ZUBAAN at World Book Fair, New Delhi, 27 Jan - 4 Feb 2006

ZUBAAN and YOUNG ZUBAAN
are pleased to welcome you to our stand at the

2006
WORLD BOOK FAIR
PRAGATI MAIDAN
NEW DELHI 110 002
From 27 JANUARY to 4 FEBRUARY

WE ARE LOCATED IN
HALL 18
MEZZANINE
STANDS 470-474

All our new titles and a wide range of backlist titles from Zubaan and Kali for Women will be on display and sale.

Do come. We’d love to see you there!

The book fair is open every day from 11 am to 8 pm
Hall 18 is closest to Gates 7 and 8.
You need to climb a few stairs to get into the hall, but thereafter there is a ramp and an escalator, and stairs.

Zubaan
An imprint of Kali for Women,
K-92, FF,
Hauz Khas Enclave,
New Delhi - 110016
INDIA
Tel: +91-11-26521008, 26864497 and 26514772
Email: zubaan@gmail.com and zubaanwbooks@vsnl.net
Website: www.zubaanbooks.com and www.youngzubaan.com

If you wish not to receive any more email click the below link.
http://www.zubaanbooks.com/mailerfree403/r.asp?a=uc&e=e.g.lindner@psykologi.uio.no

Call for papers: International Symposium and doctoral course: Arts and Terror

University of Jyväskylä, Finland, 29.5.- 1.6. 2006

Dr Matti Hyvärinen
Academy Research Fellow
Department of Sociology and Social Psychology
FIN-33014 University of Tampere, Finland
matti.hyvarinen @ uta.fi

AfricAvenir News are kindly sent out by Eric Van Grasdorff:

Liebe Freunde,

als regelmäßige LeserIn unseres Newsletters haben Sie sicherlich die positive Entwicklung AfricAvenirs besonders im letzten Jahr mitbekommen. Der Verein hat sich in der Berliner kultur- und bildungspolitischen Szene etabliert und leistet einen wesentlichen Beitrag zu einer systematischen gesellschaftspolitischen Auseinandersetzung mit Afrika und den afrikanisch-europäischen Beziehungen.

Um auch weiterhin kritisch, innovativ und unabhängig arbeiten zu können, möchten wir Sie zu Beginn dieses Jahres einladen, die Arbeit von AfricAvenir International e.V. durch Ihre Mitgliedschaft (Jahresbeitrag: 30€ / ermäßigt 20€) aktiv zu unterstützen!.

Mit Ihrer Mitgliedschaft tragen Sie zu unserer Grundfinanzierung bei, die es uns wiederum ermöglicht, einen Teil unserer Arbeit unabhängig von Förderrichtlinien zu konzipieren und durchzuführen.

Um Ihnen die Entscheidung vielleicht noch ein bisschen zu erleichtern, haben wir im folgenden einen vorläufigen Überblick zusammengestellt, was 2006 bei AfricAvenir International e.V. unter anderem auf der Agenda steht:

Januar-Dezember: African Perspectives Filmreihe
Januar - Dezember: Dialogforum; Schwerpunkt: Rassismus, Kolonialismus und ‚Weißsein’
Januar - Juli: Szenische Lesungen afrikanischer Literatur
Februar - Juni: Publikation von 6 Büchern zu afrikapolitischen Themen
03.-06. April: Studienreise ins multikulturelle Sevilla
Juni: Afrikanische Märchenabende mit Babacar Mbaye (Sénégal)
Oktober: Seminar zum afrikanischen Filmschaffen (Würzburg)
Oktober: Bildungsreise zu Spiritualität und Heilung am Beispiel Kamerun

Informationen und Tipps zu unserem aktuellen Programm erhalten Sie selbstverständlich stets über unseren Newsletter und auf unserer Website (siehe: http://www.africavenir.com/news/category/africavenir/), wo Sie sich Sie sich außerdem noch mal eingehend über die Philosophie unseres Vereins, die Projekte der letzten Jahre sowie die Arbeit von AfricAvenir in Kamerun informieren können.

Haben wir Sie überzeugt, dass Sie AfricAvenir International e.V. mit einem jährlichen Mitgliedsbeitrag – oder auch mit einer Spende – unterstützen möchten, finden Sie alle weiteren Informationen im Formular: http://www.africavenir.com/africavenir/berlin/membership/Mitgliedschaftsformular.pdf
Gerne stehen wir Ihnen für Fragen auch unter info@africavenir.org oder unserer Telefonnummer 030-885 08 57 zur Verfügung.

Abschließend möchten wir Sie noch mal ganz aktuell einladen zu unserer heutigen Filmvorführung von ‚Little Senegal’, am Sonntag, den 29.01.2006 um 17.15 Uhr, wie immer im Filmtheater Hackesche Höfe.

www.AfricAvenir.org
Wollen Sie Fördermitglied von AfricAvenir International e.V. werden?
Kontaktieren Sie Ann Kathrin Helfrich, Fon: 030-80906789, a.helfrich@africavenir.org

Redaktion des Newsletters: Eric Van Grasdorff, e.vangrasdorff@africavenir.org
AfricAvenir International e.V. ist nicht für die Inhalte externer Webseiten verantwortlich.

The WMD's DemocracyNews
Electronic Newsletter of the World Movement for Democracy - www.wmd.org

CALL FOR ITEMS --PLEASE NOTE THAT THE NEXT DEADLINE FOR SUMBITTING ITEMS IS DECEMBER 30

POSTING NEWS:
We welcome items to include in DemocracyNews. Please send an email message to world@ned.org with the item you would like to post in the body of the message.

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Dear World Movement Participants:

The next issue of DemocracyNews will go out on February 8, 2006. In order to make DemocracyNews as useful as possible, we ask you to send us any items related to democracy work that you think would be of interest to others.

The next deadline for submitting items is ** February 1** Please send items to: world@ned.org.

You are encouraged to submit items under any area of democracy work. We welcome items announcing publications, upcoming events, reports on research, new Web sites, and other information, and we are most interested in posting requests for partnerships between organizations on collaborative projects, brief descriptions of collaborative projects already underway or completed, and ideas for new initiatives in which others may be interested. We hope DemocracyNews will be a source not only for information about participants' activities, but also for new ideas about strategies to advance democracy.

Please share this message with your colleagues.

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To subscribe send an email to subscribe-democracynews@lyris.ned.org

Dear Friends,

Colleagues,

This Psychiatric News article makes the upcoming February 10th symposium all the more important. Please pass the word about both. Despite our attitudes toward the war, let us not mix the warrior with the war and do all we can for those who "bore the battle."

Best wishes,
Charles

Dear Colleague:

The January 2006 issue of Psychology International, the bi-monthly newsletter of the APA Office of International Affairs is now posted at http://www.apa.org/international/picurrent.html. This month’s issue features articles on international collaborations, services to humanitarian aid workers, ageing at the UN, APA and WHO, a call “toward a global psychology,” and announcements of upcoming opportunities.

Office of International Affairs
American Psychological Association
750 First Street, NE
Washington, DC 20002
Phone: 202.336.6025; Fax: 202.312/6499
E-mail: international@apa.org
Web: www.apa.org/international

Fascism and Democracy in the Human Mind, by I.W. Charny

forthcoming book Spring 2006 (books will be shipped in April), University of Nebraska Press:

"This is one of the most important books of this decade.”
Douglas H. Sprenkle, psychologist, Purdue University.
“Momentous. . . . This is the most innovative piece of scholarship I have ever read."
Robert Hitchcock, anthropologist, University of Nebraska

Cloth, 2006, 544 pp., 0-8032-1550-9, $49.95

University of Nebraska Press, 1111 Lincoln Mall, Lincoln, NE 68588-0630

Order toll-free: 800 755-1105 Fax orders only: 800 526-2617

E-Mail: pressmail@unl.edu On-line catalog: www.nebraskapress.unl.edu

Special discount extended to February 28, 2006 $39.95 plus shipping: when ordering note code XCPF

Add shipping $5.00 ($8 overseas) first book and 50 cents ($1 overseas) second.

Fascism and Democracy in the Human Mind
A Bridge between Mind and Society
By I. W. Charny

“Charny argues persuasively that fascism and democracy are not only political systems but ways of organizing the mind. His book builds a convincing link between societal evil and the mind of the individual perpetrator. . . . [This is] one of the most important books of this decade.”—Douglas H. Sprenkle, a professor of marriage and family therapy and the author of Effectiveness Research in Marriage and Family Therapy.

“Momentous. . . . [This is] the most innovative piece of scholarship I have ever read. Fascism and Democracy in the Human Mind is extremely timely and it offers suggestions about ways to go forward in conflict resolution at the societal, family, and individual levels. I know of no other books in psychology or Holocaust and genocide studies that have linked societal and individual processes in as innovative a way as this book does.”—Robert K. Hitchcock, an anthropologist and coeditor of Endangered Peoples of Africa and the Middle East: Struggles to Survive and Thrive.

“Charny suggests new principles and approaches for individual and family therapy as well as for reducing the danger of future war, genocide, and terrorism. This is a hopeful and useful book, despite also being a wakeup call, insofar as it demonstrates how deeply-rooted the fascist mentality can become in individuals and societies.”—Eric Markusen, a sociologist and the coauthor of The Genocidal Mentality: Nazi Holocaust and Nuclear Threat.

“Charny’s understanding that fascism and democracy are not just political systems, but psychological states or forces gives us powerful tools for a holistic approach to fighting much that is evil. Charny’s theory gives us a way of understanding that we are all on a continuum, from Hitler as perhaps the purest example of a mind given over entirely to ‘totalitarianism,’ to those who enact a ‘democratic’ life. As many of us are, I am certainly far from the ‘democratic’ ideal, but struggling toward it.”—Henry Theriault, an associate professor of philosophy and coordinator of the Center for the Study of Human Rights at Worcester State College in Massachusetts.

What might you have done if you had been caught up in the Holocaust? In My Lai? In Rwanda? Confronted with acts of violence and evil on scales grand and small, we ask ourselves, baffled, how such horrors can happen—how human beings seemingly like ourselves can commit such atrocities. The answer, I. W. Charny suggests in this important new work, may be found in each one of us, in the different and distinct ways in which we organize our minds.

An internationally recognized scholar of the psychology of violence, Charny defines two paradigms of mental organization, the democratic and the fascist, and shows how these systems can determine behavior in intimate relationships, social situations, and events of global significance. With its novel conception of mental health and illness, this book develops new directions for diagnosis and treatment of emotional disorders that are played out in everyday acts of violence against ourselves and others. Fascism and Democracy in the Human Mind also offers much-needed insight into the sources and workings of terrorism and genocide. A sane, radical statement about the guiding principles underlying acts of violence and evil, this book sounds a passionate call for the democratic way of thinking, which recognizes complexity, embraces responsibility, and affirms life.

I. W. Charny is the editor in chief of the Encyclopedia of Genocide and the executive director of the Institute on the Holocaust and Genocide in Jerusalem. A practicing clinical psychologist and family therapist, he is a professor of psychology and family therapy at Hebrew University of Jerusalem. He is the current president of the International Association of Genocide Scholars, and a past president of the International Family Therapy Association.
Fascism and Democracy in the Human Mind

Table of Contents
Author’s Preface

Chapter 1: What is the Original ‘Mind Software’ We Humans Receive at the ‘Factory’? We Start from a Weakminded, Rigid, and in effect Fascist Mind Position and then Need to Grow Up, but Do We?

Chapter 2: The Choice between Fascist Mind and Democratic Mind: What Chance Do We have of Changing Our “Fascist Minds” to “Democratic Minds”?

Chapter 3: The Fascist Believer: Totality, Overcertainty, and Suppression of Information

Chapter 4: The Fascist Slave: Obedience, Conformity, and Intolerance of Dissent

Chapter 5: The Fascist Fist: Superiority, Excessive Power, and Violence Against Self and Others

Chapter 6: The Fascist Denier: ‘I Never Did Any Harm’ – Denials of Doing Harm to Oneself or To Others

Chapter 7: Democratic Mind as the Healthy Alternative to Fascist Mind: The Joy of Life Process and Opportunity

Chapter 8: Psychotherapy as Anti-Fascism and Training for Democracy: The Psychotherapy Room as a Dedicated Experience in Democracy

Chapter 9: Discovering Applications of Democratic Mind in Everyday Life: How to Use our Minds Safely, Wholesomely, and Creatively

Chapter 10: Unified Theory of Democratic Mind in the Self, Family, and Society: A Vision of More Decent Human Beings who do Less Harm to Themselves and Others

Closing: The Care and Maintenance of the Bridge between Mind and Society: The Privilege and Responsibility of Working to Achieve Democratic Minds and Societies

Epilogue/About The Author: Israel W. Charny’s Background as a Psychotherapist and as a Peace Researcher Studying Genocide

AMARC ends its broadcast at the WSF in Bamako to follow on with Caracas

Montreal, January 24, 2006. The World Association of Community Radio Broadcasters (AMARC) has covered the activities of the 6th Polycentric World Social Forums in Bamako, Mali from January 19th to 23rd . The next step in the coverage will take place in Caracas, Venezuela from January 24th to 28th.

The WSF in Bamako was a preview of the World Social Forum of 2007, which will take place in Nairobi, Kenya, and gave an echo of African popular mobilization in areas of interest to Africans going from privatizations to land issues, passing by the debt and the GMO.

The AMARC delegation covering the Polycentric Social Forums comprises more than thirty journalists representing community radios from Latin America and the Caribbean, North America, Africa and Europe. The activities of the polycentric WSF in Bamako, Mali were covered with the support of the Community Radio Alliances of Mali (ARCOM), Canadian Crossroads International (CCI) and Simbani - Amarc Africa press agency. In Caracas the Polycentric WSF will be covered by Pulsar - Amarc ALC press agency, by Radio Forum, by Prometheus Radio Project, by WORT-FM Madison's community Radio and by the delegation of Community Radios from Québec.

To listen to the audio files produced by AMARC's journalists visit http://wsf.amarc.org.

The World Association of Community Radio Broadcasters (AMARC) is an international non-governmental organization serving the community radio movement. It links more than 3000 members in more than 110 countries.

For more information visit AMARC's Web site at: http://www.amarc.org.
Contact: Marcelo Solervicens, (514) 982-0351.

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L'AMARC termine sa couverture radio au FSM de Bamako pour enchaîner avec celle de Caracas

Montréal, le 23, janvier 2006. L'Association mondiale des radiodiffuseurs communautaires (AMARC) a couvert les activités de la 6ieme édition du forum social mondial polycentrique qui s'est tenu à Bamako, au Mali du 19 au 23 janvier. La prochaine étape de cette couverture se fera du 24 au 28 janvier à Caracas au Vénézuela.

Le FSM de Bamako, en avant-première du forum social mondial de 2007, prévu à Nairobi, Kenya, a fait écho à cette amorce de mobilisation populaire africaine qui s'est notamment concentré sur des questions propres à l'Afrique allant des privatisations à la question foncière en passant par la dette ou les OGM.

La délégation de l'AMARC couvrant les forums sociaux décentralisés est composée de plus de trente journalistes représentant des radios communautaires d'Amérique latine et des Caraïbes, d'Amérique du Nord, d'Afrique et d'Europe. La couverture des activités du Forum social polycentrique Bamako, au Mali a été assuré grâce à l'Alliances des radio communautaires du Mali (ARCOM), du Carrefour Canadien Internationale (CCI) et de Simbani - l'agence de presse d'AMARC Afrique. À Caracas la couverture sera prise en charge par Pulsar - l'agence de presse d'AMARC Amérique Latine et Caraïbes, par le projet de radio Prometheus, par le Forums des radios, par WORT-FM Madison et par la délégation de radios communautaires du Québec.

Pour écouter les fichiers audio réalisés visitez http://wsf.amarc.org.

AMARC est une organisation non gouvernemental international servant le mouvement de la radio communautaire dans plus de 110 pays, et préconisant le droit à la communication aux niveaux international, régional, national et local.

Pour plus d'information visitez l'AMARC: http://www.amarc.org.

Contactez: Marcelo Solervicens, (514) 982-0351.

------------------------

AMARC termina la cobertura del FSM en Bamako y comienza en Caracas

Montreal, 24 de enero de 2006. La Asociación Mundial de Radios Comunitarias (AMARC) cubrió las actividades del 6º Foro Social Mundial Policentrico en Bamako, mali del 19 al 23 de Enero. La próxima etapa es el Foro Social Mundial en Caracas, Venezuela del 24 al 28 de Enero.

El FSM de bamako fue una preparación para el Foro Social Mundial de 2007, en Nairobi, Kenya y le dio la palabra a la movilización social africana concentrándose en temas especificos de la realidad africana, que van de las privatizaciones a la propiedad de la tierra, pasando entre otros temas, por el de la deuda externa y los organismos geneticamente modificados.

La delegación de AMARC que cubre los foros decentralizados comprende a más de 30 periodistas que representan radios comunitarias de América latina y el Caribe, de América del Norte, de Africa, de Europa y de Asia. La cobertura de de las actividades del Foro Social plicentrico de Bamako fue posible gracias a la Alianza de radios Comunitarias de Mali (ARCOM), del Carrefour Canadien International (CCI) y de Simbani - La Agencia de prensa de AMARC Africa. En caracas la cobertura será realizada por Pulsar - La Agencia de información de AMARC en América latina y el Caribe, por ALER, por el projecto de radio Prometheus, por el Foro de radios , por WORT-FM de Madison y por la delegación de radios comunitarias de Québec .

Para escuchar los documentos audio realizados visite http://wsf.amarc.org.

AMARC es una organización no gubernamental internacional al servicio del movimiento de la radio comunitaria en más de 110 países, y que preconiza el derecho a la comunicación a nivel internacional, regional, nacional y local.

Para más informaciones visite la AMARC en http://www.amarc.org.
Contacte Marcelo Solervicens (514) 982-0351.

Progress on UN Reform: What role can and will civil society play?

Date: Thursday February 9, 2006

Time: 1:00-2:30 PM

Location: Church Center of the UN
777 UN Plaza (2nd Floor Conference Room)
New York, NY 10017

RSVP: Full contact information to:
Jessica Hartl, UNA-USA
202-462-3446
jhartl@unausa.org

Featured Speaker

His Excellency Mr. Jan Eliasson, President of the Sixtieth Session of the United Nations General Assembly

Background

"In this 60th anniversary year of the United Nations, let us again acknowledge the wisdom of the founders, who in Article 71 made provision for consultations with NGOs. Close engagement with civil society was seen then as vital for the Organization's health and for people's well-being. That is as true today as it was then - if anything, even more so." United Nations Secretary General Kofi Annan made this remark in his closing comments to the 58th Annual DPI/NGO Conference in September 2005. With such support from the Secretary General, and particularly with a new General Assembly President who is also a proponent of civil society engagement at the UN, what role will civil society play in the future of the UN? And how have they helped the UN thus far in moving forward with reform efforts? This briefing, sponsored by UNA-USA's Council of Organizations, will feature General Assembly President Jan Eliasson, addressing progress on reform efforts in the context of civil society engagement; his interest in more civil society participation at the UN; why there is such a push now for this; and what role he envisions for civil society actors

Common Ground News Service – Partners in Humanity (CGNews-PiH)
January 24, 2006

Common Ground News Service – Partners in Humanity (CGNews-PiH) is distributing the enclosed articles to build bridges of understanding between the West and the Arab world, and countries with significant Muslim populations. Unless otherwise noted, copyright permission has been obtained and the articles may be reproduced by any news outlet or publication, free of charge. If publishing, please acknowledge both the original source and Common Ground News Service, and notify us at cgnewspih@sfcg.org.

**********

ARTICLES IN THIS EDITION:

5. US celebrates its most misread freedom by Jane Lampman
According to recent polls, Jane Lampman, staff writer for the Christian Science Monitor, writes that Americans aren’t sure how the separation of church and state actually guarantees their religious freedom. Although 50% of those asked felt they have too little religious freedom in schools, for example, “students are free to pray individually or in groups, to form religious clubs and publications, to express religious views in their school assignments, and wear religious messages on their clothing.” Lampman describes what the U.S. government is doing to help citizens understand that their First Amendment right is what actually makes such a free expression of their faith possible.
(Source: The Christian Science Monitor, January 18, 2006)

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ARTICLE 1
The real choice in Iraq
Zbigniew Brzezinski

"Bring 'em on" - President George W. Bush on Iraqi insurgents, summer 2003
The insurgency is "in its last throes" - Vice President Dick Cheney, summer 2005
"... There are only two options before our country: victory or defeat" - President Bush, Christmas 2005

Washington - The administration's rhetorical devolution speaks for itself. Yet, with some luck and with a more open decision-making process in the White House, greater political courage on the part of Democratic leaders and even some encouragement from authentic Iraqi leaders, the U.S. war in Iraq could (and should) come to an end within a year.

"Victory or defeat" is, in fact, a false strategic choice. In using this formulation, the president would have the American people believe that their only options are either "hang in and win" or "quit and lose." But the real, practical choice is this: "persist but not win" or "desist but not lose."

Victory, as defined by the administration and its supporters - a stable and secular democracy in a unified Iraqi state, with the insurgency crushed by the American military assisted by a disciplined, U.S.-trained Iraqi national army - is unlikely.

The U.S. force required to achieve it would have to be significantly larger than the present one, and the Iraqi support for a U.S.-led counterinsurgency would have to be more motivated.

The current U.S. forces (soon to be reduced) are not large enough to crush the anti-American insurgency or stop the sectarian Sunni-Shiite strife. Both problems continue to percolate under an inconclusive but increasingly hated foreign occupation.

Moreover, neither the Shiites nor the Kurds are likely to subordinate their specific interests to a unified Iraq with a genuine, single national army. As the haggling over the new government has already shown, the two dominant forces in Iraq - the religious Shiite alliance and the separatist Kurds - share a common interest in preventing a restoration of Sunni domination, with each determined to retain a separate military capacity for asserting its own specific interests, largely at the cost of the Sunnis.

A truly national army in that context is a delusion. Continuing doggedly to seek "a victory" in that fashion dooms America to rising costs in blood and money, not to mention the intensifying Muslim hostility and massive erosion of America's international legitimacy, credibility and moral reputation.

The administration's definition of "defeat" is similarly misleading. Official and unofficial spokesmen often speak in terms that recall the apocalyptic predictions made earlier regarding the consequences of American failure to win in Vietnam: dominoes falling, the region exploding and U.S. power discredited. An added touch is the notion that the Iraqi insurgents will then navigate the Atlantic and wage terrorism on the American homeland.

The real choice that needs to be faced is between:
An acceptance of the complex post-Saddam Iraqi realities through a relatively prompt military disengagement, which would include a period of transitional and initially even intensified political strife as the dust settled and as authentic Iraqi majorities fashioned their own political arrangements.

An inconclusive but prolonged military occupation lasting for years while an elusive goal is pursued.

It is doubtful, to say the least, that America's domestic political support for such a futile effort could long be sustained by slogans about Iraq's being "the central front in the global war on terrorism."

In contrast, a military disengagement by the end of 2006, derived from a more realistic definition of an adequate outcome, could ensure that desisting is not tantamount to losing.

In an Iraq dominated by the Shiites and the Kurds, who together account for close to 75 percent of the population, the two peoples would share a common interest in Iraq's independence as a state.

The Kurds, with their autonomy already amounting in effect to quasi-sovereignty, would otherwise be threatened by the Turks. And the Iraqi Shiites are first of all Arabs; they have no desire to be Iran's satellites. Some Sunnis, once they were aware that the U.S. occupation was drawing to a close and that soon they would be facing an overwhelming Shiite-Kurdish coalition, would be more inclined to accommodate the new political realities, especially when deprived of the rallying cry of resistance to a foreign occupier.

In addition, it is likely that both Kuwait and the Kurdish regions of Iraq would be amenable to some residual U.S. military presence as a guarantee against a sudden upheaval. Once the United States terminated its military occupation, some form of participation by Muslim states in peacekeeping in Iraq would be easier to contrive, and their involvement could also help to cool anti-American passions in the region.

In any case, as Iraqi politics gradually become more competitive, it is almost certain that the more authentic Iraqi leaders (not handpicked by the United States), to legitimate their claim to power, will begin to demand publicly a firm date for U.S. withdrawal.

That is all to the good. In fact, they should be quietly encouraged to do so, because that would increase their popular support while allowing the United States to claim a soberly redefined "Mission Accomplished."

The requisite first step to that end is for the president to break out of his political cocoon. His policymaking and his speeches are the products of the true believers around him who are largely responsible for the mess in Iraq. They have a special stake in their definition of victory, and they reinforce his convictions instead of refining his judgments. The president badly needs to widen his circle of advisers.

Finally, Democratic leaders should stop equivocating while carping. Those who want to lead in 2008 are particularly unwilling to state clearly that ending the war soon is both desirable and feasible. They fear being labelled as unpatriotic. Yet defining a practical alternative would provide a politically effective rebuttal to those who mindlessly seek an unattainable "victory." America needs a real choice regarding its tragic misadventure in Iraq.

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* Zbigniew Brzezinski was national security adviser to President Jimmy Carter. This Global Viewpoint article was distributed by Tribune Media Services International.
Source: International Herald Tribune, January 9, 2006
Visit the website at www.iht.com
Distributed by the Common Ground News Service – Partners in Humanity.
Copyright permission has been obtained from the author for publication.

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ARTICLE 2
Global Approach
Arab News Editorial

London - The two-day anti-terror conference organised in London by Saudi Arabia and the UK’s Royal United Services Institute, which ended last night, may have achieved a lot more than examining how effectively countries are currently working together to fight international terror. The conference title “Transnational Terrorism: A Global Approach” hid an extra text which hopefully will allow a massive effort to combat the terrorist on a third and arguably more effective front. In his keynote opening speech, the Kingdom’s Foreign Minister Prince Saud Al-Faisal drove home the point that terrorists must be deprived of the opportunity to extort sympathy and support by annexing issues such as the plight of the Palestinians to their own perverted cause.

Hunting down and fighting international terror is of course only a part of the story. As the Muslim world has accepted, it is also important to destroy the poverty and ignorance that have produced fertile fields from which Al-Qaeda and its satraps reap recruits. Following on from the historic agreement at last year’s Organisation of Islamic Conference summit in Riyadh, a major effort is under way to alleviate poverty and root out religious teachers who distort and betray the tenets of Islam.

But the third front that must be opened should address the wrongs and injustices against the Arab and wider Islamic world, which have given such a potent source of propaganda to the men of violence. And only America and Europe have the power to achieve this.

The Bush White House, having cast aside all the wise counsel available from professional diplomats in the State Department, originally bet mainly on major force to fight terror. Four years on, it is clear that far from working, the US iron fist may have increased the number of opponents. It is certain that every innocent civilian casualty, every operational error made by the Americans, is adding to the general sense of grievance and frustration. If the US really cares about peace and justice, why is it not confronting the injustices and violence visited on the Palestinians by the Israelis? If the US really wants Iran to abandon any idea of nuclear weapons, why does it not force Israel to comply with International Atomic Energy Agency rules? Why does it shelter a state that has already turned the Middle East nuclear?

Unlike the Americans, the Europeans have long recognised the pivotal role that the plight of the Palestinians plays in undermining confidence in the fairness of US Middle East policy. Prince Saud’s British counterpart Jack Straw underlined the problem in his own address to the London conference. However the time has now come for the Europeans to come up with more than words. While America with its annual multibillion dollar support for Israel holds the key to enforcing a just resolution of the plight of the Palestinians, the Europeans can and should be working far harder, politically and economically to promote and sustain a viable independent Palestinian state in order to rob international terror of the easiest excuse for its depravities.

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* This article was published as an Arab News editorial.
Source: Arab News, January 18, 2006
Visit the website at www.arabnews.com
Distributed by the Common Ground News Service – Partners in Humanity.
Copyright permission has been obtained from the author for publication.

