WFWP Ireland co-sponsored this event by the Sisters of Faith for Peace in partnership with the historic and renowned Glencree Centre for Peace and Reconciliation who kindly hosted us. With Ireland basking in sunshine, we couldn’t have asked for a better day for this picnic! We had a fantastic turnout with about 90 ladies participating, arriving in 3 buses plus cars. There were so many different cultures represented, including ladies from the Islamic, Christian and Jewish faiths as well as a number of refugees from Direct Provision Centres around Dublin. We gathered in the beautiful tent for refreshments and were welcomed by Glencree CEO Naoimh McNamee followed by a brief address by Doris McCann.
With this event, we also commemorated the 70th Anniversary of the ‘Universal Declaration of Human Rights’. In Dec 1948, the ‘Universal Declaration of Human Rights’ was proclaimed for the first time. Therefore, this year, in 2018, the UN observe a year-long commemoration in honour of Human Rights. The theme for this year’s Human Right’s Day is ‘Let’s stand up for Equality, Justice and Human Dignity’. We lit candles and held a minute of silence /silent prayer wishing for peace and justice for all of our human family. In addition, we observed ‘UN World Refugee Day’ which took place on 20 June 2018. This day is drawing attention to the plight of displaced people across the globe. We took the opportunity to warmly welcome the refugee ladies who had joined us from the Direct Provision Centres. There were two exhibitions available to visit, about the history of Glencree as well as the role of women in N.Ireland during WW1, some people visited those. In the beautiful weather, most of us opted to take a walk to the nearby lake and enjoy the nature. When we returned for refreshments, the atmosphere was so relaxed, and some ladies started dancing spontaneously. We were sorry to break it up when the buses arrived to collect everybody, and we felt we’ll have to meet again! A wonderful experience and we would like to express our heartfelt Thanks to the Glencree team for all their investment, also to the MAI Tallaght Mosque, the Jewish Orthodox Community and the ICCI Clonskeagh Mosque for their co-sponsorship and support, as well as to our contacts from the Direct Provision Centres and all our lovely guests for helping to make this such a nice event! Reported by Doris McCann WFWP Ireland President
