Japan and Italy Honoured 1978 Dec 05

Filed under americas | europe | UN Anniversaries

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On 5 December 1978 a programme honouring the anniversaries of Italy and Japan joining the United Nations on 14 December 1955 and 18 December 1956 respectively, was sponsored by Sri Chinmoy Meditation at the United Nations in the Dag Hammarskjold Auditorium.

Guest speakers were Ambassador Piero Vinci of Italy and Ambassador Isao Abe of Japan.

The programme also included the performance:

of two new songs written for the occasion by Sri Chinmoy, one in tribute to each of the countries,
as well as the national anthems of both countries.

Excerpts from the programme follow.

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H.E. Mr. Piero Vinci, Permanent Representative of Italy to the United Nations:

I’m very happy to be here with the Meditation Group, a group which, under the very outstanding leadership of Sri Chinmoy, is working to support the spiritual values at the United Nations.

Spiritual values are always one of the driving forces among people. God’s world has such a spiritual potential which needs to be awakened in order to fulfil the expectations and the aspirations of mankind….
Italy’s role and its actions at the United Nations have been much easier for us than perhaps for others, because we have had no national interest to defend, but rather we have tried to defend the principles and the purposes of the Charter of the United Nations.

I think we try to play our role with all the conviction and effort commensurate with the influence a country like mine can exercise. One instance that I might perhaps mention is in the peace-keeping operations in the Congo, where thirteen members of our Air Force gave their lives. Their names are inscribed on the wall along with Dag Hammarskjold’s close to the Meditation Room. I think the names would be inspiring to you since you dedicate so much of your time and your thinking to meditation… .

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H.E. Mr. Isao Abe, Permanent Representative of Japan to the United Nations : Thank you very much for your warm welcome and for the very nice song. I think that is one of the nicest songs I have heard in the United Nations.
As we have done in the past, we will continue to use only words, discussion-rather than force or violence-to deal with problems at the United Nations. But we sometimes forget what is often said, not only in Japan but elsewhere, that “eloquence is silver, but silence is golden.” The real value of words exists in the true thinking behind them. For words to be reaIly meaningful, they must be the outward expression of thoughts of inner value.

I believe this is something your Group is striving to achieve. I think that more communication between men, often expressed by words, but more often by silence, could perhaps help us to understand each other more at the United Nations.