3rd World March for Peace and Nonviolence. Choral meeting as the Base Team passes through Madrid   

El Sunday, November 24 at 12pm the ceremony was held "3rd Choral Meeting for Peace and Nonviolence” in the square in front of the Reina Sofia museum in Madrid. Meeting organized by “Choir members for a world of peace and nonviolence”, the Choir “The Horizontal","World without Wars and Violence”, as well as other groups

This meeting was special because it included the participation of Rafael de la Rubia, Tiziana Volta and Inma Prieto from the Base Team.

As has been done since the preparations for the 3rd World March, the songs “Libre Palestina” and “Ay, Carmela” with lyrics adapted by Solfónica and the canon “Dona Nobis Pacem” were sung together with the audience. Next, the 3 members of the Base Team told us about the most significant things they had experienced so far on their tour of the different countries. Next, the Human Symbols of Peace and Nonviolence were performed and the Ethical Commitment was read together, in order to finally exchange and learn about the details of this march.

We counted on the participation of the collective “El retratista nómada” who wanted to accompany us in this meeting, offering free portraits to all those who requested them.

There were more than 200 people in total, and a very good emotional and participatory atmosphere was created, since everyone sang together and the public really participated. The event as a whole was agile, light, and the desire to do similar events again remained in the air. The event ended with the creation of the human symbols of Peace and Nonviolence and the reading of the Ethical Commitment.

The presentation said, among other things: “The main interest of this choral meeting is to “MEETING”, something not so common today, and also to do so for such noble and necessary causes as Peace and Nonviolence.

“The best attitude we propose to generate this “MEETING” is to open our hearts and let ourselves go, so that this is a small but significant experience that we can take with us, that enriches us and gives us strength to continue putting activities into action during the rest of the march, and to prepare year after year, around October 2, for the next world march, which will be in 5 years.”

“We want and need this World March to be like a snowball that started rolling 15 years ago and that will continue to grow, wherever it goes, until we achieve a World Without Wars and Violence.”

We can highlight the intervention of Rafa de la Rubia.

“Yesterday, the demonstration in Bologna was very significant, around 1.500-2.000 people. Bologna has an important meaning in Europe, it is the oldest university in Europe. It was a gathering, where something very close was experienced.”

“My grandchildren, aged 9 and 6, explain to their friends that Grandpa goes around the world telling people not to fight, that they have to resolve things by talking,” I thought it was a fantastic summary. We never imagined that there would be a war in Europe.

After going around the planet several times we have seen that most people do not want wars, they want to live in peace and develop their lives honestly.

From Tiziana Volta.

In October 2008 I was invited to a presentation event for the world march.

Since that night I have fallen in love with two words… peace and non-violence. I decided to join forces with many others to show that together we can change, starting from ourselves.

The world march gathers experiences, tries to connect them, create bridges of union between everyone, respecting diversity.

…I am a human being who still, and perhaps utopically, believes in the message of the hibakujumoku survivors of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. Where the atomic holocaust occurred, some trees survived and bear witness to the great hope of rebirth.

Today each one of us is necessary in this complex and confusing historical moment.

And that of Inma Prieto

… Above all, I thank you for being here in the cool weather and listening to us, … In Croatia, Slovenia, and Italy we have seen many young people who were making music for peace and nonviolence. Just as in the choir, someone who makes music has to respect the time of the person next to him so that everyone can play at the same time and have an orchestra sound good, we saw that as a reflection that could be in our daily lives, … if we were able to respect each other’s time and agree to all make the same request for peace and nonviolence, the world could be different.