Anita Mendiratta Recognised By IIPT on United Nations International Day Of Living Together In Peace
Today, the 16th of May, is recognised globally as United Nations’ International Day of Living Together in Peace. It’s a day for “mobilising those in the international community to promote peace, tolerance, inclusion, understanding and solidarity”. It’s a day for all of us to unite, sharing in our differences and diversity, to encourage reconciliation and build a sustainable world of peace.
Peace is always the goal. On this day, the United Nations seeks to promote a world of peace and non-violence through understanding. Today, and tomorrow – when the topic is no longer on the official agenda.
The International Institute For Peace Through Tourism (IIPT)’s mission is to promote peace through tourism’s ability to connect people, places, and possibilities. It hasn’t changed since 1986, even as the world around it, and peace itself, has taken on new challenges and meaning.
With our world’s evolving challenges, the way we approach peace must change. The world is changing. An increase in violent extremism, including attacks on tourism destinations and icons, has begun to shift the public’s perception on what, and where, is safe. Across the globe, cities thought of safe and removed from conflict are now targets.
The IIPT believes firmly that now more than ever the tourism industry offers all of the ingredients needed to achieve peace – but we must also have those individuals who are willing to bring people together, to facilitate international cooperation, and to ensure that the tourism industry initiates and facilitates sustainable practices to better the communities around them.
To reflect peace in the modern world, and our need for individuals who can foster the ideals of peace through tourism at a higher level, we have named Anita Mendiratta, Founder and President of CACHET Consulting and Special Advisor to the Secretary General of the UNWTO, as IIPT Peace Ambassador-at-Large for Global Relations.
Anita, a familiar, trusted and respected part of the global tourism community, has worked tirelessly yet discreetly for the last twenty years as a strategic advisor in Tourism & Development. Her ability to break through conflict to help governments and businesses realise their shared aspirations is a much needed skill-set in today’s world. Her work in crisis response and recovery after social unrest, terror attacks and natural disasters, and innate ability to simply connect people around shared desire to make tomorrow better than today, makes her uniquely qualified to represent the IIPT.
As expressed by IIPT Founder and President Louis D’Amore, “The IIPT is deeply honored that Anita has accepted to be the IIPT Ambassador for Peace at Large for Global Relations. Anita has worked closely with leaders of the industry in regions throughout the world as well as with leaders of major international organizations, gaining their respect and trust in every instance. This, combined with her in depth knowledge of global tourism enables Anita to assist IIPT in achieving further success in promoting ‘Peace through Tourism’ in its various dimensions and to support further initiatives towards IIPT’s vision of tourism becoming the world’s first global Peace Industry.”
Today, on the UN International Day of Living Together in Peace, we are excited to announce Anita officially taking on this role, combining our energies to work for a world where our differences and diversity are celebrated, where tolerance and understanding is commonplace, and where peace is not only achievable – it is realised.
Jamaica Successful in Bid to Chair UNWTO’s Regional Commission for the Americas
Jamaica was yesterday selected to chair the United Nations World Tourism Organization’s (UNWTO) Regional Commission for the Americas (CAM) for the biennium 2019-2021.
“Jamaica graciously accepts the position of Chairman for the Regional Commission of the Americas and thanks the members for the confidence which has been demonstrated. This is the first time in our history that anyone in the Caribbean has been appointed Chairman of this commission,” said the Minister.
The elections for the Chairmanship of CAM were held during the organization’s 64th Meeting in Guatemala.
Since 1975, Jamaica has served as Vice-President of the General Assembly on five occasions over the period 1987 – 2011, and has been re-elected twice as a member of the Executive Council, serving as second Vice-Chair in 2012, 1st Vice Chair in 2013 and eventually serving as Chairman of the Executive Council for the period 2014-2015.
In his acceptance speech, the Minister shared that “Jamaica firmly believes that the tourism sector is one that should always be guided by sound policies and has over the years worked assiduously to ensure that this is achieved at both the domestic and international levels.
Jamaica also underscores it commitment to enhancing the capacity of the Americas to plan for and manage a range of global shocks and disruptions that can be destabilizing to the tourism sector.”
He then invited the participation of member countries in the ‘first of its kind’ Global Resilience and Crisis Management Centre which is based at the University of the West Indies in Jamaica.
The Regional Commissions meet once a year to allow Member States to maintain contact with each other and with the UNWTO Secretariat between sessions of the bi-annual General Assembly.
While in Guatemala, the Minister and his delegation will also participate in the International Seminar on Destination Management, which is taking place under the theme ‘New Challenges, New Solutions.’
The Seminar will discuss current challenges and opportunities facing destination management at national and local levels, including the changing role of Destination Management Organizations (DMOs) and the development of smart destinations.
The Minister is accompanied by Miss Kerry Chambers, Senior Director, Policy and Monitoring who will provide technical support. The team will return to the island on May 18, 2019.
Is Zimbabwe planning to kidnap former Tourism Minister Mzembi in South Africa?
Travel and Tourism in Zimbabwe are on a path of urgently needed recovery, and the country is considered by most travelers as desirable and safe. However, there is a dark side on the promising current situation in Zimbabwe with a twist of tourism that is not visible by visitors. It involves the well known and respected former minister of tourism of Zimbabwe, Dr. Walter Mzembi.
