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Middle East - Peace Talks

(02/09/2010 to 02/09/2010) Washington, D.C., United States

The Secretary of State has confirmed that United States will resume negotiations between Palestinians and Israelis suspended since December 2008. The planned meeting is the result of indirect talks sponsored by the U.S. over the last three months.

Hillary Clinton has said that the White House has invited the Palestinian leader Mahmud Abbas and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to Washington to resume talks, hoping to reach agreement within a year . Both leaders will arrive the day before to meet with Barack Obama.

The head of U.S. diplomacy, expressed confidence that these negotiations "after the failed Oslo process in 1993, Camp David, in 2000, the Roadmap, in 2003, and Annapolis, in 2007 - are final and lead, within a year, an agreement for a Palestinian state.

Moldova - Constitutional Referendum

(05/09/2010 to 05/09/2010)

The Moldovan referendum of 2010 will be a nationwide referendum in Moldova on whether or not the country should amend the Constitution of Moldova to return to direct popular election of president instead of 3/5 of total number of seats parliament vote as it is now. The referendum is going to be held on September 5, and if it is successful, presidential elections would be held at the same time as parliamentary elections in November 2010.

Turkey - Constitutional Referendum

(12/09/2010 to 12/09/2010)

A constitutional referendum on a number of changes to the constitution will be held in Turkey on 12 September 2010, although it had initially been expected for July 2010.

The changes, which relate to the role of the judiciary and the military, were passed in parliament in late April and early May 2010 with over 336 votes, below the two-thirds majority of 367 votes needed to pass them directly, but enough to send them to a referendum within sixty days after Turkey Abdullah Gül signs the law. A constitutional change to make it more difficult for the Supreme Court to dissolve parties failed to pass.

Gül signed the law on 13 May 2010.

A poll from early April 2010 saw 50.6% in favour and 39.2% opposed to the changes.

UN - General Asembly

(14/09/2010 to 14/09/2010) New York, USA

The sixty-fifth ordinary session will open on Tuesday, 14 September 2010, at 3 p.m.

20-22 September: Summit on the Millennium Development Goals (see also the Organization of the High-level Plenary Meeting of the 65th session of the General Assembly).
22 September: High-level meeting of the General Assembly as a contribution to the International Year of Biodiversity

The General Debate will take place from 23-25 September and 27-30 September

On 11 June 2010, the General Assembly elected, by acclamation, His Excellency Mr. Joseph Deiss of Switzerland as President of the sixty-fifth session of the General Assembly.

Mexico - 200th anniversary of Independence

(16/09/2010 to 16/09/2010)

During the year 2010, Mexico celebrates both the 200th anniversary of its Independence and 100th anniversary of its Revolution. The entire year has been proclaimed by President Felipe Calderón as "Año de la Patria", or "Year of the Nation". On 6 September 2009, Felipe Calderón lit the "Fuego Bicentenario" or Bicentennial Fire in front of the National Palace. This flame will travel all around Mexico during the next twelve months

The Mexican War of Independence (1810–1821) was an armed conflict between the people of Mexico and the Spanish colonial authorities which started on 16 September 1810. The Mexican War of Independence movement was led by Mexican-born Spaniards, Mestizos and Amerindians who sought independence from Spain. It started as an idealistic peasants rebellion against their colonial masters, but finally ended as an unlikely alliance between liberals and conservatives.

It can be said that the struggle for Mexican independence dates back to the decades after the Spanish conquest of the Aztec Empire, when Martín Cortés, son of Hernán Cortés and La Malinche, led a revolt against the Spanish colonial government in order to eliminate the issues of oppression and privileges for the conquistadors.

After the abortive Conspiracy of the Machetes in 1799, the War of Independence led by the Mexican-born Spaniards became a reality. The movement for independence was far from gaining unanimous support among Mexicans, who became divided between independentists, autonomists and royalists.

EU - European Council Meeting

(16/09/2010 to 16/09/2010) Justus Lipsius building, Brussels, Belgium

The European Council will discuss, in the presence of foreign ministers, the EU's relations with its strategic partners, in particular with emerging countries in Asia, in the context of bilateral summits that will be held in the autumn, as well as the forthcoming G20 summit in Seoul, in November. The European Council may adopt conclusions setting guidelines for future work in this field.

The President of the European Council will report on progress achieved in the Task Force on the strengthening of economic governance, set up at the request of the European Council in March.

European Council meetings are chaired by Herman Van Rompuy, President of the European Council.

Chile - Commemoration of the Bicentenary of the Independence

(18/09/2010 to 18/09/2010)

The Bicentennial of Chile will take place on 18 September 2010. Its celebration commemorating the 200th anniversary of the commencement of the independence of Chile, began with the First National Governing Board on 18 September 1810, that after almost eight years, would transform Chile into a free and independent country. The celebration is for various activities and plans that have been preparing for years.

