It is with an effortless sense of belonging to the village of L'Escalier and its inhabitants that Omnicane associates itself to acclaim and celebrate the outstanding recognition of L'Escalier as an International City of Peace.
This event is itself being held on Monday 21 September 2020 which marks the United Nations International Peace day whose theme for this year is "Spring Peace Together". The International Peace Day provides a globally shared date for all humanity to commit to peace above all differences and to contribute to building a culture of peace.
In this year 2020 and in the midst all the challenges it has confronted us it is even more our duty as a village, a region, an enterprise and a country, all stakeholders alike, to celebrate together the International Day of Peace by spreading compassion, kindness and hope in the face of the COVID-19 pandemic. We have all reasons to be thankful and proud that together we have managed to curtail the effects of this difficult and challenging situation and together each and every one of us are doing our upmost to continue keeping our country COVID Safe.
It is in times of trouble and challenges that the sense of belonging we all share enables us to integrate our energies for the betterment of our common space in the region and in our country.
I have no doubt that together we will be able, as we have in the near and far past, and also in the future, continue to be driven by our spirit of empathy and compassion, thereby promoting understanding, peace and harmony.
With regards to Omnicane, we again pledge our committed engagement for a modern,
innovative and sustainable sugarcane industry in Mauritius and the La Baraque cluster in
L’Escalier bears testimony of our faith. On the social front, as a responsible corporate
citizen, we shall continue to work hand in hand with the various partners including NGOs
and the Government for the benefit of our neighboring villagers.
I wish to congratulate Mr Chelvin Ramsamy as he is the young initiator of this recognition
given to L’Escalier. I would also pay tribute to all those who have and who are relentlessly
and selflessly working for the progress of L’Escalier. This achievement will surely help in
further reinforcing L’Escalier’s peace and harmony attributes for generations to come setting
the scene for a Nation Arc-en-Ciel
Souvent la religion a été associée avec des personnes âgées. On retrouve en effet dans des corps religieux beaucoup de personnes d’un certain âge. Bien sûr, leur expérience et leur sagesse sont importantes. Mais il ne faut pas compter uniquement sur eux pour toute action en faveur de la paix Je suis particulièrement heureux de voir un jeune s’engager et faire appel au Conseil des Religions pour une prière inter religieuse le jour où les Nations Unies célèbrent la Journée Mondiale de la Paix. La paix est au cœur du message de toutes les religions et aussi au cœur des hommes de bonne volonté qui ne se reconnaissent pas forcément comme membres d’un corps religieux.
Voilà enfin un jeune qui travaille au niveau international comme militant pour la paix et qui retourne à son village de l’Escalier pour célébrer la Journée Mondiale. Il a réussià proclamer le village de l’Escalier comme un village de paix pour la première fois à l’ile Maurice.
Je souhaite que le témoignage du jeune Chelvin Ramsamy soit l’occasion pour tous les jeunes du village de l’Escalier mais aussi de toute l’ile Maurice à travailler pour la paix et l’harmonie sociale.
Nous entendons souvent dire que l’ile Maurice est un exemple dans le monde quand il s’agit de paix et d’harmonie sociale, mais nous savons que dans les périodes de crise comme dans 1968 ou 1999, nous retrouvons des réflexes « identitaires » qui alimentent ce que l’écrivain Amin Malouf appelle les « identités meurtrières ». Nous n’aurons jamais fini de travailler sur nous même pour humaniser notre réactivité, contrôler nos passions, nos réactions partisanes. C’est le travail de toute une vie et se sont les religions qui nous donnent les moyens de le faire et tracent pour nous le chemin.
Au nom du Conseil des Religions je remercie Monsieur Chelvin Ramsamy et je lui souhaite de persévérer dans son engagement au niveau national et international.
