September 1999
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Issue 69 September 1999 |
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Many to Many Issue 69 September 1999
I. The APEC Summit, New Zealand 1999 On 12-13 September the eyes of the world will be focused on New Zealand as never before. This world leaders' meeting of APEC (standing for Asia-Pacific Economic Co-operation) will not only be historic and crucial for New Zealand; it will be defining and decisive for the future of the global economy. The logistics for the occasion are mind-boggling. According to a briefing given in Auckland earlier in the year, apart from the 4000 officials who will be gathering in Auckland, APEC is to attract 2000 to 3000 journalists. President Clinton will be bringing up to eight aircraft, which will carry his 1200 officials and media along with his motor vehicles and helicopters. No such statistics are readily available for the leaders of China, Russia and Japan, who will be coming each with their own entourage. President Jiang Zemin recently confirmed his attendance and has announced his intention to deliver an address. The occasion will provide the first opportunity for the presidents of the USA and China to mend fences since the hapless bombing of a Chinese Embassy during the Nato-Serbian conflict. What does APEC imply? APEC is officially defined as a grouping of 21 regional economics (not nations) set up to "improve the stability, security and prosperity of its peoples." Its members consist of Australia, Brunei, Canada, Chile, the People's Republic of China, Hong Kong (China), Indonesia, Japan, the Republic of Korea, Malaysia, Mexico, New Zealand, Papua New Guinea, Peru, the Philippines, Russia, Singapore, Taiwan (China), Thailand, U.S.A. and Vietnam. It is unique in being the only world forum in which "the three Chinas" are all represented. APEC's stated objective is unrestricted free trade between its members, by 2010 for the developed economics and 2020 for the developing ones. Probably its most serious public relations lapse was a statement made in July 1995 by Joan Spero, US Under-Secretary for Economics, Business and Agricultural Affairs: "APEC is not for governments. Through APEC, we aim to get governments out of the way, opening the way for business to do business." This statement was echoed by New Zealand's Trade Minister Lockwood Smith in February 1999: "our aim", he said, "is... to help make business more prosperous". It is precisely this attitude that led to the collapse of the Multilateral Agreement on Investment (MAI), arousing on a scale and to an extent without parallel hitherto, the democratic spirit of the world's peoples. In fact an increasing number of NGOs has not without reason come to regard APEC's economic model as serving the interests of international capital and local elites while deepening injustice and inequality. The Kyoto Declaration It might well be questioned whether APEC is broad enough in its scope and philosophy to deliver the real needs of humanity at this turn of the 20th century. The Kyoto Declaration of around 90 NGOs and people's organisations in 1995 rejected APEC's free market paradigm as negating "the development and democratic aspiration of the people. Economic growth and promotion of trade are not ends in themselves. Genuine development must be centred on the needs of the people and nature, and deliver real social and economic justice. The form of indiscriminate, unregulated economic growth and trade which APEC advocates delivers the opposite of this." In a recent Papal Bull, the Pope with characteristic simplicity calls upon "wealthy nations and the private sector to take responsibility for an economic model which serves everyone." It needs to be realised that by speaking of economics and not of governments, or countries APEC feels justified in sidelining if not wholly disregarding its impact for indigenous peoples, human rights, employment and the environment and it sees no need to debate the deficiencies of the free market model, but simply to stress and reiterate its supposed benefits for the "economics" it aspires to serve. Security The problem for security will be formidable. other meetings, both official and non-governmental, will simultaneously be taking place in a number of New Zealand cities. After the relative (some would say total) failure of last year Is APEC meeting held in Kuala Lumpur, public opinion among NGOs and individual citizens has been progressively mounting in opposition to the claim by APEC protagonists that no viable alternative exists to a market-driven free trade global economy. $45 million has been allocated for the preparing and hosting of this summit meeting. However, the impact on the public of official attempts to promote and advocate its benefits until now seems imperceptible, though this relative lack of interest may well change once the circus begins. Then, the voice of opposition may not be as easy to disregard or sideline as at previous APEC gatherings. As the host country, New Zealand will be expected to be exemplary in showing how, since its commitment to APEC in 1989, its own economy and the general state of New Zealand society has shown substantial improvement. An unregulated free market economy does not sit well with Japan and some less developed economics, which have their eyes set at the very least on a much less extreme form of economic co-operation. Alternative meetings to APEC Among the alternative meetings planned to take place around the time of the Leaders' Meeting in Auckland is one at which the guest speaker will be Saul Landau, a U.S. citizen well-known for his work in Native-American and South