Communitďż˝ di Sant'Egidio

AMERICAN FRIENDS SERVICE COMMITTEE
NEWS RELEASE
National Office: 1501 Cherry Street, Philadelphia, PA 19102-1479
Media Relations: Phone: (215)-241-7060 Fax: (215)-241-7275
e-mail: [email protected] www.afsc.org

For Immediate Release
January 11, 2002

Contact:
Janis D. Shields (215) 241-7060
John W. Haigis (215) 241-7056
Janine Schwab, (215) 241-7165

AFSC NOMINATES COMMUNITY FOR NOBEL PEACE PRIZE
Community of Sant'Egidio Described as "Community without Borders or Walls"

PHILADELPHIA, PA - The American Friends Service Committee (AFSC), a co-recipient of the Nobel Peace Prize in 1947 on behalf of all Quakers, has nominated the Community of Sant'Egidio for the 2002 Nobel Peace Prize. The Community of Sant'Egidio is a worldwide community of more than 40,000 members who work for the cause of peace in more than 60 countries around the globe.

"The Sant'Egidio Community demonstrates the important role that non-governmental organizations can play in conflict resolution by bringing together parties to violent conflicts for face-to-face discussions of their common future," said Margery Walker, clerk of the AFSC Nobel Nominating Committee. "Their commitment to nonviolence and their sustained and effective peacebuilding work amply qualify the Community of Sant'Egidio to join the ranks of other Nobel Peace Laureates who have pointed the way toward world peace."

Founded in 1968 and based at the Church of Sant'Egidio in Rome, the Community draws from a Catholic tradition with a wide variety of activities and commitments ranging from religious charities to political peace brokering. The AFSC nomination is specifically based on the Community's peacebuilding work. In the words of Andrea Bartoli, a long-time member of the Community, "Peace work is an active expression of concern and friendship."

"The Community describes itself as a 'community without borders or walls'," said Mary Ellen McNish, AFSC general secretary. "As a past Nobel Peace Prize Laureate, AFSC has the privilege and opportunity to nominate candidates for the Nobel Peace Prize. The award of the 2002 Nobel Peace Prize to the Community of Sant'Egidio would offer valuable and timely support for the Community's sustained and successful peace building work."

In 1992, the Community negotiated and mediated a comprehensive agreement between the government in Mozambique and the Mozambican National Resistance (RENAMO) - an opposition guerrilla party. In 1995, it provided the space for opposition parties to meet and made substantial steps toward a peaceful resolution of the Algerian crisis, during which thousands were killed as a result of political violence.

In Guatemala in 1995, representatives facilitated confidential talks between the President and leftist guerrillas, getting the UN talks back on track. In 1996, members of the Community were working for peace in Yugoslavia, before the NATO bombing campaign in Kosovo and the eruption of further hostilities between Serbs and Albanians.

In the AFSC nomination letter, McNish writes: "The Community of Sant'Egidio's conflict resolution methods are marked by meticulous non-partisanship, careful communication with all concerned, an extensive network of contacts, sustained and collective effort, pragmatism, confidentiality and an efficient absence of bureaucracy."

While the Community is open about its own Catholic beliefs, the sincerity of their non-partisanship has made possible interfaith conflict resolution, such as during the Algerian Crisis. They present a physical and political space that allows for some experimentation in the relationship between conflicting sides in ruptured societies. This space allows for alternative interactions instead of violent confrontation between opposing groups. Then the Community works to connect the area of need with resources - such as the UN - for resolving conflict.

The Community's peace work is facilitated by regional point-persons who follow conflicts in the region of the world for which they have responsibility. These point-persons are generally long-standing members of the Community with strong familiarity and connections in those regions. By keeping in touch with the news and personal contacts in a region, they identify conflicts in which the Community of Sant'Egidio can act, and communicate with the Community's leadership about how to do so.

Sister Helen Prejean, C.S.J., a noted anti-death penalty activist and author of the book Dead Man Walking, gave high praise to the Community in her remarks as keynote speaker at the AFSC's Annual Public Gathering in November 1999: "They are ordinary folks...whose consciousness has been transformed and whose commitment to work for a transformed world is deep - [they work] to turn the violence around and to transform it."

Additional information about the Community of Sant'Egidio can be found at www.santegidio.org and additional information about the AFSC can be found at www.afsc.org.

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The American Friends Service Committee is a Quaker organization that includes people of various faiths who are committed to social justice, peace and humanitarian service. Its work is based on the belief in the worth of every person and faith in the power of love to overcome violence and injustice.