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MEDIA ADVISORY: February 23, 2006 ROOTS OF PEACE TO CELEBRATE 10 YEARS OF PLANTING PEACE AT EMBASSY OF AFGHANISTAN WASHINGTON –The Embassy of Afghanistan will be hosting a prestigious reception to celebrate the 10th anniversary of Roots of Peace. Roots of Peace is a humanitarian organization dedicated to eradicating landmines worldwide, restoring dignity to the victims of landmines, and rehabilitating minefields into prosperous farmland. The reception, which will feature a traditional feast of the finest Afghan cuisine, will be attended by numerous foreign dignitaries, Administration officials and Washington insiders. In Afghanistan, over 60 people a month are killed or maimed by landmine or unexploded ordnance. Approximately ten million landmines lurk beneath Afghanistan’s often stunning terrain. Thanks to Roots of Peace, over 10,000 Afghan farmers have been trained to grow grapes and raisins—alternative agricultural crops to poppies—and 100,000 landmines and unexploded ordinances have been removed from the once fertile Shomali Plains. Afghan farmers are now replacing the scourge of landmines with the nectar of fresh grapes and pomegranates and reclaiming the “Garden of Central Asia” for future generations. The Skoll Foundation has funded a short film which will debut at The Afghan Embassy featuring the October 2006 visit to the Shomali Plains by Mrs. Shamim Jawad and Mrs. Heidi Kuhn—following the footsteps of an Afghan and American mother who are removing landmines and establishing vineyards, schools and soccer fields. Audiences interested in foreign affairs, women’s issues, health, children and humanitarian efforts will find inspiration in the emotional human element and grand political implications of the Roots of Peace story. Who: Attending: When: Tuesday, February 27, 2007, 6 p.m. – 9 p.m. Where: Embassy of Afghanistan, 2341 Wyoming Ave. NW, Washington, DC 20010 |