American cultures. He is also noted for his work in science, technology and as a fighter for human rights. The APEC Monitoring Group is foremost among those challenging the claim that a free trade global economy is the only viable way ahead and it plans to hold a meeting in Auckland immediately prior to the Summit Conference. Whether or not the global free market paradigm will withstand the test of the challenge that awaits it this September and again at the World Trade conference in November remains an open question. But the hurdles confronting both APEC and WTO are not to be underestimated. A.B. II. LISTEN, LEARN, LIVE Listen, Learn and Live is the slogan for this year's World AIDS Campaign. It is hoped that this campaign, culminating on World AIDS Day, 1 December, will, quoting UNAIDS Executive Director, Dr Peter Piot: "encourage communities around the world to engage in open communication and challenge harmful attitudes and societal ills in order to make the world safer for our children and young people." However, according to a recent UNAIDS report, the international financial support for the worldwide fight against AIDS is being vastly out paced by the epidemic: AIDS is expanding three times faster than the funding to control it. 47 million people are today infected with the virus, with nearly 6 million new infections annually. Dr Piot stresses the importance of sufficient funding for the fight against AIDS and the UNAIDS report gives several examples which highlight the urgency of this need. In 1996, for instance, Uganda reported having spent $37 million in a determined national effort to combat this disease and succeeded in turning the tide of the epidemic, while in Nigeria, who spent less than $4 million in 1996, the epidemic is increasing in an alarming rate. Dr Piot points out that it is the young people that are in the line of fire of this virus. Worldwide, over half of all infections occur in people at the age of 24 or under. UNAIDS believes there are many reasons for young people being so exposed to this deadly infection: abuse, poverty, ignorance, drugs, lack of education about healthy sexuality and the absence of the "listening ear" of a trusted adult are some of the reasons mentioned. The supporters of the World AIDS Campaign include the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies, the International Save the Children Alliance, MTV International and the World Organisation of the Scout Movement. UNAIDS appeals to all NGOs and community based groups to get involved in the World Aids Campaign. "Working for and with people under 25 is perhaps the best hope we have today of bringing this deadly epidemic under control", says its Executive Director, Peter Piot. III. Building Partnerships In this changing world of ours, many new buzz words are being coined and old well-defined concepts given new meaning. One such concept being revived and brushed up is "partnership" – now mostly appearing in its plural form. Governments, multinationals, banks, institutions, media, NGOs, people within civil society – all are seeking to establish new partnerships. The future of the entire United Nations system will depend on its ability to forge partnerships with an emerging global community. But new partnerships are not automatically beneficial to all parties; they can, if entered upon without mutual respect and understanding, prove to become unhealthy alliances with little if any usefulness to the world at large. The Secretary General of a debt-ridden United Nations, Kofi Annan, welcomes the financial support from civil society and the recent substantial donations from the "private sector", helping the UN to fulfil its aims and obligations. At the last World Economic Forum held in Switzerland, Kofi Annan told the corporate leaders present that "in today's world we depend on each other. The business of the United Nations involves the businesses of the world." However, Carol Bellamy, the Executive Director of the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) sees a real need for caution and clarity when it comes to establishing partnerships. Speaking at the Harvard University's International Development Conference, April this year, Ms Bellamy stressed the point that "it is dangerous to assume that the goals of the private sector are somehow synonymous with those of the UN, because they most emphatically are not. " She goes on to explain that while the UN is driven by a set of principles, outlined in the UN Charter, businesses are driven by profit, and rightly so. Taking into account that both the United Nations and the private sector will each pursue their own raison d'etre, she hopes that they can – wherever possible – work together as partners while "carefully and constantly" appraising the relationship. Good partnerships between the UN and responsible companies from the private sector have a major role to play in development work worldwide, particularly in poor countries, and in promoting human rights. Today, the global economy is worth nearly $30 trillion, yet 1.5 billion people (one quarter of the world population) are living in unacceptable conditions. These figures are the worst on record, yet aid continues to decline. "ODA (official development assistance) is in a state of virtual free-fall" the UNICEF Executive Director told the corporate leaders attending the Conference, adding "and this is a scandal. " In this connection Ms Bellamy stressed the importance of partnerships with governments, pointing to the increasing role of the private sector in developing countries as the official development assistance is dwindling. Private capital flow now represents almost 80% of all resources that