IS PEACE ACHIEVABLE?
WHAT IS THE FORMULA FOR PEACE?
In 1996, when I started my journey to peace, a major question on my mind was: "Is peace achievable?". Have any experts reported one way or another on this key issue? I asked this because it could affect my motivation, and others. A second important question was: "What is the formula for peace?" I wished to do something to help advance the cause of peace and hence I had to know where to start.
It is not easy for an average citizen to find the answers, the writings and opinions on peace are very diverse and complex. However I am very happy to report that the answer is positive. Much expert research has been done (referenced throughout this document). Peace is achievable.
Further, while there is no magic 'bullet' or formula, the intelligence exists in the world that we (the world) know what needs to be done. We currently have the knowledge, technology and infrastructure to achieve peace. The problem is motivation (and time). This I will explain.
The Experts Report on Peace - The Seville Statement on Violence (1986)
Based on rigorous scientific evidence, the Seville Statement refutes the myth that human beings are predisposed to violence through five key propositions. "It is scientifically incorrect to say:
That we have inherited a tendency to make war from our animal ancestors;
That war or any other violent behaviour is genetically programmed into our nature;
That in the course of human evolution there has been a selection for aggressive behaviour more than for other kinds of behaviour;
That human have a violent brain. How we act is shaped by how we have been conditioned and socialized. There is nothing in our neurophysiology that compels us to react violently;
That war is caused by instinct or any single motivation."
I am satisfied, particularly from all the evidence reported by UNESCO's Culture of Peace Program and also from extensive research of the large volume of resource material, that peace is achievable.
The Peace Formula
What, then, is the formula for peace? The following variables must be in place:
1. A credible governme nt(s) code of ethics, with a basis in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. In simple terms, of the things they think, say or do, government(s) must be able to be relied upon to be truthful, fair, build good will and better relationships, and strive for the benefit of all concerned. The same ethics should be expected of governments, corporations and other organizations as are expected of individuals. Do as you would have done to you. At the same time, a Universal Declaration of Human Responsibilities should also provide suitable guidance.
2. An international system of justice. Without justice there can be no peace. Every nation has instituted a criminal and civil court system to get the brawls off the street and into the courtroom, to be resolved in what should be perceived as a fair and reasonable manner. It is not hard to imagine that an international system of justice is necessary for crimes against humanity, world environment and other international matters. At the same time, there must be a reliable, and I should add proactive, Conflict and Dispute Resolution System for parties who are willing to voluntarily work together to a solution, to avoid the necessity of going to court and most importantly to avoid conflict. These are sensitive roles, reliant on moral suasion (among other things), so as not to usurp national jurisdictions.
3. A global sustainable economy. There must be a proper economy to provide reasonable employment and eradicate poverty and hunger. Nobel Pr ize winner Amartya Sen has shown us how systematic public action can eradicate the terrible and resilient problems of starvation and hunger in the world in which we live. However, the economy must also be in balance with this small planet's ecology. This is probably the most difficult challenge - all other elements of the peace formula are relatively straight forward. The Union of Concerned Scientists (amongst others) has issued a Warning to All of Humanity to change habits lest our planet Earth be irreversibly mutilated. "A great change in our stewardship of the earth and the life on it, is required, if vast human misery is to be avoided and our global home on this planet is not to be irretrievably mutilated." The Warning is signed by thousands of senior Scientists around the
world, among them more than 100 Nobel Laureates.. It will take only co-ordinate action at the world level to achieve this 'mission critical goal'. As "no man is an island", in this respect, no individual nation can remain disconnected from the rest of the world.
4. Universal access to competent education systems. This principle is basic and simple to understand. It is included in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights for good reason. Particularly, the education of women is key to both economic and peace developments. "The full participation and empowerment of women is essential to the development of a culture of peace.
It was the monopolization of warfare by men that led to the exclusion of women from power. But women's skills of exchange, co-operation and solidarity, as well as their experience of giving birth, bringing up the next generation and managing informal economies, are all essential to the evolution of a culture of peace ... Women, in all societies the transmitters of the history, customs and traditions of their people, are the key to the development of a culture of peace, which cannot be superimposed upon society, but must evolve from it." Further, "in the past education was designed to make people (men) strong, rich and intelligent, 'in order to dominate and progress at the expense of others'. Today, the very basis of the educational system must change. The principle of strength must be replaced by the principle of mutual help. Everyone must be educated for peace. All must be taught that it is essential to go beyond selfish behaviour and commit ourselves to the development of others, to justice and to establish amicable relations between human
beings." As Albert Einstein said "Peace cannot be kept by force. It can only be achieved by understanding."
