** PRESS RELEASE ** (view the PDF)
OCT-19-2004

A press conference was held at the African Union (AU) onTuesday, 19 October 2004 for the AFRICA UNITE Celebration, planned for the month of February in Ethiopia to observe Black History Month and honor the 60 th anniversary of the birth of Robert “Bob” Nesta Marley, O.M.

Following up on an invitation from Chairman Alpha Konare of the African Union (AU), Nana Rita Marley, O.D. and Dr. Desta Meghoo-Peddie, Managing Director of the Bob Marley Foundation attended the First Conference of Intellectuals of Africa and Africa’s Diaspora. The historic conference held in Dakar, Senegal from the 6 th to 9 th October 2004, was attended by Heads of State, Nobel laureates, distinguished intellectuals, scholars and experts from Africa and the Diaspora.

A declaration for a decade of peace was supported by Nobel laureates Nelson Mandela and Wole Soyinka. And while referring to the slave trade as a cri me against humanity, in his opening address, Professor Alpha Konare, Chair of the AU, said, “To forget this crime or to minimize it would be tantamount to adding insult to injury and to sacrificing, for the second time…all those who inspired Bob Marley in his “Buffalo Soldier”…to fight for their survival: Fighting on arrival, fighting for survival!”

Also, as a Rapporteur, Dr. Meghoo-Peddie helped to formulate the call for citizenship for Africans born in the Diaspora.

For more information about AFRICA UNITE contact:

Nikki Barjon - nikkibarjon@aol.com ( USA)
Gerry Lyseight - gerry@mambo.eclipse.co.uk (Europe)
Dianne Regisford - dianne@blackmagic.co.za (Africa)