Citizens of Guyana, including Ministers of Government, Executive Members of the PPP, members of the Guyana Council of Churches, representatives of the United Nations Association of Guyana, Lindeners and Berbicians walked during the early hours of a beautiful Sunday morning from the Cheddi Jagan Research Centre on High Street, Kingston.

The Peach March came to a stop at the Seawall Bandstand. Some persons carried placards with messages such as “Let’s make Guyana and the world full of love and peace” and “All Guyanese must reject crime, hate and violence”.

The aims of the Peace March were:

· To highlight the need for continued vigilance to ensure peace and non-violence in the society and to remind people of the importance of preventing unrest, violence and war.

· To remind people that development, social cohesion and security can only be enjoyed in an environment of peace and non-violence, particularly within Guyana.

· To once again reiterate the support of the citizens of Guyana for the United Nations efforts to maintain peace and prevent violence and conflict across the world.

Addressing the gathering at the end of the walk on behalf of the Government of Guyana was Acting Minister of Foreign Affairs Ms. Gail Teixeira. She commended the participants for their demonstrated commitment towards supporting the need for peaceful solutions for various disputes. The Minister noted that in Guyana, which is a diverse country, there is a desire to find peaceful ways of resolving differences.

Recognising the heightened spate of crime and violence in the society, Teixeira lamented: “Many young people are being entrapped in the agenda of those who want to create animosity between the people and the villages.” However, she encouraged all to find ways to live in peace and urged that Guyanese educate themselves in order to stand against those who attempt to breed hatred. Teixeira urged everyone to stand up for peace.

Mr. Donald Ramotar, General-Secretary of the PPP, in his brief address to the gathering noted that whenever there is conflict or war the ones who suffer the most are the ordinary, working class people. Thus the fight for peace is important. He pointed out that internationally, there is currently a heightened state of conflict in some parts of the Middle East and called for the countries to comply with United Nations Resolutions.

Locally, Mr. Ramotar called for Guyanese to reject efforts to use violence as a political tool and for more focus to be placed on pertinent issues discussed through a dialogue process.