Note to Correspondents

YOKOHAMA’s Children TO BRING CITY’S GOODWILL TO UNited nations

 

CHILDREN’S FUND ON 30 october 2007

Four elementary and middle school students from Yokohama, Japan chosen as “Yokohama Children Peace Messengers” will give $149,780, donated by residents of the city of Yokohama, to the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) on Tuesday 30 October 2007.

Yokohama’s long history of involvement in a range of international exchange activities, and the city’s activities throughout the International Year of Peace (1986), won them official recognition by the United Nations as a “ Peace Messenger City” in 1987.

Since then, each year, as one of the city’s peace-related activities, students are chosen through an original peace-related speech contest and designated as “Yokohama Children Peace Messengers”.  The students travel to New York City, representing the international peace efforts that Yokohama has made throughout the year.

During their weeklong stay in New York City, the students will visit the United Nations and meet with officials.  They will also meet with the Permanent Representative of Japan to the United Nations at the Japanese Mission and the Executive Director of UNICEF, as well as participate in classes at the United Nations International School.  There has been a long tradition of cooperation between the United Nations International School and the Yokohama Board of Education.  Indeed, they fully support two language teachers from Japan.

The “Yokohama Children Peace Messengers” will also hold a press conference at 4:30 p.m. on Wednesday 31 October at the United Nations International School at 24-50 F.D.R. Drive, New York, NY 1010.

For further United Nations information, please contact Sylvia Howard Fuhrman, Special Representative of the Secretary-General for UNIS, or Dolores Redding at (212) 963-8729 or e mail: fuhrman@un.org.

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For information media • not an official record