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ARTICLE 3
Resorting to reasoning
Jordan Times Editorial

Amman - The diplomatic war of words between Iran and the West over Iran's uranium enrichment programme shows no sign of ending. Yesterday, France rebuffed an attempt by Tehran to restart talks with the EU and the US on the issue. France, presumably in line with other Western governments, wants Iran first to stop its programme again.

There are several issues at stake. On the one hand is the basic undesirability of there being any more nuclear weapons anywhere else in the world. Nuclear weapons are bad, and the fewer there are, the better. Of course, Iran is not claiming to want to build nuclear weapons. Iran says it wants to enrich uranium for strictly peaceful purposes.

That is not good enough for the West, despite the fact that Iran, unlike India and Israel, has signed the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT). Apparently, signing the NPT is not necessary if one is a US ally, and not enough if one is not.

The US in particular appears adamant in wanting to refer Iran to the UN Security Council for possible sanctions. Considering the track record the international community has in enforcing UN Security Council resolutions in this region, particularly with regards to Israel, perhaps the international community should think twice before it allows its regional policies to become even more identified with duplicity.

The West does not trust Iran with the ability to enrich uranium, which is necessary to build the bomb. Iran's support of Hizbollah in Lebanon and general ability to get up the West's nose, the US and Israel in particular, is a cause of concern. According to a US spokesperson, and with no apparent hint of irony, Iran is a source of instability in the region.

Underlying the West's rejection of further talks is a more iron-cast conviction that despite its official position, Iran is indeed pursuing a secret programme to develop nuclear weapons. Iran's behaviour, in periodically suspending the activities of International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) monitors, has contributed to this suspicion. It is an all-too familiar and disquieting story.

Let's hope the West this time does not decide to act rashly again based on ill-informed suspicion. Iran, too, can learn from Iraq. The sensible proposal by the head of the IAEA, Mohammad Al Baradei, that Iran could have its uranium enriched for it by a nuclear power was dismissed by Iran.

Apparently, Iran does not trust the West with the future of its energy supply. That is hardly surprising, but it would be nice to see sensible proposals receive sensible consideration. For this, the sensible approach is to start talking again. Let the diplomatic war remain diplomatic.

###
* This article was published as a Jordan Times editorial.
Source: Jordan Times, January 19, 2006
Visit the website at www.jordantimes.com
Distributed by the Common Ground News Service – Partners in Humanity.
Copyright permission has been obtained from the author for publication.

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ARTICLE 4
If You Talk To One Enemy, Talk to All
Rami G. Khouri

Beirut - Here's one for the Moral Confusion and Political Double Standards Department: the United States' armed forces and government are holding discreet talks with Iraqi "insurgents" who are attacking and killing Americans in Iraq, and negotiating with a North Korea that they see as a nuclear threat. Yet the same U.S. government refuses to talk to Hamas, Hizbollah, the Muslim Brotherhood and other Islamists in the Arab world, and Iran, all of whom challenge the state of Israel. Say what?

The U.S. single-handedly created the Iraqi insurgents through its invasion and regime change, and it now is acting rather sensibly in opening discussions with these groups that want the Americans to leave the country. The U.S. did the same thing years ago in Vietnam, when it negotiated with the North Vietnamese and the Viet Cong while they were actively fighting and killing Americans. It also pursued a similar strategy in Northern Ireland, where it played the third-party mediator role and actively (and successfully) engaged the various Protestant and Catholic militant groups who routinely used terror as a political tool.

These are examples of realism and pragmatism for which assorted U.S. administrations should be commended. Living in the real world is a noble and useful endeavour. When Washington practices this here and there on the international stage, it should be acknowledged for its level-headedness and encouraged to expand this approach to define its policies everywhere. However, something happens to American official pragmatism and realism when it comes to political and diplomatic moves related to Israel. The Moral Confusion and Political Double Standards Department kicks in, and the U.S. repeatedly opens itself up to accusations of hypocrisy and expediency. If the U.S., Israel, Micronesia and Tony Blair are tired of hearing these accusations, they should stand in our shoes and feel the pain of being at the receiving end of this sort of sustained moral laxity and political double standards for decades on end.

This persistent double standard has enormous consequences over time, which is why it must be dealt with in a more effective manner than has been the case to date. It generates strong scepticism about American policies in the Middle East among the public, and now has also sparked active military and terror attacks against American interests and troops.

The most important point about the double standard these days is not that it is counter-productive, but that we may stand before an opportunity to replace it by a more sensible and effective policy that responds to the legitimate concerns of all parties - namely the U.S., Israel, Arab groups and states and Iran. This opportunity is the current twin focus on the widespread international and more limited Arab demand to "disarm" Hamas and Hizbollah, while those groups and other Islamists actively engage in democratic elections and slowly move into power-sharing arrangements in national governments.

The key to progress requires acknowledging the basic legitimacy of both sides' posture and principles, in order to induce changes in their respective policies. The current American-Israeli approach is unlikely to succeed because it places a higher priority on the security of Israel than on that of adjacent Arab societies, especially in Lebanon and Palestine. A better way would be to apply the American approach to North Korea and the Iraqi insurgents-terrorists and to Islamists in the Middle East, by identifying the legitimate needs of both sides and engaging in sober discussions to agree on how to move to meet those needs.

This is not only eminently sensible and politically productive; it is also profoundly American in its conceptual and moral approach. Americans generally adopt a nuts-and-bolts attitude that embraces the realities of the world, rather than a romantic or stubborn divergence toward political landscapes inhabited by people who are unreasonable, colonial and racist. Why Washington deviates from this pattern when it comes to Israel remains an important question that has never been honestly answered.

More important than the rhetorical discussion, however, is the impact of policy, and in this domain all concerned should pause and take a deep breath to explore how we can replace the distortions, double standards and killing cycles of the recent past with a win-win outcome that is more satisfying and humane. Israel is unlikely to budge for the moment, but Washington is not so fettered (one presumes), as evidenced by its pragmatism in talking with those killing Americans whom it spawned in Iraq.

Islamist groups and Iran, for their part, also should reach into their largely untapped reservoirs of diplomatic sensibility and bold realism. Hamas, Hizbollah and others should spell out more clearly - in public or private, it doesn't matter much in the early stages - how they would envisage moving along the same path of military disarmament, political empowerment, and national integrity and security that, say, the IRA in Northern Ireland has travelled in the past decade. Washington is comfortable with this approach, and the Arab and Iranian Islamists should exploit it more adroitly than they have to date. The aim is to close the Moral Confusion and Political Double Standards Department, not chronically to dwell in it and suffer its ravages.

###
* Rami G. Khouri writes a regular commentary for the Daily Star.
Source: Daily Star, January 14, 2006
Visit the website at www.dailystar.com.lb
Distributed by the Common Ground News Service – Partners in Humanity.
Copyright permission has been obtained from the author for publication.

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ARTICLE 5
US celebrates its most misread freedom
Jane Lampman

Washington - It may be America's most important gift to the world. It began 220 years ago this week. Yet many Americans, it seems, still don't understand what it entails. It's the country's unique experiment in religious freedom, rooted in the First Amendment to the Constitution.

As the first historic act in the experiment - the 1786 Virginia Statute Establishing Religious Freedom - is celebrated in Richmond Wednesday, many see that lack of understanding as a challenge for the growing religious and ideological diversity in the United States.

"While Americans do count freedom of religion as one of our most precious rights," says Audrey Smith, acting director of the Council for America's First Freedom, in Richmond, "many citizens aren't sure how they exercise those rights, or what is not allowed under our Constitution."

A national survey by the council in October, for instance, revealed a deep ambivalence about a fundamental principle of religious freedom: the separation of church and state.

While 47 percent of those polled said it is important to keep the traditional principle, 27 percent said it should be less strictly interpreted, and 23 percent said "there is really no need to separate church and state."

"I think folks don't understand what that means," Ms. Smith says. The separation is what makes religious freedom possible.

Another popular misperception relates to religious freedom in public schools. In the 2005 State of the First Amendment poll, 50 percent of respondents said students have "too little religious freedom." Yet students are free to pray individually or in groups, to form religious clubs and publications, to express religious views in their school assignments, and wear religious messages on their clothing. Unfortunately, many educators are unfamiliar with those rights, though the government has issued guidelines.

"There is tremendous importance to educating people more deeply," says W. Cole Durham, Jr., a religious liberty expert at Brigham Young University law school in Provo, Utah. "This is an issue people care deeply about and want to understand. They relate to these ideals in terms of their practical experiences, and they'll have emotional reactions."

Just last week, for instance, in a case with broad implications for religious schools and US universities, Calvary Chapel Christian School in Murrieta, California, sued the University of California for refusing to give applicants credit for courses taught from a religious perspective. The university says it has the right to set academic standards; the school says the university discriminates against conservative Christian viewpoints.

Issues of religious freedom have become more visible and contentious in recent decades as faith groups push back against what they see as an oversecularisation of American life. But the debates have become so heated, some say, because groups at the extremes - secular and religious - are most vociferous.

"The [founders'] idea of a secular state with neutrality toward religion emerged out of the need to keep warring religious factions in check," says Professor Durham. "It envisions a place where everyone is free to bring their ideas and distinct identities to the table." But a secular fundamentalism has developed with its own dogma, saying everything has to be secular. That, in turn, spurred a religious response, which also has its fundamentalist strain.

The shouting matches have helped give separation of church and state a bad reputation, says Charles Haynes, of the First Amendment Center in Arlington, Virginia. "There's been an effort over recent decades to persuade many conservative religious people that separation is not in the Constitution, and to undermine support for it."

In fact, some are vigorously promoting the idea among churches of a so-called "return to being a Christian nation."

Dr. Haynes, who advises schools on these issues, offers a vivid example of the misunderstanding found not just among Christians. "American Muslims often tell me how much they appreciate the freedom to practice Islam the way they want to, which they couldn't do in their native country even though it was a Muslim nation," he says. "But then they say, 'What is this nonsense about the separation of church and state - why do we need that?' They don't understand that's why they have their freedom.

"My sense is that the principle of separation, properly understood, would have wide support ... but the shouting matches have made it problematic," Haynes adds. "Yet another part of the population thinks it's the most critical concept we could have."

The Council for America's First Freedom has taken on the mission of promoting deeper understanding of religious freedom. Its educational efforts include a national essay contest in which 2,400 high school students from 48 states are participating this year.

At Wednesday's commemoration of the Virginia statute (and National Religious Freedom Day), the 2006 First Freedom Awards will be presented to extraordinary advocates for liberty in the US and abroad.

The international honouree is Vaclav Havel, playwright, former Czech president, and eloquent advocate for freedom of conscience. Mr. Havel promotes interfaith dialogue and the resolution of religious conflicts through his Forum 2000 and Shared Concern Initiative, which bring high-level leaders together on difficult challenges facing the world.

Rep. Chet Edwards (D) of Texas will receive the national award for his work in educating Congress and the public. The Virginia award will go to Robert S. Alley, professor emeritus of humanities at the University of Richmond and author of influential books, including "School Prayer: The Court, the Congress, and the First Amendment."

But the Council's biggest plans involve building the First Freedom Center as a world-class museum, meeting place, and educational resource on religious freedom. Educators from across the US, Smith says, have emphasised their need for "accurate information without religious or political bias." Materials will be made available to schools and religious groups, including online.

No such resource exists in the US, Haynes says. "The potential is enormous for helping Americans have a better historical grounding in the First Amendment, and a better appreciation for why this bold yet fragile experiment is probably America's greatest contribution to world civilisation."

###
* Jane Lampman is a staff writer for the Christian Science Monitor.
Source: The Christian Science Monitor, January 18, 2006
Visit the website at www.csmonitor.com
Distributed by the Common Ground News Service – Partners in Humanity.
Copyright permission can be obtained from the Christian Science Monitor by contacting lawrenced@csps.com.

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Dear Friends and Colleagues of the IIPE and the Peace Education Center,

I’m writing to you today seeking your support for an important new initiative of the Peace Education Center (TCPEC) and the International Institute on Peace Education (IIPE). We are planning a tremendous undertaking that will a) broaden the vision and scope of the IIPE, b) significantly increase its constituency, c) provide greater outreach and training in peace education, and d) further support and complement other global peace education initiatives such as the Global Campaign for Peace Education.

A Renewed Sense of Purpose and a Broader Vision

The annual IIPE is built upon two important and inseparable guiding concepts: cooperative learning and community. As a short term learning community, the IIPE has brought together educators and professionals from around the world to learn with and from each other in a community of learners. In the process, the IIPE has inspired many participants to develop their own local initiatives.

Several requests have been made for additional IIPE offerings and perhaps for an annual institute in the US. We have long agreed that support and activities need to be extended beyond the annual IIPE to serve the growing demand for the type of learning that the Institute offers for educators from all levels of society, including those practicing in non-formal and informal contexts.

There currently exist a large number of internationally comprised organizations of peace education practitioners, academics and advocates but little organization exists that addresses the needs of peace educators at the local level. There are practitioners of peace education in nearly every community around the world – however, local support networks barely exist. Furthermore, the existing international activities and training possibilities in peace education rarely reflect local needs and relevant practices.

CIPE: Extending the IIPE Community

To address these local needs the TCPEC proposes to extend the IIPE community through the creation and coordination of locally based mini institutes (1-2 days) built upon the current IIPE program model. The workshops and plenaries of the IIPE program have always been comprised of and conducted by IIPE participants. These mini IIPEs, with a working title of “Community Institutes on Peace Education – CIPE,” would be organized by former hosts and participants of the IIPE in their local communities. The program will be comprised of interactive plenaries, workshops, and reflection groups addressing locally relevant issues and concerns of peace educators.

Foundations for a New Social Movement: Addressing Local and Global Needs

The CIPEs have been conceived to address long unattended challenges to the development and dissemination of the field of peace education, including:

· Providing local support for peace educators. There are educators practicing peace education in nearly every corner of the world, yet we know little of the existence of each other and the work that we are doing. The IIPE has brought together people in solidarity from around the world, but little has been done to bring people together at the local level.

· Learning from each other about best practices. The IIPE community is itself its greatest intellectual and practical resource. A world of experts exists amongst the daily practitioners of peace education. As a community of learners we have much to learn from and with each other.

· Addressing current and relevant local content and issues. The annual IIPE is designed to address contextually relevant peace issues and obstacles of the host region. However, every community has its own distinct culture and history, and what might be relevant to one might not be as relevant to another. At the community level the CIPE can be developed to address the most pertinent and relevant issues toward instituting educational change.

· Supporting school and community based peace education initiatives. The TCPEC and the IIPE receive numerous requests for supporting emerging peace education programs and initiatives around the world. In many instances, the local community can be better equipped to provide this support. The CIPEs will aid in providing grassroots support with the benefit of being connected to an extensive global community and the IIPE.

· Increasing the possibility for affecting policy locally, nationally, and globally. Any effective strategy for change or social transformation needs to involve actors at all levels of society. It is not enough to only outreach to policymakers and power-holders. Formal and non-formal educators need to be involved in the process of educational change as they are the most active participants and its greatest stakeholders. Working together they can better show evidence of the need and potential for peace education.

· Increased potential for research and new developments in the field of peace education. We are little aware of the diversity of approaches and practices of peace education that exist in the world. We are even less aware of the success stories of peace education. The CIPE will bring the global community closer together through extending networking and sharing.

Providing Support: A Virtual Community

The TCPEC would provide support for this movement by coordinating a virtual community through an interactive website that will include a calendar of events, reports of institutes, workshop outlines for adaptation (a new effort at sharing contextually relevant examples of curriculum in peace education), plenary presentations, best papers and practices from emerging educators, and a special monthly essay section (1000 words max). This web-based initiative will aid the CIPEs in connecting to global initiatives and developments in peace education.

All this shapes up into more of a social movement than a one-time, stand-alone education experience. It warmly wraps together the best of the IIPE – community and cooperation – into a package more suitable to support its constituents and promote social transformation directed toward the reduction and elimination of all forms of direct and indirect violence.

The Potential and What it Involves

The potential for the CIPEs is immense. More than 1000 people have participated in the IIPE in the past 25 years – and an initial survey indicates a strong possibility that a minimum of 12 CIPEs could be conducted in the first year. It is expected that these mini IIPEs could grow exponentially each year.

The costs for hosting and organizing a CIPE are minimal, and any funds necessary could be easily supported by the participants. The TCPEC is in the process of developing an organizers manual for making the planning as easy and smooth as possible. At this summer’s IIPE in Costa Rica we will be formally launching the initiative and will offer workshops for those that are interested in hosting CIPEs.

We NEED your Support

The TCPEC/IIPE is in the process of applying for grants to support the CIPE program. Strong funding is important to ensure that this initiative can get off the ground. For the past 24 years the IIPE has been coordinated and developed by a committed cadre of volunteers, never has anyone been paid to promote this work. With this proposed increase in scope, the IIPE/CIPE will become a full-time effort, requiring even greater dedication and increased support. Funds will be needed to support staff, develop planning and training manuals, to coordinate events, and to keep up with the demands of the community and the web-based network.

We are also seeking funds to support the organizing of CIPEs around the world. Should our fundraising meet its ambitious goals we would like to offer small awards of around $500 US Dollars toward the planning and organizing of the first 50 CIPEs to be hosted in different countries around the world.

How YOU can HELP

We could use your help in any of the following ways:

· To support our fundraising efforts we are hoping to show strong interest for the hosting of CIPEs around the world. We would like to include in our grant applications a strong and diverse list of committed names and organizations who are interested in hosting a CIPE over the next few years. If you are interested we would appreciate it if you could send us your name, affiliation, and address (city, country) to be included in this list.

· We are also in the process of putting together a global advisory board to support the IIPE/CIPE. It would be a great honor to have all former IIPE hosts be a part of this advisory group. We will also accept former participants. Our goal is to have a globally diverse and regionally representative board that can support the decision making process as well as facilitate regional support and networking tasks. If you are interested, again please send us your name and affiliation. We will contact individuals about participation on the advisory board once we have a better sense of interest.

· Finally, we would appreciate any fundraising assistance or contacts you might have to make this vision a possibility.

The vision of the CIPE/IIPE is dependent upon the community that comprises it. The success of the IIPE has never been about the talent or commitment of its organizers. It has always been about the commitment of the participants to learning with and from each other in a spirit of community and solidarity. We hope you will join us in making this vision a reality.

In peace,
Tony Jenkins
General Coordinator
International Institute on Peace Education
Web: www.tc.edu/PeaceEd/IIPE

PS: Applications for IIPE 2006 will be available shortly!

PPS: The IIPE will be 25 years old in 2007! Keep your eyes open for notice of a very special event early in the year.

AfricAvenir News are kindly sent out by Eric Van Grasdorff:

Liebe Freunde,

Im Rahmen der Filmreihe „African Perspectives“ laden AfricAvenir International, die Initiative Südliches Afrika (INISA) und der South African Club Berlin am Sonntag, den 29. Januar, um 17.15 Uhr zur Filmvorführung von Rachid Boucharebs ‚Little Senegal’ in das Berliner Filmtheater Hackesche Höfe ein. Nach der Vorführung besteht die Möglichkeit zur Diskussion mit Dr. Dirk Naguschewski, Kulturwissenschaftler am Zentrum für Literaturforschung Berlin.

Little Senegal
Regie: Rachid Bouchareb, Frankreich, 2001, 98 Min. OmU

Am: Sonntag, den 29. Januar 2006
Beginn: 17.15 Uhr
Ort: Filmtheater Hackesche Höfe (Rosenthaler Str. 40/41; 10178 Berlin)
Vorbestellung: 030/283 46 03 (Mo-Sa ab 14.30 Uhr/So ab 10.30 Uhr)
Eintritt: 5 Euro

Synopsis
Senegal im Jahr 2000. Seit kurzem im Ruhestand entscheidet sich Alloune, ehemaliger Museumsführer im „Haus der Sklaven“ in Senegal, in die USA zu reisen, um sich auf die Suche nach den Nachfahren und Nachfahrinnen seiner Ahnen zu begeben, die vor 200 Jahren als Sklaven und Sklavinnen dorthin in die „Neue Welt“ deportiert wurden. In Little Senegal, einem afrikanischen Wohnviertel in Harlem, trifft Alloune auf seine entfernte Kusine Ida, die jedoch ganz und gar nicht wie er besessen ist von der Idee, die Familie über Jahrhunderte und Grenzen hinweg zusammenzuführen. Durch weitere Begegnungen mit verschiedenen Menschen, wie seinem Neffen Hassan, der illegal Taxi fährt und dessen Verlobten Biram wird Allounes Verständnis von Geschichte durch die Erfahrung der Gegenwart ergänzt, die ihm sämtliche Widersprüche und Konflikte zwischen den USA und Afrika vor Augen führt.

Regisseur
Der 1953 bei Paris geborene Rachid Bouchareb ist Autor, Regisseur und Produzent. Im Zentrum seiner Filme stehen die Erfahrung von Fremdheit, die Suche nach Identität und Heimat sowie die Mythen, die sich damit verbinden. 1985 realisierte er seinen ersten langen Spielfilm “Bâton Rouge”. 1988 gründete er zusammen mit Jean Bréhat die Produktionsfirma “3.B”. Für seinen zweiten Spielfilm “Cheb” (1991) gewann Bouchareb u.a. den Preis “Perspectives du Cinéma” in Cannes. “Little Senegal” (2001) war für den “Goldenen Bären” auf der Berlinale nominiert.

Pressestimmen zum Film
„Eine permanente Bewegung zwischen direkten Gefühlen und kritischer Distanz: So gelingt es dem Film, durch den offenen Raum von Reflexion und Freiheit seine Zuschauer zu faszinieren.“ Le Monde

„Ein magnetisierender Blick, eine vibrierende Intensität, eine große Poesie.“ Télérama

„Eine intelligente und faszinierende Sicht auf einige grundsätzliche amerikanische Themen und Probleme.“ Variety

„Wie Jim Jarmusch in ‚Stranger Than Paradise’ erneuert Bouchareb mit einer umwerfenden Schlichtheit universelle Themen wie Exil, das Vergessen der Herkunft und die erschreckende Nacktheit der modernen Welt.“ Le Point

www.AfricAvenir.org
Wollen Sie Fördermitglied von AfricAvenir International e.V. werden?
Kontaktieren Sie Ann Kathrin Helfrich, Fon: 030-80906789, a.helfrich@africavenir.org

Redaktion des Newsletters: Eric Van Grasdorff, e.vangrasdorff@africavenir.org
AfricAvenir International e.V. ist nicht für die Inhalte externer Webseiten verantwortlich.

Bob Dooley kindly sent the message you see further down to Francisco Gomes de Matos (Friday, December 09, 2005)

Dear Prof. Francisco,

I applaud your concern with humiliation, as I have applauded all of your peace initiatives. As I looked at your checklist, I was reminded of a law of ancient Israel with the same object in mind:

Deuteronomy 25.1-3: “When men have a dispute, they are to take it to court and the judges will decide the case, acquitting the innocent and condemning the guilty. If the guilty man deserves to be beaten, the judge shall make him lie down and have him flogged in his presence with the number of lashes his crime deserves, but he must not give him more than forty lashes. If he is flogged more than that, your brother will be degraded in your eyes."

I think the fact of power is a sociolinguistic given. Governmental power in particular is a given unless there is anarchy. But in this ancient law we see a reasoned limitation on governmental power, given by Israel's God and based on the concept of brotherhood: one who is our brother, we may need to punish but we do not humiliate. How much we need to remember & practice that in a world where humiliation is too often seen as a legitimate tool of power.

Bob Dooley

From One Saudi Woman to Another
by Mody Al-Khalaf, mody.alkhalaf@gmail.com
Original publisher Arab News

With the constant struggle between conflicting opinions in my country
today, I have sadly had to grow used to hearing many statements which
discriminate on the basis of sex. What is sad indeed is that all are
made in the name of Islam. What I have a hard time comprehending,
however, is how statements about female inferiority can be made by
women themselves.

In a recent letter asking "for their Islamic rights," 500 Saudi women
wrote a letter to Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah
asking him to ignore all that is being written in the papers regarding
"Western" rights for women. What the women objected to was the plan to
open more jobs to women. They say that since Islam gives men the
responsibility of supporting women financially, there is no need for
women to work.

Moreover, they claim that the Qur'an orders women to stay at home in
order to maintain family harmony. Family life and motherhood, they
say, is what best suits a woman's physical and psychological nature;
it is, they said, "our real and natural job and what women have
happily lived for since the age of the Prophet (peace be upon him)
until today." For these very reasons, they also ask that our school
curriculum be rewritten in a way that is "harmonious with the nature
of women, with a special focus on religious subjects, the Arabic
language, home economics and motherhood."

Another point which concerned them is that if women are allowed to
work at all the different jobs being suggested "especially those
where the working environment is not sexually segregated" then both
men and women will be exposed to grave dangers. Hence, all ideas
leading to mixing of the sexes should be rejected: "One of the main
aims of Shariah is to protect one's honor by prohibiting any action
that leads to irregularity and if such prohibitions are not set, then
religion is being assaulted." This is also why they feel that women
should not be allowed to drive since "if women are being sexually
harassed in shopping centers, next to schools and in public places,
then what will happen if ” God forbid” women are allowed to drive?"

The 500 women further demand that all "Westernized" writings and ideas
calling for equality between men and women be stopped. At the same
time, they ironically ask that the media not be monopolized; what they
mean is that religious scholars should be given a chance to reply to
those asking for changes that will "shake the structure of our
society." In addition, the women want a separate ministry for women
and their problems - though of course, they add that this ministry
should be run by competent male religious scholars.

These are just some of the points addressed by the 500 women who
emphasize that they reject all claims that the "Westernized minds
calling for women's rights today" represent the needs of Saudi women.

Having a claim to the same nationality, religion and gender, I assume
that I have the right to comment on the above without being accused of
being a Westernized mind speaking on behalf of a group I do not
represent. As a Saudi woman, and one of many who are similarly-minded,
I too ask for my Islamic rights.

I ask for my Islamic right to equality. God, in the Qur'an addresses
me as a complete human being, created in the same way as man:
"Mankind, reverence your guardian lord who created you from a single
person, created of like nature, his mate" (Al Nisa, 1); ordered to
comply by Islamic law in the same manner and promised the same reward
or punishment for my actions: "Never will I suffer to be lost the work
of any of you, be he male or female, ye are members, one of another"
(Al Imran, 195). How dare any human perceive me as inferior or limit
my capabilities in an any way?

I ask for my Islamic right for equality in education. The Prophet
(peace be upon him) ordered all Muslims to seek knowledge. He did not
limit certain fields to one sex or the other. Why should I be limited
to religious and domestic subjects when Aisha was a scholar in fields
as diverse as religion, poetry and medicine? Moreover, she taught and
issued fatwas to both men and women.

I ask for wider vocational opportunities. Unlike what the letter
alleges, women even during the Prophet's age worked in jobs that we no
longer work in today. Wasn't Khadijah, his first wife, a
businesswoman, buying, selling, and negotiating with men and women?
His other wife, Zainab, worked making handicrafts and sold them. The
Prophet's aunt, Umm Munthur, sold dates in Okaz market. She was a
Muslim then and the market was not segregated. Malika Umm Al-Saib was
known as a seller of perfume to the Prophet himself. Atika bint Khaled
had a tent near the Kaaba where she sold food and drinks to both men
and women, just as restaurants do today. Women fought and nursed in
wars alongside the Prophet. Women farmed and herded. If the list is
limited in any way, it is because of the types of occupations
available then — not because of Islamic restrictions. All jobs
available to men then were also available to women.

Thus, no job should be denied to women in the name of Islam. Islam
forbids an unrelated man and woman from being alone — yes; it does
not, however, forbid men and women from mixing. If segregation were
the norm, why were we not requested to be segregated in the Holy
Mosque?

