14°c Clear
25°c Variable cloudiness
Winnipeg Free Press - PRINT EDITION
There is much work still to be done: Mikhail Gorbachev, keynote speaker for We Day
Mikhail Gorbachev (second from right), with Craig Kielburger, is introduced to (from left) Art DeFehr, Leo Ledohowski and Greg Selinger on Monday. (JOHN WOODS / WINNIPEG FREE PRESS ) Photo Store
Related Items
-
Articles
- 'Yes, we can!': Thousands converge on MTS Centre for We Day
- WE could learn a few things
- Protection plan for parks expected soon
- Childhood leukemia survival rate up sharply
- Powerful computing
- Local food bank use soars
- Gorbachev approves front page
- Mikhail Gorbachev raises expectations
- Gorbachev gets key to the city
-
Columns
-
Polls
I have been asked by the Winnipeg Free Press to serve as guest editor of the issue you hold in your hands. I agreed, because I am visiting your city for the first time this week for an important event.
Today, I will address 18,000 young people at We Day Manitoba at the MTS Centre. Craig and Marc Kielburger and Free the Children have gathered together the future leaders of tomorrow. I spoke to similar gatherings in other cities last year, and I really enjoyed it. Facing such a determined, motivated audience always fills me with hope.
When I think of the many reasons why we must continue to work for a better world, I think first of my great-granddaughter, Alexandra. At just four years old, she has her entire life ahead of her. Will she live in a world that is safe, just and humane?
When I became leader of the Soviet Union in 1985, I inherited command over tens of thousands of nuclear warheads. The United States had a similar number. Together, we had enough blast power to destroy life on Earth.
I recall vividly meeting U.S. President Ronald Reagan in Geneva in 1985, where we declared that "a nuclear war cannot be won and must never be fought." In Reykjavik a year later, we agreed on the need to eliminate nuclear weapons. Working together with leaders of other countries, we put an end to the Cold War.
However, in 2012, there are many reasons for concern: Old threats to peace are persisting and new ones are emerging. The challenges of security, poverty and backwardness, and the global environmental crisis are as great as ever.
I would like to outline issues that I believe are important to the citizens of Winnipeg and the world, and worthy of examination in today's edition of the Free Press.
I believe that saving the environment must be our top priority today. In 1993, I founded Green Cross International, an organization whose main aim is to raise awareness of environmental issues and mobilize civil society for positive action. We need a dramatic change in our politics and our attitudes.
Access to clean water is an environmental, social and health issue. As many as 800 million people have no access to safe drinking water, and 2.5 billion also lack basic sanitation services. A child dies every 20 seconds from water-related illness.
I understand access to clean water is also a problem in parts of Manitoba that particularly afflicts your aboriginal populations. This year, Free the Children is working with young people to try to bring clean water to many parts of the world.
A project that is of particular importance to me is the Raisa Gorbachev Foundation, which I founded after the death of my beloved wife from leukemia in 1999. Its goal is to control cancer and leukemia among children, a growing problem throughout the world. We need to help those who suffer and to better understand why the youngest among us are increasingly being stricken.
Finally, I support new ways to empower young people, including the efforts of Free the Children. I urge young people to question leaders about what they are doing to address the main challenges that face the world today:
-- What are you doing for the abolition of nuclear arms and for reduction of military spending?
-- What are you doing to bridge the divide between wealth and poverty?
-- What are doing to save our planet from environmental disaster?
I would like to thank Free Press publisher Bob Cox and editor Paul Samyn, as well as the newspaper's editorial board. I would also like to thank the co-chairmen of We Day, Hartley Richardson, Bob Silver and Mark Chipman.
Some people ask me why, at age 81, I'm still working for global peace. I believe it's possible to build a better world for Alexandra and children like her around the globe. We can do it together.
