present.

Rome 30 March 2022 - On Friday 1 April, a delegation of 200 people and 50 vehicles, belonging to 89 Italian civil society organisations, will leave for Lviv, Ukraine. The 'caravan of peace', as it has been renamed, will bring medicines, food and basic necessities for the population: a great caravan of peace and humanity to say STOP to the war in Ukraine, bringing the bodies of Italian activists into the conflict. Once in Lviv, the participants will meet local civil society organisations, religious and civil authorities. On the way back, the convoy will allow people with fragility to leave their war-torn country and reach Italy.

Below is an extract from the motivation with which the NGO 'Un Ponte Per' communicated its participation in the peace caravan:

"As Un Ponte Per we adhere to the initiative together with many organisations, associations and networks we are part of, because there is no more time. War is a colossal affair of death and madness, a denial of humanity.
For 30 years, with humanitarian actions and international solidarity initiatives, we have stood by the last: the civilian victims of armed conflicts. There come moments like this, when 'peace awaits its makers'. We do not want to remain spectators. We feel the obligation to take action ourselves. As non-violent and bridge-builders, we will travel to Ukrainian territory to bear witness on the ground to our firm repudiation of war and to allow people with fragility to leave their country and reach Italy. As Un Ponte Per in more than 30 years we have taken our delegations under the bombs many times, like to Belgradein 1999, Iraqin 2003, Lebanonin 2006, North East Syria in 2019 etc. We wanted to give a face, a name and a voice to the victims of forgotten conflicts, turning those bodies that were considered numbers back into people. For these reasons, we also want to do our part this time. No more Wars. Bridges, Not Walls."

With the delegation will be Alfio Nicotra, professional journalist and co-president of Un Ponte Per. Always committed to the peace movement, he was among the protagonists of the mobilisation against the war in former Yugoslavia and the Persian Gulf. An expert on alternative models of defence, he was among the spokesmen of the Genoa Social Forum during the mobilisation against the G8 in 2001. One of the promoters of the European Social Forum in Florence, he followed the peace negotiations between the Zapatista Army of National Liberation and the Mexican government. He has always combined his commitment to peace with his job as a journalist, which has often taken him to conflict zones.

Together with Alfio Nicotra, Angela Mona and Giovanna Gagliardi, members of the National Committee, will participate for Un Ponte Per.

Info and contacts for interviews: stampa@unponteper.it