go to developing countries each year. "But private capital seldom gravitates to the very neediest countries", she said, and only rarely does private capital support the development of such essential services as primary health care or basic education. Private capital will not, insists Ms Bellamy, "find its way to countries that lack an adequate social and economic infrastructure – which is precisely what multilateral aid is aimed at helping poor countries to build." More money from the private sector will not remedy this situation. Governments must not be allowed to shirk their responsibility in this regard by indicating that it is up to the private sector and the market to come up with the money for development assistance. Governments need to fulfil their part of the partnerships they have forged with the private sector, and rich countries should live up to their obligation to poorer countries. Governments must, for practical, moral and legal reasons, be held to their commitments, says Ms Bellamy. Ms Bellamy concluded her stirring and thought-provoking address by pointing to the generally held belief that "globalisation is an ineluctable process, as irresistible and beyond human control as the tides". It is in fact, she said, "the product of deliberate, day-to-day policy choices" – relationships being built, and shaping the future on which we all depend. Source: Go Between 75, June-July 1999. Contact: UNICEF, 3 UN Plaza, New York, NY 10017, U.S.A., fax: +1-212/887 7465. IV. UNIVERSIDAD PARA LA PAZ (University for Peace) In March this year the new Council of the University for Peace, Costa Pica, had its first meeting which took place at UNESCO Headquarters in Paris. The members of this Council, appointed by the UN Secretary-General, Kofi Annan, in consultation with UNESCO Director-General, Federico Mayor, agreed on a series of measures designed to revitalise and strengthen the University for Peace and to build a stronger, much expanded programme through which the University could fulfil its mission. The Charter of the University for Peace, together with the international Agreement for its establishment, was adopted by the 35th General Assembly on 5 Dec 1980. The Council of the University for Peace (the governing body of the university) was subsequently inaugurated 6 March 1982, and elected as its first president the man behind the idea, Mr Rodrigo Carazo, former President of Costa Rica. It was his vision that the university would "provide humanity with an international institution of higher education for peace and with aims of promoting among all human beings a spirit of understanding, lessen obstacles and threats to world peace and progress, in keeping with the noble aspirations proclaimed in the Charter of the United Nations." Campus The campus of the University for Peace is nestled in the beautiful area of the El Rodeo farm, where the foothills of the last primary humid forest of the Central Valley of Costa Rica are located, covering 2500 hectares with over 250 kinds of trees and some 50 animal species. The campus also contains secondary forest and recreation area with four lakes and a large sculptural monument built in memory of all those men and women who have struggled for the universal ideal of peace. The campus has facilities to accommodate the normal activities of the institution, as well as for seminars and conventions. There are also cabins to house students, professors, researchers and tourists interested in peace and who share a love of nature. Education Programmes Two of the university's most important master's degree programmes are: "International Relations and Cooperation" and "Ecology and Peace". Among other master's degree programmes are: Human Resources, Peaceful Settlement of Disputes, and Human Rights. The University also offers short courses and workshops on such topics as eco-tourism, enhancing the value of forests through non-timber products and services, conflict resolution in natural resources management. The University has since 1994 offered a programme called "Culture of Peace and Democracy in Central America". This initiative is developed as a comprehensive approach in all six countries of the region integrating such diverse concepts as ecology, votes education, mass media campaigns and non-violent conflict resolution. The programme hopes to contribute to the development of a culture of peace in the area, incorporating patterns of dialogue, respect, tolerance and social responsibility. Radio for Peace International The studios and transmitters of this Radio are located on the University campus. Describing itself as a "global community radio" it is non-commercial and non-profit and has no political or geographic boundaries. The radio broadcasts to the world 24 hours a day, seven days a week and carries over 40 programmes, produced at the station and by individuals and organisations around the world. Broadcasts are primarily in English and Spanish, with weekly programmes in French and German. In the future programmes in other languages might be added. Although the University for Peace was established upon the agreement of the UN General Assembly to the Proposal made by Costa Rica, only 35 member states-have so far ratified the University. In order to function in accordance with the guidelines specified in its Charter and the International Agreement which came into force April 1982, the University for Peace will need active cooperation and support from the world community which it seeks to serve. More information: University for Peace, P.O. Box 138-1250, Ciudad Colon, Costa Rica, C.A. Fax: (506)249-1929, E-mail: upazcult@sol.racsa.co.cr V. HOW PEACE CAN BE PROFITABLE The