By Kay Scrimger
June 29, 2009

Chaired by Doral (FL) Mayor Juan Carlos Bermudez, the International Affairs Committee met June 12.

Hiroshima Mayor Tadatoshi Akiba spoke to the committee about the organization that he leads, Mayors for Peace, an international network of mayors across the globe committed to realizing a nuclear-weapons-free world by the year 2020. Its membership includes almost 3,000 mayors in 134 nations, including more than 250 U.S. mayors. He anticipates that its numbers will soon reach 5,000.

Akiba noted the critical importance of ridding the world of the danger of nuclear weapons, making reference to the devastation in his city and Nagasaki in 1945 as well as to the final scene in Neville Shute's book On the Beach, the post-apocalyptic world after nuclear destruction. "We are working very hard to ensure that the world is free of nuclear weapons by 2020," he emphasized.

Carbondale Mayor Brad Cole, who becomes President of Sister Cities International in July, described the overall mission of Sister Cities, a non-profit citizen diplomacy network that seeks to strengthen economic and cultural ties between U.S. cities and those in other nations.

Cole announced a new Sister Cities program, funded by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, in which U.S. cities will work with African cities over the next three years to help alleviate urban poverty.

He also described Sister Cities upcoming Annual Meeting, which for the first time this year will be held in another country — Belfast, Northern Ireland, July 29–August 1.

Dr. Stefano Damonti, who directs international programs for Florence, Italy, discussed the international role of his city of 400,000 people, which is visited annually by 15 to 20 million tourists.

Florence is engaged in providing technical assistance and training to mayors within the European Union, for example, working with Bulgarian mayors on such issues as the harmonization of national law with European Union laws.

Damonti discussed Florence's Sister Cities program, which includes relationships with 26 cities. In particular, he mentioned Florence's cooperation with Esfahan in Iran, a beautiful metropolis recognized by the UNESCO World Heritage Program.

• Commending the President and His Administration's Engagement with the Americas — recognizes the prompt engagement of the President and his Administration with countries throughout the hemisphere and pledges the U.S. Conference of Mayors' continued contribution to hemispheric dialogue through mayoral and city-to-city discussions and forums.

• The Undermining of Democracy and Democratic City Governance in Venezuela — reiterates its unequivocal condemnation of the undermining of democratic governance and the principle of freely- and independently-elected city officials, governments, and administrations in Venezuela; unequivocally condemns the intimidation and persecution of freely-elected mayors in Venezuela who are in political opposition to the present regime; and asks that this policy resolution be presented to the appropriate committees in Congress, the U.S. Department of State, and that representations be made to official representatives of the Venezuelan government in the United States.

• Support for U.S. Engagement in COP15 UNFCCC in Copenhagen — urges the U.S. Government to fully engage in international climate protection negotiations, beginning with the COP15 United Nations Climate Change Conference in Copenhagen in December 2009; calls for the U.S. delegation to Copenhagen to recognize the key role of cities in the global effort against climate change by engaging, empowering, and providing resources to cities throughout the world so that they may continue to deliver effective climate protection initiatives; recommends selection of a U.S. mayor as an official delegate of the U.S. delegation; and urges the U.S. Congress to pass legislation that creates a market for carbon through development of a fair and flexible economy-wide national cap and trade system as an important first step in participating in an international climate discussion.

• Temporary Protected Status for Haitian Nationals — calls on the Secretary of Homeland Security to designate Haiti and Haitian nationals for Temporary Protected Status and to promptly suspend deportations of Haitian nationals.

• Affirming the Role of Cities in Achievement of a Peaceful World Free of Nuclear Weapons by 2020 — urges the International Commission on Nuclear Non-proliferation and Disarmament to adopt 2020 as the target date for the achievement of a nuclear-weapon-free world, and calls upon the Commission to recognize the importance of city and citizen-level movements for the abolition of nuclear weapons; welcomes enthusiastically the new leadership and multilateralism that the United States is demonstrating toward achievement of a nuclear-weapon-free world, and calls on President Obama to announce at the 2010 Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty Review Conference the initiation of good faith multilateral negotiations on an international agreement to abolish nuclear weapons by the year 2020; and pledges that the Conference will take up this matter at the 2010 Annual Meeting in Oklahoma City.