“Betty's speech at the first Sport&Peace Forum held in Montecarlo from the 5th to the 7th of December in the presence of his Serene Highness Albert of Monaco.

Your Serene Highness, excellences, ladies and gentlemen,
 
I feel honoured to have been asked to address the issue of children, peace and sports.
 
As I thought of what to say in this talk, I found myself thinking of just how big a role sports played in bringing together the children of my native Northern Ireland. All during the war in Northern Ireland children became tribalized. We had the Catholic tribe and the Protestant tribe. Each tribe had much in common; their hatred for each other and figures in authority, especially men in uniform – police and the British army.
 
I lost count over the years of how many times I watched children hurl missiles, petrol bombs, bricks, stones, bottles and anything they could lay their hands on at the security forces and at each other across the divided towns and villages across their brutalized land.
 
But, how could we get the bricks and bombs out of the hands of children? What could be done to help them when violence became a way of life for our children? Then one day while driving home I watched with horror as a young boy of about 6 ran onto the road in front of a car in order to throw a stone at a British soldier. The car swerved thankfully avoiding hitting the child. I jumped from my car and ran to help the very frightened little boy. After calming him down I managed to find out where he lived and drove him home.
 
He had wandered quite a distance from his home. His mother thanked me as we sat and shared a cup of tea in her humble house and we talked as mothers do.
 
“Our Sean just follows what the other lads are doing”, she said, referring to the child I had delivered. I have four boys. Sean is my youngest,” she told me as tears filled her eyes. There’s nothing for them to do in this area. They don’t have anywhere to play. I’m afraid they’ll be killed.”
 
As I said my goodbyes and drove home I resolved to do something, but what? Before weapons and missiles could be removed from the hands of children, something must be there to replace the guns and the bombs. Within days I had a plan. We would form soccer and rugby, swimming, tennis and all sorts of clubs.
 
It took a great deal of work and hundreds of willing volunteers. But, over the next few years many thousands of children joined a club of their choice.
 
Soon Catholic and Protestant soccer teams were playing together and all the energy wasted on violence was turned to magic as a boy blasted a soccer ball into the net of the opposing team.
 
City councils became involved and soon recreation sports centres popped up. Areas that were once caught up in violence slowly began to change. The bomb and bullet in the hands of children had been replaced by a tennis racquet, a pair of swimming pants, a rugby or soccer ball and the changes were visible and enormous.
 
So, your Highness, sport does indeed play a huge role in the work of peace.
 
In almost 35 years of working for the rights of children and travelling the world on their behalf I have witnessed many atrocities perpetrated on the most defenceless yet greatest resource the world has, her children.
 
In Brazil, children living in squalor play football, each one hoping to one day become Pele. In Africa I have seen boys run many kilometres at incredible speeds, each hoping to become an Olympian. In the ghettos of America young men work for hours on basketball courts perfecting the art of sinking the ball into the net, each dreaming of perhaps becoming the next Michael Jordan.
 
How many lives can we save by encouraging sports for peace worldwide? Many thousands I believe.
 
As you are aware, your Serene Highness, World Centers of Compassion for Children International will begin building the first City of Peace for Children in the world in the Region Basilicata, Italy next year. Within that City, eventually we will have a huge sports facility with Gary Koenig of Jaguar Sports in charge of the project.
 
And once we have perfected our first City it is our intention where there is a need to build such Cities worldwide. Each City will house a sports centre. And where there was once despair, children will do what children should do, play.
 
In a world that can feed itself yet allows upwards of 40,000 children a day to die from conditions of starvation, we should all hang our heads in shame. Starvation is a preventable disease, a disease most times created in countries with enormous military budgets.
 
In a world where the voices of children have been unheard, we must begin to listen. Out of the mouths of babes and suckling’s come the most incredible words of wisdom. In Ethiopia a beautiful little girl I held in my arms who was dying of Aids told me when I asked her what she wanted most in life. She said, “To live.”
 
It is our duty to ensure that right to every child.
God bless your work, your Highness. It will, indeed, help the children live.

      Betty Williams
“A Voice for the Children”

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