Workshop on the occasion of International Day of Peace at Tehran Peace Museum

In a joint event on the occasion of International Day of Peace, held on 26 September 2018 at the Tehran Peace Museum with support of the United Nations Information Centre (UNIC), some 25 researchers and students were briefed about retrieving the UN-related information and documentation, AVA Diplomatic reports.

The discussion focused on peace and security as well as the chemical weapons.  Among the participants there were victims of Iran-Iraq war: Director of the Museum Mr. Mohammad Reza Taghipoor Moghadam and Mr. Alireza Yazdanpanah, who also volunteers at the Tehran Peace Museum, despite of his poor health, since he is a victim of the chemical weapons.

At the beginning of the session the video message of the UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres (translated by UNIC) was screened and then UNIC Reference Assistant Ms. Nazanin Ghaemmaghami elaborated on an overview of peace and security as a global issue. Then the participants navigated through the webpage of “Maintaining International Peace and Security” including Security Council, General Assembly, peacekeeping and disarmament.

Ms. Ghaemmaghami also explained how to retrieve UN documentation and information from Dag Hammarskjold Library’s (DHL) web page and gave an overview of document symbols and important information-searching tools located through DHL resources and databases, including the United Nations Bibliographic Information System (UNBISnet), Official Document System(ODS). The participants learnt how to find UN documents on chemical weapons as well as on the Iran-Iraq war.

After reviewing a Security Council document (S/18852/Add.1) dated 18 May 1987 that includes Mr. Alireza Yazdanpanah’s name as a 16 year old victim of the chemical weapons used by Iraq, he explained his present difficult situation and his memories of the Iran-Iraq war. The event coincided with the 38th anniversary of the Iran-Iraq war.

Then the website of the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) as a UN related organization was navigated and the participants learnt to find information about the Chemical Weapons Convention. An OPCW video on the history of the chemical weapons was also screed.

At the end of the one-day workshop, the authorities of the Tehran Peace Museum and the participants expressed their satisfaction from the programme.