following is the text of a radio broadcast recently given in Australia by Dr Keith Suter, consultant for Social Policy: There are many explanations for the NATO operation in Kosovo. But it is wrong to claim that the US mounted the campaign to boost the American economy. There is more money to be made from peace than from war. Business Week magazine recently had an article on the mathematics of shutting down US military installations. This is a very good reply to the argument that we need a war to keep people employed. Only a decade ago, many Americans still believed a person could get a job for life working at one of the government's many regional military bases scattered across the US. Indeed, so widely were they scattered, that it was assumed the bases would never close. As soon as a base looked like it was going to close, so the local community would be up in arms to the local politicians (who come up for election every two years in the lower House) and so force the government to change its mind. President Eisenhower in 1961, in his Farewell Address to Congress, warned his fellow Americans about the way in which too much money was going into the politically influential "military-industrial" complex. But the end of the Cold War about a decade ago meant that it was much more difficult for the military-industrial complex to justify its existence. Americans wanted a reduction in military expenditure. The uniformed defence force has been reduced by about a third in the past decade: from 2.2 million people down to 1.5 million. Presidential hopefuls in the Republican party, such as Governor George Bush of Texas, are opposing the shut down. They are hiring consultants to argue the economic case for retaining local bases. But Business Week magazine shows that in fact the arguments are with those people wanting to close down the bases. There is life after closure. When a military base closes down, few workers lose their jobs. Many more new civilian jobs are created. The magazine contains case studies about how localities have done better after the closure. One explanation for this welcome news is that economists tend to over-state the impact of a military pull-out. For example, defence personnel are able to buy many goods at their own stores on the base and so avoid the local higher civilian costs. Therefore, when the base closes, there is far less economic impact because the military personnel were really not such an important asset to the local economy. Second, the Pentagon is getting better at involving the local community in preparing for the closure of bases and looking for alternative economic opportunities. The US is, of course, traditionally against centralised planning. But the one area in which there has always been a high degree of planning is in the Pentagon. After all, planning is necessary when you are spending more money in a year than most countries earn during that same period. The New Zealand economy, for example, is small compared with the Pentagon's budget. Therefore, peace can be profitable. Plenty of towns are thriving in the wake of military base closures. Dr. Keith Suter, GPO Box 4878, Sydney, NSW, Australia 2001. website: http://www.wesleymission.org.au/suter/28may99.htm VI. THE FIRST ARAB HUMAN RIGHTS CONFERENCE Casablanca, Morocco, 23-25 April 1999 This conference, organised by the Cairo Institute for Human Rights Studies and the Moroccan Organisation for Human Rights, was the first of its kind. The conference's main aim was to examine the human rights situation in the Arab world and help clarify the tasks and responsibilities which lie ahead of the Arab Human Rights Movement. Participants came from 15 Arab countries, with representatives from major international NGOs and funding agencies attending as observers. This important conference resulted in the formulation and adoption of a document called the Casablanca Declaration of the Arab Human Rights movement. This document outlines a set of principal ethical standards and human rights perspectives which will comprise a framework for the Arab Human Rights Movement in the future. The Declaration speaks of the right to self-determination and condemns all acts of oppression, despotism and war committed against minorities in the Arab world, especially genocide, displacement and enslavement. In this context the Declaration expresses its support for the right to self-determination of the Palestinian people, the Kurdish people and the citizens of South Sudan. The Declaration furthermore: * calls for substantial reforms in the UN "to make it more representative of the regions and peoples of the world"; * calls upon the UN Security Council to review the international sanctions system and its application methods; * calls for the immediate and unconditional end to economic sanctions on Iraq, saying they further aggravated the human rights situation there; * draws attention to "the grave consequences of using the principles of human rights for the realisation of specific foreign policy objectives of some countries, " contending that "the Arab world is still suffering from the opportunistic, political and propagandist use of human rights by some major powers as evidenced by the double-standards employed by such powers"; * rejects the "manipulation by some Arab governments of patriotic sentiments and the principle of sovereignty so as to avoid complying with international human rights standards"; and * rejects the "attempt to use civilisational or religious specificity to contest the universality of human rights." Among the responsibilities of the Arab Human Rights Movement specified in the Declaration are: *promoting democracy; *setting common