It is indeed with pleasure, humility and gratitude that this message is being submitted for publication in the magazine in line with the initiative and vision of Mr. Chelvin Ramsamy and his sustained efforts and workings to enable our small but great village of L’Escalier to be the first one in Mauritius to be elevated as an International City of Peace enjoining along the way the 300 cities having up to now achieved this status over the six Continents of the World. This humble contribution is a token of appreciation for this major achievement for our beloved Village of L’Escalier.
I have personally known Chelvin’s parents and even grandparents having resided close to them in the village. Our overall modest background made all of us education addicts along sports. We were very much aware that the academic path coupled with hard work would be the enabler of climbing the social ladder when living in a remote village.
We can now assess the positive consequences resulting from the learnings acquired when we see the subsequent generations of which Chelvin forms part, achieve such successes and after their brilliant University studies.
Chelvin pursued his way successfully at academic and social levels not only locally but also on the international front. So much so that his project caught the right attention of the United nations’ organisation of ECOSOC enlisting NGOs, with whom Cities of Peace, Inc. is in Special Consultative Status.
L’Escalier has always seen youngsters and elders work together to promote academic, sporting, social, spiritual and religious upliftment of the villagers even endowed with limited means. We must be grateful to the government authorities for having since over 60 years placed Village Halls, and Social Welfare Centres at the disposal of the inhabitants to pool together, engage in sports and social and cultural activities which have sustained the holistic development of one and all, irrespective of colour, creed and religion. The private sector through the Savannah Sugar Factory, now Omnicane, was also an enabler by providing sports grounds as well.
The number of temples, Shivalas, Churches, Kovils, Marathi Sabhas, Telugu Mandirams, Arya Sabhas, Mosques as well as various Clubs and Societies have also played an important role in L’Escalier to groom and help mentor the inhabitants in one way or another. Each of us has contributed in several ways to sustain this momentum and once again upgraded the exposure of the residents ingeneral through spiritual and vedantic knowledge and the regular knowledgeable sessions held by Chinmaya Mission and the local branch of L’Escalier, over nearly four decades in L’Escalier along with other similar contributions from organisations across the board need to be commended.
On the environmental side the valued natural locations like Le Souffleur, Seasides and other sites, attract Mauritians of all corners of the country and tourists to converge towards L’Escalier and enjoy the sceneries. Such convergance keeps the mindset open among the inhabitants and can only be conducive to peaceful living together in our rainbow nation.
Overall, we can safely mention that L’Escalier is indeed blessed and deserves to have achieved this status of International City of Peace of which Chelvin is one of the architects having contributed positively to the present aura of our small great village.
Humbly submitted
Giandev Moteea OSK.
The whole universe is a unique city of peace. This is an
accomplished fact recognised, since time immemorial, by the
real seekers of absolute truth from all corners of the globe.
Labelling a country or any place as a city of peace is fine and a
good beginning. However, we have to be cautious because we
know, full well, that for every beginning there must be an end.
Therefore, prior to naming any place a city of peace, was it a city
of conflict? And more importantly, will this peace last? That is
why the discovery of peace remains a subjective journey and a
personal fulfilment.
Think!!
Eternal peace is a gift bestowed to humankind. Peace is within,
indeed timeless, and to be recognised.
With Love, Love, and Love
AUM SHANTI SHANTISHANTI
Peace is the sine qua non factor for sustainable development for any society and country. On behalf of the Mauritius Sanatan Dharma Temples Federation, please receive our heartfelt congratulation for the village of L’escalier being declared the International city of Peace. The credit of this distinction goes, first of all, to Chelvin Ramsamy who has placed this very peaceful village of the south of Mauritius on the world map, secondly to all the peace loving inhabitants of Lescalier and finally to the whole Mauritian people at large for having nurtured peace and harmony in a multicultural and multilingual nation.
May the all Mighty bless our global citizens who are at present facing the wrath of Covid-19. It is only through international peace that we can convert the globe into a city of peace in miniature.
AUM SHANTI SHANTISHANTI.