And to the 500 women, I say this: When you go to hospitals, don't you
ask to see women nurses, dentists and doctors? Who would you ask to
see if those nurses, dentists and doctors embraced your interpretation
of Islam and restricted themselves to certain fields or stayed at
home?

Thus, I ask for my Islamic right to work in marketing, sales,
catering, medicine, law, politics, engineering, fashion, the military
or any other occupation which I might choose.

I ask that my Islamic rights to financial support, marriage, divorce,
alimony, and child custody be translated from verbal theories into
practical implications seen in our daily lives. I wonder if the 500
women have noticed that our system has absolutely no power to
implement the Islamic rights we should have, including the right to
financial support mentioned in their letter. And what if a man does
not agree to support me, then what? Am I supposed to sit at home and
wait for charity?

I ask for my Islamic rights to travel with any "mahram" and not just
my legal guardian. I ask for my Islamic right to eat at a restaurant
without a male chaperone. I ask for my Islamic right to drive and not
be forced to ride alone with a non-mahram. I ask for my Islamic right
to get medical treatment without male consent. I ask for my Islamic
right to rent a house without male consent. I ask for my Islamic right
to get an education and job without male consent.

And finally, as a Muslim, I ask for my right to choose. In any
argument, a Muslim has the right to choose the interpretations he or
she wants instead of being forced to go along with other people's
choices. Since I am speaking about women's rights in particular, where
are my rights to choose the interpretations I want regarding my hijab,
for example? Whether to cover my face or not is open to several
interpretations; and there is certainly no Islamic law that says I
must wear black. Aisha said that when given two choices, the Prophet
always chose the easier of the two so long as it was not sinful. Why
am I being deprived of one of my greatest Islamic rights: To follow in
the footsteps of the Prophet?

Freedom of choice is a right the 500 women have too. If they want to
stay at home, limit themselves to certain fields of study, refuse to
drive, or move only in segregated places then they are at liberty to
do so. What they have no right to do, however, is to impose their
views on all Muslim women. Nor do they have the right to speak on our
behalf to the king.

* * *
(Mody Al-Khalaf is a Saudi writer. She is based in Riyadh.)

20/01/2006, Francisco Gomes de Matos kindly wrote to us:

Thought I´d share this with you.
Psychology of VIRTUE ...This makes me
think : can there be a greater virtue
than that of treating human beings/
all beings with LOVING DIGNITY ?

Sunniest virtues,
Francisco

===================================

Field Analysis of Religion, Spirituality and Human Flourishing, by Robert A. Emmons
http://www.metanexus.net/metanexus_online/show_article.asp?9402

Metanexus Salus. 3,343 Words.

“An increasingly vigorous area of research is human virtue. The study of virtue, at the nexus of the psychology of religion, personality psychology, moral philosophy, and the psychology of emotion, is making a comeback in psychology. Partly responsible for this resurgence is the positive psychology movement which has sought to systematically classify human strengths and virtues into a comprehensive taxonomy. Concepts such as forgiveness, love, hope, humility, gratitude, self-control, and wisdom appear as highly prized human dispositions in Jewish, Christian, Muslim, Buddhist, and Hindu thought and are affirmed universal principles in world philosophies and ethical systems. Basic research as well as interventions to cultivate these virtues is well underway. Yet there is much hard work that lies ahead.”

...
read all at http://www.metanexus.net/metanexus_online/show_article.asp?9402

Transdisciplinary Approaches to Foundational Questions
Volume 6 Issue 1
www.metanexus.net

Prologue

“[T]he greatest enterprise of the mind has always been and always will be the attempted linkage of the sciences and the humanities. The ongoing fragmentation of knowledge and resulting chaos in philosophy are therefore not reflections of the real world but artifacts of scholarship."– E.O. Wilson, Consilience

Features

Bodily Resurrection and the Dialectic of Spirit and Matter,
by Joseph A. Bracken
“As Whitehead and Peirce each in his own way has made clear, it is time to set aside the ontological dualism which has bedeviled philosophers from the time of Plato onwards and encouraged natural scientists and others of a more empirical bent simply to write off the reality of spirit and to focus exclusively on the world of material reality. Rather, we should be, as Peirce recommends, 'objective idealists,' recognizing the ontological primacy of mind or spirit over matter but likewise acknowledging that spirit at all levels of existence and activity (including the divine) must somehow express itself in terms of matter.” [More]

The Varieties of Mystical Experience: Paul Tillich and William James,
by David H. Nikkel
"Paul Tillich and William James both offer rich resources for thinking about mysticism, religious faith, the nature of the object of religious faith, and the ultimate meaningfulness of life. While there are interesting similarities in their efforts, because of differing epistemologies of religious experience they come to contrasting and/or complementary conclusions. This fundamental epistemological difference is that Tillich affirms a mystical a priori embedded in all experience, while James in pragmatist, empirical fashion maintains that mystical experiences are particular experiences that happen to a minority of people. While the primary purpose of this article is to expound/amplify and compare the respective positions of the two thinkers, it will conclude with brief evaluative remarks." [More]

Field Analysis of Competitive Dynamics and Cultural Evolution of Religions and God Concepts, by David Sloan Wilson
“We seek explorations of the competitive and cultural forces that shape religions and the conceptualization of God. Numerous questions in this domain remain: What mechanisms influence the evolution of God concepts and vice versa? Is there a "natural selection" of religious ideas and does it slowly move society closer to truth? How can interactions among religions advance spiritual understanding? What are the results of the American experiment in religious pluralism? What role has secularization played in the progress of spirituality? This topical area seeks inquiries that approach religion and spirituality from the perspective of an important creative or causal factor in the formation of society. Approaches relevant to this area include evolutionary psychology, economic models, rational choice theory, game theory, computer models and simulations, and other models for cultural development.” [More]

Field Analysis of Religion, Spirituality and Human Flourishing,
by Robert A. Emmons
“An increasingly vigorous area of research is human virtue. The study of virtue, at the nexus of the psychology of religion, personality psychology, moral philosophy, and the psychology of emotion, is making a comeback in psychology. Partly responsible for this resurgence is the positive psychology movement which has sought to systematically classify human strengths and virtues into a comprehensive taxonomy. Concepts such as forgiveness, love, hope, humility, gratitude, self-control, and wisdom appear as highly prized human dispositions in Jewish, Christian, Muslim, Buddhist, and Hindu thought and are affirmed universal principles in world philosophies and ethical systems. Basic research as well as interventions to cultivate these virtues is well underway. Yet there is much hard work that lies ahead.” [More]
Visual Explorations

From the Editors

Publishing with Metanexus—Online or Invisible

Metanexus Would Like to Thank You...

Why Metanexus?

Featured News and Events

Metanexus Conference 2006: Call for Papers

Public Symposia: Evolution and Happiness, Arizona State University, January 22 - 23, 2006

John Templeton Foundation Newsletter—Milestones, January 2006
Conference: Ethical Choices in Society, the Economy, and the Environment, Siena, Italy, May 5 - 6, 2006

Epilogue

"But contemporary knowledge does not seem to me fragmented, any more than does the home repair industry. The academic disciplines are not, and are not supposed to be, 'reflections of the real world.' They are supposed to provide ways of doing things in the real world, of reweaving the great seamless causal web so that various human purposes might be accomplished. Reality is one, but descriptions of it are many. They ought to be many, for human beings have, and ought to have, many different purposes."
– Richard Rorty, "Against Unity"

"If there is an economy of the life of the mind—as I assume there has to be, for the life of the mind involves the distribution of limited amounts of time, energy, and attention—then that economy, like any other, subsists upon the making of critical choices. You can't think, read, research, study, learn, or teach everything. To choose one thing is to choose against many things. To know some things well is to know other things not so well, or not at all...We are, moreover, differently talented and are called by different vocations. All this explains, and to some extent justifies, any system of specialization in work or study...There can be no objection in principle to organizing a university as a convocation of specialties and specialists; that is what a university is bound to be. "
– Wendell Berry, Life is a Miracle

"The risk now is precisely the opposite...Academe is threatened by the twin dangers of fossilization and scholasticism (of three types: tedium, high tech, and radical chic). The agenda for the next decade, at least as I see it, ought to be the opening up of the disciplines, the ventilating of professional communities that have come to share too much and that have become too self-referential."
– Thomas Bender, Intellect and Public Life

"Since our society respects specialists and suspects generalists, perhaps the way to solve the shortage of generalists is by creating a new specialty in synthesis and systems. The concept was described by the noted philosopher and essayist José Ortega y Gasset (who was also, for more than a quarter of a century, a professor of metaphysics at Central University of Madrid). He said, 'The need to create sound synthesis and systemization of knowledge ... will call out a kind of scientific genius which hitherto has existed only as an aberration: the genius of integration. Of necessity, this means specialization, as all creative effort does, but this time, the [person] will be specializing in the construction of the whole.'"
– Vartan Gregorian, “Colleges Must Reconstruct the Unity of Knowledge”

The Metanexus Institute advances research, education and outreach on the constructive engagement of science and religion. Metanexus is part of a growing network of individuals and groups exploring the dynamic interface between cosmos, nature and culture in communities and campuses throughout the world. Metanexus sponsors lectures, workshops, research, courses, grants, and publications. Projects include the Local Societies Initiative, the Templeton Research Lectures, the Spiritual Transformation Scientific Research Project, and other projects. Metanexus hosts an online magazine and discussion forum with over 180,000 monthly page views and 7000 regular subscribers in 57 different countries.

Metanexus Institute
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Voice: 215.789.2200 FAX: 215.789.2222
Email: info @ metanexus.net

Dear Sir/Madam
Dear colleagues and friends,

Pursuant to the evaluation of the MOST National Liaison Committees (NLCs) undertaken during the May-November 2005 period and in keeping with the recommendations of the Intergovernmental Council (IGC), the MOST Secretariat is launching an Interactive Electronic Forum with a view to engage in an active debate on the affiliation, structure and operations of NLCs or equivalent structures set up at the national level to support the Programme. The Interactive Forum is also meant to develop institutional procedures and communicative competencies for a continuous dialogue and link among the NLCs and other MOST protagonists on the one hand, and between MOST NLCs and the MOST Secretariat on the other hand. The ultimate objective is to help implement the new vision of MOST based on the science policy interlink.

The Forum is open to:
- the NLC focal points/contact persons identified during the evaluation exercise and to the National Commissions which handle MOST issues in the absence of a MOST NLC;
- representatives of Social Science Associations and NGOs, as well as to social science researchers and experts in general, who have been involved in MOST activities in the past or have expressed interest in MOST.

Members of the Social and Human Sciences Sector of UNESCO, at Headquarters and in the field, are also invited to contribute to the Forum debates.

The starting point of the debate is the Draft Evaluation Report of the MOST NLCs which was discussed by the MOST IGC at its regular meeting (25-27 July 2005) and at its extraordinary session on 19 October 2005. The Draft Evaluation Report and the Reports of the two IGC meetings can be found on the MOST website : www.unesco.org/shs/most/nlcs_evaluation

The Forum will be moderated by the MOST Secretariat. Topics for discussion - ranging from the composition and structure of NLCs, their primary roles and functions, and the types of activities they undertake to perform these roles and functions - will be set for each month, to be debated by the participants. The emphasis is placed on the exchange of experience and views, so
as to allow for best practices to emerge. Particular attention will be paid to securing material and human resources from various sources for MOST activities at the national, regional and international level.

A meeting devoted to the role of MOST NLCs will be organized during the International Forum on the Social Science Research-Policy Nexus (IFSP). It will take place at Buenos Aires on Saturday 25 February 2006, in a hotel still to be announced. The Electronic Forum is intended also to assess how best to prepare discussions at this NLC meeting and to encourage your participation. It will offer also the possibility for those of you who could not attend the IFSP to follow its debates – and even to take part in them- via the Internet.
The MOST Secretariat has taken the liberty to send this invitation message to a large number of potential participants in the Forum from the categories mentioned above. The decision to take part in its debates however rests entirely with you. You may contribute to the FORUM by sending your reactions, proposals, comments or communications to the following e-mail address: mostnlcs-shs@lists.unesco.org.

I am looking forward to your active participation in the debates of the Forum and seizing this opportunity to extend to you my very best wishes for 2006.

Christina von Furstenberg
Chief, section of Policy and International Cooperation in the Social sciences
MOST Secretariat.

AfricAvenir News are kindly sent out by Eric Van Grasdorff:

Liebe Freunde,

hiermit möchten wir auf die Publikation von Eric Van Grasdorffs Buch "African Renaissance and Discourse Ownership in the Information Age – The Internet as a Factor of Domination and Liberation" aufmerksam machen. Darin analysiert Van Grasdorff - basierend auf einer Foucaultschen Macht- und Diskurskonzeption - sowohl die neuen Möglichkeiten des Internets für die Umsetzung der Ziele der Afrikanischen Renaissance als auch die Kehrseiten dieser bislang immer noch vom "Norden" dominierten Technologie. Zu bestellen ist das Buch (14,90€ zzgl. Versandkosten) direkt beim Autor (Email: e.vangrasdorff@africavenir.org) oder beim LIT-Verlag (http://%22www.lit-verlag.de/isbn/3-8258-8247-0).

African Renaissance and Discourse Ownership in the Information Age – The Internet as a Factor of Domination and Liberation
By Eric Van Grasdorff, Dipl.-Pol.

Summary
The information revolution is transforming the world, especially the industrialised world. But what are its implications for the implementation of an African renaissance? Based on a Foucaultian analytical framework this book argues that the Internet has become a major Western instrument of domination in Africa. By extending the reach of Western hegemonic discourses, the Internet adds another dimension to Western discursive power. However, by allowing for the active participation in the process of naming the world, the Internet also affords unprecedented means of transcending dependency.

Reviews
Prof. Kum' a Ndumbe III, Université Yaoundé, Cameroon and Free University of Berlin, Founder of AfricAvenir
Who owns the discourse on the fundamental issues and orientations of contemporary Africa? Do Africans understand the discourses that are being produced about them in non-African languages? Have Africans ever accepted or adhered to these discourses they are meant to implement on a daily basis? Or have Africans on the contrary succeeded in partly re-appropriating these discourses which have long been confiscated by the colonisers, the powerful nations and the international institutions? Does the information age with its new information technologies like the Internet offer Africans new opportunities to develop their own discourses and hence restructure their societies in a way that corresponds to their own aspirations? These are the fundamental questions tackled by Eric Van Grasdorff in his excellent book. Born and grown up in Senegal and later in Germany, this German-Belgian scholar has been exposed to various cultures throughout his life, a fact which has motivated and cul tivated his approach towards an African renaissance.

[...] Eric Van Grasdorff has been able to demonstrate that one does not have to be black to contribute to the implementation of new strategies leading to the liberation of the African continent. This publication is a concrete proof that citizens all around the world dedicate themselves, beyond skin colour and nationality, to the goal of a more equilibrated future of humanity, a future that refuses domination, exploitation and genocide as the basis of the welfare and enrichment of a few. Through this book, the common destiny of humanity has become more obvious than ever!

Evelin G. Lindner, M.D., Ph.D. (Dr. med.), Ph.D. (Dr. psychol.)
Founding Manager of Human Dignity and Humiliation Studies (HumanDHS)
Eric Van Grasdorff’s ‘African Renaissance and Discourse Ownership in the Information Age’ is a profoundly innovative and important contribution to two debates, firstly the debate surrounding the increasingly visible African renaissance movement, and secondly the significance of the digital revolution for marginalized regions of the world such as Africa.

Fertilized by his unique background of being born in Senegal, Van Grasdorff’s work is able to access and intertwine theoretical perspectives and approaches from different schools of thought in ways that crosscut beaten tracks. He is not caught in ethnocentric perspectives, more so, due to his particular background and his high sensitivity to the traps of ethnocentrism, he is able to expose when certain conceptualizations do not even carrry the awareness of having fallen for ethnocentric views. Grasdorff is particularly sensitive to arrogant and overbearing views on the African continent that disempower and humiliate their people.

I recommend Van Grasdorff’s excellent book to all readers who are interested in reflecting deeper and reaching beyond familiar and entrenched ways of thinking, not only those who are particularly interested in Africa, but all those who wish to enlarge narrow paths of reflection and open up to a global world of thought. Grasforff approaches the topic of African Renaissance and the Internet in fresh ways that are not only stimulating for people who are particularly interested in Africa, but for all those who wish to enlarge narrow paths of reflection and open up to a global world of thought.

Linda M. Hartling, Ph.D., Associate Director
Jean Baker Miller Training Institute, Stone Center, Wellesley Centers for Women
Eric Van Grasdorff's "African Renaissance and Discourse Ownership in the Information Age" is a brilliant analysis of the risks and promising potential of introducing Western information and communication technology in non-Western societies.

Computer technology and the internet provide us with greater opportunities to learn from the knowledge, wisdom, and expertise of diverse groups of people. In addition, new technology can allow societies and cultures to more accurately represent themselves in the world community. However, technology can also be used as a vehicle of social control, oppression, and exploitation, in particular, technology flooded with ideology that primarily serves the interests of Western powers.

Van Grasdorff's book offers critical insights into the complexities of developing computer-based technology around the world and describes a model of electronic knowledge collection and creation designed to protect and promote the valuable intellectual contributions of African cultures.

About the Author
Eric Van Grasdorff is a political scientist. Born and grown up in Dakar, Senegal and later in Germany, he has very early in his life developed an intercultural identity, reflected in his professional and scientific work. Eric Van Grasdorff is specialised in South-North relations. Since 2000, he also heads the German section of AfricAvenir in Berlin. He also is a core team member of the Human Dignity and Humiliation Studies Network and is currently building an Internet platform on 'Diversity' for the German Heinrich Böll Foundation.

www.AfricAvenir.org
Wollen Sie Fördermitglied von AfricAvenir International e.V. werden?
Kontaktieren Sie Ann Kathrin Helfrich, Fon: 030-80906789, a.helfrich@africavenir.org

Redaktion des Newsletters: Eric Van Grasdorff, e.vangrasdorff@africavenir.org
AfricAvenir International e.V. ist nicht für die Inhalte externer Webseiten verantwortlich.

AfricAvenir News are kindly sent out by Eric Van Grasdorff:

Liebe Freunde,

hiermit möchten wir auf die Publikation von Eric Van Grasdorffs Buch "African Renaissance and Discourse Ownership in the Information Age – The Internet as a Factor of Domination and Liberation" aufmerksam machen. Darin analysiert Van Grasdorff - basierend auf einer Foucaultschen Macht- und Diskurskonzeption - sowohl die neuen Möglichkeiten des Internets für die Umsetzung der Ziele der Afrikanischen Renaissance als auch die Kehrseiten dieser bislang immer noch vom "Norden" dominierten Technologie. Zu bestellen ist das Buch (14,90€ zzgl. Versandkosten) direkt beim Autor (Email: e.vangrasdorff@africavenir.org) oder beim LIT-Verlag (http://%22www.lit-verlag.de/isbn/3-8258-8247-0).

African Renaissance and Discourse Ownership in the Information Age – The Internet as a Factor of Domination and Liberation
By Eric Van Grasdorff, Dipl.-Pol.

Summary
The information revolution is transforming the world, especially the industrialised world. But what are its implications for the implementation of an African renaissance? Based on a Foucaultian analytical framework this book argues that the Internet has become a major Western instrument of domination in Africa. By extending the reach of Western hegemonic discourses, the Internet adds another dimension to Western discursive power. However, by allowing for the active participation in the process of naming the world, the Internet also affords unprecedented means of transcending dependency.

Reviews
Prof. Kum' a Ndumbe III, Université Yaoundé, Cameroon and Free University of Berlin, Founder of AfricAvenir
Who owns the discourse on the fundamental issues and orientations of contemporary Africa? Do Africans understand the discourses that are being produced about them in non-African languages? Have Africans ever accepted or adhered to these discourses they are meant to implement on a daily basis? Or have Africans on the contrary succeeded in partly re-appropriating these discourses which have long been confiscated by the colonisers, the powerful nations and the international institutions? Does the information age with its new information technologies like the Internet offer Africans new opportunities to develop their own discourses and hence restructure their societies in a way that corresponds to their own aspirations? These are the fundamental questions tackled by Eric Van Grasdorff in his excellent book. Born and grown up in Senegal and later in Germany, this German-Belgian scholar has been exposed to various cultures throughout his life, a fact which has motivated and cul tivated his approach towards an African renaissance.

[...] Eric Van Grasdorff has been able to demonstrate that one does not have to be black to contribute to the implementation of new strategies leading to the liberation of the African continent. This publication is a concrete proof that citizens all around the world dedicate themselves, beyond skin colour and nationality, to the goal of a more equilibrated future of humanity, a future that refuses domination, exploitation and genocide as the basis of the welfare and enrichment of a few. Through this book, the common destiny of humanity has become more obvious than ever!

Evelin G. Lindner, M.D., Ph.D. (Dr. med.), Ph.D. (Dr. psychol.)
Founding Manager of Human Dignity and Humiliation Studies (HumanDHS)
Eric Van Grasdorff’s ‘African Renaissance and Discourse Ownership in the Information Age’ is a profoundly innovative and important contribution to two debates, firstly the debate surrounding the increasingly visible African renaissance movement, and secondly the significance of the digital revolution for marginalized regions of the world such as Africa.

Fertilized by his unique background of being born in Senegal, Van Grasdorff’s work is able to access and intertwine theoretical perspectives and approaches from different schools of thought in ways that crosscut beaten tracks. He is not caught in ethnocentric perspectives, more so, due to his particular background and his high sensitivity to the traps of ethnocentrism, he is able to expose when certain conceptualizations do not even carrry the awareness of having fallen for ethnocentric views. Grasdorff is particularly sensitive to arrogant and overbearing views on the African continent that disempower and humiliate their people.

I recommend Van Grasdorff’s excellent book to all readers who are interested in reflecting deeper and reaching beyond familiar and entrenched ways of thinking, not only those who are particularly interested in Africa, but all those who wish to enlarge narrow paths of reflection and open up to a global world of thought. Grasforff approaches the topic of African Renaissance and the Internet in fresh ways that are not only stimulating for people who are particularly interested in Africa, but for all those who wish to enlarge narrow paths of reflection and open up to a global world of thought.

Linda M. Hartling, Ph.D., Associate Director
Jean Baker Miller Training Institute, Stone Center, Wellesley Centers for Women
Eric Van Grasdorff's "African Renaissance and Discourse Ownership in the Information Age" is a brilliant analysis of the risks and promising potential of introducing Western information and communication technology in non-Western societies.

Computer technology and the internet provide us with greater opportunities to learn from the knowledge, wisdom, and expertise of diverse groups of people. In addition, new technology can allow societies and cultures to more accurately represent themselves in the world community. However, technology can also be used as a vehicle of social control, oppression, and exploitation, in particular, technology flooded with ideology that primarily serves the interests of Western powers.

Van Grasdorff's book offers critical insights into the complexities of developing computer-based technology around the world and describes a model of electronic knowledge collection and creation designed to protect and promote the valuable intellectual contributions of African cultures.

About the Author
Eric Van Grasdorff is a political scientist. Born and grown up in Dakar, Senegal and later in Germany, he has very early in his life developed an intercultural identity, reflected in his professional and scientific work. Eric Van Grasdorff is specialised in South-North relations. Since 2000, he also heads the German section of AfricAvenir in Berlin. He also is a core team member of the Human Dignity and Humiliation Studies Network and is currently building an Internet platform on 'Diversity' for the German Heinrich Böll Foundation.

www.AfricAvenir.org
Wollen Sie Fördermitglied von AfricAvenir International e.V. werden?
Kontaktieren Sie Ann Kathrin Helfrich, Fon: 030-80906789, a.helfrich@africavenir.org

Redaktion des Newsletters: Eric Van Grasdorff, e.vangrasdorff@africavenir.org
AfricAvenir International e.V. ist nicht für die Inhalte externer Webseiten verantwortlich.

Leonard I Morgenbesser kindly wrote to us:

Dearest Evelin

Here is the local Albany article on the young man shot to death in Albany
It is a sad tale for our times

We must simply do more. So many times I feel so frustrated.
I just cannot understand man/woman inhumanity to man/woman. I have hope, my name, as you know, Morgenbesser, means "Tomorrow Better." But is is so depressing to witness this in one's own community and worse, to see much public complacence or distancing and denial, some folks saying it is not our problem, it is someone else's children, it is someone else's neighborhood

These folks just do not understand I fear.
They do not understand our connectedness at the root of our human existence

That is it, for sure, OUR CHILDREN DYING IN THOSE STREETS, IT OUR NEIGHBORHOODS EVEN IF WE DO NOT LIVE IN THOSE EXACT NEIGHBORHOODS OF DEVASTATION FROM VIOLENCE

I only hope my energy can persist

I wish you Shalom/Peace my dear friend and colleague, you are a true inspiration by your selfless academic contributions, you are a mentor to many, an exemplary humanist.

Most Fondly
Leonard, in Albany

Gun ends life in Albany: 19-year-old is city's 1st homicide victim of year in West Hill shooting
by: BRENDAN LYONS Staff writer

ALBANY -- A young man from West Hill was found shot to death inside the front door of his family's home early Wednesday, leaving detectives scrambling for a motive in the city's first murder of the year.

To read the rest of the article, go to:
http://timesunion.com/ss.asp?s=441150&c=ALBANY&b=HOME
To visit the site's homepage, go to http://timesunion.com

19/01/2006, Francisco Gomes de Matos kindly wrote:

Suggestion: Somewhere in your book you might use the word HUMILIATION with a double visual meaning:

HUMILIA(C)TION to show that much universal ACTION is needed for peoples everywhere to overcome/reduce/eliminate Humiliation.

To me, everytime I see the word Humiliation, I see ACTION embedded in it ,Evelin.It must be a subconscious reminder that humiliation has to be fought with DIGNITY/DIGNIFYING ACTION.

Francisco

Nordisk kart i konfliktmegling

Bokprosjektet underveis 4/7/2005
http://www.n-f-m.org/preview.asp?id=145&language=1

Skriving av boka som skal oppsummere prosjektet er kommet et godt stykke. Dag Hareide som redigerer boka regner med at en kladd vil foreligge i begynnelsen av mai. Vi bringer her en oversikt over planlagte kapitler i boka:
Skriving av boka som skal oppsummere prosjektet er kommet et godt stykke. Dag Hareide som redigerer boka regner med at en kladd vil foreligge i begynnelsen av mai.

Boka vil gis ut på norsk/dansk og oversettes til svensk og antagelig flere språk.

Vi bringer her en oversikt over planlagte kapitler i boka:

NORDISK KART I KONFLIKTMEGLING
(utkast 7.4.2005) Oversikt over kapitler.

FORORD

INNLEDNING

VERDIER I MEGLING. Et paradigmeskifte?

MEGLING I NORDENS HISTORIE. Tingene, Judisielle revolusjon, Forliksråd

HVORFOR ER NORDEN SÅ FREDELIG?

MINORITETENE OG DET FLERKULTURELLE. 1) Samene 2) De reisende 3) Den moderne innvandringen 4) Finnes en nordisk konflikthåndteringskultur?

MEGLINGSMODELLER. Tredjepartens forskjellige roller. Forskjellige metoder i megling.

MEGLING I KRIMINALSAKER. 1) Konfliktråd. 2) Politiet som megler 3) Megling ved vold.

MEGLING I TVISTER; SIVILE SAKER. 1) Rettsmegling 2) en debatt

FAMILIEMEGLING. 1) Foreldremegling 2) Familierådslag 3) Generasjonsmegling

SKOLE. 1) Hvem eier konfliktene i skolen? Skolemegling 2) Arbeid med mobbing

ARBEIDSPLASS. 1) Konfliktmegling på arbeidsplass 2) Løsningsfokusert metode

MEGLING I NÆRINGSLIVET. Konfliktløsningsdesign og partnering.