priorities for advocacy and protection; *realising economic and social rights, including citizens' right to participation, "the backbone of the application of the right to development"; *entrenching the values of human rights in Arab and Islamic culture; *recognising women's rights as an integral part of human rights; *confronting the violations of the rights of the child in the Arab world, especially those emanating from economic sanctions, armed conflict and poverty; *disseminating human rights education and culture; *affirming the need for international criminal justice as manifested by supporting the ratification of the Convention on the International Criminal Criminal Court; *protecting human rights defenders and their rights; and *increasing bilateral and collective cooperation between Arab human rights NGOs Source: Go Between 75, June-July 1999; Contact: Cairo Institute for Human Rights Studies, POB 117, Maglis el Shaab, Cairo, Egypt. Fax: +202/355 4200; e-mail cihrs@idsc-gov.eg VII. UNGA-Link UK This UK Network for Civil Society Link with the UN General Assembly (UNGA-Link UK) was established in 1998 in response to para 213 of the 1997 Report by UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan, entitled "Renewing the United Nations: A Programme of Reform", as shapers of policy be it in peace and security matters, in development or in humanitarian affairs." The Secretary-General believes that such people-participation will greatly assist the integration of human rights within these areas. The term "civil society" is used by the UN as including non-governmental organisations (NGOs), other civil society organisations (CSOs) such as trade unions and business and professional associations; religious, academic and indigenous entities; local administrations; and the media. Individual people are also considered members of civil society through participation in voluntary non-state, non-party-political groups. In his Report, Kofi Annan proposes that a Millennium People's Assembly (now called Peoples Millennium Forum) takes place in the year 2000 in which civil society can voice its concerns and offer its proposals for how we and the UN can prepare for meeting the major challenges of the 21st century. UNGA-Link UK describes its purpose as: (1) supporting the UN's Millennium Assembly and companion Non-governmental Forum, and promoting the proposal for an annual civil society assembly or forum linked to the UN General Assembly; (2) providing shared representation for its members in any such General Assembly on body, at other UN and NGO bodies and conferences, and at UN venues; (3) assisting in broadening the General Assembly's links with civil society in Britain; (4) developing a national network model for other countries. UNGA-Link UK Chair, Dr Jeffrey Segall (co-founder of CAMDUN) recently attended the "Regional Hearing on the Millennium Assembly" organised by the Economic Commission for Europe, which took place in Palais des Nations in Geneva (7-8 July, 1999) and has kindly sent us a copy of his contribution from the floor at the session on "Strengthening the United Nations": "I wish to address the question of effective working relations and cooperation between the UN and civil society. The Secretary-General's report "Arrangements and practices for the interaction of non-governmental organisations in all activities of the United Nations system" (A/53/170) states that "questions have arisen with regard to the participation of NGOs in UN activities linked both to the financial and legal constraints within which the Organisation operates and to the fast-growing number and diversity of NGOs engaged in collaboration with the UN". As the UN has these problems in dealing with its existing NGO arrangements, there is no prospect that it could provide a working structure for cooperation with the wider, mainly national, civil society. Let me give a brief resume of the background to this issue. In 1983, in this building at a WFUNA symposium, I presented a proposal, on behalf of the Medical Association for Prevention of War, for a UN Second Assembly to represent national civil societies; from 1985 to 1989, the International Network for a UN Second Assembly proposed that this Assembly should be a subsidiary organ of the General Assembly under Article 22 of the Charter, and it promoted the proposal to the Ambassadors to the UN of all the Member States; in 1995, Mr Perez de Cuellar's World Commission on Culture and Development recommended that "a two-chamber General Assembly could be considered, one with government representatives as at present, and the other representing national civil society organisations"; in the same year, the Commission on Global Governance proposed "an annual Forum of Civil Society to consist of representatives of organisations accredited to the General Assembly as Civil Society Organisations"; in 1996, this proposal was included in the provisional agenda of the General Assembly Working Group on the Strengthening of the United Nations System; but in 1997, a Subgroup on Non-governmental Organisations of this Working Group failed to consider the proposal because "after holding 10 formal sessions, it had not been able to achieve a consensus on the question of its mandate". At the 1996 DPI/NGO Conference, then Secretary-General Dr Boutros Boutros-Ghali referred to an annual Civil Society Forum as "a bold and imaginative proposal", and suggested that NGOs (and implicitly other CSOs) could link with the General Assembly by creating representing Associations. This suggestion has been adopted in Britain where we have established the UNGA-Link UK network. As a way forward, UNGA-Link networks could be