| Posted: April 03 2005,23:36 |
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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? |
The
last few years have witnessed disastrous global backslide away from the
ideal of a culture of peace and nonviolence. The September 11 attacks
were utilized by the G.W. Bush Administration as an excuse for
launching an illegal invasion of Iraq, as well as attacks on domestic
civil rights within the United States. The present neoconservative
government of the US aims at global domination through military force,
motivated perhaps by the desire to control dwindling oil supplies. Far
from criticizing or condemning these actions, the global mass media
tend to support the present culture of violence. For example, a
large percentage of the programs on the Discovery channel are devoted
to re-living World War II or to discussing military hardware. Even the
Animal Planet channel supports the culture of violence! It has a
feature called "Animal Warriors", which glorifies violence. The only
bright side of the picture is the increasing role of the Internet as a
vehicle of protest.
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OBSTACLES: What are the most important obstacles that have prevented progress?
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I
believe that the most important obstacle that has prevented progress is
the enormous financial and political power of the military-industrial
complex, against which President Dwight D. Eisenhower warned in his
farewell address. The world spends roughly a trillion (million million)
US dollers each year on armaments and war. This almost unimaginable
quantity of money spent on armaments implies that very many people make
a living from war, and the military lobbys have great financial
resources and influence. The financial power of the military-industrial
complex has allowed it to control the mass media.
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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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The
Danish Peace Academy maintains an internet website with more than 7000
documents related to peace. We have about 2500 different visitors
each day, from all parts of the world. See www.fredsakademiet.dk/faquk.htm
Among
the unique features of the Danish Peace Academy is an extremely
detailed time-line, starting in ancient times and extending to the
present and near future. Many of our visitors use the time-line as a
source of news and facts that they are unable to find elsewhere. Our
website also contains many articles and books that may be freely
downloaded and read, as well as a peace bibliography, and other
resources such as poems, songs and films. Our webmaster, Holger Terp,
who has almost single-handedly created the website, has worked on a
curriculum for peace education. We also sponsor publications and
symposia. For example, this year we held a symposium entitled "Nuclear
Weapons, Nonviolence, and the Nuremberg Principles".
On
October 2 (Gandhi's birthday) 2004, the Danish Peace Academy and IPPNW
held a seminar on "Nuclear Weapons, Nonviolence, and the Nuremberg
Principles". The photo shows a panel discussion at the end of the
seminar. From right
to left, the speakers are German Gandhi-expert
Christian Bartolf, Norwegian peace-researcher Jørgen Johansen, with
John Avery and Peter Mikæl Hansen, both from the Danish
Peace Academy.
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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? |
The
United Nations ought to have its own television channel. This could be
used to give unbiased news reports, and to support a global culture of
peace. The UN TV Channel could broadcast cultural programs from various
parts of the world which would help to increase international
understanding. It would be very inspiring if the Secretary-General
could boadcast a yearly "State of the World" message, perhaps at New
Year, discussing problems of the past year, and suggesting solutions
during the new year. For this project, and for its other activities,
the UN needs much more money than it has at present. A Tobin Tax should
be instituted, with proceeds going to the UN.
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PARTNERSHIPS: What partnerships and
networks does your organization participate in, thus strengthening the
global movement for a culture of peace? |
The
Danish Peace Academy would be very happy indeed to work closely with
UNESCO and with the Foundation for a Culture of Peace. We already
collaborate with IPPNW, the Danish Pugwash Group, and the Danish Peace
Council.
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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)? |
In
collaboration with other Danish peace groups, we will mark the 60th
anniversary of the tragic bombings of Hirioshima and Nagasaki by three
events. 1) An exhibition of posters and video tapes sent to us from the
city of Hiroshima, 2) A symposium on "Creating a Culture of Peace" to
be held at the Niels Bohr Institute in Copenhagen on August 6, and 3)
An evening ceremony with choral music and with speeches by the Japanese
Ambassador and other distinguished speakers. We have invited Prof.
Federico Mayor to speak both at the symposium and at the evening
ceremony on August 6, and we hope that he will be able to attend.
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Postal address of organization
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John Avery, Chairman, Danish Peace Academy
Snebærhaven 24
DK-2620 Albertslund, Denmark
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E-mail address of organization
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john@ccs.ki.ku.dk
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Website address of organization
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<a href="http://www.fredsakademiet.dk">www.fredsakademiet.dk</a>
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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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International peace and security
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Highest priority country of action (or international)
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global
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Second priority country of action (or international)
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Denmark
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