PERUGIA, Italy - Situated in the historic and cultural heart of Italy, the medieval Umbrian city of Perugia may appear to be an inappropriate venue for demonstration of a grand scale, but for the thousands of campaigners who gathered here Sunday to protest against war, it was a fitting location.

TWO YEARS AGO Hundreds of thousands of people participate in an annual peace march between the towns of Perugia and Assisi, central Italy, Sunday, Oct. 14, 2001. (AP Photo/Leonetto Medici)

An estimated 150,000 demonstrators from all over the world traveled to the hillside city to share with others their disdain for war, in an event which is now considered to be as much a part of Italian culture as the delicacies of this region.

The first Perugia-to-Assisi march took place in 1961 and has since grown to become an annual event, with a contemporary theme reflecting the challenges facing society. The 24 km route through the rolling countryside marks a historic trail which was once trekked by pilgrims.

Scouts, members of police associations and local bodies, including Italian municipalities, provinces and regions, joined the Perugia-to-Assisi march Sunday which was also fittingly the feast of St. Francis of Assisi, the patron saint of Italy.

The 'peace pilgrims' carried multi-colored peace (Pace) flags, which have almost become an Italian national symbol since protestors around the world tried to avert the war in Iraq last year.

The peace march, or 'Marcia della Pace' as locals call it, provides not only a symbolic meeting place for civil society, but also sends out a serious message to international leaders and politicians. This year, the message of this, the 15th march of its kind, was clear - a Europe of peace.

The march was the culmination of a series of week-long, nationwide protests and events since European leaders met in Rome on October 4 to discuss the new European constitution.

It also marked the end of a three-day conference of the Fifth UN Peoples' Assembly in Perugia, where more than 200 delegates met to discuss the role and responsibility of the EU and the United Nations in the world in the aftermath of the war in Iraq.

Organized by the Italian Peace Round Table, a coalition of 500 international civil society associations and 350 local authorities, the march has become one of the most important events in civil society's calendar.

Protesters this year are campaigning for Article 11 of the Italian constitution, which repudiates war as an instrument offending people's liberty and as a means for settling international disputes, to become Article 1 of the new European constitution which is currently being debated within the European Union.

Flavio Lotti, coordinator of the Peace Round Table, said that civil society must act against the EU constitution in its present form.

”The world is experiencing a deep crisis and Europe cannot save itself alone. We have to free the construction process of Europe from vanity, cynicism and every form of eurocentrism,” Lotti told IPS just before setting off for the march.

”We want to change the draft European constitution. We want it to contain more aspects for Europeans, for peace and justice, democracy, human rights and civil society,” he said.

Speaking on the final day of the Peoples' Assembly, Roberto Savio, a long-time member of the Peace Round Table told IPS why the march was so important to him.

”It is a long and established tradition and in many ways the march was a prototype for the formation of other peoples' organizations. It preceded everything else. The march also represents an occasion where people come together to express themselves; it an expression of people's participation.”

Although the predominant message of the peace marchers was Europe and Peace, some protestors had their own personal reasons for making the journey.

Colleen Kelly, who lost her brother Bill, 30, in the September 11 terrorist attacks two years ago and founded the 'Peaceful Tomorrows' organization for others who lost friends and family, told IPS why she had decided to make the journey to Perugia.

”I want to tell people that war is an outdated way to achieve peace. There are alternatives to pre-emptive wars. We have got to look for an effective non-violent response to terrorism,” she said.

Katia Giuntoli, a student from Florence, said that she had joined the march to stress the role of education.

”I want the European constitution to consider the importance of education. After all children and students are the future of the world,” she told IPS.

”We are here to remind people that every day in one or another part of the world conflicts are taking place,” Massimiliano Coccia and Alex Cannella, responsible for the Young Green Party Members' campaign for peace and human rights told IPS.

He added: ”There are 77 forgotten conflicts of which no one speaks, yet they kill men, women and children.”

© Copyright 2003 Inter Press Service

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