LOKALSAMFUNN. 1) Eksempler på lokal megling 2) Stormøter som metode

FREDSMEGLING. 1) En fredsmeglingsmodell for små land. 2) Frivillige organisasjoner i fredsmegling. 3) Intervju med politiske fredsmeglere

NYE OMRÅDER I MEGLING?

MEGLINGENS ETIKK. Upartiskhet. Fortrolighet. Frivillighet. Sannhet. Skyld/Tilgivelse.

MEGLINGSUTDANNING. 1) Konfliktmeglerutdanning i Norden. 2) Finnes det en egen freds- og meglerpedagogikk?

ORDLISTE. Nøkkelbegreper på skandinavisk og engelsk. Mentale kart for megling i nordiske introduksjonsbøker.

HVORDAN BRUKE HJEMMESIDEN SOM SUPPLEMENT TIL BOKA

NAVN PÅ DELTAKERE PÅ SKRIVERSEMINAR OG ANDRE BIDRAGSYTERE

Judith Thompson kindly writes to us:

I rarely pass things along these days, as I know I am constantly feeling way too inundated by emails. Nonetheless, this article offers that great challenge of understanding what it means to think outside the box, combining both a belief in miracles (recently defined for me as the place where preparation meets grace), and a respect for hard, cold, facts of science. It seems wise to begin speaking about what it could mean to hospice the species in an enlightened manner. Perhaps as we transition from this reality another is ushered in. I always find it difficult to focus my own mind on what matters deeply as my day to day reality marches on and the details of life demand my attention. Yet, as a group we might begin to focus together on scenarios such as the one described below and consider what it is calling from us. Love to all - Judith

UK Independent lead article today
Environment in crisis: 'We are past the point of no return'
The Independent Online Edition
http://news.independent.co.uk/environment/article338878.ece

By Michael McCarthy Environment Editor
Published: 16 January 2006

Thirty years ago, the scientist James Lovelock worked out that the Earth possessed a planetary-scale control system which kept the environment fit for life. He called it Gaia, and the theory has become widely accepted. Now, he believes mankind's abuse of the environment is making that mechanism work against us. His astonishing conclusion - that climate change is already insoluble, and life on Earth will never be the same again.

The world has already passed the point of no return for climate change, and civilisation as we know it is now unlikely to survive, according to James Lovelock, the scientist and green guru who conceived the idea of Gaia - the Earth which keeps itself fit for life.

In a profoundly pessimistic new assessment, published in today's Independent, Professor Lovelock suggests that efforts to counter global warming cannot succeed, and that, in effect, it is already too late.

The world and human society face disaster to a worse extent, and on a faster timescale, than almost anybody realises, he believes. He writes: " Before this century is over, billions of us will die, and the few breeding pairs of people that survive will be in the Arctic where the climate remains tolerable."

In making such a statement, far gloomier than any yet made by a scientist of comparable international standing, Professor Lovelock accepts he is going out on a limb. But as the man who conceived the first wholly new way of looking at life on Earth since Charles Darwin, he feels his own analysis of what is happening leaves him no choice. He believes that it is the self-regulating mechanism of Gaia itself - increasingly accepted by other scientists worldwide, although they prefer to term it the Earth System - which, perversely, will ensure that the warming cannot be mastered.

This is because the system contains myriad feedback mechanisms which in the past have acted in concert to keep the Earth much cooler than it otherwise would be. Now, however, they will come together to amplify the warming being caused by human activities such as transport and industry through huge emissions of greenhouse gases such as carbon dioxide (CO2 ).

It means that the harmful consequences of human beings damaging the living planet's ancient regulatory system will be non-linear - in other words, likely to accelerate uncontrollably.

He terms this phenomenon "The Revenge of Gaia" and examines it in detail in a new book with that title, to be published next month.

The uniqueness of the Lovelock viewpoint is that it is holistic, rather than reductionist. Although he is a committed supporter of current research into climate change, especially at Britain's Hadley Centre, he is not looking at individual facets of how the climate behaves, as other scientists inevitably are. Rather, he is looking at how the whole control system of the Earth behaves when put under stress.

Professor Lovelock, who conceived the idea of Gaia in the 1970s while examining the possibility of life on Mars for Nasa in the US, has been warning of the dangers of climate change since major concerns about it first began nearly 20 years ago.

He was one of a select group of scientists who gave an initial briefing on global warming to Margaret Thatcher's Cabinet at 10 Downing Street in April 1989.

His concerns have increased steadily since then, as evidence of a warming climate has mounted. For example, he shared the alarm of many scientists at the news last September that the ice covering the Arctic Ocean is now melting so fast that in 2005 it reached a historic low point.

Two years ago he sparked a major controversy with an article in The Independent calling on environmentalists to drop their long-standing opposition to nuclear power, which does not produce the greenhouses gases of conventional power stations.

Global warming was proceeding so fast that only a major expansion of nuclear power could bring it under control, he said. Most of the Green movement roundly rejected his call, and does so still.

Now his concerns have reached a peak - and have a new emphasis. Rather than calling for further ways of countering climate change, he is calling on governments in Britain and elsewhere to begin large-scale preparations for surviving what he now sees as inevitable - in his own phrase today, "a hell of a climate", likely to be in Europe up to 8C hotter than it is today.

In his book's concluding chapter, he writes: "What should a sensible European government be doing now? I think we have little option but to prepare for the worst, and assume that we have passed the threshold."

And in today's Independent he writes: "We will do our best to survive, but sadly I cannot see the United States or the emerging economies of China and India cutting back in time, and they are the main source of [CO2] emissions. The worst will happen ..."

He goes on: "We have to keep in mind the awesome pace of change and realise how little time is left to act, and then each community and nation must find the best use of the resources they have to sustain civilisation for as long as they can." He believes that the world's governments should plan to secure energy and food supplies in the global hothouse, and defences against the expected rise in sea levels. The scientist's vision of what human society may ultimately be reduced to through climate change is " a broken rabble led by brutal warlords."

Professor Lovelock draws attention to one aspect of the warming threat in particular, which is that the expected temperature rise is currently being held back artificially by a global aerosol - a layer of dust in the atmosphere right around the planet's northern hemisphere - which is the product of the world's industry.

This shields us from some of the sun's radiation in a phenomenon which is known as "global dimming" and is thought to be holding the global temperature down by several degrees. But with a severe industrial downturn, the aerosol could fall out of the atmosphere in a very short time, and the global temperature could take a sudden enormous leap upwards.

One of the most striking ideas in his book is that of "a guidebook for global warming survivors" aimed at the humans who would still be struggling to exist after a total societal collapse.

Written, not in electronic form, but "on durable paper with long-lasting print", it would contain the basic accumulated scientific knowledge of humanity, much of it utterly taken for granted by us now, but originally won only after a hard struggle - such as our place in the solar system, or the fact that bacteria and viruses cause infectious diseases.

Rough guide to a planet in jeopardy

Global warming, caused principally by the large-scale emissions of industrial gases such as carbon dioxide (CO2), is almost certainly the greatest threat that mankind has ever faced, because it puts a question mark over the very habitability of the Earth.

Over the coming decades soaring temperatures will mean agriculture may become unviable over huge areas of the world where people are already poor and hungry; water supplies for millions or even billions may fail. Rising sea levels will destroy substantial coastal areas in low-lying countries such as Bangladesh, at the very moment when their populations are mushrooming. Numberless environmental refugees will overwhelm the capacity of any agency, or indeed any country, to cope, while modern urban infrastructure will face devastation from powerful extreme weather events, such as Hurricane Katrina which hit New Orleans last summer.

The international community accepts the reality of global warming, supported by the UN's Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. In its last report, in 2001, the IPCC said global average temperatures were likely to rise by up to 5.8C by 2100. In high latitudes, such as Britain, the rise is likely to be much higher, perhaps 8C. The warming seems to be proceeding faster than anticipated and in the IPCC's next report, 2007, the timescale may be shortened. Yet there still remains an assumption that climate change is controllable, if CO2 emissions can be curbed. Lovelock is warning: think again.

'The Revenge of Gaia' by James Lovelock is published by Penguin on 2 February, price £16.99

Why Gaia is wreaking revenge on our abuse of the environment
By Michael McCarthy
Published: 16 January 2006

With anyone else, you would not really take it seriously: the proposition that because of climate change, human society as we know it on this planet may already be condemned, whatever we do. It would seem not just radical, but outlandish, mere hyperbole. And we react against it instinctively: it seems simply too sombre to be countenanced.

But James Lovelock, the celebrated environmental scientist, has a unique perspective on the fate of the Earth. Thirty years ago he conceived the idea that the planet was special in a way no one had ever considered before: that it regulated itself, chemically and atmospherically, to keep itself fit for life, as if it were a great super-organism; as if, in fact, it were alive.

The complex mechanism he put forward for this might have remained in the pages of arcane geophysical journals had he continued to refer to it as "the biocybernetic universal system tendency".

But his neighbour in the village of Bowerchalke, Wiltshire, the Nobel Prize-winning novelist William Golding (who wroteLord of The Flies), suggested he christen it after the Greek goddess of the Earth; and Gaia was born.

Gaia has made Professor Lovelock world famous, but at first his fame was in an entirely unexpected quarter. Research scientists, who were his original target audience, virtually ignored his theory.

To his surprise, it was the burgeoning New Age and environmental movements who took it up - the generation who had just seen the first pictures of the Earth taken by the Apollo astronauts, the shimmering pastel-blue sphere hanging in infinite black space, fragile and vulnerable, but our only home. They seized on his metaphor of a reinvented Mother Earth, who needed to be revered and respected - or else.

It has been only gradually that the scientific establishment has become convinced of the essential truth of the theory, that the Earth possesses a planetary control system, founded on the interaction of living organisms with their environment, which has operated for billions of years to allow life to exist, by regulating the temperature, the chemical composition of the atmosphere, even the salinity of the seas.

But accepted it is, and now (under the term Earth System Science) it has been subsumed into the scientific mainstream; two years ago, for example, Nature, the world's premier scientific journal, gave Professor Lovelock two pages to sum up recent developments in it.

Yet now too, by a savage irony, it is Gaia that lies behind his profound pessimism about how climate change will affect us all. For the planetary control system, he believes, which has always worked in our favour, will now work against us. It has been made up of a host of positive feedback mechanisms; now, as the temperature starts to rise abnormally because of human activity, these will turn harmful in their effect, and put the situation beyond our control.

To give just a single example out of very many: the ice of the Arctic Ocean is now melting so fast it is likely to be gone in a few decades at most. Concerns are already acute about, for example, what that will mean for polar bears, who need the ice to live and hunt.

But there is more. For when the ice has vanished, there will be a dark ocean that absorbs the sun's heat, instead of an icy surface that reflects 90 per cent of it back into space; and so the planet will get even hotter still.

Professor Lovelock visualises it all in the title of his new book, The Revenge of Gaia. Now 86, but looking and sounding 20 years younger, he is by nature an optimistic man with a ready grin, and it felt somewhat unreal to talk calmly to him in his Cornish mill house last week, with a coffee cup to hand and birds on the feeder outside the study window, about such a dark future. You had to pinch yourself.

He too saw the strangeness of it. "I'm usually a cheerful sod, so I'm not happy about writing doom books," he said. "But I don't see any easy way out."

His predictions are simply based on the inevitable nature of the Gaian system.

"If on Mars, which is a dead planet, you doubled the CO2, you could predict accurately what the temperature would rise to," he said.

"On the Earth, you can't do it, because the biota [the ensemble of life forms] reacts. As soon as you pump up the temperature, everything changes. And at the moment the system is amplifying change. "So our problem is that anything we do, like increasing the carbon dioxide, mucking about with the land, destroying forests, farming too much, things like that - they don't just produce a linear increase in temperature, they produce an amplified increase in temperature.

"And it's worse than that. Because as you approach one of the tipping points, the thresholds, the extent of amplification rapidly increases and tends towards infinity.

"The analogy I use is, it's as if we were in a pleasure boat above the Niagara Falls. You're all right as long as the engines are going, and you can get out of it. But if the engines fail, you're drawn towards the edge faster and faster, and there's no hope of getting back once you've gone over - then you're going down.

"And the uprise is just like that, the steep jump of temperature on Earth. It is exactly like the drop in the Falls."

Professor Lovelock's unique viewpoint is that he is just not looking at this or that aspect of the Earth's climate, as are other scientists; he is looking at the whole planet in terms of a different discipline, control theory.

"Most scientists are not trained in control theory. They follow Descartes, and they think that everything can be explained if you take it down to its atoms, and then build it up again.

"Control theory looks at it in a very different way. You look at whole systems and how do they work. Gaia is very much about control theory. And that's why I spot all these positive feedbacks."

I asked him how he would sum up the message of his new book. He said simply: "It's a wake-up call.''

The Writer's Craft, the Culture's Technology
Edited by Carmen Rosa Caldas-Coulthard and Michael Toolan

The Writer's Craft, the Culture's Technology explores the multiple ways in
which a culture's technological resources shape its literary productions.
Literature and style cannot be divorced from the particular technologised
culture that sponsors them. This has always been true, as papers here on
literature from earlier periods show. But many of the papers focus on
contemporary culture, where literature vies for attention with film, the
internet, and other multimodal cultural forms. These essays, from an
international array of experts, are stylistics-based but not
stylistics-bound. They should be of interest to all who are interested in
discourse analytic commentaries on how technological horizons, as always,
continue to shape the forms and functions of literature and other cultural
productions.

Contributions:
Part I

Anti-Laokoon: Mixed and Merged Modes of Imagetext on the Web- George Dillon

Personal Web Pages and the Semiotic Construction of Academic Identities-
Carmen Rosa Caldas-Coulthard

Hypertext, Prosthetics and the Netocracy: Posthumanist Aspects of Jeanette
Winterson's The PowerBook- Ulf Cronquist

The Influence of Hypertext on Genre: Exploring Online Book Reviews- Rosario
Caballero

Part II: Textual and technological transitions
Visual Representation of Phraseological Metaphor in Discourse: A Cognitive
Approach- Anita Naciscione

A Structural Analysis of Wordsworth's "Daffodils"- Ken Nakagawa

Seeing the Sea: Deixis and the Perceptions of Melville's Reader- Robert
Cockcroft

Narratives of Transgression: Challenging the Boundaries of "Competent
Discourses"- Ana Elizabeth Balocco

The translator's Craft as a Cross-Cultural Discourse- Mirjana Bonacic

Illustrated Literature - Future Style, Fertile Spirit or Futile Waste?-
Marika Schwaiger

Part III: Changing cultures of report
Who said that? Who wrote that? Reporting, Representation, and the
Linguistics of Writing- Geoff Hall

'Print Culture' and the Language of the Eighteenth-Century Novel- Joe Bray

Truth and Lies: the Construction of Factuality in a Television Documentary-
Susan Hunston

Part IV: Corpus-enabled stylistics
Technology and Stylistics: The Web Connection- Donald E Hardy

How Playwrights Construct their Dramatic World: A Corpus-Based Study of
Vocatives in Early Modern English Comedies- Michi Shiina

Collocational Style in the Two Narratives of Bleak House: A Corpus-based
Analysis- Masahiro Hori

Rodopi: Amsterdam/New York, NY 2005. XXIII, 261 pp. (PALA Papers 1)

ISBN : 90-420-1936-0
EUR 57,- / US $71.-
orders@rodopi.nl
www.rodopi.nl

Dr. Carmen Rosa Caldas-Coulthard
Centre for English Language Studies
Dept. of English
University of Birmingham

16/01/2006, Robert Kolodny kidnly writes to us:

Hi Evelin:

I thought the Humiliation/Dignity Studies group might want to know about a very rich compilation of peace building efforts and organizations related to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. It was assembled for the Buddhist Peace Fellowship quarterly publication, “Turning Wheel, ” and can be found at the BPF website <www.bpf.org> by clicking on the link under “Socially Engaged Buddhist News.” If you think this is worth communicating to the group, please do so.

Warm regards,

Bob

Common Ground News Service – Partners in Humanity
(CGNews-PiH)
January 17, 2006

Common Ground News Service – Partners in Humanity (CGNews-PiH) is distributing the enclosed articles to build bridges of understanding between the West and the Arab world, and countries with significant Muslim populations. Unless otherwise noted, copyright permission has been obtained and the articles may be reproduced by any news outlet or publication, free of charge. If publishing, please acknowledge both the original source and Common Ground News Service, and notify us at cgnewspih@sfcg.org.

**********

ARTICLES IN THIS EDITION:

5. Celluloid dream: TV and films project a Middle East fantasyland
Nadia Wassef, one of the owners of the Diwan Bookshop, and David Blanks, a historian, consider what westerners would conceive of Arab culture from their music videos and TV programs, something the rest of the world has been trying to extrapolate from western media for decades. Is the Arab music video yet another substandard import from the West? Don’t worry, Wassef and Blanks tell us, just as the West at one time integrated many eastern customs into its culture, like coffee drinking, “…it’s bound to all come round again.”
(Source: The Daily Star, Tuesday, January 10, 2006)

**********

ARTICLE 1
What Iraqis want: a view from Jordan
Jason Erb

Amman - Jordan has a reputation as a haven for refugees in the region. The kingdom faced, early on, the hurdle of absorbing hundreds of thousands of Palestinian refugees. Subsequent Arab-Israeli wars and the first Gulf War brought new waves of the Jordanians' Levantine brothers. So too have various civil wars in the region.

In the 1970s, thousands of Lebanese initially sought refuge here. International sanctions on Iraq and the chaos following the US-led invasion have now added Iraqis. Most unofficial sources claim close to one million Iraqis now live in Jordan. In the past year alone perhaps 300,000 of them arrived, many from Iraq's middle classes, making Jordan perhaps the leading meeting place of Iraqis outside of Iraq.

Last December, tens of thousands of these Iraqis participated in Iraq's second post-Saddam national elections. Iraqis in Jordan expressed a clear consensus on the priorities of the new government. Security tops the list; prosperity comes in a close second. How to best achieve these priorities, however, is where the consensus ends and the hard work begins.

Rami Muhammad, Assistant Director of the Sweifiyah election centre, sums up the importance of security to Iraqis, saying, “All the candidates focus on security. Without it you can't do business, you can't attract investment, there's no development or construction.”

A group of about 10 young men agreed that the new government must make security and prosperity the priorities, but see prosperity as the first priority. “We need a government that gives the basic necessities of life so people can make a living. Then there will be security,” said one young man to the eager nods of his companions.

Several Iraqis see outside involvement in Iraq as a major source of insecurity. A young man at the Sweifiyah centre, says, “If America leaves and the government works for interests inside the country, not for those on the outside,” (a thinly veiled reference to a widespread Iraqi assumption that Shi’ite political leaders are really serving Iran’s interests), “then it will succeed.”

Most Iraqi voters in Jordan think that the best way to achieve security and prosperity is through a stronger national government. Dina, a stylish 29-year-old woman, expressed the hope of many for the new government. "What we need to improve the situation is someone who is strong and can address the security issue, someone who will in the next four years actually found a state," she says. She says the new government “must form proper institutions, because without institutions there is no proper government.”

Expressing a desire for more nationally focused government, this election included a much higher turnout among Sunnis, who boycotted the January elections. A group of three Sunni activists taping a poster for Salih Mutlak, a prominent Sunni politician, on their van didn’t participate in the elections for the interim parliament, but this time they did. “We need to participate for better balance in government.”

Even with greater Sunni representation, with 7655 candidates competing for 275 seats in the parliament, the new government will likely remain weak and fractured, and accusations of voting fraud began on election day. A balanced government focused on national, as opposed to sectarian or tribal, interests will be difficult to form. While such a government may better reflect the full sectarian and political diversity of Iraq, it will make the job of forming a cabinet and governing the country that much tougher. In this sectarian atmosphere it is easy for any one of the three groups to veto the common good.

Most of those participating in the elections voiced optimism for the new government. Others are more pessimistic. One man, when asked what he expected from the new government replied, “Not a damn thing. But voting is a national duty. What else can we do?” A middle aged Shiite handing out election pamphlets at the Jabal Hussein centre says, “Do you think these politicians give a lick about us? Look at this guy,” he says pointing to a stack of flyers he’s handing out for a popular Sunni candidate Adnan Dulaimi, “do you think he cares about me?"

But most people remain cautiously optimistic. The elections are a step forward, but the challenges remain many. The new government and the American-led occupation have a brief window to capitalise on this optimism.

American forces can start by quickly withdrawing from the cities in preparation for a full withdrawal before the end of the year and by expanding its dialogue with Iraqi insurgency groups. A smaller American presence and more weight behind the political process would help to blunt, if not stop, the insurgency and give greater significance to the elections, especially in the eyes of its opponents.

The new Iraqi government must avoid the sectarian squabbling that rapidly eroded optimism after elections for an interim parliament last January. It should also move quickly to disband the sectarian militias that now compete with and riddle the national army and police, and work hard against the creation of sectarian “fiefdoms” in the various ministries.

This election is perhaps the best chance yet to salvage what has so far been a disastrous and costly American enterprise. Quick and decisive action must be taken to build on this brief window of opportunity. The next steps may well determine the epitaph on this latest American military adventure.

Most Iraqis are grateful to have a safe haven in which to wait out the chaos, but hope they can return to their country soon. Ahmed, a 26 year-old student, hopes the new government will pay more attention to the needs of Iraqis living outside the country. He says he is treated well in Jordan but feels like a guest and wants to return to finish his studies. His friend Hisham hopes the election will result in, "a place where we can work and live, in our own country." Looking at the recent bombings in Iraq and the initial election results, it looks like he will have to wait a bit longer.

###
* Jason Erb is a Quaker International Affairs Representative (QIAR) for AFSC based in Amman, Jordan.
Source: Common Ground News, January 17, 2006.
Visit the website at www.commongroundnews.org
Distributed by the Common Ground News Service – Partners in Humanity.
Copyright permission has been obtained from the author for publication.

**********

ARTICLE 2
Sharon as the quintessential Arab leader
Mona Eltahawy
Asharq alawsat, January 9, 2006

New York - The Arab world hates Ariel Sharon so much not because he is responsible for the death of so many Arabs but because he is essentially the mirror image of the Arab leaders that have ruled us for decades. He is the better and improved mirror image.

If hatred for Sharon was based solely on the number of Arabs he has killed, then he would probably lose out to those responsible for the thousands killed in the fighting of Black September and the thousands more killed in Hama.

And when it comes to the massacres at Sabra and Shatila, with which Sharon’s name is synonymous, it is important to remember that an Israeli state inquiry in 1983 found Sharon, then defence minister, indirectly responsible for the killings of hundreds of men, women and children at the refugee camps during Israel’s 1982 invasion of Lebanon. An Arab inquiry has yet to hold directly responsible members of the Lebanese militias who actually slaughtered those men, women and children with their guns and knives.

The Israeli inquiry forced Sharon’s resignation and hundreds of thousands of Israelis demonstrated their horror and disgust at his role in the massacre. I won’t ask where are the Arab demonstrations against the massacres of Arabs by fellow Arabs. The answer is evident in every Arab news story that holds only Sharon responsible for the slaughter at Sabra and Shatila. It is an answer that reminds us again that Arab victim-hood makes sense only when we are being victimised by Israel. The horrors we visit upon each other are irrelevant.

Sharon is the better and improved mirror image of an Arab leader because we have held what he does to us in much higher regard than anything we have done to each other.

Furthermore, Sharon is the typical military-man-turned-politician that so many Arab leaders are. But unlike so many of these military men whose paths to power in the Arab world have been paved with forged elections, Sharon was actually democratically elected.

The resemblance between Sharon and Arab leaders was most closely brought home to me by these passages from former Israeli foreign minister Shlomo Ben-Ami’s recently published book “Scars of War, Wound of Peace: The Israeli-Arab Tragedy”.

“The wide national support (Sharon) managed to elicit at different crossroads in his controversial career as a military man and politician was born out of his ability to manoeuvre through periods of despair that he himself had often been instrumental in generating in the first place” Ben-Ami writes.

“The support for Sharon was always the result of the hopelessness and despair he himself had generated. Somehow the national consensus around him invariably looked like a collective voyage into the abyss. Sharon’s career has frequently defied Napoleon’s definition of the leader as ‘a dealer in hope’. He dealt with despair, hopelessness and fear,” Ben-Ami concludes.

While the names of many Arab leaders could easily be substituted for Sharon’s in the above passage, he continues to outdo and outpace them with a move that Ben-Ami’s book has not included because it occurred after the book’s publication.

Shortly before his latest and most debilitating stroke, Sharon split with Likud to launch the centrist Kadima party as a centrist alternative to the traditional left and right wing poles of Israeli politics. At a time when politics in the Middle East has been stuck – between the government and the Muslim Brotherhood in Egypt, between Fatah and Hamas in Palestine and between Labour and Likud in Israel – Sharon introduced the tantalising prospect of a third way.

Whether Sharon survives his latest stroke or not, he is unlikely to ever resume the post of prime minister. So while many write his political obituary if not his actual obituary, it is pertinent to ponder this ultimate irony of Sharon’s legacy to both Israel and to the Arab world.

During the Egyptian parliamentary elections, an Egyptian commentator who has his own television show actually asked an Egyptian politician why someone couldn’t launch a new party in Egypt in the way that Sharon just had with Kadima in Israel.

Is it possible that Sharon the general, the bulldozer, the butcher of Beirut, and owner of all those other names that the Arab world suffixes to his real name, is now the role model of how a military man turns into a politician who turns into an innovator of a new brand of politics?

Sharon’s departure from politics is another sign of the passing away of the old men who have stood as giants on the shoulders of politics in this part of the world for so long. But by launching Kadima he has also initiated a debate in Israel that is exactly the one we need in the Arab world.

Can Kadima the party survive without Sharon the icon? Can Israel move beyond the politics of charisma and strong-arm tactics? Which direction will Israeli politics head in as one by one the old guard that has dominated its politics passes away?

Just as with the Ben-Ami passage above, these same questions and concerns are equally relevant to the Arab world.

If Hamas takes advantage of this transitional phase in Israeli politics to attack, it will make Kadima and the above questions irrelevant. Hamas must not be allowed to drive Israelis – who are worried enough about Hamas’ expected strong showing in the Palestinian elections, if they are held – away from the centre and into the arms of the waiting Benjamin Netanyahu.

Just like the Arab world – is it the party that’s important or its leader?

###
* Mona Eltahawy is an Egytian journalist and commentator based in New York.
Source: Al Sharq Al Awsat, January 9, 2006
Visit the website at www.asharqalawsat.com/english
Distributed by the Common Ground News Service – Partners in Humanity.
Copyright permission has been obtained from the author for publication.
Distributed by the Common Ground News Service – Partners in Humanity.
Copyright permission has been obtained from the author for publication.

**********

ARTICLE 3
Why do Muslims hate the U.S. government?
Arif Maftuhin

Seattle - I was surprised recently when I was going to downtown Seattle. A friend of mine working there told me, "Here is the place we observe Friday prayers". The fact that he was a pious, white American Muslim was pretty surprising; but what made me more surprised was the place he showed me: it was not a mosque, but a church!

The church, attended by its congregation mainly on the weekends, provides one of its rooms for Muslims in downtown Seattle to observe Friday prayers. While the Muslim community does rent this room, the fact they can share the church would be unimaginable in the Indonesian context.

There are many cases we can learn from. At Boston University, according to Ulil Abshar Abdalla, Muslims observed tarawih last month in a hall called Sacred Place where believers of any faith can observe their prayers and services.

During Ramadhan, in the program called Fast-Thon, hundreds of non-Muslim Americans joined the Muslim Student Association in my university to fast for one day. Like Muslims, they did not eat or drink from dawn to dusk.