5. A compassionate health and welfare system. This principle is also basic and simple to understand. It is also included in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. Within a framework of universal human rights and responsibilities, the more privileged have a
humanitarian responsibility to help the under-privileged.
These (measurable and hence manageable) factors are in place to varying degrees in every Nation. Every nation's level of internal (and often external) peacefulness is a result of the strength of these factors. By extension, the world's level of peacefulness is a result of the strength of these factors. Strengthen these factors and the world becomes more peaceful. Peace, and the formula for peace, is measurable and manageable. What we have, therefore, is a management or leadership challenge.
Peace is achievable. Further, the formula to achieve peace is known. We currently have the knowledge, technology and infrastructure to achieve peace. So what is the problem? Motivation. World leaders have not been motivated to work together in co-operation to achieve world peace (hence a management or leadership problem). And the world's populaces have not been motivated to motivate their political leaders (a civic problem). We can, and should, approach this from the top down, and from the bottom up.
Leadership
From the top down, all the research is overwhelmingly in support of a new world order. This planet, in the past century, has become too small and its limitations too apparent to not realize that the world's populace must act together. Never before have we been so dependent on each other. It is inescapable. We have a global problem that will require a global solution. This will take leadership at a global level that we all will follow. The United Nations is well placed to provide this leadership. However, the United Nations would have to be reformed to undertake this honorees responsibility Further, and this will be difficult (but not insurmountable), current national foreign policies must change. For example, "Social justice, as a goal urged by the United Nations, refers to striving for equality between entire peoples; that is a global attack on global poverty. Such an attack cannot be launched without radically changing the current trade patterns and financial arrangements between the affluent and impoverished worlds. It cannot be launched without expressly
disavowing national policies of the sort proposed shortly after World War II by an advisor to the U.S. government, George F. Kennan. He was also the first to formulate the so called "containment strategy", which dominated U.S. foreign policy for almost a half century. I quote:
'we have about 50% of the world's wealth, but only about 6.3% of its population. In this situation we cannot fail to be the object of envy and resentment. Our real task in the coming period is to devise a pattern of relationships which will permit us to maintain this position of disparity without detriment to our national security... We need not deceive ourselves that we can afford ... the luxury of altruism ... We should cease to talk about ... unreal objectives such as human rights, the rising of living standards and democratization. The day is not far off when we are going to deal in straight power concepts.' Haunting words in light of recent conflicts with Iraq.
Furthermore, in a recent article in Foreign Affairs entitled "Saving the UN", U.S. Senator Jesse Helms writes:
"As it currently operates, the United Nations does not deserve continued American support...it is being transformed from an institution of sovereign nations into a quasi-sovereign entity in itself. The transformation represents an obvious threat to U.S. national interests.. This situation is untenable. The United Nations was originally created to help nation-states facilitate the peaceful resolution of international disputes. However, the United Nations has moved from facilitating diplomacy among nation-states to supplanting them altogether. Boutros Ghali has said as much.
In his Agenda for Peace. he declared... "The time of absolute and exclusive sovereignty ... has passed. Its theory has never matched reality ..." Such thinking is - in step with the nearly global movement toward greater centralization of political power ... This process must be stopped ... U.N. reform is much more than saving money. It is about preventing unelected bureaucrats from acquiring ever greater powers at the expense of elected national leaders. It is about restoring the legitimacy of the nation-state ... the UN bureaucracy mistakenly believes that caring for the needs of all the world's people is . . its job.... There must be a termination of unnecessary
committees and conferences ... In addition to wasteful conferences like the Beijing women's summit, ... the United Nations continually sponsors workshops, expert consultations, technical consultations, and panel discussions.... Most of these can be terminated at a savings of millions of dollars . . The time has come for the United States to deliver an ultimatum: Either the United Nations reforms, quickly and dramatically, or the United States will end its participation.... Withholding U.S. contributions has not worked. In 1986 Congress passed the Kassebaum Solomon bill, which said to the United Nations in clear and unmistakable terms, reform or die.
The time has come for it to do one or the other."
As Henry Kissinger puts it succinctly, "Empires have no interest in operating within an international system; they aspire to be the international system ..."
Reform it must, for if the United Nations dies then the globe and everyone on it will be at tremendous risk. Only the rich and powerful may prosper, but this is shortsighted and they too will be seriously affected. Most certainly, the masses of poor and even middle class may perish at higher rates. The only foreseeable alternative might be for a superpower such as the United States playing the role of benevolent dictator - something that is unlikely to be acceptable.
