THE MAISON DE LA PAIX

 

CASA UNIVERSALE DELLE CULTURE

The Maison de la Paix - Casa Universale delle Culture is a place strongly representative, in which will convey the knowledge of the different identities and cultures, structuring permanently initiatives aimed at the spreading of peace, necessary for the shared development.

The Maison de la Paix - Casa Universale delle Culture (MdP) is a project conceived by Michele Capasso, approved by many Countries and international organizations. It is an architecture that keeps the memory of many Peace activities which created history, often more than the wars, but it is – above all – a space "to build” Peace.

The architectonical complex has an important symbolic worth: it represents the Countries of the World engaged in the Peace process and the Countries victim of the conflicts.

Proposed by the Fondazione Mediterraneo with the Maison des Alliances – together with the main adherent organizations, such as the Mediterranean Parliamentary Assembly, the League of Arab States, the "Anna Lindh" Euro-Mediterranean Foundation and others, the MdP represents a referent point for all the ones who dedicate their lives to peace.

The symbol of the MdP is the "Totem for Peace", an artwork by the Italian sculptor Mario Molinari which the Fondazione Mediterraneo is promoting all around the world, creating the network of the "Cities for Peace".

The first seat of the MdP was inaugurated on the 14th of June 2010 (Maison de la Paix - Casa Universale delle Culture) in the historical building of the Grand Hotel de Londres in Naples.

The action of the Maison de la Paix - Casa Universale delle Culture aims at improving the main activities of the "Universal Forum of Cultures" in: Barcelona (2004), Monterrey (2007), Valparaiso (2010) and Naples (2013).

The Maison de la Paix performs most of the initiatives jointly with the Maison de la Méditerranée.

 

The 6th World Urban Forum organised in Naples by the United Nations Human Settlements Programme (UN-Habitat) also aimed at promoting the role of women as actors in the development of cities. To this end, 2 September 2012 was dedicated to the Gender Equality Action Assembly (GEAA).

The GEAA discussed the progress made and challenges that remain for the implementation of the Gender Equality Action Plan (GEAP) outlining the strategic actions and their political implications. This plan sets out the guidelines that guarantee women and men more equitable access to public resources and services. Moreover, the promote equal participation of women in all aspects of town planning. Within the framework of its stated objectives, a debate was held on sustainable way of moving forward towards the attainment of economic empowerment of women in cities and guidelines were laid down on the policies to be adopted.

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"My thoughts go today to Antonio Stanzione, Matteo Bertonati, Gerardo Esposito and Giovanni Battiloro: the 4 young people of Torre del Greco - the city where I was born - who died from the collapse of the Morandi bridge in Genoa.
To the excruciating pain and to the closeness with the Prayer to the families must be added a reflection on the disasters that our humanity makes every moment, in every place and in all the disciplines.
Only the profound assumption of a new ethics based not on profit but on the quadrinomial COMPETENCE - RESPONSIBILITY - PASSION - SOLIDARITY can avoid the repetition of these tragedies and nourish in young people a new hope able to make them HAPPINESS OF POSITIVE! ".
These are the words of President Capasso on the occasion of the funeral of the young victims of the Morandi bridge coming from Torre del Greco.

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"Great emotion to see King Abdullah II of Jordan and Queen Rania in the upper Basilica of St. Francis," said President Capasso, recalling the ancient bonds of friendship with the Royals and the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan, already with King Hussein bin Talal.
"King Abdullah has worked for the tolerance and unity of the Islamic world, marked by different ideological currents." This was stated by the Custos of the Sacred Convent of Assisi, Father Mauro Gambetti, on behalf of the Franciscan community, during the delivery of the "Lamp of Peace" to the King of Jordan, Abdullah II, accompanied by Queen Rania. The ceremony took place in the Upper Basilica of St. Francis, in the presence of German Chancellor Angela Merkel, who received the gift last year.
In addition to Merkel, the Prime Minister, Giuseppe Conte, the president of the European Parliament, Antonio Tajani and the president of the CEI, Cardinal Gualtiero Bassetti, are seated in the front rows.
"We have been impressed by your enlightened guide and your words and gestures - said Father Gambetti to the sovereigns - his Majesty is dedicated to the promotion of human rights and interreligious harmony, he works for the reform of education and for protection of freedom of worship and is strenuously committed to providing a safe haven for millions of poor people ".
The lamp of peace is a reproduction of the votive lamp that burns in front of the tomb of St. Francis and over the years has been donated to political, cultural and civil society personalities who have distinguished themselves for their commitment to peace, dialogue and acceptance. On May 12 last year it was offered to Angela Merkel for her migration management policy and her commitment to "building a united and plural Europe".
Previously the lamp was offered to Lech Walesa (1981), Dalai Lama (1986), Giovanni Paolo II (1986), Madre Teresa di Calcutta (1986), Yasser Arafat (1990), Betty Williams (1995), Carlos Felipe Ximenes Belo (1997), Mikhail Gorbaciov (2008), Ingrid Betancourt (2009), Mohamed ElBaradei (2009), Benedetto XVI (2011), Shimon Peres (2013), Abu Mazen (2014), Papa Francesco (2015), Juan Manuel Santos (2016).
The message left by the King to the friars of Assisi is significant. "I am honored and moved - reads the message written in his own hand - to receive the lamp of the peace of St. Francis. My most sincere respect and appreciation for Father Gambetti and all the Franciscan friars from all over the world for their commitment and dedication to the values ​​of compassion and love and to their vows of poverty, chastity and obedience on the example of St. Francis".

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The Consul of the Republic of Tunisia in Naples, Beya Ben Abdelbaki Fraoua, visited the Mediterranean Foundation and the Museum of PeaceMAMT welcomed by President Michele Capasso.
On this occasion, as already announced to the Tunisian ambassador in Rome, Moez Sinaoui, the President Capasso communicated the decision of the international juries to assign the "Mediterranean Award Special Edition 2018" to the President of the Republic of Tunisia Beji Caid Essebsi.
To this end, an ambassador's visit was hoped shortly to define the details of the ceremony and the eventual organization of an exhibition dedicated to Tunisia to be hosted at the Museum of Peace - MAMT.
The President Capasso accompanied the Consul among the various museum itineraries and showed videos of the ceremonies of some of the Heads of State awarded the Mediterranean Award in the previous editions.

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