The U.S. is very tolerant of any religious life. Its constitution, particularly the First Amendment, guarantees all citizens the right to have and express their faith.

While some Muslims in other parts of the world want an Islamic state to guarantee the right to practice their religion, some American Muslims I have met said they do not need an Islamic state.

Why? America gives them most of what they need to be a pious Muslim without it being an Islamic state. For sure, it is not a perfect country. However, has an Islamic state existed and given anything better than what America has?

In the U.S., Muslims of Somalia, Cambodia, and Palestine have found asylum and help. They live a better life and are more secure in this non-Islamic country.

Thus, why do Muslims hate America? Why is America and its interests the target of Muslim hatred?

The answer is that, in fact, Muslims do not hate America, but rather the interventionist policy of the U.S. government. The presence of U.S. troops in the Muslim heartland, Saudi Arabia, after the Iraqi invasion of Kuwait, was the supposed reason behind the Sept. 11 attacks. The U.S. invasion of Afghanistan and Iraq are the main reason for the many suicide bombings in the last three years.

It seems that both Muslims and the U.S. government do not pay attention to where their relations intersect.

In relation to the Muslim world and the U.S., actually there are four entities involved: the American Government and the American people on the one hand; and the Muslim world and American Muslims on the other.

In the country named the United States of America, there is a government that does not necessarily represent Americans as a nation. In the Muslim world, there are American Muslims, the citizens of the hated America.

Unfortunately, these four entities have been lazily simplified into two polarised entities: Muslims and the U.S., my side or your side, my interests or your interests.

The neglected interconnectivity is complicated and costly to both sides.

The beautiful picture of Muslim and U.S. relations mentioned above has been overshadowed by the negative aspects of those two worlds: the bad foreign policy of the American government toward Islamic countries; and the bad reaction of radical Muslims.

The victims of neglected interconnectivity, we may expect, are always the good parts of both entities: non-radical Muslims and anti-Bush Americans.

The victims of the Sept. 11 terrorist attack were innocent Americans, non-Muslims as well as American Muslims. They might not agree with their government and they did not deserve to die in the attacks.

On the other hand, the victims of the war on terrorism are innocent Muslims. In the U.S., many innocent American Muslims are arrested without due process. In Europe and Australia, a number of mosques were closed by the government.

In Indonesia, many pesantren (Islamic boarding schools), orphanages, and Islamic foundations, have lost financial aid from wealthy Middle Eastern countries as the U.S. government has forced its allies to cut the suspected relationship between the flow of riyal and the terrorist network.

We should not wait any longer to realise these complexities. The hatred in the Muslim world proliferated by the interventionist policy of the U.S. government in Islamic countries and the overreaction of U.S. government policy triggered by terrorist actions should be stopped right now.

The radical Muslims have to realise that their project has brought more disadvantages than benefits to the Muslim world. If they really want to fight for the Muslim world, they need to recalculate what Muslims have experienced after Sept. 11.

The U.S. government needs to understand, as many American political experts have recommended, that their interventionist policy has triggered more hatred and induced more young Muslims to become suicide bombers.

Muslims may hate Bush for his interventionist and arbitrary policies, but they are not alone in arguing against Bush's policy; many Americans do too.

Muslims should not hate America because Americans are not Bush; and because American Muslims do love their country. What should American Muslims do if Muslims in the rest of the world hate their beloved country?

The writer is a lecturer in Sunan Kalijaga UIN and is a student in the School of International Studies, University of Washington. He can be reached at arif_maftuh@yahoo.com

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* Arif Maftuhinis is a Fulbright awardee from Sunan Kalijaga State Institute for Islamic Studies in Yogyakarta, Indonesia at the University of Washington.
Source: The Jakarta Post, January 5, 2006
Visit the website at www.thejakartapost.com
Distributed by the Common Ground News Service – Partners in Humanity.
Copyright permission has been obtained from the author for publication.
Distributed by the Common Ground News Service – Partners in Humanity.
Copyright permission has been obtained from the author for publication.

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ARTICLE 4
~YOUTH VIEWS~
The Arab world: a region of paradoxes
Fahad Mohammad and Shaina Katz

Safat, Kuwait & Worcester, Massachusetts - Flashy Porsches and Ferraris are screeching down a four-lane road as their occupants race to one of the seaside restaurants at T.G.I. Friday’s, Chili’s, or Applebee’s. Their orders arrive, and mountains of food cover the table, everything from cheese nachos to onion rings, burgers and pasta. Women are dressed in the latest European and American fashions and flashing the chunkiest of Harry Winston’s jewellery while men are crisply dressed in clothes pulled from a GQ magazine ad. One could certainly mistake this nightly scene in oil-rich Kuwait for Santa Monica. Though on the inside the culture is very different from that of the US, on the outside, with all its lights and glitter, it looks just like an American city. Indeed, American culture/lifestyle has penetrated this part of the Arab World, and is steadily making inroads into other cities around the Middle East.

Western influence is not just a result of western companies opening businesses on the streets, but also due to its mass infiltration of the media, primarily through advertisements. The top ten advertised brands in this region include Pampers, Pantene, BMW, Marlboro, Chevrolet, and Ford, as well as Japanese car brands. These advertisements seem to portray and promote Western lifestyles and consumption patterns to Arab communities.

As Western entertainment is imported and broadcast via satellite, individuals are becoming increasingly exposed to popular western culture. This includes greater exposure to taboo subjects such as sexually explicit and politically controversial material. While many people are opposed to introducing such entertainment into Arab societies, others have developed a sense of curiosity from their exposure to Western products. In order to increase viewer-ship, broadcasting companies have and will continue to push boundaries.

Many of the younger generation in the Arab world have welcomed this new culture with open arms by choosing to dine at McDonald’s rather than on mother's good old cooking, and opting to check out the latest Hollywood blockbusters at the cinema rather than Arab entertainment shows on TV. However, there are sections of society which have not given this new trend the hospitable welcome youth have. They argue that their own Arab culture is being pushed out of society and that youth are ignoring their own heritage. The older generations argue that the new “McDonald’s generation” does not know much about its own culture, history and traditions.

While many Arabs welcome western influence into their daily lives and the new products they now have access to, there are many who feel they must protect their Arab nationality and culture from it, particularly from American influence. Recently, the spread of such sentiments has been fuelled by America’s invasion of Iraq and the ongoing Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Although western culture seems to be spreading in most Arab nations, there are individuals who are taking action against it, primarily by way of avoiding widely-used and well-known American products with the intent of gradually eliminating western influence and putting an end to any economic links to the West at all.

One major boycott has been directed at the American cigarette companies, and in Lebanon alone sales have dropped by almost half. Students at the University of Sharjah in the United Arab Emirates led a campaign to ban American soft drinks from university cafeterias. While acts like these may boost some Arabs’ morale, the region has become far too dependent on American products to cut off economic ties, and most Arabs will continue to purchase them.

In addition to the visible spread of western culture through products and entertainment, more fundamental economic changes, as a result of pressure from the West, are also occurring and having an effect on both consumers and national economic policy. Most Arab leaders agree that economic reforms that favour free-market capitalism are necessary for their countries to make progress, but they want to use internal means. At the World Economic Forum last year, King Abdullah of Jordan brought together Arab leaders to develop the “Vision 2010” plan for the Arab world, a package of reforms with ambitious goals for economic liberalisation, promoting entrepreneurship, education reforms, and good governance initiatives. If completed, it would be a way for Arabs to become the authors of their own economic, social, and political futures. Unfortunately, for many, this is not seen as an option, given the vast influence of western corporations in Arab economies.

The Arab world truly is a land of maddening contradictions. Residents of Arab cities are summoned to prayers during the day by the amplified cries of the muezzins. By night, the bars of Beirut, Cairo and Dubai are swarmed with customers, grooving to the latest of techno and hip-hop beats played by DJs in crowded nightclubs. The confusion over whether to stick to one's traditional values or to embrace western culture in today's fast-paced, globalised world is a dilemma that a myriad of young people face. The choice, whether to adhere strictly to their traditions or adapt to the modern, western world, is a difficult one, with as much to be gained as lost either way, and society seems to be at a bottleneck.

The paradoxical mix of western influence from the mass media and fundamentalist ideologies from the religious establishments in Arab society is a dangerous cocktail that will have unpredictable repercussions and will only become clear as future generations of Arab societies and leaders steer their nations in the 21st century. Whatever the case, it will be important both for westerners to be sensitive to this turmoil in the heart of Arab society and their impact on it, and for Arabs to maintain their sense of perspective, and not allow themselves to be buffeted about by the winds of change or the strident cries of some to shut out the rest of the world.

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* Shaina Katz is a student at Clark University. Fahad Mohammed is a student at the University of Kuwait. They wrote this article as part of the Soliya Connect Program, an online Western-Islamic dialogue program.
Source: Common Ground News, January 17, 2006
Visit the website at www.commongroundnews.org
Distributed by the Common Ground News Service – Partners in Humanity.
Copyright permission has been obtained from the author for publication.
Distributed by the Common Ground News Service – Partners in Humanity.
Copyright permission has been obtained from the author for publication.

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ARTICLE 5
Celluloid dream: TV and films project a Middle East fantasyland
Nadia Wassef and David Blanks

Cairo - Imagine if the only source of information about the Middle East for westerners were Arabic music videos: "The Bold and the Beautiful" effect in reverse. USA Today would run stories about how Arabs tend to stare off into the distance and contemplate their angst. Larry King would invite sociologists and medical specialists to discuss Middle Eastern dating patterns and why the women there are so much better looking than the men. The beauty industry would rush to introduce new hair care products because - as they will have learned from the commercials - the market obviously isn't saturated.

High school students would write essays about how wealthy Arabs are - and how they live in palaces and drive Porsches and Jaguars. College girls learning oriental dance would wear short, tight skirts and clingy blouses that showed maximum cleavage. Their boyfriends would walk around in unbuttoned white shirts with designer beards, sunglasses and gold necklaces - all the while displaying their torment from the fires of love: whether dying embers or full-throttle flames. Boys and girls would call each other habibi and never kiss.

It's hard to believe, but there was once a time without music clips - back in the day when there were no computers, no mobile phones, no calculators, no Game Boys and the like. Music videos appeared on American television at the beginning of fall semester 1982. One of us remembers this well because his grade point average dropped precipitously. You couldn't turn it off; you couldn't look away. MTV (Music Television) was more addictive than sorority girls, football games and keg parties all rolled into one.

In the early eighties, anyone could make a video - and they all did. The problem was that some of these people were seriously ugly. (For verification check the oldies clips on VH1.) Mick Jagger and Keith Richards weren't exactly poster boys for the British Dental Association. But the boy bands of today, hubba, hubba! Line up the members of Boyzone, Blue and NSYNC end-to-end and you won't find a single cavity or pimple or hair out-of-place.

The Rolling Stones could well afford to be ugly - they wrote great songs. It no longer works that way - not after the accounting department at MTV explained to the producers that it's easier to increase the number of viewers (hence advertising revenue) if they showed lots of images of really gorgeous faces.

This is the law on Mazika, Nugoom, Music Arabia and Melody. Look at the stable of singers that Rotana has purchased: no cavities, no pimples, no stray hairs; lots of baths and rain and plunging necklines and wind machines.

In the days of Abdel Wahab and Abdel Halim Hafez, music was about love and yearning and romance; now it's about love and yearning and selling shampoo.

It's about selling dreams too. There's a certain elitism at play. In the video for the song "Darouri," Gulf superstar Nabil Shoeil sings in an empty but pristine shopping mall while scenes of a pretty young thing getting into her limo to go meet her lover are spliced in and out like subliminal promo spots for a high-priced dating service.

It seems the Arab dream consists of consumerism and consummation. Ironically, this is the flip side of American music videos, where they dream of life in the 'hood, hot women, hot cars and street cred - a white suburban fantasy in a hip hop world.

More than the recording industry has changed, though; music television has altered the way we look at things, the way we see our world. Watch any serial, sitcom, movie or ad from 15 years ago and you'll want to stuff your head in a plastic bag. You end up shouting at the actors: “Answer the damn phone”! “Get up those stupid stairs already”! Was that scene of Hussein Fahmy parking his car really so mind-blowingly artistic that the director couldn't bear to leave it on the cutting room floor?

Compare this to "24" or "CSI Miami" or "Mr. and Mrs. Smith" or the evening news. The scenes shift so rapidly you're not sure whether the director was born after 1982 or the reception on your TV is out of whack because the bawaab's (doorman’s) wife has hung her laundry on the satellite dish again. Today all music clips are mini movies and all movies are extended music videos. The culture has changed forever.

Some of this is for the better; the genre has improved. Remember the first time you saw the video for Amr Diab's "Habibi Nour El-Ein"? Shot in El Gouna, Egypt, with its attention to color, costumes, choreography, set design: it was a revolution.

Some say this revolution comes from elsewhere, that it's a sad imitation of the West. But honestly, who the hell cares?

Seriously, give it up. Been there, done that. Do you think for a moment that seventeenth-century European courtiers sat around worrying if drinking coffee was too Eastern? Of course they did.

But so what? Look who won in the long run. And don't you worry ... it's bound to all come round again.

###
*Nadia Wassef is one of the owners of the Diwan Bookshop. David Blanks is a historian. They live in Cairo.
Source: The Daily Star Tuesday, January 10, 2006
Visit the website at www.dailystar.com.lb
Distributed by the Common Ground News Service – Partners in Humanity.
Copyright permission has been obtained from the author for publication.
Distributed by the Common Ground News Service – Partners in Humanity.
Copyright permission can be obtained from the Christian Science Monitor by contacting lawrenced@csps.com.

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Common Ground News - Partners in Humanity, brought to you by Search for Common Ground, seeks to build bridges of understanding between the West, on the one hand, and the Arab and Muslim worlds, on the other. This service is one outcome of a set of working meetings held in partnership with His Royal Highness Prince El Hassan bin Talal in June 2003.

Every week, CGNews-PiH distributes 5 news articles, op-eds, features, and analyses that aid in developing the current and future relationship of the West and the Arab & Muslim worlds. Articles are chosen based on accuracy, balance, and their ability to improve understanding and communication across borders and regions. They also reflect the need for constructive dialogue around issues of global importance. Selections are authored by local and international experts and leaders who analyse and discuss a broad range of relevant issues. We invite you to submit any articles you feel are compatible with the goals of this news service.

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Invitation to Seminar

Dear Colleagues
The South African Department of Science and Technology has the pleasure of inviting you to a Seminar on “Global Change and Ecosystems Research in South Africa: Opportunities for Partnership with Europe” to be presented as part of the European South African Science and Technology Advancement Programme (ESASTAP) in Brussels on Monday 30 January 2006.

ESASTAP (http://www.esastap.org.za) is a dedicated platform for promoting scientific and technological (S&T) cooperation between South Africa (SA) and the European Union (EU.) One of ESASTAP’s key priorities is to market South Africa’s S&T excellence in Europe and to assist European researchers desirous to collaborate with South Africa in identifying and fostering partnerships with South African researchers. The Global Change and Ecosystems Seminar will form part of this effort. It is presented with a specific eye to boost cooperation with South Africa in the last remaining Sixth Framework Programme (FP6) cooperation opportunities as well as in preparation of the FP7.

The Seminar will therefore serve to highlight South Africa’s research capacities in fields such as climate change, pollution and environmental risk, the sustainable management of natural resources, environmental technologies, as well as Earth observation and other assessment tools for sustainable development. The Seminar will also introduce support and enabling mechanisms, which can facilitate cooperation between South African and European partners in these domains.

Presenters will include South Africa’s Sixth Framework Programme National Contact Points for Sustainable Development from the National Research Foundation as well as a representative of the Natural Resources and Environmental Unit of the CSIR (Council for Scientific and Industrial Research), one of South Africa’s key national facilities. The detailed Seminar programme is attached as well as available at: http://www.esastap.org.za/Events/euEvents.html.

The Seminar will be held at the Crown Plaza Brussels Europa Hotel in Brussels (Rue de la Loi 107). Please confirm your attendance at contact @ esastap.org.za.

Please do not hesitate to contact ESASTAP should you require any further information.

ESASTAP wish all its friends and partners everything of the best for 2006.

Greetings Everyone,

On behalf of the Special Symposium Issue of Experiments in Education published by the S.I.T.U Council of Educational Research, I invite you to submit papers on the topic of "Humiliation in the Academic Setting." Your contribution is an invaluable part of our work so we encourage you to join us by participating in this special issue. Please refer to the link below for specific guideline information.

http://www.humiliationstudies.org/education/ganesan.php

I graciously thank you in advance for your interest and consideration in this project and look forward to hearing from you all soon.

If you have any additional questions concerning this special symposium issue, please do not hesitate to contact me.

Sincerely,
Annette Engler - Guest Editor

New Book and Two NYC Events Honor Human Rights Advocate, Mary Robinson.

A Voice for Human Rights, edited by Kevin Boyle, is an annotated collection of Robinson's speeches, given when she served as U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights. The book also provides the first in-depth account of the work of the Office of High Commissioner. With a preface by Kofi Annan and an afterword by Louise Arbour, the present Human Rights Commissioner, the book will be of interest to all concerned with international human rights, international relations, development, and politics.

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Columbia University Reception
Monday, January 23rd
12 noon to 1:15 p.m.
The Kellogg Center, 15th Floor
School of International and Public Affairs
Columbia University
420 West 118th Street (just off Amsterdam Ave)
RSVP by Wednesday, January 18th to: CSHR@columbia.edu

United Nations Book Signing
Tuesday, January 24th
1 p.m. to 3 p.m.
United Nations Bookshop
Visitors Lobby GA-32
1st Avenue and 46th Street
New York, NY 10017

Essex University Professor and editor Kevin Boyle is also scheduled to appear at both events.

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BUY A Voice for Human Rights NOW at www.pennpress.org!

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University of Pennsylvania Press
3905 Spruce Street
Philadelphia, PA 19104
www.pennpress.org

The WMD's DemocracyNews
Electronic Newsletter of the World Movement for Democracy - www.wmd.org
January 2006

POSTING NEWS:
We welcome items to include in DemocracyNews. Please send an email message to world@ned.org with the item you would like to post in the body of the message.

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CONTENTS

31. WORLD MOVEMENT PARTICIPATING NETWORKS, ORGANIZATIONS AND INDIVIDUALS MENTIONED IN THIS ISSUE
*****************************************************************

DEMOCRACY ALERTS/APPEALS

1. Asian Democracy Network Condemns Jailing of Sam Rainsy in Cambodia
On January 3, 2006, the Alliance for Reform and Democracy in Asia (ARDA) issued a statement denouncing the recent crackdown on the opposition and human rights activists in Cambodia, such as Kem Sokha and Yeng Virak. The Alliance expressed a concern over the break-down of the democratic system in the country. In this statement, ARDA calls on the Cambodian authorities to stop the persecution of human rights defenders. It also calls on the governments of ASEAN not turn a blind eye to the failings of its member states.

In its earlier statement, ARDA also condemned the recent 18-month jail term imposed on Cambodia's opposition leader Sam Rainsy by the Phnom Penh Municipal Court. The jailing follows the lifting of parliamentary immunity on MPs Sam Rainsy, Chea Poch, and Cheam Channy in February of 2005. ARDA calls on the government to release Cheam Channy, revoke Sam Rainsy's 18-month sentence, and reinstate parliamentary immunity in Cambodia.
Go to: www.asiademocracy.org/content_view.php?section_id=2&content_id=618 and to
www.asiademocracy.org/content_view.php?section_id=2&content_id=621

2. Support Freedom of Speech in Russia
The Center for Journalism in Extreme Situations (CJES) based in Russia recently issued a statement in support of Stanislav Dmitriyevsky, editor-in-chief of a local newspaper, Pravo-Zaschita, founded by the public association Nizhny Novgorod Human Rights Society. A criminal case against the journalist was opened in January 2005 based on the publication in Pravo-Zashchita of statements made by representatives of the elected inter-war government of Chechnya, Akhmed Zakayev and Aslan Maskhadov, which contained calls for a peaceful settlement of the Russian-Chechen conflict, criticism of the Russian government, army, and President Vladimir Putin. Human rights activists consider the charges to be politically motivated and designed to undermine the constitutional guarantees of freedom of speech. Dmitriyevsky's trial, which began in November, will resume on January 18. The CJES is collecting signatures for the statement issued on his behalf.
To sign the statement in support of the Stanislav Dmitriyevky, go to: www.cjes.ru/actions/action.php?p_id=1

3. Human Rights Watch Calls for Independent Investigation into Killings in Dongzhou, China
On December 15, 2005, Human Rights Watch (HRW) issued a call for an independent and transparent investigation into the December 6, 2005 killing of protestors in Dongzhou village in China. The incident in Guangdong province is the first known shooting of public protestors since the June 1989 massacre of democracy advocates in Tiananmen Square. The Dongzhou killings took place after a large crowd gathered to protest the arrest of villagers involved in negotiations over a poweplant. In an open letter circulated Tuesday, more than 50 Chinese intellectuals demanded an independent investigation. Human Rights Watch said it agreed with the authors of the letter and urged China to invite the United Nations or another independent body to investigate the killings immediately.
Go to: www.hrw.org/english/docs/2005/12/15/china12281.htm

4. Human Rights Watch Calls on Thai Government to End the Use of "Blacklists"
On December 16, 2005, Human Rights Watch (HRW) issued a call for the Thai government to end its use of blacklists. According to HRW, the use of blacklists of suspected militants has created a climate of fear in Thailand. Those on the list, who are Muslim villagers, are required to surrender themselves voluntarily and undergo re-education programs. Under the July 2005 Emergency Decree, defying a summons can result in imprisonment. Since those summoned are not considered criminal suspects, they are denied the right to habeas corpus and access to legal council, and have no safeguards against torture. At the same time, the Emergency Decree grants immunity to the government and its officials from allegations of abuse.
Go to: www.hrw.org/english/docs/2005/12/16/thaila12317.htm

5. Amendments to Belarusian Criminal Code Endanger Freedom of Expression
On December 16, 2005, CIVICUS, the World Alliance for Citizen Participation, and Belarusian human rights center Viasna, issued an alert on recent amendments to the Belarusian criminal code that will further endanger civil society's freedoms of association, expression, and assembly. The amendments, which came into force on December 20, 2005, impose jail terms of up to two years for anyone who facilitates or participates in group activities, works with unregistered organizations, appeals for assistance from foreign governments and organizations, or 'discredits' the Republic of Belarus in any way. CIVICUS and Viasna urge the government of Belarus to immediately repeal these new amendments.
Go to: www.civicus.org/csw/Belarus_JointStatement.htm

ANNOUNCEMENTS AND EVENTS

6. World Movement for Democracy Launches the Fourth Assembly Web Site
The World Movement for Democracy recently launched the Web site for its upcoming Forth Assembly. The Assembly, entitled "Advancing Democracy: Justice, Pluralism, and Participation," is scheduled to take place on April 2-4, in Istanbul, Turkey. The Web site includes general information on the meeting, workshops, and venue. Detailed Assembly agenda and other important information will be posted on the Web site soon.
Go to: www.wmd.org/fourth_assembly/main.html

7. Cuban Political Prisoner Receives Prize
Juan Carlos Herrera Acosta, prisoner of conscience from the Cuban Movement of Youth for Democracy and independent journalist for the Western Free Press Agency, was awarded the Carlos Manuel de Cespedes Prize for Dignity on December 10, 2005, by the Western Democratic Alliance. The Prize was created by the Alliance to recognize the patriotism, heroism, courage, and stance of political prisoners from the five Western provinces of Cuba. The Prize is awarded annually on December 10th, the anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.
Go to: www.directorio.org/press_releases/press_releases.php?note_id=895

8. Call for Nominations: King Baudouin Foundation International Development Prize
The Brussels-based King Baudouin Foundation invites nominations for the 2006-07 King Baudouin International Development Prize. The King Baudouin Prize is awarded every other year to reward the work of individuals or organizations that have made a substantial contribution to the development of countries in the Southern Hemisphere or to solidarity between industrialized and developing nations. Beyond its actual financial value, the prize provides its winners with international visibility and promotion. The 2006-07 prize, worth 150,000 euros, will be awarded in the spring of 2007 at the Royal Palace in Brussels. Previous prize-winners cover a broad spectrum of fields from literacy, education of rural communities, technology transfer, new forms of credit, human rights and fair trade.
For more information go to: www.kbprize.org/, and www.kbs-frb.be/

9. Fellowships for Emerging Leaders in Developing Countries
Applications are now available for the 2006-07 round of the H.J. Heinz Company Foundation Fellowship Program at the University of Pittsburgh. The Fellowships are offered annually and provide for one year of practical, professional, and non-degree educational experiences at the University of Pittsburgh in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA. Heinz Fellowships will be granted to two individuals from developing countries who demonstrate potential as future leaders in the public, non-profit, or private sectors. The goal is to improve, early in a career, the Fellows' capacity to contribute to the development of their country and to enhance their understanding of the United States. Deadline for applications is March 15, 2006.
For more information and to obtain application forms, go to: www.ucis.pitt.edu/heinzfellowship or contact heinz@ucis.pitt.edu

10. Job Opportunity: Working With the Khmer Rouge Tribunal
The Documentation Center of Cambodia (DC-Cam) seeks several exceptional law students to serve as Legal Associates during months of June-August, 2006, to work closely with officials and attorneys from the Khmer Rouge Tribunal. DC-Cam is an independent Cambodian NGO originally created by Yale University scholars pursuant to the Cambodian Genocide Justice Act of 1994. The Khmer Rouge Tribunal, more accurately known as the "Extraordinary Chambers," will put certain former Khmer Rouge officials on trial, and DC-Cam is expected to play a central role in the proceedings. The Associates will assist the Deputy Legal Director of the Response Team. Law students with an avid interest in international criminal law and human rights are invited to apply. The positions are unpaid, but DC-Cam will make every effort to meet Associates' travel, board and lodging expenses by helping successful applicants identify and apply for suitable funds. Applicants should e-mail a resume and brief statement of interest to john_ciorciari@post.harvard.edu no later than January 30, 2006.
Go to: www.dccam.org

11. Call for Nominations: 2006 Robert F. Kennedy Human Rights Award
The Robert F. Kennedy Memorial Center for Human Rights is now accepting nominations for the 2006 RFK Human Rights Award. The Robert F. Kennedy Memorial Center for Human Rights (CHR) engages in long-term partnerships with social justice activists to initiate and support sustainable social justice movements. The nominee must be currently active in human rights advocacy in the country where the human rights violations against which s/he is fighting are taking place, and must be part of and/or lead, a human rights campaign or organization. The nomination cycle will close on April 15, 2006.
Go to: www.rfkmemorial.org/legacyinaction/selectionprocess/.
The nomination form can be accessed at: www.rfkmemorial.org/legacyinaction/Nominate_Advocate/

CIVIL SOCIETY STRENGTHENING

12. Communication Toolkit for Researchers and Civil Society Organizations
This handbook, "Successful Communication: A Toolkit for Researchers and Civil Society Organizations," published by the Overseas Development Institute, is geared towards the needs of researchers and practitioners in civil society organizations, including development NGOs, research institutes, think tanks, and universities. It addresses the questions of how researchers and civil society practitioners can best communicate evidence in order to inform or influence policy, to achieve their own stated objectives, or simply to make their own knowledge accessible and understandable to a wider audience.
For more information and to download the toolkit, go to: www.comminit.com/materials/ma2005/materials-2604.html

CONFLICT RESOLUTION

13. 14th Annual International Conference on Conflict Resolution on May 5-15, 2006 in St. Petersburg, Russia
The Annual International Conference on Conflict Resolution (ICR), sponsored by the Common Bond Institute (USA) and the Harmony Institute (Russia) is to be held on May 5-15, 2006 in St. Petersburg, Russia. It will offer an open forum exploring conflict transformation within diverse contexts, including arts, culture, economics and business, environment, education, gender, global and regional conflicts, health, human rights, community, and spirituality. Many opportunities will be provided for intensive dialogue on theory and perceptions of conflict and transformation, practical skills training, networking, and collaboration. Proposals for presentation must be submitted by March 10, 2006. A parallel youth conference on "The Ecology of War and Peace" will also take place at the same location. It is open to youth from any country between the ages of 14-18, and their adult chaperones. An intensive International Training in Trauma Treatment for relief workers from regions of conflict is scheduled to take place following the ICR Conference.
Go to: www.cbiworld.org/Pages/Conferences_ICR.htm

DECENTRALIZATION AND LOCAL GOVERNMENT

14. Global Network on Local Governance Launches its Web Site
On December 20, 2005, the Web site of the Global Network on Local Governance (GNLG) was launched. The Web site contains an array of information on trends and developments in the field of local government at the global level. In addition to information on the state of local governments around the world, the Web site also proposes to hold online discussions on contemporary issues concerning decentralization, grassroots democracy, and empowerment of disadvantaged groups. The Web site is prepared and maintained by the Institute of Social Sciences, New Delhi, which serves as the Secretariat for the GNLG. The GNLG is a network of elected local government representatives, democracy activists, academics, and socially active NGOs and serves work as a clearinghouse for information, innovative practices, and events concerning local governments. The primary purpose of the GNLG is the dissemination of success stories and the sharing of experiences at regional and global levels. The GNLG network emerged as a result of discussions at the second and third Assemblies of the World Movement for Democracy, with which it is affiliated.
Go to: www.gnlg.org

ECONOMIC REFORM AND THE BUSINESS SECTOR

15. Center for International Private Enterprise Launches Blog on Development
The CIPE Development Blog is an online forum designed to encourage discussion among reformers, civil society and youth leaders, and others interested in issues relating to economic reform and democratic development. It discusses international development issues in light of CIPE's programs and world events. For additional information, contact blog@cipe.org
Go to: www.cipe.org/blog.

