Dear friends, Throughout my career I have tried to help countries in conflict achieve stability and peace. In southern Africa, Indonesia, the Balkans and elsewhere, I have consistently seen that communities divided by violence can only achieve peace and reconciliation through dialogue. |
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Now online: our documentary on missing persons in Cyprus
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 | To mark the International Day of the Disappeared, we have made The Elders’ documentary Cyprus: Digging the Past in Search of the Future available to view in full on our website.
The film follows Desmond Tutu, Lakhdar Brahimi and Jimmy Carter as they join four young Cypriots to learn about the search for thousands of people who disappeared in Cyprus during the violence of the 1960s and 1970s. |
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I encourage you to watch our documentary and share it with friends. We have put together a discussion guide so that you can talk about the questions it raises. We hope the film prompts debate on how communities can move on from division, an issue that is applicable not only to Cyprus but to societies affected by conflict around the world. |
Palestinian reconciliation
There are few issues where the need for effective dialogue is more pressing than the stalled Middle East peace process. In the case of the Palestinians, their lack of a unified voice has undermined their credibility and their negotiating power in peace talks with the Israelis. Encouragingly, the two main Palestinian factions, Fatah and Hamas, did sign a unity deal in May this year. I hope all parties will support this deal – including Israel – after all, meaningful negotiations can only take place if all sides are prepared to talk to each other. |
Korean Peninsula: a welcome resumption of dialogue
Tensions between North and South Korea have been dangerously high, particularly since direct talks between the two collapsed in 2008. We therefore warmly welcomed the meetings that took place between the North and South as well as between the North and the United States in late July.
Tragedy in Norway
We were deeply saddened by the deadly attacks in Oslo and at a youth camp on the island of Utøya in Norway. Archbishop Tutu spoke for all of the Elders when he said “this brutal and cowardly attack, particularly the deliberate targeting of young people gathered to discuss how to make their country and the world a better place, was truly heinous.”
We are confident that this horrific act will not sway Norway from its commitment to openness, equality and democracy. Our thoughts are with the families of the victims, the people of Norway and our fellow Elder, former Norwegian Prime Minister Gro Brundtland.
Child marriage: cultural right or ‘global blight’?
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Best wishes,
Martti Ahtisaari 
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