| Posted: April 26 2005,06:30 |
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PROGRESS: Has your organization seen
progress toward a culture of peace and nonviolence in your domain of
action and in your constituency during the first half of the Decade? |
For the Interim Report to the UN on the
International Decade for a Culture of Peace and Non-Violence for the Children of the World:
WORLD REPORT ON THE CULTURE OF PEACE
**************************************************
The Public Institute of Strategic Sphere (Tetrasociological) Studies,
St. Petersburg, Russia
and
"A
New Culture of Peace from Harmony," International and Multicultural
Website in four languages Russian, English, Esperanto and Portuguese:
www.peacefromharmony.spb.ru
present the following report, subscribed to by the website co-authors listed below
Toward a New Culture of Peace from Social Harmony in an Information Age
Introduction
The
central idea of our report is that transition to the social
requirements of an Information Age will compel transition to a New
Culture of Peace. Global (information) society and peace in it can be
only harmonious, or they will be established never. In the Industrial
Age of recent centuries, traditional societies formed cultures of peace
that were not capable of preventing a repeating cycle of wars.
These
cultures resulted, for some, in weak restrictions on war. Peace, for
these societies, consisted of a break between wars while preparing for
new wars. We believe that a new, global society will create a new
culture of peace that will seek to prevent wars, terror, poverty and
affronts to human dignity. A new, global culture of peace, in our
opinion, will be founded on an inherent social order that, when
cultural information is freely exchanged, is harmonious by nature.
Such
a culture will prioritize children and the social groups involved in
their development as future citizens, which together comprise a
majority of the population. These groups are basically peace-loving,
and provide the social foundation for a harmonious, new culture of
peace that is capable of preventing wars, terror, poverty and affronts
to human dignity. Thus, a harmonious, global culture of peace differs
qualitatively from traditional cultures of peace. At the same time,
this new culture of peace does not weaken local and regional cultures
of peace, but strengthens them. Therefore, the mission of our website
is, briefly: "To build a harmonious, new culture of peace, and to
strengthen its social foundation".
Our international,
multicultural, interdisciplinary and pluralistic website "A New Culture
of Peace from Harmony" is devoted to various institutes and other means
of creating harmonious peace, to ways of strengthening it, and also to
sharing different opinions about it and different approaches to
understanding it. Currently, the website includes the works of more
than 60 authors (including five children), from 14 countries, in four
languages: Russian, English, Esperanto and Portuguese. Further, six
more languages are to be added.
The website gets more 100 hits per day.
All
of this makes it a worthy place for friendly meetings, and for dialogs
among different cultures, languages and civilizations in search of
finding ways to work together, to achieve harmonious peace. This
website is created as a collective, multilingual, living and growing
“how to” book for a new culture of peace from
harmony. Our website is a daughter website to the International Forum
for the Literature and Culture of Peace: IFLAC PAVE PEACE:
www.iflac.com, www.iflac.com/ada
Today, the prospect of
harmonious peace might seem Utopian. But its urgency grows more and
more with the increasing tendency towards globalization of information,
economic and other forms of interactions within the international
community. Therefore tomorrow it can become, in many ways, and for many
reasons, a practical achievement of the world community.
Our
Report "Toward a New Culture of Peace from Social Harmony in an
Information Age" is generated by the diverse content of our
international website.
1. PROGRESS.
We believe that
becoming an information society, and building a new culture of peace
that is adequate to it, requires, first of all, social consciousness
and scientific understanding. Therefore, we see progress toward a new
culture of peace in our mission statement, in our theoretical models,
and in our discussions of its problems. For this purpose we have
submitted, on our website, various innovative models of this new
culture of peace and various approaches to its numerous aspects.