ELECTIONS

16. Zimbabwe Election Group Reports Lowest Voter Turn-out Recorded Since 1980
In a press statement dated November 27, 2005, the Zimbabwe Election Support Network (ZESN) characterized the 2005 Senatorial elections in this country as having the lowest voter turn out since independence, with the average percentage of voter turn-out at less than 30 percent. The lowest poll prior to that was the 1996 presidential election, which recorded a 32.3 percent turn-out. According the ZESN, the low turn-out implies a protest vote by Zimbabweans against the status quo. They also cited other factors, such as a questioning of the role of the Senate and the importance of voting, dwindling interest in the integrity of the ballot, current economic hardships, and lack of adequate voter education and information
Go to: www.zesn.org.zw/docs/Press%20statement%20Senate%20Final.doc

HUMAN RIGHTS

17. West African Human Rights Defenders Network Launches Web site
In observance of International Human Rights Day on December 10, the West African Human Rights Defenders Network (WAHRDNet) announced the launching of its Web site. It contains news, information on human rights abuses, information by country, monthly events, projects, and resources. WAHRDnet is an umbrella institution of national coalitions of NGOs working in the field of human rights in the 16 West African countries.
Go to: www.wahrdnet.org/

18. Study of UN Voting Pattern Shows Increase in Censure of Human Rights Violations
A new Democracy Coalition Project (DCP) survey shows a marked improvement in UN member states' willingness to adopt resolutions criticizing human rights violations in specific countries this year. The United Nations General Assembly's Third Committee approved six out of seven resolutions criticizing human rights violations and a seventh resolution was blocked from consideration by a motion to adjourn the debate, down from three resolutions blocked last year. Consistent support from new and old democracies from the Americas and Europe for resolutions that condemn the worst human rights violations, coupled with an increasing tendency by democracies in Africa and the Caribbean to abstain from voting against such resolutions, account for the improvement this year, the annual survey reveals.
Go to: www.demcoalition.org/pdf/Scorecard%202005-2006%20Analysis.pdf

19. Moroccan King Orders Public Release of Truth Commission Final Report
According to a report released by the International Center for Transitional Justice (ICTJ), on December 16, 2005, King Mohammad VI approved the publication and public release of the final report of the Moroccan Equity and Reconciliation Commission (IER). According to the summaries, the full report determines the responsibilities of state actors and other parties for abuses, and outlines an extensive reparations plan for victims and their families. While addressing the precise nature of past violations, the report also recommends concrete steps the Moroccan government and civil society can take to ensure non-repetition in the future, such as measures and reforms that strengthen the rule of law. The ICTJ assists countries pursuing accountability for past mass atrocity or human rights abuse. The Center works in societies emerging from repressive rule or armed conflict, as well as in established democracies where historical injustices or systematic abuse remain unresolved.
Go to: www.ictj.org/downloads/PR.051216.IERReportRelease.eng.pdf
To access the summaries, go to: www.ictj.org/downloads/IERreport.summary.eng.pdf

20. Suara Rakyat Malaysia (SUARAM) Publishes Summary of Civil and Political Rights Report 2005
Suara Rakyat Malaysia (SUARAM), a leading human rights organization in Malaysia, has published the Executive Summary of its Malaysian Civil and Political Rights Report 2005 on December 9, 2005. The full report is scheduled to be published in April of 2006.
Go to: http://suaram.net/2005-hr-exec-summ-eng.pdf
For more information on SUARAM, go to: www.suaram.net/

21. Online Publication: "Australia's Mental Health System in Distress."
South Asia Human Rights Documentation Center (SAHRDC) has issued the December edition of the Human Rights Feature article, HRF-132, "Australia's mental health system in distress." The article reviews the findings of a report prepared by the Mental Health Council of Australia and the Brain and Mind Research Institute, in consultation with the Human Rights Equal Opportunity Commission of Australia (HREOC). The 2005 Report, "Not for Service: Experiences of Injustice and Despair in Mental Health Care in Australia," analyzes Australia's mental health system. It demonstrates that human rights violations exposed in an earlier (1993) report by HREOC have not been rectified.
Go to: www.hrdc.net/sahrdc/hrfeatures/HRF132.htm

INTERNATIONAL DEMOCRACY ASSISTANCE AND SOLIDARITY

22. Southeastern Europe's Liberal Parties Gather in Belgrade
A declaration, "Chance for the Future," was ratified at the regional conference of Southeastern Europe's liberal parties held on December 13, 2005, in Belgrade. The declaration aims to increase cooperation among the liberal parties in the region. The Civic Alliance of Serbia (conference organizer), the Liberal Democratic Party, and representatives of the liberal political parties from Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, Bulgaria, Albania, Macedonia, and Kosovo attended the conference. The declaration encourages full European Union membership, the strengthening of regional cooperation, and addressing the past as a necessity for the development of countries in the region.
Go to: www.gradjanskisavez.org.yu/eng/vest.php?id=42

INTERNET, MEDIA, AND FREEDOM OF EXPRESSION

23. South East Europe Media Organization Urges Albanian Authorities to Investigate Attack.
In a press release on December 21, 2005, the Vienna, Austria-based South East Europe Media Organization (SEEMO) issued an alert about the recent attack on a media house in Albania. On the night of December 18, unknown persons threw explosives into an area close to the building in which three newspapers, Shekulli, Sporti Shqiptar and Biznesi, and one magazine, Spekter, have their offices. Although no one was injured, there was damage to property. Oliver Vujovic, SEEMO Secretary General, condemned the incident and emphasized the importance of journalists' ability to report without fear of harassment or intimidation. SEEMO urges the Albanian authorities to investigate this case immediately and take all necessary action against those responsible.
Go to: www.southeasteurope.org/subpage.php?sub_site=2&id=15889&head=hl&site=1
For more information about SEEMO, go to: www.seemo.org

24. National Union of Somali Journalists Wins RSF International Press Freedom Award
The National Union of Somali Journalists (NUSOJ) was presented the International Press Freedom Award by Reporters Without Borders and Fondation de France. It is in recognition of the Union's fight to defend the freedom of the press in a country ravaged by internal warfare. The NUSOJ, which is a trade union organization that also deals with professional issues, is the first ever independent union for Somali journalists since the birth of Somalia.
Go to: www.nusoj.org/

25. Internews International Releases 2005 Annual Report
Internews International's 2005 annual report is now available on its Web site. This publication provides an overview of the work of Internews in its mission of improving access to news and information for people around the world.
Go to: www.internews.org/about/ar2005/default.htm

26. Kabissa Newsletter Offers News on ICT in Africa
On January 10, 2005, Kabissa released the most recent issue of Kabissa Gong Gong, a monthly newsletter containing the latest news about Information and Communication Technology (ICT) in Africa and how African Civil Society Organizations are using it. The current issue focuses on giving email a professional look, announcements from Kabissa members, a spotlight on the Maasai Girls Education Fund, and more. Kabissa's mission is to help African civil society organizations put ICTs to work for the benefit of the people those organizaitons serve.
Go to: www.kabissa.org/newsletter/

POLITICAL PARTIES AND POLITICAL LEADERSHIP

27. Asian Center for Human Rights (ACHR) Addresses Challenges Facing Afghanistan
The latest issue of the ACHR REVIEW, a weekly commentary and analysis of the Asian Centre for Human Rights (ACHR), analyzes many challenges facing President Hamid Karzai of Afghanistan in the new year. Some of the challenges discussed are the harmonization of conflicting interests in the parliament, drug trafficking, materialization of aid pledged by donor countries, and the building up of Afghanistan's own security forces. The article states that the realization of democracy and the rebuilding of Afghanistan is a "Herculean task," whose success depends upon overcoming these challenges.
Go to: www.achrweb.org/Review/2005/105-05.htm

RULE OF LAW

28. Liberia National Law Enforcement Association Newsletter
The Liberia National Law Enforcement Association (LINLEA) issued its most recent newsletter in December 2005. The issue focuses on law enforcement issues and on improving the law enforcement and security administration situation in Liberia. This newsletter contains articles on the functions of law enforcement agencies in conflict, leadership seminars, upcoming events, and principles of democratic governance in the security sector.
Go to: www.wmd.org/documents/jan2005-linlea_newsletter-jan2005.doc

TRANSPARENCY AND ANTI-CORRUPTION

29. Report on Democratic Oversight of Education Sector in Pakistan
The Centre for Peace and Development Initiatives, Pakistan (CPDI-Pakistan) has issued a report on the "Performance of the Standing Committee of the Senate on Education." This report has been prepared with the aim of aiding civil society organizations to strengthen democratic oversight in the education sector, and facilitating the work of members of the Senate Committee in implementing appropriate steps to improve their performance. CPDI-Pakistan welcomes feedback and comments on the report.
Go to: www.cpdi-pakistan.org/publications.htm

30. Global Integrity Seeks Journalists and Researchers to Help Prepare Global Integrity Report
Global Integrity, a US-based NGO dedicated to collecting and disseminating data and information on governance and corruption trends around the world is seeking journalists and researchers with expertise in governance and anti-corruption to help prepare the 2006 edition of the Global Integrity Report. The Report will assess the state of corruption in 100 countries based on on-the-ground reporting and a set of indicators measuring transparency, government accountability, and anti-corruption initiatives. Interested candidates should submit their resumé/CV and three references to info@globalintegrity.org. Applications will be reviewed in early 2006.
Go to: www.globalintegrity.org/inviteletter

31. WORLD MOVEMENT PARTICIPATING NETWORKS, ORGANIZATIONS AND INDIVIDUALS MENTIONED IN THIS ISSUE
* Alliance for Reform and Democracy in Asia (ARDA) - www.asiademocracy.org/
* Center for International Private Enterprise (CIPE ) - www.cipe.org
* Centre for Peace and Development Initiatives, Pakistan (CPDI-Pakistan) - www.cpdi-pakistan.org/publications.htm
* CIVICUS - www.civicus.org/csw/Belarus_JointStatement.htm
* Documentation Center of Cambodia (DC-Cam) - www.dccam.org
* Global Network on Local Governance - www.gnlg.org
* Internews - www.internews.org
* Kabissa - www.kabissa.org
* Liberia National Law Enforcement Association (LINLEA)
* South Asia Human Rights Documentation Center (SAHRDC) - www.hrdc.net/sahrdc
* Suara Rakyat Malaysia - www.suaram.net/
* Zimbabwe Election Support Network - www.zesn.org.zw/

*****************************************************************

To subscribe send an email to subscribe-democracynews@lyris.ned.org.

04.01.2006, Rajaganesan Dakshinamoorthi kindly wrote:

My dear Evelin

[...]

I have read in contemporary Indian magazines that are supportive of Hinduism that proselytisation disrupts families and makes enemies out of mothers and sons.

At the other end, I use to quote frequently an episode in the life of Ramana Maharshi,a saint who lived during the twentieth century in this part of India. This incident occurred when India had been a colony of Britain and many Britishers were in positions of power in the administration. A British Police Officer, a staunch Christian, heard about Ramana Maharshi whose asram was within his jurisdiction.

The Maharshi, on the onset of his adolescence has had an obsession with death though there were no external or medical causes therefor. He ran away from home, roamed the hills, went into a cave where he is said to have spent a decade and more in meditation (on the human condition)and emerged a saint. ( Prophet Mohammed too is reported to have had a prolonged retreat in a cave before he perceived himself a prophet). The Maharshi realised that it is the body that dies but the soul within is immortal. Further, the individual soul is an integral part of the universal spirit.

The Maharshi used to wear only a loin cloth. People thronged to him. He gave no discourse,made no gestures of blessings or even cast a compassionate look. He just use to recline on a bed with nothing but a loin cloth. But his very presence, it is said,radiated peace and serenity. He has had many admirers like Paul Brunton who was a Britisher (or,an American citizen-I am not sure)and who wrote extensively about the Maharshi. This British Police Officer, however, had nothing but contempt for a man who is clad in a loin cloth. But as he was admired by many he had a curiosity to see what this phenomenon was about. He went in his official dress, with retinue and paraphernalia, to the asram. As he approched the asram he found an indescribable serenity surrounding it. When he entered he found the maharshi just reclining with his loin cloth and a number of people sitting silently, their minds filled with peace and their countenances expressing it. This officer, who had come to scoff at this near-naked man in the arrogance and superiority of a high ranking official of the colonial power whose proselytisers flaunted Christianity as the only way of secular (economic) and spiritual salvation for Indians mired in poverty, became at once humble and spell-bound. He stood silent savouring the serenity of the asram for sometime. Then he asked an attendant-devotee of the asram whether he could speak to the 'Swamiji'. The attendant asked the Maharshi. He gestured,'By all means, you can'. The officer went near the Maharshi and just asked him,'Swamiji, shall I become a Hindu?' The Maharshi replied,'Go and be a better Christian; if you do, you would have become a Hindu'.

I for one believe that conversion through proselytisation makes for spurious, hollow and sham persona. Not only that: even formal adherence to the religion into which one had been born makes for some psychic violence though it may be mute and invisible. Though I am born and brought up a Hindu,I have a fascination for Buddhism. Not that I am an admirer of the Buddha. One of the chapters in my doctoral thesis was a kind of post-mortem psychoanalysis of the Buddha's lifecourse. I could kind of understand his departure from the Hindu religion into which he had been born and articulation of Buddhism from a purely secular, scientific, psychoanalytic point of view. My credo in this regard is Shakespeare's: 'A man's jusgement is a parcel of his fortunes'. That way I readily endorse Swami Vivekananda's observation,'Let each man be a sect (ie.,religious 'group') unto himself. Swami Vivekananda was a saint of the Indian renaissance who began his famous speech in the World Parliament of Religions at Chicago,1893, as 'Dear Brothers and Sisters of America'.

Yes, my religion must be based on the experiences I accumulate,reflect on and sift during my life-course, and not on any ready made dogma. No, not even on any extraordinary experience like mystical experience. In a note I prepared for inviting papers for a session on 'Alienation,Meditation and Mysticism (from a purely secular,scientific perspective) in the XII World Congress of Sociology, I pointed out that mystical experience had,as a rule, only made for a relapse into the religion into which one had been born and from which one had strayed during his adolescence and youth and that even when there is a departure it can be accounted for in terms of secular psychological laws.

That brings me to the end of this long e-discourse: Buddhism says the very quest for a worldview, the blue print for a completed structure for our beliefs about the world is a disease! I guess it must be the underlying theme of the book in German by Karl Jaspers,'The Psychopathology of Worldviews'about which I have read only secondary references in English. Why do you want to have closure? Why do you want answers for all your questions? Why don't you accept life as it comes and why seek an explanation for everything (especially the bad things) that happens?

A famous Tamil film lyricist whom I admire sang: There is no tomorrow but the living moment is the boundary.

Yours sincerely
D.Raja Ganesan

D. Raja Ganesan wrote a poem, in 1979, that he kindly shares with us:

'God is Mad'

As a child
I was told
There ruled
Over this world
A moral umpire
Justly patient
and kind.

I waited and waited
For His justice
To Unfold.

Had not Nietzsche said
That God is dead?

Alas
Though I had
Lost my faith
Long ago
My fear of God
Will not go.

As the world
Is clearly bad
I sadly conclude
God must be mad.

Lemkin's House, by Catherine Filloux, directed by Jean Randich
LEMKIN'S HOUSE ­ a thought-provoking drama about the horrors of genocide ­ written by Catherine Filloux will be given its US premiere with previews beginning on February 3rd prior to its official press opening of February 9th at the 78th Street Theatre Lab (236 West 78th Street).

LEMKIN'S HOUSE is set in the afterlife of Raphael Lemkin, the Polish-American lawyer whose family died in the Holocaust and who invented the word genocide. He dedicated his life to fighting to have genocide declared an international crime. Lemkin is bombarded by people bursting into his home with complaints of more recent genocides in Rwanda and Bosnia. Lemkin must recognize that even his law is not enough to change the world. He weighs his ethical accomplishments against his guilt for deserting his own doomed family ultimately seeking not only justice but also forgiveness. In LEMKIN'S HOUSE, it's the dead who are haunted by the living.

78th Street Theatre Lab was established in 1978 to provide artists with a supportive workplace to create and develop unique, thought-provoking theatre. Under Artistic Director Eric Nightengale and General Manager Ruth Nightengale, previous works of the 78th Street Theatre Lab include the highly successful THE CHINESE ART OF PLACEMENT, INSIDE A BIGGER BOX, THIN WALLS, and the acclaimed Dawn Powell festival PERMANENT VISITOR. Last year's season included Trish Harnetiaux's acclaimed STRAIGHT ON ŒTIL MORNING and Paul Allman's KENNETH ­ WHAT IS THE FREQUENCY?. Scheduled February 3 through February 26, performances of LEMKIN'S HOUSE run Thursdays-Saturdays at 8:00pm and Sundays at 3:00pm, with an added performance on Wednesday, February 22 at 8:00pm. Tickets are $15 and can be reserved by calling Smarttix at 212-868-4444 or online at www.smarttix.com .

The Beauty Inside, A Play in Two Acts, By Catherine Filloux
Brutal and poetic, this searing drama follows a promising young attorney who passes up a lucrative offer at a big American law firm to defend the survivor of an attempted honor killing in her native Turkey. Challenging barbaric traditions and a corrupt legal system, she embarks on a life-changing journey of social activism and self-discovery, while developing an extraordinary bond with her visionary client.

2005 Season, New Georges, NYC (Co-produced with InterAct Theatre Co., Philadelphia, PA)
ALSO: 2004 Fulbright Senior Specialist; Higher Institute of Drama & Cultural Animation, Rabat, Morocco; THE BEAUTY INSIDE was translated into Arabic for a three-week workshop; Directed by Messaoud Bouhcine; Director of ISADAC: Dr. Ahmed Massaia; Play translated by Jawad Wadi.

Catherine Filloux's recent plays include: THE BEAUTY INSIDE; EYES OF THE HEART; SILENCE OF GOD; MARY AND MYRA; ARTHUR¹S WAR; PHOTOGRAPHS FROM S-21; ESCUELA DEL MUNDO. Filloux's other plays have been produced in New York and around the U.S. Opera libretto: THE FLOATING BOX: A Story in Chinatown; (Composer Jason Kao Hwang; selected as a Critics Choice "favorite full-length opera recording of the year" by Opera News, 2005; CD New World Records 2005); Commission from Cambodian Living Arts for opera libretto WHERE ELEPHANTS WEEP with Cambodian composer Him Sophy (2006). Awards: The Kennedy Center Fund for New American Plays' Roger L. Stevens award, Eric Kocher Playwrights Award (National Playwrights Conference, O'Neill Theater Center); Callaway Award (New Dramatists), Fulbright Senior Specialist (Cambodia & Morocco).

INTERNATIONAL TRAUMA STUDIES PROGRAM
At the Mailman School of Public Health, Columbia University

Training Program in International Trauma Studies
September 2006 to May 2007 New York City

Founded in New York in 1997, the International Trauma Studies Program
(ITSP) http://www.itspnyc.org
has achieved worldwide recognition as a leader in the field of trauma
studies and community response to catastrophes. Our distinctive
program is committed to global education promoting state-of-the-art
knowledge, research, and the development of technical skills to
assist people in coping with traumatic events. Our trauma and
disaster response Training Program based in New York has attracted
professionals from all over the world. The International Trauma
Studies Program is based at the Program on Forced Migration and
Health, Mailman School of Public Health at Columbia University.

The Training Program presents current individual, family and
community oriented approaches based on a resilience framework. The
course explores best practices in international psychosocial response
in the contexts of domestic, communal, and political violence,
natural and human caused catastrophes and forced migration. In
addition to trauma theory and intervention, the Training Program
intertwines the psychosocial, political, ethical, and human rights
dimensions of traumatic suffering and humanitarian intervention into
the curriculum.

The International Trauma Studies Program’s multidisciplinary
approach bridges disciplines ranging from mental health and community
development, to the arts, literature, performance, oral history, and
the media. The Training Program builds competency in the practice
and implementation of trauma responses through practical skill
building for everyday work and life.

Format of the Course

Nine intensive one and a half day Symposia from September to May run
by visiting local and international faculty who are renowned experts
in the trauma field:

The class meets twice every month, roughly every two weeks. The
Symposia, which are nine intensive one and half day workshops, are
scheduled Thursday, 4:00-7:30pm and the next day Friday, 9:30am -
5:00pm. The nine monthly integrative Salons are scheduled on a
subsequent Thursday evening from 6:00-8:30pm. This is especially
designed to allow working professionals to attend the course. The
course consists of 130 training hours. The exact dates for the
upcoming 2006-2007 session have not yet been established.

Nine monthly integrative Salons provides participants opportunities
to share their own work and host visiting experts.

Class Project that actively integrates theory and methods taught in
the course.

Voluntary Externships in a research group, clinical or community
setting, available for local and international participants who wish
to enhance their learning experience.

Curriculum

Current topical events and access to special faculty and presenters
may influence the specific focus of the subject area from year to
year. This flexibility allows the program to bring to participants a
state of the art curriculum enriching the educational experience at
ITSP. The basic topic areas covered include:

Comprehensive Approach to Trauma and Psychosocial Response
- Multi-systemic Framework for Trauma, Understanding, Healing,
and Prevention
- History and Theories of Trauma and Loss
- Overview of Assessment, Clinical and Community Interventions
- Taking Care of Caretakers

Working with Children, Families, and Communities
- Trauma in a Developmental Context
- Therapeutic Approaches with Children and Families
- Trauma and Loss in the Family
- Facilitating Resilience in Families, Schools and Communities

International Mental Health and Psychosocial Response in Complex
Emergencies
- Introduction to International Organizations, Human Rights,
and Legal Instruments
- Impact of War, Disaster and Forced Migration
- Creating Sustainable Psychosocial Programs
- Cultural Competence and Collaboration
- Needs Assessment, Monitoring and Evaluation

Trauma and Society: Trans-Disciplinary Collaborations
- Assisting Survivors and their Communities in the Context of Transitional Justice, Coexistence and Reconciliation
- Testimony, Witnessing and Collective Narration
- Role of the Arts and Media in Promoting Individual and Collective Recovery

Faculty and Presenters

Course Professor: Jack Saul, Ph.D.; Director, International Trauma
Studies Program; Faculty, Mailman School of Public Health, Columbia
University

Over the years, ITSP has developed a distinguished, well-recognized
international panel of experts to teach in the course. Our unique
approach to teaching enables ITSP to bring in specialists from
different expertise, each one working on and developing the most
cutting edge practices, research, and technology in the field of
trauma. Each Symposium and many of the Salons are taught by
different experts with specific competence in their respective
fields. Recent visiting faculty includes:

Nancy Baron, Ed.D., Sandra Bloom, M.D., Pauline Boss, Ph.D., Claude
Chemtob, Ph.D., Sara Cobb, Ph.D., Esther Cohen, Ph.D., Allen Feldman,
Ph.D., Peter Fraenkel, Ph.D., William Friedrich, Ph.D., Brandon
Hamber, Ph.D., Kenneth Hardy, Ph.D., Soeren Buus Jensen, M.D. Ph.D.,
Judith Landau, M.D., Esther Perel, M.A., Steven Reisner, Ph.D.,
Carlos Sluzki, M.D., Ruti Teitel, J.D., Bessel van der Kolk, M.D.,
Vamik Volkan, M.D., Stevan Weine, M.D.

Tuition: $4800

Scholarships
- ITSP offers 2 full tuition scholarships to mental health
professionals and community leaders from foreign countries or
immigrant and refugee communities in the New York metropolitan area.
In addition, there are limited opportunities for partial tuition
scholarships with a work/study component. Please inquire to the
program directly for details.

Early Admissions Deadline: March 1, 2006

Enrollment is limited to 30 participants per year. Early application
is encouraged.

Download Applications:
http://www.itspnyc.org/ITSP_Application0607.pdf [PDF file]
http://www.itspnyc.org/ITSP_Application06_07.doc [Word document]

For further information, contact:

International Trauma Studies Program
155 Avenue of the Americas 4th Floor
New York, NY 10013
Tel 212.691.6499 Fax 212.807.1809
Email info@itspnyc.org
Website http://www.itspnyc.org

Jack Saul, Ph.D., Director
International Trauma Studies Program
155 Avenue of the Americas 4th Floor
New York, NY 10013
Tel. 212.6916499 Fax 212.807.1809
Email info @ itspnyc.org
Web www.itspnyc.org

3rd Annual International Youth Conference on "THE ECOLOGY OF WAR AND PEACE,"
May 5-15, 2006, St. Petersburg, Russia
( Formal Conference Program: May 6-11 )

Sponsored by
Common Bond Institute (USA) & HARMONY Institute (RUSSIA),
in cooperation with
the International Humanistic Psychology Association

A Multidisciplinary, Multicultural Conference for future leaders Ages 14-18 *
OPEN TO ALL
www.cbiworld.org

A parallel youth conference, held at the same time and location as the Annual International Conference on Conflict Resolution (ICR), addressing issues of negative stereotypes, prejudice, and scapegoating that lead to demonizing and dehumanizing "The Other." The theme of ecology is used as a common ground all parties can resonate with being "on the same side" of, as they delve into personal interactions to explore these dynamics and help to empower each other as the future leaders of the world.

Participants to these EWP youth conferences are invited to join and cooperate in developing our web-based Global Youth Community to continue and build dialogue, cooperation, and joint projects.

