The FK North-South Forum 2006
External event by invitation only. Venue: The Oslo City Hall
The FK North-South Forum 2006 will be conducted in Oslo City Hall Thursday 7 September at 14.00, bringing people together from more than 60 countries.
Nobel Peace Prize Laureates from three different continents will share their views on Peacebuilding and Conflict Management. The three laureates have three different approaches to this theme.
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| José Ramos-Horta |
Prime Minister Dr. José Ramos-Horta from East Timor won his prize in 1996 for his work towards a just and peaceful solution to the conflict in East Timor.
As a founder and former member of the Revolutionary Front for an Independent East Timor (FRETILIN), Ramos Horta served as the exiled spokesman for the East Timorese resistance during the years of the Indonesian occupation of East Timor (1975 to 1999). In 1975 he was appointed Foreign Minister in the proclaimed Democratic Republic of East Timor. In 2002 he became the first Foreign Minister in the independent nation of East Timor, a position he held until he was appointed Prime Minister in July 2006.
Dr. José Ramos Horta has been studying International Public Law, Peace Studies, Human Rights Law and American Foreign Policy and is a Senior Associate Member of the University of Oxford.
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| Wangari Maathai |
Prof. Wangari Maathai from Kenya won her prize in 2004 for her contribution to sustainable development, democracy and peace.
Maathai founded the Green Belt Movement in 1977. The Green Belt Movement is a grassroots environmental non-governmental organization, which has now planted over 30 million trees across the country to prevent soil erosion.
She has been chairperson of The National Council of Women in Kenya, active in the demand for multi-party elections and the fight against political corruption.
Prof. Maathai was elected member of parliament in 2002, and founded the Mazingira Green Party of Kenya in 2003. In 2005 she was elected as the first president of the African Union's Economic, Social and Cultural Council.
Prof. Maathai is a professor in veterinary anatomi and is a Visiting Fellow at Yale University's Global Institute for Sustainable Forestry.
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| Rigoberta Menchú Tum |
Dra. Rigoberta Menchú Tum from Guatemala gained her prize in 1992 for her campaign for human rights, especially for indigenous peoples.
Rigoberta Menchu is an indigenous Guatemalan, of the Quiché-Maya ethnic group. She campaigned against human rights violations committed by the Guatemalan armed forces during the country's Civil War. In 1982, she took part in the founding of the joint opposition body, The United Representation of the Guatemalan Opposition (RUOG).
In 1991 Menchú participated in the preparation by the United Nations of a declaration of the rights of indigenous people.
Menchú is a UNESCO Goodwill Ambassador and has also been involved in pharmaceutical industry with the goal of offering low-cost generic medicines.
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| Erik Solheim |
The Norwegian Minister for International Development Mr. Erik Solheim will also share his views on this subject. He is known as an international mediator in the conflict in Sri Lanka.
Erik Solheim has been the leader of the Socialist Youth, party secretary of the Socialist Left Party and the leader of the Socialist Left Party from 1987 - 1997. He was a Member of Parliament from 1989 until 2001 when he was granted a leave of absence from parliament to serve as special advisor to the Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Sri Lanka.
Mr. Solheim was appointed Minister for International Development in 2005.
The FK North-South Forum is a biennially event that is organized as an extended framework for sharing visions and experiences with over 300 partners of Fredskorpset, as well as 800 representatives from Norwegian society at large.
The doors will be closed at 1350 hrs.
Participation by invitation only.
The program is scheduled to last until 15.45. There will be opportunities for networking and light snacks immediately after the event in the Oslo City Hall.