The International Coalition of Tourism Partners (ICTP) President, Geoffrey Lipman, shared his thoughts about the passing of Shimon Peres with eTurboNews (eTN).
Left to Right: Geoffrey Lipman & Shimon Peres
Shimon Peres was a shining example of the best of humanity – a brilliant caring sharing visionary in the mold of Nelson Mandela; a man who sought peace with security and decency out of the complex cauldron of the Middle East conflict. The world will miss his simple smiling optimism.
I had the privilege of meeting with him on several occasions over the past 20 years – including co-hosting a dinner for him and Yasser Arafat at the World Economic Forum when I was President of the World Travel & Tourism Council (WTTC) in the late 90s. Subsequently, I visited Ramallah with him and a small delegation including Nobel Laureates to hold talks with the leaders of an emerging Palestine, in a school classroom. That night he spoke before a thousand people in Tel Aviv about the inevitability of peace and a fair two-State solution.
He believed in Travel & Tourism as an agent of peace and human development – he once told me “God has given us the perfect destination in this region… now we must develop and manage it wisely together.”
He was a lovely decent man, and we should follow his vision.
Rest in Peace.
– Geoffrey Lipman
President, ICTP Founder, SUN
