“Terrorism has a face – and it is the face of its victims, whether one or in the thousands. Ultimately, our efforts to counter terrorism should be devoted to the restoration of the honour, memory, and dignity of all victims of terrorism, as well as to bringing the perpetrators to justice.” These words were pronounced by Assistant Secretary-General and Executive Director of the Counter-Terrorism Committee Executive Directorate (CTED) Mr. Jean-Paul Laborde on 2 May 2017 on the occasion of the unveiling at CTED of a plaque dedicated to the memory of victims and survivors of terrorism around the world.
The initiative is in line with Security Council resolution 2129 (2013), which expresses its “profound solidarity with the victims of terrorism and their families, and encourages CTED to take into account the important role that victims and survivor networks can play in countering terrorism”. The ceremony was attended by survivors of terrorism as well as the Deputy Permanent Representatives of Spain and of the United States of America to the United Nations, who joined CTED in observing a minute’s silence in memory of all victims of terrorism.
Whether represented in person or by others, the following associations participated in the ceremony:
419 Outreach, Oklahoma City
AFVT – Association fran?aise des victimes du terrorisme, France
Association Djazairouna de familles victimes terrorisme Islamiste, Algeria
AV11-M, Spain
CELTYV – Center for Legal Studies of Terrorism and its Victims, Argentina
Fundacion Colombian con Memoria, Colombia
NATAL, Israel
Omagh Support and Self Help, Northern Ireland
Springs of Hope Foundation, Northern Iraq
Strength to Strength, based in New York
Uganda 7-11 Survivors Network, Uganda
Victims of Terrorism Kenya, Kenya
The text of the plaque, which was placed at the entrance of the offices of CTED, reads as follows:
“In memory of the brave victims and survivors of terrorism around the world.”