Several members of COGH attended the official unveiling of the Peace Pole and Rotary Peace Garden at the Long March to Freedom Park near Century City yesterday.
John Jacobs (President RC Claremont), Susan O’Hagan Ward and Gillian Anderson in front of the Peace Pole.
COGH is proud to have sponsored an olive tree that has been planted near the Peace Pole in the new garden unveiled to commemorate the 2nd Africa Peace Forum held from 25-27 April.
This Peace Garden started with the vision of Past District Governor (PDG) Ann Wright after she encountered a Peace Pole in Melbourne at the International Convention and brought the idea to South Africa.
The event drew participating Rotary clubs and attendees of the Peace Forum.
According to Rotary International the concept of the Peace Pole has been devised as an internationally recognised symbol “of the hopes and dreams of the entire human family, standing vigil in silent prayer for peace on earth”.
The first Peace Pole was conceived by philosopher and spiritual leader Masahisa Goi in Japan in 1955 who was inspired by the devastation of World War II and the atomic bombs in Hiroshima and Nagasaki.
Masahisa Goi, who dedicated his life to promoting peace wrote the message, “May Peace Prevail on Earth”, and the first Peace Poles began appearing in Japan in the mid-1970s. The project gained traction, and the first Peace Poles outside of Japan appeared in the early 1980s.
There are now an estimated over 250 000 Peace Poles throughout the world and Rotary International is instrumental in supporting the erection of Peace Poles in line with the its goal of building a worldwide culture of peace.
Each Peace Pole bears Masahisa Goi’s message “May Peace Prevail on Earth” in different languages on each of its four or six sides.
Cape Town’s newly erected Peace Pole is inscribed in four languages; English, Afrikaans, Xhosa and Nama.
To read more about the Long March to Freedom Park visit their website.
To discover more about Rotary’s involvement in Peace Poles visit their website.