Theoretical models include three: a multicultural model (Ada Aharoni),
an equal human dignity model (Evelin Lindner) and a four sphere,
tetrasociological model (Leo Semashko). These models do not exclude but
supplement each other. Among various aspects of this culture we note
parental (Rose Lord and Lynn Comerford), civilizational (Tarek Heggy,
Salim Mansur, Dmitry Ivashintsov, Ananta Giri, Lia Diskin), value
(Reimon Bachika), poetry and art (Ada Aharoni, Maria Azcona, Hilarie
Roseman, Francisco Matos, RamKrishna Singh), political-psychological
(Alexander Yuriev), socio-psychological (Evelin Lindner), confessional
(Rudolf Siebert), educational (Henry Skvortsov), ecological (Victor
Gaidai), sociological (Martha Ross DeWitt), sociocybernetic (Bernd
Hornung, Bernard Scott), linguistic (Francisco Matos), psychoanalytical
(Mikhail Reshetnikov), web (Bernard Phillips), socionic (Valerie
Isaev), communication (T.Galushko), philosophical (Grigory
Toulchinsky), military (German Vitruk), political and socio-harmonious
(Leo Semashko). Statements and discussion of these and other models,
approaches and aspects of a new culture of peace, from our point of
view, provide our basic contribution to its progress.
However, our
website is not limited to the academic sphere. On its pages various
work with children in different countries will be submitted, and also
children’s drawings. A youth competition is open on the
website, (first of all students’) essays on the topic "Youth
to speak out about the opportunity for harmonious peace in an
information society." We believe that in the UN Decade for a culture of
peace our primary attention should be given to children and youth.
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OBSTACLES: What are the most important obstacles that have prevented progress?
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2. OBSTACLES.
The
main obstacle to our progress in promoting a new culture of peace is an
absence of funding. The primary work of our site consists of text
translations of languages, so that people of different cultures can
begin to really understand one another. Only then can deep and
intelligent dialog among them begin. Language differences separate and
alienate people, cultures and civilizations. The English language,
although prevalent, cannot ensure linguistic and information equality
among people and cultures. Qualitative, mutual understanding requires
mutual translation of all texts, or an acceptance of one language that
is common for everyone, whether artificial or an already existing
language. (On our site, an attempt is made to include such a language -
Esperanto. Unfortunately, while it is used by over two million people,
world-wide, its use or lack of use also reflects linguistic inequality
and discrimination). Today we have a handful of enthusiastic people who
are doing all the groundwork for establishing an intercultural dialogue
as well as mutual translation of the texts but international financing
is not adequate for the purposes.
Lack of funding also limits us
in developing a broad theoretical and empirical program, including,
first of all, survey research of world and regional public opinion.
Large samples and large numbers of questions are required for such
research. Among the studies we would include the following: attitudes
of parents and policy makers toward children’s suffrage, in
which parents vote in place of their minor children; feelings about
meeting the health and educational needs of children in different
regions; attitudes of parents toward teaching children Esperanto,
social tolerance, and a culture of peace and cooperation; ideas on ways
to ensure a positive social environment for children, ways to overcome
discrimination against children, and many more.
One more
obstacle to developing a culture of peace is conservatism of political
and economic organizations, including international institutes within
the UN and its structures. Conservatism and the short-sightedness of
the power elite, concerned primarily with financial profit, conduct to
the overdue and inadequate decisions. They aggravate situations in the
world that provoke wars, terrorism, humiliation and a deepening gap
between rich and poor. All of this undermines traditional cultures of
peace, makes them fragile and contradicts the established UN Concept of
sustainable development.
The preservation and intensity of
enmity among people, cultures and civilizations, along with military
preparations that favor many nations economically, undermine the
efforts of civil society to build harmonious relations on which to
build a lasting culture of peace. The short-term interests of the
states and TNCs are more attractive to them. They are not able, or do
not want to build long-term and harmonious relationships. The current
obstacles to developing and strengthening a culture of peace, from our
point of view, are lack of system financing for the already existing
international information resources and political conservatism.
At
the international level, the forces of war have been dominant over the
forces of peace. They are obviously in an unequal economic and
political situation. This can only change when a global majority is
empowered by free and open exchange of information during an
Information Age.
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ACTIONS: What actions have been
undertaken by your organization to promote a culture of peace and
nonviolence during the first half of the Decade?
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3. ACTIONS.