* Youth participants must be accompanied by adult chaperones.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
~ CALL FOR PRESENTATION PROPOSALS ~
Submissions requested by: 3-10-2006
(Early submission is recommended for best choice of sessions. Submissions after this date are considered for evening or replacement sessions as space permits)

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
For information, proposal and registration forms, CONTACT:
COMMON BOND INSTITUTE (USA),
Steve Olweean, Coordinator
12170 S. Pine Ayr Drive, Climax, Michigan 49034
Ph/Fax: 269-665-9393 E-mail: SOlweean@aol.com
Full details available at WEB SITE: www.cbiworld.org
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

14th Annual International Conference on Conflict Resolution

14th ANNUAL INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE
ON CONFLICT RESOLUTION
May 5 - 15, 2006 St. Petersburg, Russia
(Formal conference program May 6-11)

Sponsored by
Common Bond Institute (USA) & HARMONY Institute (RUSSIA),
in cooperation with
the International Humanistic Psychology Association

NOW MORE THAN EVER -- a time that calls for new thinking, new vision, new understanding, and new ways of relating in an increasingly interdependent global community.

www.cbiworld.org

JOIN over 50 presenters and hundreds of participants from across the world for another dynamic program and multicultural community experience.

A MULTI-DISCIPLINARY / MULTI-CULTURAL CONFERENCE that has received support from Former President Clinton, Former President Yeltsin, St. Petersburg Governor Jakovlev, endorsed by over 80 leading-edge organizations and universities internationally, and part of the Hague Appeal for Peace Civil Society Calendar. - OPEN TO ALL

INTENT and FOCUS: The ICR Conference offers an open forum for many perspectives and approaches, exploring conflict transformation within diverse contexts, including: arts/creativity, cross-cultural/ethnic, ecology/environment, economics/business, education, gender, global/regional conflict, health/healing arts, human rights, organizational/community, psychotherapy, and transpersonal/spiritual. Focus is on all aspects of conflict, from the intrapersonal - to the interpersonal - to relationships between groups, organizations, cultures, and societies - and ultimately between us and other species. Many opportunities are provided for intensive dialogues on theory and perceptions of conflict and transformation, sharing programs and curriculums, practical skills training, networking and collaboration, and a powerful intentional community experience. In addition to the variety of topics addressed are emphases on dynamics of "The Other," Terrorism, Trauma, and issues in regions of conflict.

ADDITIONAL PROGRAMMING During The 2006 ICR Conference:
1) Parallel youth conference: 3rd Annual International Youth Conference on
"The Ecology of War and Peace"
2) Following the ICR Conference an intensive International Training in
Trauma Treatment is held for relief workers from regions of conflict.

PARTICIPATION: Participants have come from over 65 countries and all continents, providing excellent networking opportunities. The program attracts key stakeholders in their respective societies, some from both sides of existing conflicts, who can model and teach these skills to many others.

PARTICIPATION IS OPEN TO ALL
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
~ CALL FOR PRESENTATION PROPOSALS ~
Submissions requested by: 3-10-2006
(Early submission is recommended for best choice of sessions. Submissions after this date are considered for evening or replacement sessions as space permits)
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
For information, proposal and registration forms, CONTACT:
COMMON BOND INSTITUTE (USA),
Steve Olweean, Coordinator
12170 S. Pine Ayr Drive, Climax, Michigan 49034
Ph/Fax: 269-665-9393 E-mail: SOlweean@aol.com
Full details available at WEB SITE: www.cbiworld.org
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

CFP: Migrant and Diasporic Cinema in Contemporary Europe

An International Conference hosted by Film Studies and the Institute for Historical and Cultural Research, Oxford Brookes University and held at Lincoln College, Oxford, 6 – 8 July 2006

With European cinemas becoming increasingly determined by multi-cultural and multi-ethnic presences and themes, critical paradigms which examine these cinemas in terms of their national specificity do not adequately address the shift from the national to the transnational which has occurred in all areas of European cinema during the past twenty-five years. This conference seeks to explore how migrant and diasporic filmmakers have redefined our understanding of European cinema. By adopting a comparative perspective in our search for the commonalities and specificities between migrant and diasporic cinemas across different European countries, we endeavour to transcend the borders and limitations of an analytical framework that privileges the concept of discrete national cinemas.

Confirmed keynote speakers include:

Professor Hamid Naficy, Rice University, Texas

Professor Dina Iordanova, University of St. Andrews

Professor Robert Burns, University of Warwick

Pawel Pawlikowski, independent filmmaker (Last Resort, My Summer of Love)

The conference is supported by the Arts and Humanities Research Council. It is the first of a series of events organised by a Research Network which contributes to the AHRC Diasporas, Migration and Identities Programme.

Please visit the conference website for further details and a downloadable Call for Papers: http://ah.brookes.ac.uk/conferences/migrant_cinema

Please send a proposal of 200 - 300 words for a paper of approx. 20 minutes, together with your contact details and a brief biographical note to the following email address: dberghahn@brookes.ac.uk

The deadline has been extended to 27 January 2006. Please mark subject box 'Migrant cinema conference'.

I have no further information about this, so please don’t contact me about it!

Katie Roche
AHRC Programme Administrator
Diasporas, Migration and Identities
Address: Theology and Religious Studies, University of Leeds LS2 9JT
Tel: +44 113 3437838
Fax: +44 113 3433654
email: k.a.roche@leeds.ac.uk
http://www.diasporas.ac.uk

Common Ground News Service - Partners in Humanity (CGNews-PiH)
January 10, 2006

Common Ground News Service - Partners in Humanity (CGNews-PiH) is distributing the enclosed articles to build bridges of understanding between the West and the Arab world, and countries with significant Muslim populations. Unless otherwise noted, copyright permission has been obtained and the articles may be reproduced by any news outlet or publication, free of charge. If publishing, please acknowledge both the original source and Common Ground News Service, and notify us at cgnewspih@sfcg.org.

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ARTICLES IN THIS EDITION:

5. No haven for Scrooge in Cairo by Dan Murphy
Dan Murphy, staff writer for the Christian Science Monitor, writes, with great relish, about spending Christmas in the predominantly Muslim city of Cairo.
(Source: Christian Science Monitor, December 23, 2005)

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ARTICLE 1
The terrorism debate should not divide East and West
Thomas R. Pickering

Washington, D.C. - It requires no particular genius to know that Islam has become of special interest to many in the West. From tourists and travellers worried about their safety to senior leaders of government, within religious denominations, among academics and in the press, the issue is a hot-button topic. What does the West, in this case particularly the United States where I live and work, think about Islam? How can the issues be managed?

The main source of concern relates to terrorism. The major focus, from Bali to Baghdad and from Madrid to Mazar-e-Sharif, has been on the intimate linkage between Islamic fundamentalists and the use of the terror tactic. So much so that events like the Oklahoma City bombing (where American extremists were tried and found guilty) and the fateful assassination of Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin (involving Jewish extremists) are almost passed over or ignored.

A second dimension in this doleful analysis of course extends beyond Islamic fundamentalists to Islam as a whole. While President George W. Bush seems careful, after having made his "crusade" allusion several years ago, to distinguish between Islam and terrorism, others are not. Some readings of parts of the U.S. press can certainly lead to the malign and in my view badly-mistaken conclusion that the war on terrorism has become a war on Islam.

That would be an unparalleled tragedy and one probably sought by our enemies, the progenitors of terrorism, coming from groups such as Al-Qaeda and its affiliates and supporters around the world. In this struggle, as in any other serious effort in life, we ought to heed the wise counsel of Hippocrates to the medical profession: "First, do no harm."

Elsewhere, others are taking a different and somewhat more sophisticated approach. It remains, however, sequestered for the moment among academics who have studied Islam, diplomats who have sought understanding and cooperation with our friends in the Arab and Muslim world, and groups of religious leaders seeking reconciliation, cooperation where possible, and mutual understanding as a basis for avoiding the calamities of mindless confrontation. Their success so far has been limited and sporadic, but they continue to work at the task.

To some extent, those in the U.S. bent on understanding and reconciliation face not only their own limitations in influence as noted above, but those of their colleagues and friends within the circle of Islam. Leadership there seems to have been hijacked by the extremists; the press regularly dotes on their confrontational public declarations to the pleasure, I am sure, of those who seek wider confrontation.

Here, those working to build bridges often express the need for "a little help from their friends," but what they receive comes often on a personal basis and in conferences behind closed doors and blinded windows. Nor, on the Western side, is all necessarily well in the religion department. There are, as we all know, some among the Christian right who seek their own form of association with the Middle East and the issues of the religious divide. Often mesmerised by the words "Judeo-Christian heritage," they seek to find common cause with the Jewish presence in the Holy Land and champion it because of their belief that postulates a pre-messianic presence of Israel in this Holy Land.

What happens afterward is more problematic. However, the present expressions of these views give rise to, on the one hand, unquestioning support for the settlements in the "territories" and, on the other and in a diametrically opposed fashion, the creation of antagonism and animosity toward Islam. For example, there is a rejection among some in this community of the commonality among the three Abrahamic - or, for the sake of balance, "Ibrahimic" - faiths, of belief in a single, common deity, and a denial that the Allah of Islam is the shared common God of all three faiths.

It is not easy to know how to respond. Many who have analysed the growing divide insist that the heat and emotion of the present will subside over time. Others, more activist in their course, seek the leaders, the understanding, and the dialogue with Islam that can help to temper the confrontation and relieve the apparently growing divisions.

The latter course seems only right under the circumstances. The world as seen from East and West is too interconnected, too interdependent, and now too closely related to be torn apart by 11th-century-style religious controversy. One has only to look at the decades of history when Islam and the West coexisted to understand the value and the necessity of this wiser course.

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*Thomas R. Pickering was ambassador to the United Nations, the Russian Federation, India, Israel and Jordan, and served as US undersecretary of state for political affairs .
Source: bitterlemons-international.org, January 03, 2006
Visit the website at www.bitterlemons-international.org
Distributed by the Common Ground News Service - Partners in Humanity.
Copyright permission has been obtained from the author for publication.

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ARTICLE 2
When tolerance is no longer enough
Endy M. Bayuni

Jakarta - This Christmas provided another fine display to the outside world of the religious tolerance that has developed among peoples of different faiths in Indonesia, the country with the world's largest Muslim population.

As Christians observed Christmas inside churches, hotel ballrooms and other venues, outside, young people from Muslim organisations worked with the police to provide security.

Amid reports that radical Islamic groups were planning to launch another massive bombing campaign targeting churches, the security forces were out in full force to ensure the minority Christians in this country could celebrate Christmas in peace.

In yet another gesture of tolerance on the part of Muslims, Muhammadiyah, one of Indonesia's largest Muslim organisations, offered the use of its schools and other buildings for Christians to mark Christmas. Some of the faithful reportedly took up this offer. Picture-perfect religious tolerance in Indonesia? Not quite.

Underneath these displays of religious tolerance -- cynics might describe them as PR stunts -- tension has quietly been building up in many parts of Indonesia this past year, pitting the majority Muslims, who make up 88 percent of the population, against other religious minorities.

The attacks and the forced closure of more than two dozen churches in West Java as reported by the Communion of Indonesian Churches; the lockout of believers from the Sang Timur Catholic School by residents in Ciledug near Jakarta; the skirmishes between Muslim residents and members of a Christian Batak Church in nearby Bekasi; the violent attack against followers of the Muslim Ahmadiyah sect in Parung near Bogor -- all these point to two disturbing patterns: that religious intolerance is on the rise in this country, and that the authorities, particularly the police, have failed to protect people's constitutional rights. Freedom of religion and the right to practice one's faith are guaranteed in this country -- but at times police even sided with the lawbreakers.

These are not isolated cases as some people would have us believe. They show an evolving pattern that could spread to other parts of the country, unless the nation, particularly the government, takes immediate steps to address the issue seriously. Staying in denial mode, as people in the highest authority prefer to do, is certainly not helping.

To the outside world, Indonesian officials and diplomats often cite tolerance as among the chief virtues this nation possesses. Indonesia has no other alternative. Given the diversity of this nation in terms of race, ethnicity, culture, religion and tradition, nurturing a sense of tolerance, including religious tolerance, becomes imperative if we are to coexist peacefully. The alternative is simply unthinkable. There may not be an Indonesia left if intolerance is allowed to reign.

To some scholars here and abroad, Indonesia, like Malaysia, has become the antithesis of Samuel Huntington's Clash of Civilisations theorem. The brand of Islam that has developed in this part of the world in the eight or nine centuries since the religion hit our shores appears to be far more moderate and tolerant than the strain found in the Middle East, so they say. Indonesia and Malaysia could become models where Islam and democracy are indeed compatible.

But peaceful coexistence between people with diverse races, ethnicities, cultures, languages, religions and traditions is something that one should never take for granted. Since 1945, the history of post-independence Indonesia has been one of a long and painful struggle to remain under a single republic.

If Indonesia wants to continue to remain a multiracial, multiethnic and multireligious society, the nation has to go beyond tolerance to the next higher step: mutual respect. Tolerance, as useful as it has been in promoting harmonious coexistence in Indonesia these past 60 years, does not guarantee all will be well.

For one, there is a thin line between tolerance and intolerance. People switch easily from one to another overnight for the flimsiest reasons. In the case of Muslims rejecting the presence of a church in their neighbourhood, the flashpoint of intolerance was the unsubstantiated rumour the churches were being used for proselytising.

Tolerance also implies passivity. Muslims may tolerate the presence of non-Muslims, but if something were to happen to non-Muslims, would they lend a hand? The situation is likely to be the same if the situation were reversed, say of Christians in predominantly Christian areas, or of Hindus in predominantly Hindu Bali.

Underpinning this passivity are feelings of superiority. "I am better than you, but I am tolerating you" is a common view among people who are divided by race, ethnicity or religion but who have to coexist nevertheless.

This may explain why few people came to the Christians' rescue when dozens of churches in West Java were vandalised; when the Ahmadiyah headquarters in Parung came under a massive attack; when residents stopped children going to the Sang Timur Catholic school in Ciledug near Jakarta; and when residents and the Islamic Defenders Front (FPI) prevented Christians from praying at a Batak Christian Church (HKBP) in Bekasi.

There were, however, a few exceptions to the rule.

Former president Abdurrahman Wahid, ever the true pluralist, went to Sang Timur with the Nahdlatul Ulama youth group, Banser, to defend the right of the children, some of whom are autistic, to go to their school. He also deployed his young men to defend the offices of the Liberal Islamic Network when it was being threatened by FPI members. The FPI was acting on an Islamic Ulema Council (MUI) fatwa that banned all teachings of liberalism, secularism and pluralism.

But people like Gus Dur, as the former president is affectionately called, are rare in this nation. If only the nation, with some leadership from the government, would move beyond tolerance to mutual respect, then Indonesia would be well on its way to becoming a truly pluralistic nation.

Mutual respect, as Gus Dur has shown, means not only tolerating others, but also being obliged to protect them, to ensure their rights are upheld in the republic.

Mutual respect also means finding out more about other groups, getting a better understanding of them, and working to prevent rifts and mutual suspicion that are often the cause of tensions and conflicts. Mutual respect, therefore, can only come about through dialog and a greater interaction between people of diverse backgrounds.

Interfaith dialog initiated by the leaders of different religions, is but a first step to building mutual respect. Such dialog should be encouraged and promoted at the grassroots level -- the place where tension and conflict usually develop.

We have learned to live with our differences for the past 60 years and we have managed relatively well as a nation. But as recent communal conflicts show, we have yet to learn to respect the differences that exist among us.

Indonesians still have a long way to go to forge greater unity among our people of diverse backgrounds. But we know that tolerance -- that quality we often tout to outsiders -- is no longer sufficient to ensure this unity. Building mutual respect, the basis of a true pluralist society, is the way to go.

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* Endy Bayuni is Chief Editor of The Jakarta Post.
Source: The Jakarta Post, December 30, 2005
Visit the website at www.thejakartapost.com
Distributed by the Common Ground News Service - Partners in Humanity.
Copyright permission has been obtained from the author for publication.

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ARTICLE 3
Ugly figures
Editorial

Amman - The results of a public opinion poll showing that 20 per cent of Jordanians still consider Al Qaeda a legitimate resistance movement were deeply troubling and worrisome.

The survey, published by the Centre for Strategic Studies (CSS) at the University of Jordan late last week, did also contain some relatively encouraging findings: the percentage of people considering Osama Ben Laden's movement a legitimate resistance group did drop dramatically, from 66.8 per cent in 2004 to 20 per cent in December 2005.

Another heartening result showed that 72.2 per cent of people seem to consider Al Qaeda in Iraq a terrorist organisation, while 'only' 6.2 per cent consider it a legitimate resistance movement.

The troubling and worrisome elements in these findings are that one fifth of Jordanians still respect Al Qaeda, and more than six in 100 Jordanians even have a high opinion of Abu Mussab Zarqawi's group.

It is as if for all these people the November 9 attacks never occurred.

The CSS poll suggests that there are some 325,000 people - 325,000 Jordanians (meaning six per cent of the 5.4 million population) - who condone the murder of their own brothers and sisters, innocent children, women and men, at the hands of the terrorists that blew themselves up at three Amman hotels exactly two months ago.

Decision-makers, educators, opinion-makers, leaders in all sectors are called upon to do some serious soul-searching and ask themselves: "Where did we go wrong?"

How could the ranks of Jordanians condoning such brutal terrorist acts be so sizeable?

It appears that there is a quite significant number of Jordanians so disgruntled, disillusioned and desperate that they have embraced the most deviant notions and ideologies. If this is the case, the priority for governmental and non-governmental institutions, as well as for each citizen, is to restore hope amongst these pockets of desperation. The most effective way to do this is through comprehensive and concrete development.

Perhaps some of those who are still condoning Al Qaeda - be it the "mother organisation" or its Iraqi chapter - are simply misguided. In which case, we need to look even more seriously into our education reform drive, and be even more courageous in modernising curricula and more aggressive in retraining teachers.

A timely example of how our efforts in reforming the education system are still inadequate was reported in this newspaper a few days ago: according to one of the textbooks with which we aspire to build our future 'knowledge-based' society, men are allowed to beat their wives, provided they do so "softly" and without leaving visible marks on their bodies.

In a few words, if in our public schools children are taught that domestic abuse is OK, provided it doesn't leave unsightly scars, no wonder things can get terribly messed up when it comes to much more complex issues, such as the line separating national liberation movements from terrorist organisations.

According to His Majesty King Abdullah's directives, the "war on terror" should be fought by primarily involving both schools and mosques.

While we can't think of anything wiser than this, it is also true that the government must be very careful in reshaping its relations with religious institutions and more or less institutionalised religious organisations. The government must make sure that it does not turn a much needed dialogue into blind witch-hunting, and that all constitutional civil, personal, political, and religious rights remain sacred and are sacredly guaranteed.

Many will find the results of the CSS survey difficult to digest.

Many must have been as shocked as we were.

But turning a blind eye to this reality would make things worse.

Education and development are the only right answers.

###
* This article appeared as a Jordan Times Editorial.
Source: Jordan Times, January 9, 2006
Visit the website at www.jordantimes.com
Distributed by the Common Ground News Service - Partners in Humanity.
Copyright permission has been obtained from the author for publication.

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ARTICLE 4
Where is the Arab media outrage?
Dr. Khaled Batarfi

Jeddah - "So, where is your media outrage? Instead, you show Western hostage beheadings, allow Muslim fanatics to preach on TV and radio, and publish hate speeches against Christians and Jews. Where is the shame? Where are your principles? You should be campaigning for peace, tolerance and human rights and against intolerance, women and minority abuse, and religious fanaticism. That is the holy role of the media, Arab journalists!"

The above are not the exact words, but a summary of an American scholar's comments during an international conference convened last week in Dubai on the role of the media to enhance the security of Gulf states.

In my response, I said to him (in the general meeting and later in a smaller group discussion): what you are calling for is a classic academic and professional question discussed for ages in journalism schools and forums. Is our role to educate, preach and enlighten the public or just to provide accurate, updated and objective information? Do we campaign and rally for causes we support, or just provide an open marketplace of ideas and a neutral forum for debate and discussion?

The Western media in general, and the American media in particular, stand for independence and neutrality: you give the masses well investigated and researched reports and news stories, supported by available evidence, background information and analysis. You allow all parties to have equal access to the public. You don't take sides or make judgments, except in editorials. It is up to your audience to decide what and whom to believe, accept and side with. End of role. When riots erupted in Los Angeles after the acquittal of four white policemen accused of brutally beating black motorist Rodney King in 1991, the media professionally covered the events. They didn't campaign for black rights or advocate a review of a long history of abuse and enslavement.

Journalists in non-democratic countries are justly accused of being tools of propaganda, mouthpieces of the rulers, and ideologically committed to one school of thought. They marginalise different viewpoints, campaign for certain causes, and serve their owners and controllers' interests.

Yet most new independent media in the Arab world are moving away from the old ways. They attempt to provide as-is news and multi-perspective commentary. If you don't like what is written, write a letter to the editor. If you don't agree with a guest of a live show, call in and tell him so. If an opinion or a report on a website seems wrong, email them your correction. As long as your perspective, no matter how different or unique, is published or aired, you can't complain about the equal opportunity and space given to those you disagree with.

In evaluating Arab media performance, we need to distinguish between mainstream media and underground outlets. The first is owned and supervised by governments and media corporations. Their policies prevent them from preaching religious hatred or siding with terrorists. But at the same time, they cannot ignore their statements and actions. Professional coverage of events requires comprehensive reporting from all sides.

The non-licensed media are mostly Internet based. Comments are usually unsigned. Web blogs, electronic newsletters, mailing lists and discussion groups are uncensored and uncontrollable. Those are the ones who may preach and advocate, with impunity.

The mainstream media never aired or printed beheading videos and pictures, as some websites did. But it was such brutal acts, together with coverage of the suicide bombing of civilian compounds in Saudi Arabia and wedding parties in Jordan, which made most people see the ugliness of the terrorist organisations they may once have admired, believed or tolerated.

Finally, you cannot take media coverage out of context. The liberal US media tolerated outrageous breaches of constitutional principles after 9/11. Because they thought the administration was fighting a just war, they turned a blind eye to abuses of international rules, civil liberties and human rights - at home and abroad. Where was the outrage over the administration's lies and sleazy and brutal tactics? Why did the New York Times accept the Bush administration's request and delay a story about government eavesdropping on American citizens for a whole year? Where is the campaign against torture in CIA prisons around the world?

If the context allows for such tolerance on the American side, why can't it also be applied to Arab media? After all, the media ultimately does reflect the public's mood. In a world where the anger against Western policies has been boiling for decades, you can't expect much sympathy for colonisers and occupiers. A minimum level of tolerance for some sort of violent reaction in response to even worse actions should be expected and accepted.

###
* Khaled Batarfi is a Saudi journalist.
Source: Arab News, December 25, 2005
Visit the website at www.arabnews.com
Distributed by the Common Ground News Service - Partners in Humanity.
Copyright permission has been obtained from the author for publication.

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ARTICLE 5
No haven for Scrooge in Cairo
Dan Murphy

Cairo - I consider myself a curmudgeon-in-training (I don't have enough grey hairs to claim the actual title). Around this time of year, I tend to identify with Scrooge, the Grinch, George Bailey (prior to the angel's arrival), and other fabled grumps.

For many years I've taken pleasure in living in Muslim lands free from the trappings of Christmas commerce and the unholy trinity: Carols, mistletoe, and, most daunting, Santa's lap.

That's why I was startled to hear strains of "We wish you a merry Christmas," coming in my Cairo bedroom window last week.

I live in an oasis of an apartment in Egypt's capital that overlooks a back garden, thus shielding me from the incessant honking and exhaust from the traffic in this city of 15 million people.

But the Port Said elementary school at the far side of the garden musters its charges at about 7:15 every morning for an outdoor sing-along. Not yet a full-fledged curmudgeon, I don't mind beginning the day to a gleeful, if tuneless, chorus of 100-plus Muslim children.

But instead of the usual patriotic Egyptian songs, lately they've taken to waking me up with "Jingle Bells" and the like.

Is nothing sacred? Egypt is 94 percent Muslim. This is the birthplace of the Muslim Brotherhood, the modern Islamist movement that ultimately seeks to make the Koran the constitution of the world.

This is home to the great scholars of Al Azhar University, and the chauvinist ideology of Sayyid Qutb. Yet, remarkably, there seems to be more controversy in Washington over the devoutly Christian President Bush sending out a million cards wishing friends and supporters a joyous "Holiday Season," than there is over the spread of all things Christmas here in Cairo.

A cab ride through the city shows something on a grand scale is afoot. There's the parachuting Santa strung up in lights over a downtown hotel, "Merry Christmas" and "Joyëux Noel" banners in front of jewellery stores and Cairo's shopping malls. And what's with the cypress and juniper bushes, dressed up as Christmas trees, for sale on dozens of street corners?

Though Muslims acknowledge Jesus as a prophet, his birthday has not traditionally been celebrated in Muslim countries. But there's every indication that the Arab world's largest city is fully embracing the holiday.

The other day, Ahmed Demiri, my local florist whose shop is entirely given over to wreaths and poinsettias these days, was just emerging from afternoon prayers at the mosque next door, when I demanded: "Who, exactly, is getting into the Christmas spirit?"

"The business is about equally divided between foreigners, Egyptian Christians, and Egyptian Muslims,'' he told me. In recent years, the Christmas season has become a mainstay of his trade. This year he expects to sell about 300 Christmas trees and "lots and lots of poinsettias. People think they're festive."

Festive? Bah humbug.

A few nights ago I went out on the balcony to see who was making so much noise in the garden. It was too late to be the schoolchildren. My landlady Nadida occupies the ground floor, and she and her college-aged daughter were holding a Christmas party for friends and relatives.

I couldn't help but watch for a moment. I caught a glimpse of Nadida sporting a rakishly tilted Santa hat on top of her Muslim head scarf as she ducked back inside for more food.

I can only guess that my recent complaints about the building's water-pressure got me scratched off the invitation list.

But even a curmudgeon knows his limits. Earlier this week, I finally caved to the Christmas spirit. I went back to visit Ahmed and bought a small poinsettia for the apartment. (I showed great fortitude, however, in resisting the impulse to purchase a wreath he was hawking at a bargain price).

Walking home, I spotted Amir, a local contractor who painted my apartment when I moved here last year. I've been avoiding him for months, since every time I see him he tries to talk me into buying the Iraqi dinars he unwisely purchased in a bout of currency speculation. It's true I spend a lot of time in Iraq, but the country's currency controls make it illegal to carry the money into Iraq.

I quickly crossed the street and stepped behind a row of cars. Too slow. "Dan, Dan,'' Amir called as he wove through traffic. I took a deep breath and focused on his zabib, the prayer callus on his forehead marking him as a particularly devout Muslim. As he drew near, I prepared to calmly explain once again why I couldn't break the law and change his dinars.

"I'm so glad I caught you, Dan," he huffed. "I've been wanting to wish you a Merry Christmas."

###
* Dan Murphy is a staff writer for the Christian Science Monitor.
Source: Christian Science Monitor, December 23, 2005
Visit the website at www.csmonitor.com.com
Distributed by the Common Ground News Service - Partners in Humanity.
Copyright permission can be obtained from the Christian Science Monitor by contacting lawrenced@csps.com.

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Dear friends of the Peace Education Center,

2005 has come, but not gone...every year we are germinating more and more seeds in our efforts to nurture and advance the field of peace education and a culture of peace around the world. Our significant plantings of 2005 were many, highlighted by a rousing and successful International Institute on Peace Education in Rhodes Greece (hosted by the FAM Network - much thanks and appreciation to Aliki Moschis-Gauget!), an intensive training of educators from the Afghan Institute of Learning here in New York (many thanks to AIL, CHI and Sakena Yacoobi!), and a major national conference on Contemplative Practices and Peace Education (co-hosted by the Center for Contemplative Mind in Society). Of course there is much, much more we could be thankful for in 2005...

We have many hopes and wishes for 2006 and we look forward to doing some gardening of peace education with each and every one of you!

All the best wishes for peace and justice in 2006!