established in other countries and a Union of National Civil Society Networks (UNCNET) could then be formed. A suitable international institute could be sought to act as facilitator and regulator in a formal UNCNET partnership with the UN. The UNCNET annual World Civil Society Forum (or Assembly) could be itinerant, and could be held at UN or non-UN venues; it could elect representatives for accreditation to the General Assembly and other UN bodies. This way forward would avoid causing tension with CONGO and DPI/NGO structures, political difficulties for some States, and technical problems for the UN Secretariat. I hope that the Secretary-General will consider convening an informal working group to examine this way forward." Contact: UNGA-Link UK, 308 Cricklewood Lane, London NW2 2PX. UK, Tel/Fax: 0181-455 5005. VIII. A New Zealand Initiative The New Zealand Forum for UN Renewal was established under the auspices of the United Nations Association of New Zealand and launched March 1997 in the Legislative Chambers, Parliament Buildings, Wellington. The Forum took its inspiration from the Report of The Commission on Global Governance (1995), which states that any reform of the United Nations will have to start as a process of change, beginning in the national behaviour of the UN states. Therefore the main aim of the Forum is to "develop a close working relationship between central government, local government and civil society with a view to this concept also being reflected within a reformed United Nations." The Forum is participating in the worldwide preparations for the Peoples Millennium Forum, due to take place prior to the UN Millennium General Assembly (September 2000), by distributing, as widely as resources permit, a simple questionnaire which asks people within New Zealand what they believe are the "major challenges and needs" within: a) the local community b) New Zealand c) future generations and then asks for suggestions for "possible solutions": a) locally b) globally c) for future generations These questionnaires will be forwarded to the Planning Consultation Council of the Peoples Millennium Forum as a contribution from people within New Zealand towards the document which will be prepared by the Planning Consultative Council and subsequently presented to the UN Millennium General Assembly. Some local governments within NZ have shown interest in this questionnaire because of the link it makes between challenges/needs of the local, national and future community, with the follow-up questions regarding "possible solutions". And the possibility for arranging twice-yearly local "citizens" meetings (chaired by the Mayor) is currently being discussed by some local councils. These preparatory meetings are being prepared by the NZ Forum for UN Renewal through UNANZ branches, in cooperation with the local city or District Councils. Whatever may be the eventual outcome, it is hoped that these meetings will contribute to the strengthening of local democracy and greater understanding of the challenges, the needs and the responsibilities we have in common with people from throughout the world. IX. TOWARDS A CULTURE OF PEACE In a world held to ransom by conflicts, corruption, human deprivation and lack of direction, perhaps UNESCO's clarion call for building a culture of peace is well timed? This mission, described as a "trans-disciplinary project", will be aiming at transforming its ideas and ideals into public policies and private action and involving people throughout the world. Solutions to all that threatens peace, such as lack of respect for human rights, ignorance and poverty, must cane from within society itself, says UNESCO; with a global movement, intent on building a culture of peace, the guidelines laid down in the preamble of the UN Charter of practising tolerance and living together in peace with one another as good neighbours, may thus finally come to be applied. Education in its widest sense is seen as one of the most essential and basic methods for building understanding and peace between nations and peoples, and for finding ways and means of incorporating human rights in all human affairs. However, the Culture of Peace must be built on a firm foundation of active, practical and inclusive goodwill and willingness to change the present sad state of world affairs, littered with broken promises, good intentions and unfulfilled agreements. Poverty, illiteracy, infant mortality, hunger, inhumaneness and brutality between human beings are among the grave issues unresolved. For instance, although one of the commitments made at the 1995 World Summit for Social Development (the so called Copenhagen Summit), was the eradication of poverty, more than 2 billion people today have little or no access to food, basic services or adequate shelter; 12 million children die each year of curable diseases or malnutrition before the age of five – all this while 1% of the world's income (almost US$30 trillion) could eliminate the worst aspects of poverty throughout the world. And in spite of the pledges made at the 1990 World Conference on Education for All, 130 million school-aged children in developing countries today are growing up without access to basic education. Janes Gustave Speth (United Nations Development Programme Administrator), assessing the Copenhagen Summit five years after it took place, says that it was "the golden age of global promise, but it remained the dark age of missed opportunities, of inaction and, indeed, of indifference to the plight of the poor." He urges that the General Assembly and the Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) "must truly become the fora where issues of