Dayton Peace Prize honors former local congressman today

DAYTON — A big honor today for a Dayton native ambassador Tony Hall. The Dayton peace accords 25th-anniversary committee has awarded him this year’s Dayton Peace Prize.

25 years ago today, The Bosnian War finally ended when warring parties signed The Dayton Accords at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base. Tony Hall, then a Dayton congressman, was instrumental in bringing the accords here which was a neutral and secure site.

The negotiations were conducted by the U.S. Department of State and hosted by Wright Patterson Air Force Base from October 31st until the initialing of the accords on November 21st, ending hostilities that had ravaged the Bosnian region with the loss of an estimated 100,000 lives.

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“We will always be a place where there was horrific war in Bosnia, where it ended not by the destruction of weapons, but by the power of diplomacy. And when Secretary of State Warren Christopher signed the treaty said ‘People will look back on Dayton and say this is where parties chose peace over war, dialogue over destruction, and reason over revenge,” Hall said.

Hall becomes the sixth recipient of the Dayton Peace Prize and said h’s truly honored. Previous recipients include Bishop Desmond Tutu and Ambassador Richard Holbrooke.

The Dayton Peace Prize was established in 1999 to recognize people who, through individual or organizational actions and deeds, impact humanity in a positive way by advocating for peace, health, and other humanitarian causes.

Cox Media Group