A peace train in Morocco teaches Youth to become advocates for peace and tolerance

If you love peace, then hate injustice, hate tyranny, hate greed — but hate these things in yourself, not in another.

— Mahatma Gandhi

Press Release

Established by the United Nations General Assembly in 1981, the International Day of Peace—or “Peace Day”—was declared to commemorate the need to strengthen the ideals of peace, both within and among all nations and peoples. Youth for Peace, based in Morocco, has been a proud partner of International Day of Peace since 2004, sponsoring the Peace Train, which teaches youth to become advocates for peace and tolerance.

The year’s theme was “the right to peace.” As Zakaria El hamel, President of Youth for Peace explained, “peace requires human rights education.” More than one thousand youth participated in the Peace Train. The event took place the beautiful city of Saidia, which sits along Algerian border in northern Morocco. Saidia is an idyllic Mediterranean coastal town with one of the loveliest beaches in Morocco. Somewhat sleepy, the town comes alive in the summer months as popular beach holiday destination for Moroccans. However, the town itself is in a unique position, as the Kasbah—located just behind the beach—is still occupied by locals to this day.

Youth for Peace in organized a Peace Train alongside students and youth to promote The Universal Declaration of Human Rights. The train made various visits as you and students distributed an illustrated booklet titled “What are Human Rights?” The booklet serves as a guide for children about the meaning of human rights and contains each of the 30 articles of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, written in easy-to-understand language.

Contact: Zakaria El hamel, President & Founder, Youth for Peace-Morocco Executive Director Youth for Human Rights.