development, globalisation and its management, and poverty and unemployment are discussed by governments and organisations of civil society." It is this trend towards increasing willingness of the United Nations and governments to listen to and cooperate with the private sector, members of civil society and non-governmental organisations (NGOs) that gives one hope that a "global movement" can now come together for the building of a culture of peace. As a sign of its cooperative spirit, the United Nations has extended the number of NGOs with consultative status to ECOSOC to more than 1350 (from 41 in 1948) and there are now more than 1550 NGOs associated with the UN Department of Public Information. However, the world will need an economy "with heart" upon which a culture of peace can be founded. At a recent panel discussion on economy and development, Richard Jolly (responsible for UNDP's Human Development Report) said that if global economy is organised only on the basis of economics and efficiency, "then basic social goals will be sacrificed again and again." Economics must join all the other sectors of the world community in putting our hearts, souls and skills into building a Culture of Peace. The year 2000 will be proclaimed the International Year for the Culture of Peace followed, in 2001, by the International Year of Volunteers – a clarion call indeed for the entire world community. X. Commitment 2000 Commitment 2000 was written by all the living Nobel Peace Laureates and launched in Paris, March 1999 by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO). Among the laureates present were Mairead Corrigan Maguire (Northern Ireland), Rigoberta Menchu (Guatemla) and Adolfo Perez Esquivel (Argentina). It is hoped that the Commitment will help mobilise a global grassroots movement in favour of peace, solidarity and tolerance, and the goal is to gather 100 million signatures to be presented to the special UN Millennium Assembly. The Commitment 2000 and the movement are part of UNESCO's preparations for the International Year for the Culture of Peace proclaimed for year 2000 by the UN General Assembly. "The cause of peace today more than ever needs this movement to counter centuries of a culture of force and imposition," said Federico Mayor, Director-General of UNESCO. Through signing the Commitment 2000 each person makes a pledge to: *respect the life and dignity of every person; *practise active non-violence; *share time and material resources in a spirit of generosity to put an end to exclusion, injustice, and political and economic oppression; *defend freedom of expression and cultural diversity; *promote responsible consumer behaviour; and *contribute to community development with the full participation of women and respect for democratic principles. For more information contact: UNESCO, 7 place de Fontenoy, F-75700 Paris, France. Commitment 2000 can also be signed on the UNESCO website: www.unesco.org/manifesto2000 XI. Letter from Mary Lou Cook Santa Fe: A DEPARTMENT OF PEACE What unspeakable horror, cruelty and inhumanity are practised in this world. What immense sums of money are advanced toward arms, death and destruction. What unbelievable percentage of minds and attitudes are based on anger, fear and hostility. With sadness, we observe the condition of this utterly uncivilised human race. There is another way. For years I have advocated that a DEPARTMENT OF PEACE be established by every government in the United Nations, starting with us. Function of this agency is to teach mediation, diplomacy and conflict resolution. We must learn to appreciate each other's differences; as we are one human family, with a linked common destiny. The goal is to recognise and honour elements of respect, trust, kindness and justice. The method is to use our learnings in psychology, spirituality and science. Leaders need to reprioritise vast sums of money toward the basic goal of peace. A DEPARTMENT OF PEACE is as important as the Department of Defence and Department of Energy. This calls for a national revolution, a Boston Tea Party. It is a matter of survival, before we completely bomb one another to extinction. It is the 11th hour, with a simplistic solution that can work, calling on the hearts, souls and deep goodness of all. Together we pray for global healing and also become active on behalf of this proposal. with communities joining in support of positive change, with big money and lobbyists getting on board, and with all generations involved, especially youth and elders, miracles can happen. Peace is the way: in fact, the only way we can live together. Gandhi's words give inspiration. "You must be the change you wish to see in the world." Mary Lou Cook, 321 Calle Loma Norte, Santa Fe, NM 87501, USA Fax: 505/983 5828 XII. Establishing Stewardship Councils According to a recent Report by the UN Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO), "State of the World's Forests", forests are continuing to shrink at a rate of about 11.3 million hectares a year. It seems however that many countries are at long last waking up to the fact that this trend will have to be reversed. Environmental concerns have, says the report, "led to an emphasis on multiple-purpose management of forests, logging bans or reduced timber harvesting intensities, the adoption of operational guidelines and codes of practice for forest management, and greater reliance on forest, plantations as sources wood." At a ministerial meeting on Forestry, held in Rome, March 1999, a Declaration on forestry was adopted in which, among other things, the need for cross-sectoral approaches to forest management and for increased public awareness