April
22
International Mother Earth Day
Mother Earth is a common expression for the
planet earth in a number of countries and regions,
which reflects the interdependence that exists
among human beings, other living species and
the planet. For instance, Bolivians call Mother
Earth Pachamama and Nicaraguans refer to her
as Tonantzin.
The
proclamation of 22 April as International Mother
Earth Day is an acknowledgement that the Earth
and its ecosystems provide its inhabitants with
life and sustenance. It also recognizes a collective
responsibility, as called for in the 1992 Rio
Declaration, to promote harmony with nature
and the Earth to achieve a just balance among
the economic, social and environmental needs
of present and future generations of humanity.
International
Mother Earth Day provides an opportunity to
raise public awareness around the world to the
challenges regarding the well-being of the planet
and all the life it supports.
Background
The world has been slow to respond to the emergencies
posed by global warming and the damage human
activities are causing the planet. In 1972,
the United Nations organized the first UN Conference
on the Human Environment in Stockholm. It marked
the beginning of a global awareness of the interdependence
that exists among human beings, other living
species, and our planet.
International
Mother Earth Day promotes a view of the Earth
as the entity that sustains all living things
found in nature. It honors the Earth as a whole
and our place within it. It does not seek to
replace other events, such as Earth Day, which
has been celebrated by many people around the
world on 22 March since the 1970s, but rather
to reinforce and reinterpret them based on the
evolving challenges we face.
In
2009, at its Eighth Session, the Permanent Forum
on Indigenous Issues requested special rapporteurs
to prepare a Study on the need to recognize
and respect the rights of Mother Earth. At its
Ninth Session, the Permanent Forum on Indigenous
Issues will discuss the findings of the study,
as well as works toward establishing a Declaration
on the Rights of Mother Earth.
Events
238
– Year of the Six Emperors: The Roman Senate
outlaws emperor Maximinus Thrax for his bloodthirsty
proscriptions in Rome and nominates two of its
members, Pupienus and Balbinus, to the throne.
1500 – Portuguese navigator Pedro Álvares Cabral
lands in Brazil.
1519 – Spanish conquistador Hernán Cortés establishes
a settlement at Veracruz, Mexico.
1529 – Treaty of Saragossa divides the eastern
hemisphere between Spain and Portugal along
a line 297.5 leagues or 17° east of the Moluccas.
1809 – The second day of the Battle of Eckmühl:
the Austrian army is defeated by the First French
Empire army led by Napoleon I of France and
driven over the Danube in Regensburg.
1836 – Texas Revolution: A day after the Battle
of San Jacinto, forces under Texas General Sam
Houston capture Mexican General Antonio López
de Santa Anna.
1863 – American Civil War: Grierson's Raid begins
– troops under Union Army Colonel Benjamin Grierson
attack central Mississippi.
1864 – The U.S. Congress passes the Coinage
Act of 1864 that mandates that the inscription
In God We Trust be placed on all coins minted
as United States currency.
1876 – The first ever National League baseball
game is played in Philadelphia.
1889 – At high noon, thousands rush to claim
land in the Land Run of 1889. Within hours the
cities of Oklahoma City and Guthrie are formed
with populations of at least 10,000.
1898 – Spanish-American War: The United States
Navy begins a blockade of Cuban ports and the
USS Nashville captures a Spanish merchant ship.
1906 – The 1906 Summer Olympics, not now recognized
as part of the official Olympic Games, open
in Athens.
1911 – Tsinghua University, one of mainland
China's leading universities, is founded.
1912 – Pravda, the "voice" of the
Communist Party of the Soviet Union, begins
publication in Saint Petersburg.
1915 – The use of poison gas in World War I
escalates when chlorine gas is released as a
chemical weapon in the Second Battle of Ypres.
1930 – The United Kingdom, Japan and the United
States sign the London Naval Treaty regulating
submarine warfare and limiting shipbuilding.
1944 – The 1st Air Commando Group using Sikorsky
R-4 helicopters stage the first use of helicopters
in combat with CSAR operations in the China-Burma-India
theater.
1944 – World War II: Operation Persecution is
initiated – Allied forces land in the Hollandia
(currently known as Jayapura) area of New Guinea.
1945 – World War II: Prisoners at the Jasenovac
concentration camp revolt. 520 are killed and
80 escape.
1945 – World War II: Führerbunker: After learning
that Soviet forces have taken Eberswalde without
a fight, Adolf Hitler admits defeat in his underground
bunker and states that suicide is his only recourse.
1948 – 1948 Arab-Israeli War: Haifa, a major
port of Israel, is captured from Arab forces.
1954 – Red Scare: Witnesses begin testifying
and live television coverage of the Army-McCarthy
Hearings begins.
1964 – The 1964-1965 New York World's Fair opens
for its first season.
1969 – British yachtsman Sir Robin Knox-Johnston
completes the first solo non-stop circumnavigation
of the world.
1970 – The first Earth Day is celebrated.
1972 – Vietnam War: Increased American bombing
in Vietnam prompts anti-war protests in Los
Angeles, New York City, and San Francisco.
1983 – The German magazine Der Stern claims
that the "Hitler Diaries" had been
found in wreckage in East Germany; the diaries
are subsequently revealed to be forgeries.
1992 – In an explosion in Guadalajara, Mexico,
206 people are killed, nearly 500 injured and
15,000 left homeless.
1993 – Version 1.0 of the Mosaic web browser
is released.
1997 – Haouch Khemisti massacre in Algeria –
93 villagers killed.
1997 – The Japanese embassy hostage crisis ends
in Lima, Peru.
1998 – Disney's Animal Kingdom opens at Walt
Disney World near Orlando, Florida, United States.
2000 – In a pre-dawn raid, federal agents seize
six-year-old Elián González from his relatives'
home in Miami, Florida.
2000 – The Big Number Change takes place in
the United Kingdom.
2000 – Second Battle of Elephant Pass: Tamil
Tigers capture a strategic Sri Lankan Army base
and hold it for 8 years.
2003 – Election of the fifth Caliph of Ahmadiyya
Muslim Community.
2004 – Two fuel trains collide in Ryongchon,
North Korea, killing up to 150 people.
2005 – Japan's Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi
apologizes for Japan's war record.
2006 – 243 people are injured in pro-democracy
protest in Nepal after Nepali security forces
open fire on protesters against King Gyanendra.
2008 – The United States Air Force retires the
remaining F-117 Nighthawk aircraft in service.
Holidays
and observances
Christian
Feast Day:
Acepsimas of Hnaita and companions (Catholic
Church)
Epipodius and Alexander
April 22 (Eastern Orthodox liturgics)
Discovery Day (Brazil)
Earth Day (United States), and its related observances:
International Mother Earth Day (International)
For details, contact Datacentre
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