UN to mark Mandela’s 100th birthday with a peace summit

A bronze sculpture, outside the South African Parliament, of former South African President Nelson Mandela. (AP)

UNITED NATIONS: The UN General Assembly has decided to mark the 100th anniversary of Nelson Mandela’s birth by holding a high-level meeting focusing on world peace ahead of the annual gathering of world leaders in September 2018.
A resolution adopted Friday without a vote says the “Nelson Mandela Peace Summit” will include speeches by top UN officials, the chair of the African Union Commission and member states.
The resolution recalls the South African anti-apartheid leader’s dedication to promoting conflict resolution, race relations, human rights, reconciliation and gender equality.
In 2009, the General Assembly established “Nelson Mandela International Day” on July 18, the date he was born in 1981. The UN asks people around the world to mark the day by making a difference in their communities.
Mandela died Dec. 5, 2013.