Council

Organized by War Resisters' International and Peace Action

20-23 June 2004, Boy Scouts' camp, Ohrid, Republic of Macedonia

The Boy Scouts' camp was the place on which 60 peace activists from all around the world gathered on the seminar on subject Conscientious objection and peace. From 20 – 23 June the seminar was held, and the next two days were days for War Resisters International Council meeting.

International Seminar in Macedonia, June 2004

Introduction

War Resisters' International, the international network of pacifist organisations founded in 1921, and its Macedonian affiliate Peace Action are planning an international seminar on conscientious objection and peace in Ohrid, Macedonia in June 2004.

Currency

The Macedonian Denar (MKD) is the local currency, and comes in denominations of 10, 50, 100, 500, 1000, and 5000 and there are also coins of one, two, and five denar. Though it is stable, the den ar is basically nonconvertible outside Macedonia - make sure to change back your left over denars at departure. At present, 1 Euro buys you some 61 MKD; 1 GBP should therefore buy you roughly 90 MKD. The most useful foreign currency to have in Macedonia is the Euro, which is widely accepted (however, coins are hard to be accepted).

The WRI Women's Working Group met on 7 August and again on 12 August last year during the WRI Council in Germany. The women came from Croatia, Ireland, France, Germany), India, the UK and US. The meeting began with older members pairing with newer members for introductions, and sharing some of the WWG's history. An update of developments since WRI's last triennial (in 1998 in Porec, Croatia) was given.

Elected and appointed positions chosen or confirmed at the 1998 Triennial Conference

Chair: Joanne Sheehan, USA

Treasurer: Andreas Speck, Germany

Vice-chairs: Peter Jones (Australia), Cecilia Moretti (Argentina), Osman Murat Ülke (Turkey)

Internationally elected council members:

War Resisters' International, an international pacifist network with affiliates in over 30 countries, discussed the war and humanitarian crisis in Kosovo/a at its Triennial conference in Porec, Croatia, 20-26 September 1998.

About 40 workshops were held during the five days of the open conference. A full list of workshops and their convenors is available in the WRI archives.

Morning plenaries

The morning plenary sessions featured announcements, world news, and short presentations from participants who came upon their nonviolent activism in difficult and threatening circumstances:

Serdar Tekin from the Izmir War Resisters' Association described how he and war resister Osmat Murat Ülke sat around a table one night in the early '90s working out a strategy for resisting militarism in Turkey. "We thought we were the only ones in the country. We are very isolated because of the very militaristic and authoritarian society."

Dear friends,

"The best local peace group in France" was how one of the Parisian participants described COT d'Albi (the Collectif des Objectrices et Objecteurs Tarnais), hosts of this year's annual War Resisters' International Council meeting in Carmaux in the Tarn region.

Introduction

War Resisters' International began a strategic planning process in 1995 in order to become more effective at what we do. By WRI we mean the organization in its own right as well as our Affiliates. The purpose of having such a plan is to be clear about the goals WRI should be working towards, define our priorities and inspire us to carry out the spirit of the WRI declaration above.

The development of a Strategic Plan can best be described as the process of asking four basic questions:

What is WRI's purpose?

War Resisters' International is a worldwide network of independent organisations, groups and individuals who all accept the WRI declaration:

War is a crime against humanity. I am therefore determined not to support any kind of war, and to strive for the removal of all causes of war.

It exists to promote nonviolent action against the causes of war, and to support and connect people around the world who refuse to take part in war or the preparation of war. On this basis, it works for a world without war. WRI membership is open to all those who accept the WRI Declaration.