The United Nations passed a resolution in 1981 declaring an International Day of Peace to coincide with opening of its General Assembly each year. In 2001, the United Nations General Assembly adopted a new resolution that declared 21 September of each year as the International Day of Peace.

The resolution: “Declares that the International Day of Peace shall henceforth be observed as a day of global ceasefire and non-violence, an invitation to all nations and people to honour a cessation of hostilities for the duration of the Day . . .

In this event, the “Peace Bell” is rang at UN Headquarters. The bell is cast from coins donated by children on all continents, and considered a symbol of global solidarity. It was given as a gift by Japan, and is referred to as “a reminder of the human cost of war.” The inscription on its side reads: “Long live absolute world peace.”