Republished from the Winnipeg Free Press print edition October 30, 2012 A3
More Latest News
- Back to Top
- Return to Latest News
More Latest News
(1 of 50 articles for this week)
100K protesters flood Brazil streets in protests venting anger over poor government services
1:29 AM 0
Poll
Most Popular Latest News
- Young girl found dead on railway tracks
- Toronto woman dead in rural Manitoba ATV wreck
- Report: Saatchi cautioned over London assault on TV presenter wife Nigella Lawson
- Kenyan wins Manitoba Marathon
- Three-year-old girl drowns at Cross Lake First Nation
- Montreal's interim mayor, a self-styled corruption fighter, faces fraud charges
- HSC Home Lottery winners announced
- UFC army conquers Winnipeg in one day
- Passenger: Man who disrupted Hong Kong flight ranted about CIA, was not stable
- Family tweets indicate Kim Kardashian gives birth several weeks ahead of due date
- Young girl found dead on railway tracks
- Hailstorm wreaks havoc on Winnipeg garden centre
- HSC Home Lottery winners announced
- Jaimie Creasy becomes first woman to graduate from RRC with degree
- RCMP say woman deliberately murdered her sister with her car
- Toronto woman dead in rural Manitoba ATV wreck
- Manitoba restaurant stops selling giant hamburger "for obvious reasons"
- Bomber fans wowed by new stadium
- Portage Ave. stretch re-opens after Friday-night bomb scare
- Kenyan wins Manitoba Marathon
- Young girl found dead on railway tracks
- Man dies after being pulled from vehicle submerged in Winnipeg retention pond
- Hailstorm wreaks havoc on Winnipeg garden centre
- 87-year-old woman tells jurors, 'Somebody had to stand up to' Donald Trump
- Two people killed in crash north of Winnipeg
- Two Winnipeg teens identified as victims of crash
- Father, daughter seriously injured in ATV crash
- Chiropractor guilty of sexually assaulting, beating ex-girlfriend
- Filipino singer Charice comes out as lesbian; Catholic official says she's in identity crisis
- HSC Home Lottery winners announced
- Three-year-old girl drowns at Cross Lake First Nation
- Report: Saatchi cautioned over London assault on TV presenter wife Nigella Lawson
- MTS providing tower, charging station for Dauphin Countryfest fans
- Winnipeg's got the REIT stuff
- The crime fighter's revolution
- To hike or not to hike? Retailers unsure what to charge for PST on July 1
- Blood, sweat and cheers: Mixed martial arts goes from gory nights to glory days
- Exchange District BIZ rolls out recycling bins
- HSC Home Lottery winners announced
- Two men dead in house fire near Elie
- App could give Winnipeggers chance to report bad parking, get paid
- Hailstorm wreaks havoc on Winnipeg garden centre
- Sobeys gobbles up Safeway
- Jaimie Creasy becomes first woman to graduate from RRC with degree
- Priest kept silent about accusations against Storheim, court hears
- Manitoba restaurant stops selling giant hamburger "for obvious reasons"
- Yaz and Yasmin pills linked to 23 deaths, say Health Canada documents
- Geothermal heat coming to some Manitoba First Nations
- Spiralling cost of land raises new home prices
- Rogers and MTS announce new network sharing agreement
- New owner for lumber stores
- Chiropractor guilty of sexually assaulting, beating ex-girlfriend
- Grocer Joe Cantor dies at 88
- Door openers being used to break into garages, police warn
- Province formally opens Mental Health Crisis Response Centre
- Hailstorm wreaks havoc on Winnipeg garden centre
- New rules let customers cancel phone contracts without penalty after two years
- App could give Winnipeggers chance to report bad parking, get paid
- MTS to sell Allstream to Egyptian investment group, focus on Manitoba market
- Police: US driver drove drunk while having sex, crashed, hid behind cactus
Ads by Google
You can comment on most stories on winnipegfreepress.com. You can also agree or disagree with other comments. All you need to do is be a Winnipeg Free Press print or e-edition subscriber to join the conversation and give your feedback.
You can comment on most stories on winnipegfreepress.com. You can also agree or disagree with other comments. All you need to do is be a Winnipeg Free Press print or e-edition subscriber to join the conversation and give your feedback.
Have Your Say
New to commenting? Check out our Frequently Asked Questions.
Have Your Say
Comments are open to Winnipeg Free Press print or e-edition subscribers only. why?
Login SubscribeHave Your Say
Comments are open to Winnipeg Free Press Subscribers only. why?
SubscribeThe Winnipeg Free Press does not necessarily endorse any of the views posted. By submitting your comment, you agree to our Terms and Conditions. These terms were revised effective April 16, 2010.