Our actions are limited to sharing the intellectual work and
communications of our co-authors and contributors, and also to sharing
information on UN peace initiatives and ideas of the Nobel Peace
Laureates. As reported above, at this stage we emphasize papers and
discussion as ways to build a new culture of peace, which otherwise
might be misunderstood by people. We list only the basic books,
articles and projects that are published on over 60 pages of our
website: www.peacefromharmony.spb.ru
*
Ada Aharoni. The Necessity of a New Multicultural Peace Culture.
Peace Culture, Literature and the Arts. And many her other scientific
works and verses.
* Martha Ross DeWitt. Understanding the Origins of Terrorism.
* Rose Lord. Women Peacemakers of the World. A project of Global Coalition for Peace
* Evelin Lindner. Mission of organization "Human Dignity and Humiliation Studies".
* Tarek Heggy. The Arab Mind. Tolerant and Intolerant Islam.
* Lia Diskin. Brazilian "Association Palace Athena".
* Lynn Comerford. Troubling " Mother Reproduction" in the Family
* Maria Abolskaya. Esperanto as a language of dialog between cultures
* Henry Skvortsov. Creating technology of education.
* Ananta Giri. Book: Reflections and Mobilization: Dialogues with Movements and Voluntary Organizations.
* Francisco Matos. Applying the pedagogy of positiveness to diplomatic communication.
* Mikhail Reshetnikov. Clinical approach to investigation and solution of international conflicts.
* Grigory Toulchinsky. Rationality of harmony and responsibility.
* Tamara Galushko. The intercultural communications and dialogue of cultures in the age of globalization.
* Alexander Yuriev. Political psychology of harmonious peace.
* Rudolf Siebert. Religion: Jus Talionis - or the Golden Rule?
* Andrei Stolyarov. Twilight of the Gods. The war already began.
* German Vitruk. Is harmonious development of a military system possible?
* Nicolas Gudskov. Antinomy of national development: the requirement of a new cultural ideology and Esperanto.
* Victor Gaidai. The social-ecological International project "Opening of the world".
* Sergey Egorov. Fifteen Years of Parliamentarism in St.-Petersburg.
* Bernard Phillips and Louis Johnston. Can Social Science Save Us?
* March "Free Muslims Against Terrorisms ", Washington, May 14, 2005
* Arab Feminists: Cats and Dogs Have More Rights than Women in the Arab and Muslim World
* Hilarie Roseman. About Women and the Small Business in Australia.
* Leo Semashko. Books and articles devoted to tetrasociology as a theory of social harmony and harmonious peace.
The
authors of these works actively present their ideas at various
international and national congresses and conferences, and also in the
mass media.
On the website are published many remarkable verses
devoted to love, peace, harmony and also various other feelings. They
include verses by Ada Aharoni, Maria Azcona, Francisco Matos, Hilarie
Roseman, RamKrishna Singh, Dmitry Ivashintsov, Dmitry Baranov, and
Andrey Lokiev.
Hilarie Roseman, an author and artist from
Australia, created on the website a gallery of ten artistic images of
harmonious peace. As the active correspondent of our website in
Australia she sends good news about harmonious bridges between
different cultures.
On the children's page are drawings devoted
to the topics: "Peace" and "Harmony." There is also a page for work of
the children's club of harmonious development of preschools "Umnitsa,"
headed by the known St. Petersburg bard Svetlana Vetrova and teacher
Galina Vladimirova.
The most original definition of peace and
harmony on the site is the picture and words of five-year-old Jessica
Robson from Australia: "Peace and harmony is some girls singing into
microphones together" (see page 5-10 on the site). The truth comes from
the mouths of babes!
There is an on-site announcement, published
in two languages, by the association "Free Muslims Against Terrorism"
about the mass meeting in Washington.
