Locarno launches Peace Prize to mark its 100th anniversary
Keystone-SDA
Generated with artificial intelligence.
To mark the 100th anniversary of the Locarno Treaties, the Swiss city of Locarno has launched a Peace Prize in collaboration with the Locarno Film Festival. This will be presented for the first time in August. An official commemoration day will also be held at the beginning of October.
“We all need peace,” said Mayor Nicola Pini at a media conference in Locarno on Thursday. It was therefore obvious to reflect on peace and talk about peace as part of the 100th anniversary of the Locarno Treaties of 1925 – but with a view to the future, he said.
The Premio “Locarno Città della Pace” is to be awarded every two years on the traditional “Day of Diplomacy” of the film festival. However, Pini told the Swiss News Agency Keystone-SDA that it had not yet been decided who would receive the first Premio.
The official commemoration day will take place on October 4 at the Palacinema in Locarno in the presence of representatives from politics and diplomacy. Historical exhibitions, multimedia installations, international conferences, concerts and theatre performances are also planned, according to the organisers.
‘Spirit of Locarno’
The aim of the Locarno Conference from October 5-16, 1925, was to conclude an agreement to stabilise peace in Europe. It ended on October 16, 1925, with the recognition of the borders between France and Germany laid down in the Treaty of Versailles. Germany was subsequently admitted to the League of Nations and a period of détente began in Europe.
In the years following the conference, there was repeated talk in Europe of the “Spirit of Locarno”.
When the diplomats left the Palazzo del Pretorio in the centre of Locarno after signing the treaties 100 years ago, a crowd surrounded them and applauded them, said Rodolfo Huber, the city archivist. “It was also an applause of relief.”
Such “intimacy” during an international conference is something he knows only from Locarno, Huber said. For this reason, too, the aim was to take everyone along on the journey of the planned celebrations – residents, artists, groups and associations.
Translated from German by DeepL/ts
This news story has been written and carefully fact-checked by an external editorial team. At SWI swissinfo.ch we select the most relevant news for an international audience and use automatic translation tools such as DeepL to translate it into English. Providing you with automatically translated news gives us the time to write more in-depth articles.
If you want to know more about how we work, have a look here, if you want to learn more about how we use technology, click here, and if you have feedback on this news story please write to english@swissinfo.ch.
More
Study reports 12 female CEOs in top 100 Swiss companies
This content was published on
More women are in management and on the board of directors at the largest Swiss companies than ever before. But they remain a clear minority, a new report shows.
Geneva to host conference on Middle East conflict on March 7
This content was published on
A conference on the situation of civilians living in the Israeli occupied territories will take place in Geneva on March 7, the Swiss foreign ministry has confirmed.
Swiss central bank chief rejects holding bitcoin in reserves
This content was published on
Swiss National Bank (SNB) President Martin Schlegel rejects the idea that the central bank should hold part of its reserves in bitcoin, as proposed by a people’s initiative.
The legal changes that come into force in Switzerland on March 1
This content was published on
On March 1, a number of legal changes come into force relating to self-driving cars, increased imports of grain and lower electricity usage costs. Here is an overview.
Swiss president condemns Russian aggression and calls for peace in Ukraine
This content was published on
Swiss President Karin Keller-Sutter has reaffirmed Switzerland’s commitment to a “just and lasting” peace in Ukraine, while condemning Russian aggression.
