Introduction

One of the core means of engagement of Pax Christi International has been to coordinate and represent the global peace movement on the international policy stage.

Many of our advocacy actions are carried out jointly with other civil society members, including other faith based ones and through being part of networks. The capacity of the movement to be active on the international level is amplified by its considerable access to intergovernmental policy-making fora and the work of its representatives at several international organizations:

Pax Christi International has held special consultative status with the United Nations since 1979 in New York, Geneva and Vienna, as well as with UNESCO in Paris;
Pax Christi International participates in meetings of the Council of Europe in Strasbourg;
Pax Christi International has contacts and attends consultations with the institutions of the EU in Brussels.

For a complete list of our international representatives at international bodies, including the United Nations, please click here.

Our advocacy priorities

Toward a Just Peace in Israel and Palestine

Advocating for a just peace in the Holy Land has been a priority of Pax Christi International since its founding. With a resolute commitment to nonviolence, we have forged strong bonds with partners in Palestine and Israel. We work collaboratively with other organisations to advocate for the dignity and equal rights of both Israelis and Palestinians.

Pax Christi International maintains a presence at the United Nations with representatives actively participating in working groups and engaging with other NGOs and UN offices and missions.

We have brought together peacemakers from across the world in Bethlehem resulting in guiding principles for seeking a sustainable and just peace in Israel and Palestine. The annual Holy Land Coordination trip, attended by an international delegation of bishops and others, has consistently included a representative of Pax Christi International.

Our working group addresses ways in which our movement can more effectively educate our communities and publicly address transgressions that undermine the principles of international law and violate the human dignity of individuals.

Pax Christi International has been and will continue to be steadfast in its advocacy for justice as the only way to peace in the Holy Land.

Nonviolence, a style of politics for peace

Pax Christi International has a long-term commitment to active nonviolence as a way of life as well as an effective political strategy. According to SIPRI, world military spending rose to almost $2 trillion in 2020. However, in his 2017 message for the World Day of Peace, Pope Francis emphasised the importance of a renewed culture of nonviolence to inform global politics today, stating unequivocally that military responses to conflict only breed more violence. Nonviolent approaches to conflict transformation and peacebuilding efforts by governments and international organisations have been shown to be effective—and yet they remain underfunded. Pax Christi International promotes nonviolent policy options to sustain peace and security at every level – from the local to the global.

The Nuclear Weapons Ban Treaty

Nine countries together possess around 14,000 nuclear weapons. The blast, heat and radiation of a single nuclear bomb over a large city could kill and injure millions of people. The United Nations Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons (TPNW), which entered into force on 22 January 2021, stigmatises and delegitimises nuclear weapons. Pax Christi International was instrumental in promoting the negotiation, adoption and entry into force of the treaty. We are continuing to encourage states to sign and ratify the TPNW and ask states who have already joined the treaty to proceed swiftly with implementation of its provisions.

Extractivism in Latin America

Many Latin American communities have been heavily affected by companies exploiting natural resources, such as oil, gas, gold, silver, iron, copper, and tin, as well as by other large-scale development projects. The situation continues to deteriorate as extractive activities by transnational corporations increase substantially due to the support of Latin American governments via economic incentives and legal changes.

Pax Christi International – in support of its Latin American project aimed at accompanying members and partners on the ground – is pushing for the problems created by extractives industries in Latin America (especially by US, Canadian and European companies) to receive higher priority on the human rights, trade and development agendas of the international community and for the voices of the communities most directly affected to be heard.