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ADVICE: What advice would you like to
give to the Secretary-General and the General Assembly to promote a
culture of peace and nonviolence during the second half of the Decade? |
6. ADVICE.
We
would like to suggest to the Secretary-General and to the General
Assembly five ways in which to promote a culture of peace and
nonviolence for the children of the world during the second half of the
Decade (2006-2010):
* Achieve acceptance of the UN
Resolution to recognize children's interests as a priority for the
current Decade to promote a culture of peace devoted to children, and
then extend it for the next decade. (It would be desirable to emphasize
that the Decade is devoted to promoting a culture of peace and
nonviolence for the children of the world. In the body of the
Questionnaire, children, for the sake of which the Decade is
established, are never mentioned).
* To add Article 6 of the UN
Convention on the Rights of the Child by the priority right - right of
the child to HARMONIOUS development in the following edition:
6 (1) State Parties must recognize that each child has the inalienable and PRIORITY right to life and HARMONIOUS DEVELOPMENT;
6 (2) State Parties provide, to the greatest possible degree, survival, healthy and HARMONIOUS development of the child.
*
To coordinate the work of the NGOs on the development of a criteria for
harmonious development of the world community, separate countries and
regions.
* Increase in some way your financial support for
nongovernmental peace organizations and other similarly focused groups
of civil society. Create, for commercial organizations, the appropriate
privileges and preferences for their sponsor's help.
* Sponsor
an annual International Scientific-Practical Conference: "Creating a
Peace Culture in an Information (Global) Society" on different
continents, with funding for a minimum of one thousand participants.
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PARTNERSHIPS: What partnerships and
networks does your organization participate in, thus strengthening the
global movement for a culture of peace? |
7. PARTNERSHIPS AND NETWORKS.
Our site has established and expanded communications with several closely-related in purpose international organizations.
First, the "International Forum for the Literature and Culture of Peace (IFLAC)," which inspired us to create our site.
Secondly,
the "Global Coalition for Peace," which has placed on our website one
of its projects: "Women Peacemakers of the World."
Thirdly,
the international organization "Human Dignity and Humiliation Studies,"
with which we have exchanged information materials.
In - fourth, we have supported the association "Free Muslims Against Terror" in its mass meeting in Washington.
In
- fifth, we have supported the petition of the International
organization "Teach Kids Peace" about the necessity of teaching peace
to children
Our future plans include many international
organizations with which we hope to establish relations of cooperation.
An incomplete list of these organizations and sites is submitted on our
website page "Links."
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PLANS: What new engagements are
planned by your organization to promote a culture of peace and
nonviolence in the second half of the Decade (2005-2010)? |
8. PLANS (2006-2010).
Future plans for our site include:
*
Expand our linguistic space to ten languages: Russian, English,
Esperanto, Portuguese, Spanish, German, French, Japanese, Chinese and
Arabian. (The first four are already open).
* Conduct a number
of International conferences on the Topic "Creating a New Culture of
Peace from Social Harmony for an Information Age."
*
Considerably expand our site presence and participation of children,
children's clubs and organizations assisting harmonious development of
children and their education in a spirit of peace, tolerance and
cooperation.
* Considerably expand our site presence and participation of women, maternal and paternal clubs and parent organizations.
Leo Semashko, Ph.D., A/Professor, Website Director,
Postal address: 7-4-42 Ho-Shi-Min Street, St. Petersburg, 194356, Russia.
Tel: 7-812-5133863.
E-mail: semashko4444@mail.admiral.ru
Website address: www.peacefromharmony.spb.ru.