Afghanistan - Parliamentary and Local elections

(18/09/2010 to 18/09/2010)

The next election of the members of the Wolesi Jirga is due on September 18, 2010.

Reflecting to the disputed previous presidential election, in December 2009, representatives of donor nations expressed worries and suggested that the polls should be postponed. Last January, the election was posponed from May to September.

On 23 June 2010, the full list of candidates was announced; 2,577 candidates filed to run, 405 of them women

Sweden - General Elections

(19/09/2010 to 19/09/2010)

Elections in the Kingdom of Sweden are held every four years, and determine the makeup of the legislative bodies on the three levels of administrative division in the country. At the highest level, these elections determine the allocation of seats in the Riksdag, the national legislative body of Sweden. Elections to the 21 county councils (landsting) and 290 municipal assemblies (kommunfullmäktige) are held concurrently with the legislative elections on the third Sunday of September, and use roughly the same electoral system.

Guinea - Presidential Election

(19/09/2010 to 19/09/2010)

A presidential election was held in Guinea on 27 June, with a second round to be held on 14 August 2010 (delayed from 18 July 2010). This election is Guinea's first general multi-party presidential election since independence from France. It followed months of tension and unrest after a coup and an attempted assassination of the junta leader.

The President is elected by absolute majority vote through a two-round system to serve a 5-year term.
The Prime Minister is appointed by the President.
In the People's National Assembly (Assemblée Nationale Populaire), 38 members are elected by plurality vote in single-member constituencies to serve 5-year terms and 76 members are elected through a closed-list proportional representation system to serve 5-year terms.

Candidates:

Alpha CONDE
Party: Rally of the Guinean People / Rassemblement du Peuple Guinéen (RPG)

Cellou Dalein DIALLO
Party: Union of Democratic Forces of Guinea / Union des forces democratiques de Guinee (UFDG)

Population and number of registered voters:
Population: 10,324,025 (July 2010 est.)
Registered Voters: 4,200,000 (May 2010 Approx.)

UN - Millennium Development Goals Summit

(20/09/2010 to 22/09/2010) New York, United States

With only five years left until the 2015 deadline to achieve the Millennium Development Goals, UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has called on world leaders to attend a summit in New York on 20-22 September 2010 to boost progress towards the MDGs.

UN - International Day of Peace

(21/09/2010 to 21/09/2010) Worldwide

The International Day of Peace was established by the United Nations General Assembly in 1981 for “commemorating and strengthening the ideals of peace within and among all nations and people”.

Twenty years later, the General Assembly set 21 September as the date to observe the occasion annually as a “day of global ceasefire and non-violence… through education and public awareness and to cooperate in the establishment of a global ceasefire”.

This year, as we commemorate the 60th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, as well as the 60th anniversary of UN peacekeeping, the Day offers an opportunity to spotlight the crucial relationship between peace and human rights, which are increasingly recognized as inseparable. In the aftermath of World War II, world leaders acknowledged that “disregard and contempt for human rights have resulted in barbarous acts” and have prevented the “advent of a world in which human beings shall enjoy…freedom from fear and want”.

Today, we are still struggling to achieve this vision. Too many conflicts, from wars in Iraq and Afghanistan to conflicts in the Occupied Palestinian Territory and Darfur, Somalia and the Democratic Republic of the Congo, cause unnecessary loss of life and have a devastating impact on the structures that maintain societies, such as education, health and justice systems and the maintenance of law and order.

Venezuela - Parliamentary Elections

(26/09/2010 to 26/09/2010)

The next parliamentary election in Venezuela will take place on 26 September 2010 to elect the 167 deputies to the National Assembly.

The ruling United Socialist Party of Venezuela set a congress of 772 members representing the 759 country's municipalities. These members were elected by the militants of the party in an election held on 15 November 2009. At this congress, beginning on 21 November 2009 and ending in March 2010, members will debate each weekend over the new standards of the party in which are included voting and selection method for the upcoming parliamentary elections. Primary elections are expected for the first half of 2010.

Meanwhile the opposition parties are planning to create the Mesa de la Unidad Democrática (United Democratic Table) a coalition that will include all of the opposition parties which might select unique candidates for the upcoming elections.

EU - South Africa Summit

(28/09/2010 to 28/09/2010) Brussels, Belgium

A strong relationship has evolved between the European Union and South Africa since the birth of South African democracy in 1994. This relationship is underpinned by the Trade, Development and Cooperation Agreement (TDCA) signed in 1999, which provides the legal basis for close relations between the EU and South Africa on trade, development, economic cooperation and political dialogue.

The significance of South Africa for the EU was consolidated with the establishment of a Strategic Partnership in 2007. The Strategic Partnership has two strands: enhanced political dialogue and cooperation on regional, African and world issues, and stronger cooperation in a number of economic, social and other areas.

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