News
Is peace achievable? Article in Helisinki Times, September 2012
Minister Pär Stenbäck elected to the Standing Commission of the Red Cross - Ministry of Foreign Affairs, December 2011
Pär Stenbäck has been elected as one of the five members in the Standing Commission, the coordinating organ for the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement. The election took place in Geneva during the International Conference which convenes every fourth year with the participation of all governments who have ratified the Geneva Conventions and all national societies of the Red Cross and the Red Crescent.
This appeal was launched on Oct 21, 2011 and was signed by 61 Finnish public personalities.
PETITION
The European common currency, our currency, is in crisis, and the Union’s economic troubles are already reverberating globally.
A number of European Union countries are suffering from crippling public debt, large budget deficits, and poor competitiveness. Economic growth has stalled, and unemployment levels are rising. Some sectors of EU society are facing real poverty.
Finland cannot escape untouched by the consequences of this economic crisis, which could yet assume destructive proportions. Measures must be taken to reinstate economic stability, a task that requires resolve, efficiency, and decisions that will shape the future for the better.
We, the undersigned Finnish citizens, are deeply concerned about the threat that this increasingly urgent state of affairs presents to democracy and social cohesion in Europe. Bitter historical experiences have shown that apparently insurmountable social problems, if left untended, have the potential to erode public trust in democracy and open political organization. The subsequent political and social effects of this are impossible to predict with any certainty, alienation, extremism of various sorts and a withering away of solidarity are likely general possibilities. Finland has never in its history been able to stand outside of developments elsewhere in Europe, nor can it expect to do so now.
We, the undersigned Finns, demand that the European economic crisis be resolved as swiftly as possible, in order that a belief in European cooperation can once again flourish. This is a great, and always timely indemnity for peace. The European Union has created a unique and historically unprecedented zone that provides steadfast assurance of security for large and small nations alike. We now need a broad-based and committed citizens’ initiative, a people’s movement for a new era, whose task it will be to remind the decision-makers of Finland and of Europe that the European project cannot be allowed to falter. It is the only route to future cooperation.
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A .pdf file of the petition
can be downloaded here
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Europe must remember its many successes, column in Helsinki Times, October 19, 2011. (opens in a new window)
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A .pdf version avaliable here
Stenbäck symposium, August 25, 2011, part 1 (opens in a new window)
More information about the program:
Stenbäck symposium, August 25, 2011, part 2 (opens in a new window)
More information about the program:
http://www.stenback-symposium.fi/
Henry Dunant Medal given to Pär Stenbäck in Nairobi, November 2009.
A Tribute to Pär Stenbäck avaliable here
(PDF - opens in a new widow)
http://www.rcstandcom.info/pdfs_2009/
Europe's World, Spring 2009
Resolution from the 30th International Conference
of the Red Cross and the Red Crescent
read the exerpt from the Daily Bulletin 5, November 2007
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read the exerpt from the Daily Bulletin 10, November 2007
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Monitoring the Implementation of Agreements between MDA and PRCS
At the request of Magen David Adom in Israel and the Palestinian Red Crescent Society, Mr Pär Stenbäck of Finland has been appointed to monitor the implementation of the Memorandum of Understanding and the Agreement on Operational Arrangements signed by the two Societies on 28 November 2005 in the presence of representatives of the International Committee of the Red Cross and the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies in a ceremony chaired by the Swiss Foreign Minister.
Mr Stenbäck will work with the two Societies towards the achievement of their agreed goals. These include ensuring that humanitarian services are delivered to vulnerable people in need, without delay and obstruction, in accordance with the well-established practices and principles of the Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement. The agreements contain a number of specific provisions, and Mr Stenbäck´s diplomatic and Movement experience will help ensure that each of the points is addressed with humanitarian priorities in the forefront.
June 2007
Finnish Foreign Minister Alexander Stubb is the host at a gathering on Dec. 22, 2009 with former foreign ministers of Finland. Left-hand side: Paavo Rautanen, Paavo Väyrynen, Alexander Stubb, Pertti Paasio. Right-hand side: Ilkka Kanerva, Heikki Haavisto, President Tarja Halonen, Pär Stenbäck, Erkki Tuomioja
Pär Stenbäck inteviews Mr George Soros at the Academic Bookstore in Helsinki on Nov 10, 2006 about his book "The Age of Fallibility". In the audience approx 400 listeners. Mr Soros signed over 200 copies of his book.