The Global Appeal
Yohei Sasakawa, Chairman of The Nippon Foundation, has in recent years devoted a large amount of time and effort to promoting the human rights of people who are affected by leprosy. One facet of his effort has been the annual delivery of a Global Appeal to End Stigma and Discrimination against Persons Affected by Leprosy. This appeal seeks to raise public awareness through the media while receiving the support of influential partners from various fields – including world leaders, Nobel Peace Prize laureates, religious leaders, the World Medical Association, the International Council of Nurses, and the Inter-Parliamentary Union – to build solidarity and ensure that its message reaches far and wide.
Overview
As one of his many activities on behalf of people around the world who have been affected by leprosy, Yohei Sasakawa has since 2006 led Global Appeals to End Stigma and Discrimination against Persons Affected by Leprosy.
The Appeals, which have all been held on or near World Leprosy Day, have each been made together with different groups of people, but have all had the same basic objective: the restoration of the dignity and human rights of people affected by leprosy. Affected people include all whose lives have been disrupted by the terrible stigma that leprosy engenders, including the family and relatives of those who have actually fought the disease. Individuals have been cast out of society, families have been torn apart, and those who have been cured find that social attitudes continue to wall them out, even today. In today’s world, where leprosy is easily curable, the social attitudes that give rise to these human rights violations are insupportable. Through these Global Appeals, Mr. Sasakawa hopes to bring this surprisingly widespread and tenacious problem to the world’s attention.
In 2006, Mr. Sasakawa led a group of world leaders and Nobel Peace Prize laureates in announcing the first Global Appeal from New Delhi, India.
More information about the signatories and the messages of the annual Global Appeal is available from the following links. Since 2022, the Sasakawa Health Foundation has hosted the Global Appeal.
For more information, please visit the Global Appeal (external site)
