UNESCO and a Culture of Peace
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UNESCO anda Culture of Peace: Promoting a Global Movement Also in the Cultures of Peace Series: Culture of Democracy: A Challenge for Schools Peace! An Anthology by the Nobel Peace Prize Laureates Tolerance UNESCO — An Ideal in Action: The Continuing Relevance of a Visionary Text UNESCO and a Culture of Peace Promoting a Global Movement Cultures of Peace Series UNESCO PUBLISHING The authors are responsible for the choice and the presentation of the facts contained in this book and for the opinions expressed therein, which are not necessarily those of UNESCO and do not commit the Organization. The designations employed and the presentation of material throughout this publication do not imply the expression of any opinion whatsoever on the part of UNESCO concerning the legal status of any country, territory, city or area or of its authorities, or concerning the delimitation of its frontiers or boundaries. All requests for further information should be addressed to: The Director, Culture of Peace Programme. Prepared by the Culture of Peace Programme of UNESCO and edited by David Adams. Parts of this text may be freely reproduced and translated provided that mention is made of the source. First published in 1995 by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization, 7, place de Fontenoy, 75352 Paris 07 SP, France Second edition 1997 Composed by Foliotine, Paris Printed by Imprimerie de la Manutention, Mayenne ISBN 92-3-103391-3 © UNESCO 1995, 1997 Printed in France Preface In the aftermath of the Second World War, intellectual and diploma- tic leaders from around the world founded UNESCO and gave the Organization the mandate of building the defences of peace in the minds of men and women. It is not enough, they argued, to base peace upon economic and political agreements; it must be founded upon the intellectual and moral solidarity of humanity. Now, as we emerge from the Cold War, the world needs intellectual and moral solidarity to shape our priorities and to inform decisions which are perhaps more critical than at any previous moment of history. At the top of the priorities for action is a transformation that is probably the most difficult and far-reaching in history: the shift from a culture of war and violence to a culture of peace. It is a change which in earlier times would have been dismissed as utopian. But today, it can be seen as both feasible and indispensable for the future development and even the survival of humanity. Not only is a culture of peace both feasible and indispensable but, as the following pages describe, it is already in progress. Since UNESCO launched its Culture of Peace Programme in February 1994, people from all walks of life and from all continents are ral- lying to the challenge of moving from imposition to discussion, from monologue to dialogue, from privilege to sharing, from force to rea- son, from plutocracy to democracy. They are showing that conflict can be settled peacefully if all the parties try to understand each other, to listen to each other's arguments, to defend their views steadfastly but without violence. The concept of a culture of peace, based on the principles enshrined in UNESCO's Constitution, has grown so rapidly that I am sometimes asked in bewilderment whether the culture of peace has any specificity, or is it rather ‘all things to all people’. For this reason, I am very pleased to introduce this monograph, which is a detailed report on the actions for a culture of peace and which shows that it is a very specific concept, both a product of this particular moment of history and an appropriate vision for a future that is in our power to create. Because, in fact, the culture of peace represents an everyday attitude of non-violent rebellion, of peaceful dissent, of firm determination to defend human rights and human dignity. To save succeeding generations from the scourge of war, as proclaimed by the United Nations Charter, is our concern and mission. Our supreme task is to spare humanity the suffering and death produced by the culture of war and violence. It is to build peace permanently, in our families, in the schools, in the media, in sports. The key word is ‘prevention’. The best way is to identify the roots of conflict and to take steps to deal with them at the outset. For there can be no peace without development, just as there can be no development without stability and security. Peace is the premiss. To ensure that the culture of peace movement remains always linked to the pursuit of social and economic justice for all, everyone has to become involved. To provide the needed solidarity, both intel- lectual and moral, to unite people working around the world for peace and justice, to inspire hope and persistence for the common task, a vision is needed. UNESCO invites everyone to join with us in the creation of this vision and its realization as a culture of peace. Federico Mayor Director-General of UNESCO Contents 1. Introduction 9 2. The evolving concept of a culture of peace 15 3. UNESCO's Culture of Peace Programme 23 4. UNESCO's transdisciplinary project: Towards a Culture of Peace 27 5. National culture of peace programmes 43 6. The United Nations and its Specialized Agencies 57 7. Other intergovernmental initiatives 71 8. Governmental programmes and initiatives 83 9. Non-governmental organizations 101 10. Towards a global movement and vision 121 Appendix: The Universal Declaration of Human Rights 125 Index 133 1. Introduction The twentieth-century revolutions in communications, transport, medicine, agriculture and other fields stand as proof of humanity's ingenuity in confronting and overcoming seemingly insurmountable challenges. But the rapid acceleration of material progress for some stands in increasingly stark contrast to the environmental degrada- tion, poverty, overpopulation, massive forced migration, intolerance and the increasingly unequal distribution of global resources endured by the majority of humankind. At the threshold of the new millennium, millions of people in the developing and developed world are faced daily with the promise of freedom from fear and want and the reality of deprivation, disease, illiteracy and insecurity. At the furthest extreme, millions of people are caught in continuing cycles of violence and war, which destroy lives and livelihoods and paralyse human development. Contemporary wars are fought more often within than be- tween states and 90 per cent of casualties are civilian. They are often sustained by the manipulation of ethnic and other tensions among people whose livelihoods and identities are under threat. They are further fuelled by a largely unregulated arms trade and by the absence or weakness of legitimate institutions to manage or transform conflict. As well as the physical and psychological devastation inflicted dis- proportionately on women, children, and the elderly, contemporary warfare has caused incalculable material and environmental destruc- tion, as well as unprecedented flows of internally displaced persons and refugees. In light of the human suffering caused by war and our broad experience of peaceful and constructive change, it is now recognized 10 UNESCO and a culture of peace that we can and must transform the values, attitudes and behaviour of societies from cultures of war to a new and evolving culture of peace, which is the subject of this monograph. Peace, once defined as the absence of war, has come to be seen as a much broader and more dynamic process. It includes non-violent relations between states, but also non-violent and co-operative relationships between individuals within states, between social groups, between states and their citizens and between humans and their physical environment. The goal of a The goal of a culture of peace is a world in which the rich culture of peace is diversity of cultures is cause for appreciation and co-operation. There a world in which is already mounting evidence of initiatives reflecting such positive the rich diversity of diversity at all levels, from the local to the international. There is also cultures is cause for a growing belief that the culture of war, which has characterized the appreciation and dominant civilizations of the past, can now be replaced by a culture co-operation. of peace. In this emerging culture, the multiple challenges related to war are addressed by complex and multidimensional responses which engage people locally, regionally and internationally. As humans we have the capacity to transform threat and difficulty into challenge, co-operation and growth. Just as we have met threats at the local and national level with concerted mobili- zation, we now have the challenge and potential to meet threats through global mobilization. Signs of effective, multilevel co- operation are emerging. With the end of the Cold War, the threat of world war and nuclear holocaust has receded, revealing the potential for a massive transfer of human and economic resources from mili- tary to civilian use. While often weak, the vast majority of states are now independent, while between two-thirds and three-quarters of the world’s population are also living under relatively pluralistic and democratic regimes. The United Nations is more active for peace than ever before, and regional organizations are also taking on new responsibilities. Underpinning these higher-level processes, civil society is being mobilized through tens of thousands of non-governmental organizations, including well-established movements for disarma- ment, equitable and sustainable development, the environment and the rights of women and indigenous peoples. A common theme runs through these social movements — that all people are interdependent and that universal rights to a peaceful and fruitful existence must be respected for current and future generations, and for all life on our planet.