NEW YORK-
World political leaders discussed the need for Palestinian peace, religious sensitivity and clean water in Africa on the opening day of the Clinton Global Initiative conference Wednesday.
Former President Clinton’s second summit brings together government, business and nonprofit sectors to come up with tangible solutions to global problems.
It was expected to draw diverse voices such as Afghanistan President Hamid Karzai, Queen Rania Al-Abdullah of Jordan, cyclist Lance Armstrong, CBS News anchor Katie Couric, actor Don Cheadle and U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan.
Some of the world’s religious and ethnic conflicts were addressed from the start with Pakistan President Pervez Musharraf stressing the importance of Palestinian peace.
“We cannot put the cart before the horse by going for Iraq or Lebanon or Afghanistan without solving the Palestinian dispute,” Musharraf said. “Let’s go to the solution of the Palestinian dispute, other things will themselves fall into line.”
Musharraf was joined on a panel by Liberia President Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf, Colombia President Alvaro Uribe Velez and Javier Solana, secretary general of the Council of the European Union.
Solana and Musharraf said Westerners had to be thoughtful about the impact of their words–regardless of free-speech rights–considering Muslim outrage earlier this year over cartoons depicting the Prophet Muhammad and the pope’s recent comments about Islam.
“I don’t think we have the right to provoke for the sake of provoking,” Solana said.
First lady Laura Bush announced a partnership aimed at bringing clean drinking water to communities in sub-Saharan Africa. Called Play Pumps, it involves installing specially designed playground equipment that will use the force generated by children using the equipment to pump clean water from beneath the ground.
“Play pumps are fueled by an endless energy source: children at play,” Bush said.
The program will be financed by $16.4 million from U.S. government agencies and the Case Foundation and the MCJ Foundation.
There already are about 700 play pumps in use in the countries of southern Africa, said Jean Case, CEO of the Case Foundation. The money announced Wednesday will pay for about 1,000 more, and the goal is to have 4,000 in use by 2010, reaching about 10 million people.
Clinton said the long-term goals of philanthropists and aid groups should be to help people to feel they have control over their lives.
Participants were expected to make specific commitments toward advancing solutions to the problems identified during the conference. Last year, 300 commitments totaling about $2 billion were made. Organizers hope to match that this year. At least $350 million in commitments had been made on Wednesday.
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