Although the globe is not at the brink yet, warnings are that we may be there within fifty years more or less, and it is timely for our world leaders to make a choice now. Civil Society From the bottom up, "today more than ever before, civil society is experiencing a proliferation of non-governmental organizations (NGOs) in which individuals can engage in non-violent action for peace and justice. Moreover, with the emerging world communication network, they are increasingly able to link their struggles on a global scale. These are perhaps the most important development in the movement for a culture of peace, because the transition must take place primarily in the minds of individual men and women through a proc ess of action and growth. Among the thousands of NGOs working for peace, many are adopting the culture of peace as an explicit priority. Increasingly the energy and scope of NGOs is linked directly to the UN, both as a source of ideas and inspiration, and as a powerful multiplier for the universal principles of the organization. It is also up to young people to take up the task of building and cultivating a culture of peace in the next generation. Citizens, if supported by international networking, can pla y a key role in peace building.
Finally, citizens must have a faith that peace is not only desirable but possible." My purpose here is to try to show that peace is desirable and possible. Each of us must decide if we are part of the problem, or part of the solution. The world is dangerous not because of those who do harm, but because of those who look at it without doing anything.
In 1996, when I started my journey to peace, I simply wanted to do something to build peace in our communities and world. I was particularly concerned about the levels of violence in our communities and the potential impacts upon my family, and a fear that government at its current rate was insufficient in dealing with it. For me, and many like me, peace starts at home and in my
own country - 'think globally, act locally' is the current maxim.
That journey has led me all over the world and the establishme nt of the “World Peace Mission Organization “is part of my journey to peace.
I have learned that peace at the individual, family, community and world levels are inter-related, and a natural progression. I have learned about the power of one person, with a conviction, to make a difference in our communities and world. I have developed a web site in my constant challenge to simplify and focus the complex problem of peace. I have learned that peace is complex because of convergence with many other factors of which I have read: human rights and responsibilities, racism and tolerance, religion and spirituality, social justice and democracy, education for employment and peaceful life skills, the links between masculinity and violence,
the links between women and peace, a culture of peace vs. a culture of violence, sustainable economy vs. rampant capitalism, poverty and hunger, world order, disarmament, nuclear proliferation, national foreign policies, the ecology of our small planet Earth.
I do not consider myself an expert on Peace. I am not an academic. I am not a political leader or skilled in foreign policy. I am a simple person who wants to do something to build peace in our communities and world. I am certain that, if we polled the world's populace, an overwhelming majority would support building peace in our communities and world, and much more strongly than what our political leaders currently are. I believe, in this respect, I am representative of the world's populace, which makes my message important. So here is my simple prescription, as recommended by the UNESCO Culture of Peace Program:
Today I am standing with this message that we are taking steps to promote the culture of Peace and “WORLD PEACE MISSION ORGANIZATION” along with International Human Rights Commission established the Core of Ambassadors of Goodwill for Peace. The Ambassadors are ready to move with this” Universal Message of Peace”.
Transforming the World For the UNESCO Culture of Peace Program to really succeed, a major Western government and G7 member is needed to promote it at the UN. To date it appears that these major governments feel that a Culture of Peace is for other countries - conflict torn countries - not us. The difficulty of our task is evident by the fact that virtually no o ne in Canada and the United States has any awareness of this program, including most peace activists; and that the responsible government agencies seem to be under-resourced.
While technically peace is achievable, the problem is motivation (and time). If Canada (and the world) does not adopt a Culture of Peace Program, then voters will remain uninformed and will not provide the needed direction to our leaders who will remain unmotivated to take the often difficult but necessary action to achieve peace in o ur communities and world. The real and present danger is that Peace will not happen the way we are going now. I feel for current victims of violence in our communities and world who I can not help, but I fear even moreso for future generations.
On the other hand, however, if the majority of the world adherer’s to UNESCO's Culture of Peace Program (and it will benefit with dialogue and evolution), the world will be a much better place and mankind will evolve to a much higher level. To do otherwise carries great risk.
Individuals and Communities Transforming Together Finally, suitably tailored, the Formula For Peace above (i.e. a credible government code of ethics, a fair system of justice, a sustainable economy, access to competent education systems, and a compassionate health and welfare system) applies equally to building peace at the individual, family, community, national and world levels. Where before, in my relatively comfortable life, I may have been able to turn a blind eye to the violence taking place around me in our communities and world, I have now concluded that it is urgent to implement this Formula. After all, the world is my community.
It is particularly up to those of us individuals, communities and nations that are relatively prosperous to take responsibility for change - the poor and distressed are not able. As the World's Scientists have warned us, during our children's lifetime
"A great change in our stewardship of the earth and the life on it, is required, if vast human misery is to be avoided and our global home on this planet is not to be irretrievably mutilated. " We are the stewards.
BY WPMO CHAIRMAN
