The University of Puerto Rico at Mayagüez (UPRM), along with other 17 universities, will form part of the Peace News Agency (ANP, by its Spanish acronym), a network of communication services that will spread the work realized by individuals and groups that work to improve the quality of life in the Country.

The alliance came about after a call made by the Violence Prevention Commission (COPREVI by its Spanish acronym), a division of the University of Puerto Rico, Cayey campus. The conference is part of the campaign We are Instruments of Peace, sponsored by the aforementioned entity.

As explained by professor Samuel Figueroa, director of COPREVI, the agency will function as a center of information for the organization, whose function will be to receive news of the designers of peace and work to spread these occurrences.

“Its mission is to be the voice of the town that works for peace through the establishment of a system of communication services by means of university campuses throughout the country,” noted Figueroa.

The Peace News Agency is counting on a reservoir of resources to be distributed among the university systems that form part of the effort. Some of the services that will be offered include: event coverage, media tours and the coordination of press conferences. It will collaborate in the drafting of press conferences and press invitations, as well as the broadcasting of information to the mediums of communication in Puerto Rico.

The alliance will be composed of the UPR campuses from Aguadilla, Utuado, Humacao, Río Piedras, Carolina, Ponce and Mayagüez. The Central University of Bayamón, Polytechnical University, Universidad del Este, Pontificia Universidad Católica de Puerto Rico, Universidad del Turabo, Caribbean University and American University will also participate in the alliance.

The first meeting for the representatives of the various universities, which took place in the middle of the month of February at the Cayey campus, emphasized that it is imperative to approach the news mediums of various sectors of the country, with the objective of promoting a peaceful culture and minimizing the violence on the Island, which is on the rise. Members believe that it is vital to offer these services because not everyone has the resources or knowledge in the area of communications that will allow access to the media.

On this occasion, the research project entitled Building Bridges: Study to Strengthen the Relationship between the Mediums of Communication and the Communities of Puerto Rico, was announced and stipulates that some non-profit international organizations and alternative mediums are proposing the acknowledgement of the right of communication as a basic human right.

“They explain that communication sustains all other rights and is an essential aspect in the development of more democratic and just societies. It’s this aim that drives the creation of the Peace News Agency,” explained Yalitza Navedo Román, official of the COPREVI Press.

The public is invited to submit news activities that adhere to the entity’s requirements. The most appropriate news will be published in the first edition of the COPREVI Peace Magazine. For more information, those interested should contact Yalitza Navedo Román at (787) 738-2161, extension 2763 or by e-mail at constructoresdepazpr@hotmail.com.

Doctor Ram. S. Lamba, chancellor of UPR Cayey (in the center) convened with representatives from different universities in the country to form part of the news agency. He is accompanied by members of the Commission of Violence Prevention.

Courtesy photo.