Zimbabwe would be well adviced to build on the globally recognized achievements by their former tourism minister.
In Zimbabwe does a Magistrate allow a State Prosecutor ‘s movie style, flashy detailed presentation of how State Agents attempted to kidnap and abduct Dr. Walter Mzembi in an extrajudicial operation in South Africa. No shame in their game, it would appear.
Stay with us. The Dr. Walter Mzembi story is complex.
Prosecutor Brian Vito of the Presidential Special Prosecution Unit, an office reporting directly to the new president of Zimbabwe, Emmerson Mnangagwa, did just that. We saw hyperbole in court and learned of special, dark forces at work in a neighboring country to bring Mzembi in at any cost. This prosecution unit appears to have become a vehicle of retribution and vengeance for the beleaguered President, who has a long agenda to punish all those who opposed his acrimonious contest for Zimbabwe ‘s top job in 2017.
Information not reported by an official, local media is the State assumed a very unreasonable, untruthful, vengeful position related to Dr. Walter Mzembi. Remarkably, after requesting his medical records, the State Prosecutor actually declared him dead and ran rather unseemly stories of his death and funeral.All of which was fake news, completely untrue.
Mzembi was on sabbatical following surgery, however, he became the victim of state media bashing, and court theatrics of prosecution for over a year, some of which this publication covered.When the State Prosecutor dismisses notarized medical records and conditions supplied by another State, the Republic of South Africa, through its Department of International Relations and Cooperation, then it is a clear indicator the scales of justice are out of whack.
The level of hostility from the Zimbabwe Government towards Dr. Walter Mzembi appears to smack of barbarism and political persecution of an accused who no longer believes he can be guaranteed of a fair trial in his home jurisdiction.Clearly, a political dispute with the State through its prosecution has been declared, and the remedy can never be legal but political. Inviting the interest of Interpol in political matters is another act of deception by the Zimbabwe Government which has been getting away, literally, with murder.
We remind you of the shootings of unarmed civilians in demonstrations that rocked the country in August 2018 and January this year killing in cold blood 23 people including multiple women and children.Back to Mzembi. He cannot trust his medical records to be used appropriately by a prosecution team that very transparently is a puppet for the president.Let us also remind readers of the revulsion expressed with Zimbabwe on the fake death reporting of Vice President, Constantino Chiwenga a few months ago, also including many stories predicting his demise.
There is clearly a pattern at work, with fake news being reported on people on trial. Conversely, there is no authentic reporting of facts through officially controlled media within the country.To set the facts straight, eTN spoke with Mzembi today. He is still indisposed and we believe should be allowed his full recovery. We learned his cancer treatment is ongoing and we wish him the best with his fight for health and life. Mzembi has family and performing assets in Zimbabwe. eTN has learned from various sources that no legal counsel can guarantee his safety should he appear in Court.
Sources revealed, “G40 kingpins are buying guns to overthrow the Government of Zimbabwe, led by Ed Mnangagwa.” These allegations were also made to the Cape Town Press Club during WTM Africa.Walter Mzembi was fired from the Zimbabwe Government in the November 2017 coup and was the Foreign Minister of the Robert Mugabe Government. He was also fired simultaneously from Zanu PF on allegations of belonging to an outfit that Party refers to as the G40 cabal.So Mzembi was declared dead by the State, and then when it turns out he is alive, he now is charged with by being part of a cabal buying guns to overthrow a government.
This is Mzembi’s real life, not a novel, not fiction.How does the State expect Mzembi to defend these allegations, which carry the death sentence, when he is unwell with cancer, with the kangaroo court trial awaiting him?Court Prosecutor Brian Vito is on the record commenting: “Bring him in wearing chains and leg irons”.Astonishingly, yesterday’s report from Court Prosecutor Vito reveals the State attempted, with South African Police assistance, to abduct Mzembi, an attempt that failed.
A clash between the authentic prosecution unit of t Zimbabwe NPA and Mnangagwa’s Prosecution Unit to which Brian Vito belongs has been accused of gross interference and unprofessional conduct by the mainstream prosecution department. In the meantime, the delivery of fair and free justice suffers in Zimbabwe, and some of its victims Dr. Walter Mzembi and other targeted opponents could easily get hurt in the crossfire.When we spoke to Mzembi today he commented, “Very sadly, only in Zimbabwe do such things happen. I have the fight of my life with cancer, and then for the second round, if I survive, I must fight against an insensitive and deceptive government.”Dr. Walter Mzembi was a distinguished Minister of Tourism who contributed significantly to Global Tourism Policy, he twice was Commission for Africa Chairperson and President in Session of the UNWTO in 2013-2015. He is a very globally recognized champion and proactive promoter of Brand Zimbabwe.
The global travel and tourism industry remembers Mzembi for successfully hosting the 20th Session UNWTO General Assembly in 2013 at Victoria Falls. Mzembi quit global tourism as the first runner up candidate for Africa for the post of UNWTO Secretary-General, which was won by the current Secretary-General, Zurab Pololikashville.
eTN will continue to closely monitor and report on Zimbabwe and Dr. Walter Mzembi.South Africa has an obligation to fend off extrajudicial forays into its territory by rogue administrations pursuing their political opponent. South Africa is seen as a beacon of freedom on the continent and in the world – and the world will be watching.