List of Report Co-authors:
Ada
Aharoni, Professor of Peace Studies; Founder and President:
International Forum for the Literature and Culture of Peace (IFLAC),
Haifa, Israel
Alexander Yuriev, Psychology Dr, Professor, Chair,
Department of Political Psychology, St. Petersburg State University,
St. Petersburg, Russia
Ananta Guri, Ph.D., Professor of sociology, Madras Institute of Development Studies, India
Andrei Stolyarov, writer, St. Petersburg, Russia
Anne Butkevich, President of "Espero" society since 1992, Esperantist 20 years; St. Petersburg,
Araken Barbosa, Dr, Professor, Centre for Art and Communications, Federal University of Pernambuco, Brazil
Bernard
Phillips, Retired Professor of Sociology, Boston University, Founder
and Coordinator, Sociological Imagination Group, USA
Bernard Scott,
Dr, Cranfield University Royal Military College of Science, Board
Member, Research Committee 51 (on Sociocybernetics) of the
International Sociological Association, UK
Dmitry Baranov, Russian poet, translator, St.-Petersburg,
Dmitry
Ivashintsov, Dr., Professor, Cochairman-Coordinator, Vice-president of
the Russian World Association, St.-Petersburg, Russia
Francisco Matos, Dr, Professor, Centre for Art and Communications, Federal University of Pernambuco, Brazil
Galina Vladimirova, Teacher, chief of children's club "Umnitsa", St.-Petersburg, Russia
German Vitruk, Captain in the reserve, Chairman, Association of Construction Development, Vladivostok, Russia
Grigory
Toulchinsky, Ph.D., Professor, St-Petersburg University of Culture and
Arts, Organizer, International Department (UNESCO) on
Philosophy and Ethics in St-Petersburg, Russia
Henry Skvortsov,
D.Sc., author of Creating Technology on mathematics and physics, member
of the International Academy of Fundamental Education, St.-Petersburg,
Russia
Hilarie Roseman, Master of Art, mother of eight children and
grandmother of 12 Grandchildren, member of the Sociological Imagination
Group.
Leo Semashko, Ph.D., A/Professor, Director, Public Institute
of Strategic Sphere (Tetrasociological) Studies, IFLAC Delegate, Member
of the International Sociological Association, Advisory Board Member of
the International organization "Human Dignity and Humiliation
Research", Website Director, deputy of Lensovet/Petrosovet (1990-1993),
St.-Petersburg, Russia
Louis Johnston, M.D, Retired Professor of
Medicine at the University of Illinois, Retired Director of Medical
Education at Grant Hospital, Chicago, Illinois, USA
Lynn Comerford, Ph.D., Professor, California University, Hayward, California.
Maria Abolskaya, Esperanto teacher, Esperantist since 1956, St. Petersburg.
Maria Azcona, Psychopedagogist-Family, Writer and Poetess, Translator, Director IFLAC in Argentina, Buenos Aires, Argentina
Martha
Ross DeWitt, Ph.D., Sociology, member of American Sociological
Association, member of Society for Chaos Theory in Psychology and the
Life Sciences, member of Sociological Imagination Group, Social
Theorist and Research Consultant, Milwaukee, Wisconsin, USA
Michael Lebedinsky, Independent philosopher, economist and sociologist. Moscow,
Mikhail Reshetnikov, Dr, Professor, Rector, East European Psychoanalytic Institute, St.-Petersburg,
RamKrishna Singh, Professor of English, Technical University, Dhanbad, India
Reimon
Bachika, Professor of sociology, Bukkyo University, President, ISA RC
07 Futures Research (International Sociological Association), Kyoto,
Japan
Rose Lord, Dr, Writer, IFLAC Delegate, Global Coalition for Peace, Pittsburg, USA
Rudolf
Siebert, Ph.D., Professor of Religion and Society , Western Michigan
University, IUC Course Director, Director of the WMU Center for
Humanistic Future Studies, Kalamazoo, Michigan, USA
Svetlana Vetrova, known St. Petersburg bard, chief of children's club "Umnitsa", Russia
Tamara
Galushko, Dr of philological sciences, Professor, Chief, Department of
German Language, State Pedagogical University by A.I.Gertsen,
St-Petersburg, Russia
Victor Gaidai, Professor, Ecologist, St. Petersburg, Russia
Vladimir Kavtorin, writer, St. Petersburg, Russia
All: more 40 co-authors
April 26, 2005
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Postal address of organization
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7-4-42 Ho-Shi-Min Street, St. Petersburg, 194356, Russia.
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E-mail address of organization
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semashko4444@mail.admiral.ru
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Website address of organization
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www.peacefromharmony.spb.ru
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Highest priority action domain of a culture of peace
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Education for a culture of peace
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Second priority action domain of a culture of peace
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Equality of women
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Highest priority country of action (or international)
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INTERNATIONAL
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Second priority country of action (or international)
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