Sports Bulletin
ISLAMABAD:-The President of the UN General Assembly, Abdulla Shahid, made a solemn appeal to the UN Member States for the observance of the Olympic Truce for the Olympic Winter Games Beijing 2022, following the resolution adopted in December. The resolution calls for the Olympic Truce to be respected from 27 January to 20 March 2022 -– seven days before the start of the Olympic Winter Games until seven days after the Paralympic Games.
Today’s solemn appeal is another demonstration of the support for the political neutrality of the Olympic Games and the International Olympic Committee, reiterating the message of the Olympic Truce resolution through which all Member States were called upon “to cooperate with the International Olympic Committee and the International Paralympic Committee in their efforts to use sport as a tool to promote peace, dialogue and reconciliation in areas of conflict during and beyond the period of the Olympic and Paralympic Games”.
“The Olympic Movement aspires to contribute to a peaceful future for all humankind through the educational value of sport, in particular youth,” said Shahid in the appeal. “The Games will bring together athletes from all parts of the world in the greatest of international sports events as a means to promote peace, mutual understanding and goodwill among nations and peoples – goals that are also part of the founding values of the United Nations”.
Shahid welcomed “the leadership of Olympic and Paralympic athletes in promoting peace and human understanding through sport and the Olympic ideal, and the commitment made by various Member States of the United Nations to developing national and international programmes that promote peace and conflict resolution and the Olympic and Paralympic values through sport, and through culture, education and sustainable development.”
He went on: “As President of the General Assembly at its 76th session, I solemnly appeal to all Member States to demonstrate their commitment to the Olympic Truce for the Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games Beijing 2022 and to undertake concrete actions at the local, national, regional and world levels to promote and strengthen a culture of peace and harmony based on the spirit of the Truce. Referring to the original tradition of the Olympic Truce practised in ancient times, as described in resolution 76/13, I also call upon all warring parties of current armed conflicts around the world to boldly agree to true mutual ceasefires for the duration of the Olympic Truce, thus providing an opportunity to settle disputes peacefully.”
