The Singapore Democrats will send Serene Chua, a young activist, to attend the International Youth Peace Assembly (IYPA) in Jönköping, Sweden, from 2-9 July 2005.
The event, organised by the Dag Hammarskjöld Foundation in Sweden with the support of the Foreign Ministry of Sweden, has invited 80 participants between 18 and 25 years of age from around the world who are just beginning their careers in government or in non-governmental organizations.
Ms Chua, who left Singapore on Sunday, has also been invited to attend the congress of the Liberal Youth, the youth Wing of the Liberal Party in Sweden scheduled to take place before the IYPA. It is understood that she is one of only two Asians invited. The other Asian participant is from India.
One of the goals of the IYPA is to familiarize the participants with the set-up and operation of the United Nations. As such the program of the Assembly is organised according to the procedures of the United Nations, with a general assembly and committees. A final document, the “Jönköping Protocol,” will be given to the United Nations and its committees and the participants’ home governments and media. The conference will also impart leadership and peacemaking skills.
Ms Chua has also been invited to give a presentation to the participants and the Liberal Youth conference on Singapore. She indicated before she left that she would talk about recent political developments in Singapore and added that this would be good exposure for young Singaporeans like herself who don’t usually get to learn about what youths in other countries do as far as politics is concerned.
Ms Chua, together with several other young Singaporeans, participated in the workshop on nonviolent action organised in May 2005.