of the importance of forests were emphasised. One successful initiative for ensuring sustainable management of forests is the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC), which issues certificates for timber that meets the environmental, social and economic criteria of the FSC. Since its foundation in 1993, 15 million hectares of forest in 28 countries are now certified as being "well-managed" and friendlier to wildlife and forest people. With the cooperation of WWF, the Forest Stewardship Council hopes to reach its target of 200 million hectares of timber-producing forest by 2005. Although this endeavour to strike an agreeable balance between sustainability and profit has its critics, FSC has nevertheless served as inspiration for a similar initiative for sustainable harvesting of the world's fisheries. A Marine Stewardship Council was established in 1997 by WWF in cooperation with Unilever (which has 25% of the European and American frozen fish market) . The Marine Stewardship Council's aim is to promote fishing practices that are "responsible, environmentally appropriate, socially beneficial and economically viable, while maintaining the biodiversity, productivity and ecological processes of the marine environment." The Marine Stewardship Council (MSC) has attracted the support of a large number of organisations among which are Sainsbury's, Tesco and Safeway, the Sierra Club, Loch Fyne Oysters Ltd and the World Business Council for Sustainable Development. In UK there are now plans for creating a Land Stewardship Council to perform a similar role in agriculture. XIII. WORLD CIVIL SOCIETY CONFERENCE (WOCSOC): "Building Global Governance Partnerships" Montreal, Canada, 7-11 December 1999 Representatives of national and international networks from around the world will be gathering to assess, develop and celebrate UN/civil society partnerships. Plans are that civil society leaders will interact with key persons from the UN system, governments, business, academia and the media to propose changes and take action for new global governance partnerships and to create a wider support base for a stronger United Nations. The objectives, which will be reflected in a programme of plenaries and workshops throughout the conference, are: * to contribute to an effective and timely implementation of UN global conference and summit agreements by developing new action by civil society to oblige and assist governments to fulfil the promises and commitments made; * to develop concrete proposals for 2000 and beyond, including making a substantive contribution to the millennium Assembly and its preparatory process * to enhance and broaden cooperation among civil society actors by formulating practical proposals for increased cross-national, cross-cultural, cross-sectoral, gender-balanced cooperation to meet the needs of the 21st century; * to draw lessons through the sharing of strategies, plans, successes, failures, and new opportunities in working with the UN system on issues where civil society and the UN have a common and imperative agenda Contributions to the conference include: - a study conducted by the United Nations Association of Canada and the resulting book: Civil Society and the UN, due to be published late 1999, - The Study on Codes of Conduct for Partnership in Governance, edited by T. Kunugi and M. Schweitz under the auspices of the United Nations University. Contact: WOCSOC Secretariat, Forum International de Montreal (FIM), 380 St-Antoine Quest, Bureau 3200, Montreal, Quebec, Canada H2Y 3X7. Fax: +1-514/987 1567, e-mail: fim98@cam.org XIV. PRAYERS FOR A THOUSAND YEARS Just before this issue went to print, we received a book from a co-worker called "Prayers for a Thousand Years", edited by Elizabeth Roberts and Elias Amidon and written by "leaders and visionaries" from around the world. The editors collected hundreds of wishes, blessings, stories and challenges, almost all of which were written especially for this publication, to convey a message of hope for the new millennium. The following two items are from part 5: For the Children: The problem in my country is war and malnutrition. My parents and my brothers were killed in the war. I joined the forces when I was twelve because I was told I would have food and should take revenge on the death of my parents. Please don't be afraid of me. I am not a soldier anymore. I am just a child. And what I want to say is that people fight because they think they can take revenge. But there is no revenge. You kill and you kill, but it will never stop. There is no such thing as revenge. (Ishmael Beah, age 15, Sierra Leone) You may think I am a shadow, But inside I am a sun. (Damia Gates, grade 4, Allendale Elementary School, California) "Prayers for a Thousand Years" (360 pp. US$15) was published by HarperSanFrancisco, a Division of HarperCollins Publishers, 10 East 53rd St., New York, NY 10022, USA.
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Many to Many a quarterly publication issued by Operation Peace through Unity Anthony Brooke and Gita Brooke, co-founders Te Rangi, 4 Allison Street, Wanganui 5001, New Zealand phone/fax: +64-6-345-5714 ~ e-mail: larrym@clear.net.nz OPTU is an accredited NGO in association with the UN Dept of Public Information |
Many to Many under the aegis of Operation Peace Through Unity is a communicating link between 'we, the peoples' of all nations, races, creeds and ideologies offering in the spirit of the preamble of the United Nations Charter an instrument for the furthering of better relationships based on deepening mutual understanding and the aspiration to promote unity and cooperation beyond all differences. |