Tony Jenkins and Janet Gerson
Co-Directors

Peace Education Center, Teachers College Columbia University
Peace Education Center * Teachers College - Box 171
Columbia University * New York, New York 10027
(Office Address 278 Grace Dodge)
Tel: (212) 678-8116 * Fax: (212) 678-8237
Web: www.tc.edu/PeaceEd <http://www.tc.edu/PeaceEd>

January 9, 2005

Dear Friends,

Happy New Year!

2005 was a productive and successful year for ART. The two programs we established in 2003 for Burmese refugees in Thailand are now self-sustaining, and we have begun our expansion into Latin America as well, to help rebuild its refugee communities through their indigenous arts.

Colombia

ART has been very fortunate to have Maria Rueda working with us as our Program Coordinator in Colombia. In August, we partnered with Fundacion Nuevo Retiro, Red de Solidaridad and the Universidad de los Andes to implement an ongoing community arts program in barrio El Tintal, Bogotá, Colombia. Over 100 community members participated in the program, with two-hour classes being held four days a week in music, songs, stories/folklore and handicrafts. Four students from the Universidad de los Andes - Karina Estrada Benavides, Melissa David Obando, Lina Sanchez and Francisco Alfor Soler Bejarano - spent the fall semester implementing, monitoring and evaluating the program and earning academic credit for their work. They are also helping develop a manual to train the next set of University students.

ART’s expansion in Colombia

ART is setting up the groundwork for launching its programs this summer in Augablanca, a displaced and marginalized community in Cali, in partnership with Fundacion Paz y Bien. We are also in discussion with several universities in the area to develop a partnership that would provide ART with students to implement the program. They will be trained by the students from los Andes who have worked with ART in Bogotá. Our goal is to build an expanding cadre of students in each area where ART operates.

ART is also exploring the possibility of partnerships with other NGO’s working in Colombia, including Sevivienda, and Sonidos de Colombia; and we are looking to expand into other cities in Colombia including Medellin and Cartagena.

Other activities

Research: This fall, ART was assigned an intern from Bard College’s Globalization and International Affairs Program, Catherine Lopez, who was invaluable in helping ART with research and grant writing.

United Nations: ART continues to develop bonds with the UN:

· I co- moderated a panel at the UN on the role of art in the peace building process and conflict prevention. This was part of a conference held by the UN’S Global Partnership for the Prevention of Armed Conflict, entitled From Reaction to Prevention: Civil Society Forging Partnerships to Prevent Violent Conflict and Build Peace.

· The UN mounted an extensive exhibition of James Rexroad’s breathtaking and evocative photos of ART’s work in Thailand and Colombia.

Speeches and presentations:

During 2005, I presented ART’s work at a number of universities and other venues, including:
· Colgate University
· Columbia University Graduate School of Business - “Launching New Ventures” course
· Columbia University Graduate School of Business - Columbia Women in Business
· Columbia University School of International and Public Affairs
· Lehigh University
· New York University
· 85 Broads – spoke to summer interns

ART in print

Columbia University Graduate School of Business alumni magazine: The current issue has a story on ART’s activities, and we are cited in the dean’s introductory letter as an example of how the Business School graduates are helping improve the world. See pages 4 and 5:
http://www2.gsb.columbia.edu/hermes/pdf_archive/HERMES_F05.pdf or
http://tinyurl.com/bkrj8

“More Than 85 Broads: Women Making Career Choices, Taking Risks, and Defining Success - On Their Own Terms.” This new book by Janet Hanson, will feature a chapter on my activities in creating and implementing ART’s programs. The book is being published by McGraw-Hill, and will be available March, 2006. [Click here to preview or pre-order the book: http://tinyurl.com/7oapy]

ART on film

This summer, we began the process of documenting ART’s programs in Colombia. We purchased a video camera and James Rexroad has been capturing, not only ART’s work, but also the people who participate in our work and the lives they live as the result of over 40 years of civil war. (Special thanks to Teresa Bianchi for her support and assistance in the filming.) We are hoping to obtain funding to expand the films into a short documentary for television.

Financing

The life blood of any charitable institution is of course sufficient funding. ART has been most fortunate in the generosity of it supporters, and now that we are operating on two continents, and have proven the viability of ART’s concepts, we are setting our sights on the next level – institutional funding. We have already submitted a number of grant proposals and have several more in preparation. We welcome any thoughts any of you may have as to appropriate “targeted” opportunities for our proposals, and particular suggestions as to institutions where you might have direct personal relationships.

We need your help!

In addition to funding itself, there is much that you can do to assist ART. We need:
· Frequent flyer miles
(Last year I made five trips to Colombia and James Rexroad made three trips. Many more are planned for this year; “miles” really help!)
· Printing services
· Equipment:
Computers
Printers
Furniture for our Bogotá office

Please visit our website at www.artforrefugees.org for information on ART and our programs.

Many thanks to all of you for your support and encouragement throughout this process. Wishing you a very happy, healthy and peaceful 2006!

All the best,
Sara

Sara Green
ART
Art for Refugees in Transition
PO Box 456
New York, NY 10113
www.artforrefugees.org
info @ artforrefugees.org

THIRD MILLENNIUM FOUNDATION ICTE / 25 Washington Street, 4th Floor Brooklyn, New York 11201 Tel: 718.237.6262 Fax: 718.237.6264
www.seedsoftolerance.org

Program Description
The Third Millennium Foundation is a private foundation located in New York City. The Foundation was founded in the year 2000 as an initiative for unlearning intolerance in the new millennium. Its work is focused on childhood education and human rights with emphasis on supporting social entrepreneurs among global youth. The foundation is particularly interested in supporting innovative organizations and young leaders that develop new approaches and methodologies that are based on collaboration and have strong potential for replication around the world. In 2004, TMF launched the International Center for Tolerance Education (ICTE) located in Brooklyn, New York to provide a meeting place where a wide variety of people could discuss, create, implement, and reflect on initiatives that address our core areas. ICTE facilitates events, exhibitions and conferences and houses a retreat program for activists, scholars and social change leaders. At present, TMF is seeking eligible candidates to apply for our ICTE International Guest Program. The Program invites 12-15-social change activists annually to engage in networking, professional skills training, reflection on their work, and work in consultation with staff and partner organizations. It is hoped that this opportunity gives recognition to and support for emerging leaders who are doing outstanding, innovative and courageous work to improve lives in their communities. International Guests (IGs) will be awarded accommodation in Brooklyn, New York and fully equipped office space at ICTE for 2-3 months. This award offers individuals the following support: • Networking with individuals and organizations i.e., UN Agencies, NGOs, non-profits, foundations, and academe working in the field of tolerance education. Efforts are also made to connect IGs to partners in their respective regions; • Collaboration and consultation with a staff experienced in the core areas of ICTE; • Assistance with “capacity building” and professional development;
• Participation in conferences and trainings offered at ICTE and, where relevant, around the US and; • Opportunity to present work to ICTE community in the form of a workshop, presentation and/ or paper accompanied by audio/visual equipment.

Criteria for International Guests Working in Field of Tolerance Education
Ideal candidates would be formal and/ or informal educators dedicated to instilling the values, knowledge and skills of tolerance, nonviolence and peace in children and/ or youth. TMF seeks educators preferably, but not exclusively from the Global South and countries in the transitional world who would like to accomplish a specific project, do research, engage in networking, or would benefit from time off from work to reflect and/or further develop their work strategies and skills. Eligible candidates must be conversant (strong speaking and comprehension skills) in English. According to the foundation’s mission, preference will be given to young and less established leaders such as individuals who have had minimal opportunity to travel outside of their respective communities, have a desire to connect to the international community, and/ or would benefit from exposure to different professional approaches to their work.

Application Information
• Personal information: name, coordinates, gender, languages (including native tongue); • Desired length of stay (2-3 months) and suggested time of year ; • Curriculum vitae; • 2 letters of recommendation (1 from a host organization, university or school and 1 from a supervisor, professor or teacher with contact information and relationship) Responses to the following questions with a length of 1-2 paragraphs per response: • How did you learn about this program? • Background information about your work, including major achievements and challenges. • What is the central problem you address in your work? • What are your main goals for your stay through the International Guest Program? • What are some of the outcomes you hope to foster from your stay here and how would your organization or community benefit from this experience? • How would becoming a participant in the International Guest Program support your professional development and the work you do? If selected, candidates will be asked to submit a more detailed proposal of their intended plan of action during their stay with ICTE. The application submission deadline is January 27, 2006. Applicants may be asked to submit additional materials. Award notifications will be made by April 1, 2006.

How to Apply
Interested candidates should email or mail a complete application to:

Kathleen Freis-Tordini
Education Director Third Millennium Foundation / ICTE 25 Washington Street, 4th floor Brooklyn,
NY 11201 USA
kftordini @ tmf-tolerance.org www.seedsoftolerance.org No phone calls please.
Only selected candidates will be contacted.

International Guest Program for Human Rights Advocates 2006/2007

Program Description

The Third Millennium Foundation is a private foundation located in New York City. The Foundation was founded in the year 2000 as an initiative for unlearning intolerance in the new millennium. Its work is focused on childhood education and human rights with emphasis on supporting social entrepreneurs among global youth. The foundation is particularly interested in supporting innovative organizations and young leaders that develop new approaches and methodologies that are based on collaboration and have strong potential for replication around the world.

In 2004, TMF launched the International Center for Tolerance Education (ICTE) located in Brooklyn, New York to provide a meeting place where a wide variety of people could discuss, create, implement, and reflect on initiatives that address our core areas. ICTE facilitates events, exhibitions and conferences and houses a retreat program for activists, scholars and social change leaders.

At present, TMF is seeking eligible candidates to apply for our ICTE International Guest Program. The Program invites 12-15-social change activists annually to engage in networking, professional skills training, reflection on their work, and work in consultation with staff and partner organizations. It is hoped that this opportunity gives recognition to and support for committed and emerging leaders who are doing outstanding, innovative and courageous work to improve the life in their communities.

International Guests (IGs) will be paid for travel, awarded accommodation in Brooklyn, New York, fully equipped office space at ICTE for 2-3 months as well as a weekly stipend. This award offers individuals the following support:

• Networking with individuals and organizations i.e., UN Agencies, NGOs, non-profits, foundations, government agencies, and academe working in the fields of tolerance education and human rights. Efforts are also made to connect IGs to partners in their respective regions;
• Collaboration and consultation with a staff experienced in the core areas of ICTE;
• Assistance with “capacity building” and professional development
• Participation in conferences and trainings offered at ICTE and, where relevant, around the US and;
• Opportunity to present work to ICTE community in the form of a workshop, presentation and/ or paper accompanied by audio/visual equipment.

Criteria for International Guests working in the human rights field

Ideal candidates would be human rights defenders and social change activists preferably, but not exclusively from the Global South and countries in the transitional world who would like to accomplish a specific project, do research, engage in networking, or would benefit from time off from work to reflect and/or further develop their work strategies and skills. Eligible candidates must be conversant (strong speaking and comprehension skills) in English.

TMF seeks human rights defenders and social change activists who are engaged in human rights work, broadly defined. According to the foundation’s mission, preference will be given to young and less established leaders such as individuals who have had minimal opportunity to travel outside of their respective communities, have a desire to connect to the international community, and/ or would benefit from exposure to different professional approaches to their work.

Application Information

• Personal information: name, coordinates, gender , languages (including native tongue)
• Desired length of stay (2-3 months) and preferred time
• Curriculum vitae
• 2 letters of recommendation (1 from a host organization, university or school and 1 from a supervisor, professor or teacher with contact information and relationship)

Responses to the following questions with a length of 1-2 paragraphs per response:

• Background information about your work, including major achievements
• What is the central problem you address in your work?
• What are your main goals for your stay through the International Guest Program?
• What are some of the outcomes you hope to foster from your stay here and how would your organization or community benefit from this experience?
• How would becoming a participant in the International Guest Program support your professional development and the work you do?
• Please also let us know how you heard about the Program.

If selected, candidates will be asked to submit a more detailed proposal of their intended plan of action during their stay with ICTE.

The application submission deadline is January 27, 2006. Applicants may be asked to submit additional materials. Award notifications will be made by April 1, 2006.

How to Apply

Interested candidates should email or mail a complete application to:

Brigitte Schmid
Human Rights Director
Third Millennium Foundation / ICTE
25 Washington Street, 4th floor
Brooklyn, NY 11201
USA
bschmid @ tmf-tolerance.org
www.seedsoftolerance.org

No phone calls please. Only selected candidates will be contacted.

Trauma Research Net / TRN-Newsletter Special Issue 2006: On the notion of trauma both in psychology and cultural studies

Hamburg, January 5, 2006
Dear Trauma Research Net Members,
Happy New Year 2006 to all of you!

I am pleased to present a TRN-Newsletter Special Issue 2006 with previously unpublished texts from a forum organized as part of the scholarship program of the Heinrich Boell Foundation. These four papers on the concept of trauma in psychology and cultural studies were presented in Berlin in 2004 and are now ready for publication.

The texts are available in German with English abstracts.

In a departure from the procedures otherwise adhered to by the Trauma Research Net, we have agreed in this case to make the complete papers available to all internet users without restriction.

I hope all readers will find the texts as stimulating as I have.

Best wishes,
Cornelia Berens

*************************

TRN-Newsletter Special Issue 2006
On the concept of trauma in psychology and cultural studies

Table of contents

Cornelia Berens, Foreword

Ilka Lennertz, Karin Windt, Introduction: On the concept of trauma in psychology and cultural studies

Ilka Lennertz, The development of trauma theory both in psychoanalysis and in clinical psychology

Karin Windt, The concept of trauma as a cultural narrative

Anna Lipphardt, Topographies of Death – Grave Sites, Mourning Rituals and Memorial Events of the Jewish Vilna Diaspora in New York after the Holocaust. Cultural Studies Approaches to the Understanding of „Trauma“

Kathrin Groninger, Refugees and Trauma: Conflicts at the Interface between Immigration Law and Psychotherapeutic Aid

Abstracts available in English

Texts (html and pdf-files) in German

Trauma Research Net (International Network for Interdisciplinary Research about the Impact of Traumatic Experience on the Life of Individuals and Society)
Cornelia Berens, M.A.
Hamburger Institut fuer Sozialforschung
Hamburg Institute for Social Research
Mittelweg 36, D-20148 Hamburg
Office hours: Mon, Tue, Wed 10a.m.-1p.m., 2p.m.-7p.m. & by appointment
Tel. (+49 40) 41 40 97 - 38, Fax. - 501 (or - 11)
URL http://www.traumaresearch.net (CfP for 3rd TRN-Conference 2006 now online)
URL http://www.his-online.de
Email Cornelia.Berens @ his-online.de

The Mechanics of Emotions by Maurice Benayoun

The World Nervous System

With the communication networks, the World is now equipped with an extensive nervous system. From any point on the planet, we can feel in real time what's happening on any other spot as soon as it is connected to the Net and English speaking. Internet is the first self-organised worldwide language-and-socially filtered observation system. The World Emotional Mapping

It is now easy, thanks to any existing search engine running on the Web, to build a semantic map of any concept. Not even trying to understand what is behind a single use of one word, we know now how many times a word is used in correlation with another. For our purpose we track the words in correlation with locations. According to the number of occurrences, the original keyword is located on the map with the appropriate size.

Please have a look at
http://www.moben.net/e-mechanics/PART1.HTM to read more!

First Call for Papers:
Peace and Place. A symposium exploring peace in the home, commmunity and the urban environment.
April 5-7 2006, Centre for Peace Studies, University of Tromsø, Norway.

The issue of peace, place, home and community are of increasing importance in current international debates about the governance and facilitation of stable communities, the creation of new forms of living and the division of public and private space. Contemporary debates emphasise the breakdown of community life and the prevalence of street crime, anti-social behaviour and civil disobedience in everyday life, whilst increased security measures, surveillance technology and the curtailment of individual freedoms through legislative and/or social control, appear to be an antidote to such risks. Community development and urban renewal in post conflict areas are also of increasing interest and importance as a range of responses and initiatives, similar to those indicated above, are implemented to create and maintain 'street peace' and sustainable communities. This symposium is likely to be of interest not only to those already located in a peace studies environment but also to, for example, criminologists, urban geographers, housing and legal scholars, planners, and practitioners.

The first call for papers is available by clicking
http://uit.no/getfile.php?SiteId=116&PageId=3324&FileId=198

Unrast: Aktuelle Neuerscheinungen und Frühjahrsvorschau 2006

Liebe Kolleginnen und Kollegen, Freundinnen und Freunde,

wir freuen uns Euch auf die Neuerscheinungen im kommenden Frühjahr
hinzuweisen:
http://www.unrast-verlag.de/unrast,3,0,256.html

Bereits aktuell lieferbar sind folgende Titel:

Maureen Maisha Eggers, Grada Kilomba, Peggy Piesche, Susan Arndt (Hg.)
Mythen, Masken und Subjekte
Kritische Weißseinsforschung in Deutschland

ISBN: 3-89771-440-X
Ausstattung: br., 540 Seiten
Preis: 24.00 Euro
http://www.unrast-verlag.de/unrast,2,222,13.html
Hierzu kann auch eine Rezension empfohlen werden:
Rezension von Jos Schnurer „Weiß ist eine Gelegenheitsfarbe - Schwarz die
Farbe aller Tage“
http://www.unrast-verlag.de/unrast,3,0,258.html

Christian Dornbusch, Hans-Peter Killguss
Unheilige Allianzen
Black Metal zwischen Satanismus, Heidentum und Neonazismus

ISBN: 3-89771-817-0
Ausstattung: br., 352 Seiten
Preis: 18.00 Euro
http://www.unrast-verlag.de/unrast,2,221,5.html

Birgit Schmidt
Kein Licht auf dem Galgen
Ein Beitrag zur Diskussion um KPD/SED und Antisemitismus

ISBN: 3-89771-436-1Ausstattung: br., 104 SeitenPreis: 11.00 Euro
http://www.unrast-verlag.de/unrast,2,209,5.html

Luz Kerkeling
La Lucha Sigue
2. erw. und akt. Auflage
ISBN: 3-89771-026-9
336 S.,. 18 EUR
http://www.unrast-verlag.de/unrast,2,39,4.html

Michael Bakunin
Die revolutionäre Frage
Föderalismus, Sozialismus, Antitheologismus
2. Auflage
ISBN 3-89771-903-7
179 S., 13 EUR
http://www.unrast-verlag.de/unrast,2,95,6.html

Alles Gute zum Neuen Jahr,

Das Unrast-Team

Unrast-Verlag
Postfach 8020
48043 Münster
Tel.: 0251 - 666293
info@unrast-verlag.de
www.unrast-verlag.de

Global Campaign for Peace Education, Newsletter December 2005, Issue #28

To those of you for whom January represents the beginning of a new year, we send our warmest wishes for your good health and happiness.

It is hard to say Happy, when so many suffer preventable violence and preventable disease. But it is important to hold out hope, "The future belongs to those who offer the greatest hope", said Teillard de Chardin. So, we hope that the new year will see less violence, more peace, more equality and a peace educator in every school!

HAP HIGHLIGHTS & PEACE NEWS

Australian Federation of University Women
Canada Research Chair in Human Rights, Diversity and Identity
2006 Human Rights Advocates Program Colombia University, USA

HAP HIGHLIGHTS & PEACE NEWS

Peace Boat US, New Project of Hague Appeal for Peace
For those who haven’t heard the great news yet, Hague Appeal for Peace adopted Peace Boat US as its new project. We are now ready to welcome Allison BOEHM, Rachel ARMSTRONG and Ryo IJICHI and start the adventure! Peace Boat US will work to promote peace, human rights, equitable and sustainable development, and respect for the environment throughout the world. These aims will be pursued through the organization of educational programs, made up of educational travel, conferences, and other activities in cooperation with other organizations, including the Japan based international NGO, Peace Boat. The initiating Directors of Peace Boat US are: Rachel Armstrong (UK); Tom Shostack (US), Dean, School of Lifelong Learning, University of Ohio; Kathy Matsui (US and Japan), Seisen University and Cora Weiss (US). We will keep you posted as developments happen.

Simplified Versions of Important International Law Documentation
At the suggestion of Betty Reardon, Hague Appeal for Peace wants to launch a new project for global peace educators which is to edit a simplified version of important international law documents such as UN resolutions 1261 on children and armed conflict or 1325 on women, peace and security, the one recently adopted on the peacebuilding commission but also documents such as the Kyoto protocol and the Ottawa Treaty to ban landmines among others. The idea came from a simple realization that legal documents are usually written in a language that is not accessible for us all. Thus, these documents will become valuable resources for peace educators. They will be available on our web resources portal to be used not only by educators but just anyone who wants to learn about international law. We are hoping to have a few ready by next month and we welcome anyone who wants to offer to translate for this project.

Progressing Toward a Culture of Peace, 2005 Report and 2006 Agenda
David Adams reported: Looking back at 2005, I think we can see we are making progress. The Civil Society Report to the United Nations for the midpoint of the International Decade for a Culture of Peace and Non-Violence for the Children of the World was filled out by over 700 organizations, with over 3,000 pages of text and photos. Almost all of you reported progress toward a culture of peace and non-violence during the first half of the Decade and indicated by your actions that you expect to make further progress in the years to come. Your report was recognized by the United Nations General Assembly, thanks to the efforts of the Youth Advocacy Team who worked out of the Hague Appeal for Peace office in New York. In the resolution A/60/3, the 107 sponsoring Member States commended civil society for its activities for a culture of peace and non-violence and took note "of the progress achieved by more than seven hundred organizations in more than one hundred countries." David Adams invites us all to contribute with ideas on the new website for strategy discussion (see link on right side of the Decade Website). You may register and log in and put your remarks on line directly, or you may send them to David who will put them on line for you.
One important conclusion from last year's report concerns the mass media, which has so far failed to report on the culture of peace. Therefore, a monitoring system was set up on the Internet. You are invited to submit any mass media publications (including Internet news systems) on the culture of peace so that we can keep track of media coverage (see link on the Decade Website). As in the case of the strategy discussion, you may register and log in and put the article on line directly, or you may send it to David.
Get involved! Go to http://decade-culture-of-peace.org or/and contact David Adams at: mail@decade-culture-of-peace.org

Spanish Parliament Resolutions: Culture of Peace and Control of Small Arms
Manuel Dios Diz, a member of the HAP International Advisory Committee, President of the Culture of Peace Foundation in Galicia -Spain- communicated that the Spanish Parliament, on November 30, unanimously approved a Law to Promote Education and the Culture of Peace. The Official Bulletin of the State that incorporates educational measurements now mentions expressly, the Hague Appeal for Peace and the Hague Agenda for Peace and Justice in the 21st Century. We extend our gratitude to Manuel Dios Doz (Seminario Galego de Educacion Para a Paz) and Federico Mayor Zaragoza (Fundacion Cultura de Paz) for their active promotion and intervention. This is great news. We are filled with hopes for a better future to shift from a culture of violence to a culture of peace.
You can read the Law passed by the Parliament in Spanish. You will find more information and a Galician version of the Law at: http://www.sgep.org/modules/news/article.php?storyid=21
The International Action Network on Small Arms (IANSA) reported on significant successes this month for the Control Arms global parliamentary action. Following a campaign by IANSA members in Spain, the parliament passed a resolution requiring the government to present revised arms control legislation during 2006. The parliament voted unanimously in favor of this resolution on December 13. The revised legislation must ensure that arms transfers scrupulously obey the European Union Code of Conduct and that any authorizations are fully transparent. It also specifies minimum reporting requirements.
You can read the resolution (in Spanish) at: http://www.iansa.org/regions/europe/europe.htm

UN Conference Pledge to Use Sports to Foster Peace and Prosperity
Over 400 participants from 70 countries have resolved to use sport to improve the quality of education and health, eradicate poverty, and foster peace and tolerance as they wrapped up the Second UN Magglingen Conference on Sport and Development, held in Switzerland in December. “We must use the substantial dynamic generated by the International Year to anchor sport firmly in the global development agenda,” said former Swiss President Adolf Ogi, who is Secretary-General Kofi Annan’s Special Adviser on Sport for Development and Peace. The Magglingen Call to Action urges governments, sports organizations, athletes, development agencies, the private sector and others to promote sport for peace or development in their fields. All are urged to engage in a dialogue on visions, goals and frames of action. Athletes are called upon to act as role models and actively use their influence and experience to advocate for development and peace, and governments are asked to strengthen sport and physical education in schools, and integrate sport, physical activity and play in public health and other relevant polices.
Congratulations to Dr. Ronald S. Feingold, Dean, School of Education, Adelphi University, New York, for his contribution to the 2nd World Summit on Physical Education, held in Magglingen, Switzerland, in December 2005. Dean Feingold is past president of the National Association of Physical Education in Higher Education, and leading the development of a peace education program at Adelphi University.
For further details read the United Nations Sport Bulletin, the Magglingen Call to Action, or go to: http://www.magglingen2005.org/index.cfm?id=4 and http://www.un.org/sport2005/resources/call_to_action.html

The Peacebuilding Commission, a New UN Body to Prevent Countries From Sliding Back Into War
The establishment of the Peacebuilding Commission fulfills a key outcome of the UN 2005 World Summit held in New York last September. The establishment of this new body aims to prevent countries emerging from conflict from falling back into chaos. “This resolution would, for the first time in the history of the United Nations, create a mechanism which ensures that for countries emerging from conflict, post-conflict does not mean post-engagement of the international community,” said the President of the 60th General Assembly, Jan Eliasson of Sweden, in introducing the resolution that established the 31-member Peacebuilding Commission.
Around 50 per cent of the conflicts of the past 20 years have recurred within five years of peace agreements. “When the cameras disappear, the attention also disappears and five years later you pay an enormously heavy price, and people pay a very heavy price. This is what we are trying to repair when we fill this institutional gap,” Mr. Eliasson added at a press conference after the adoption of the resolution.
According to the resolution, the Commission will act only by consensus, proposing integrated strategies for stabilization, economic recovery and development, and providing recommendations for improving the coordination of the UN system in those efforts. The membership will consist of seven Security Council members, including permanent members, selected by the Council; seven members of ECOSOC elected from regional groups, five top contributors to UN budgets, funds, programmes and agencies; and five top providers of military personnel and civilian police to United Nations missions. The General Assembly would elect seven additional members, with special consideration for States that have experienced post-conflict recovery.
To read the resolution (available in English, Chinese, Russian, Arabic, Spanish or French), please visit:
http://www.un.org/Docs/journal/asp/ws.asp?m=A/60/l.40

Thailand Now Providing Education for Burma/Myanmar Refugees
Thailand’s decision to provide broad educational services to over 140,000 refugees from Burma living along the border in nine camps in the country was welcomed by the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) on December 20. Under this new initiative, which followed discussions with UNHCR over the past few months, the Thai office of the Non-formal Education Commission will not only provide teachers of Thai, English and occupational skills, but will also supply educational materials such as computers, textbooks, and televisions.
The programme is expected to start in 2006. Since June 2005, the Thai Education Ministry allocated a budget of $225,000 for the development of educational programmes. Additional funds of some $500,000 will be needed for the programme’s implementation, UNHCR said. Until now, some 45,000 refugee children have been taught a limited curriculum by volunteer refugee teachers and non-governmental organizations working with very few resources in schools built out of bamboo thatch. Schooling ended after Grade 10.
For further information go to: http://www.unhcr.ch/cgi-bin/texis/vtx/country?iso=mmr

UN Climate Conference Outcomes: 2005 Record for Weather-Related Disaster Linked to Human Action
The UN Climate Conference justly pointed out that 2005 sets unprecedented record for weather-related disaster with the largest financial losses according to UN statistics. Delegates see a link with human action toward the environment. “The best form of adaptation is to reduce the world’s emissions by embracing a revolution in the way we use rather than abuse energy and by dramatically boosting energy efficiency and using technologies and techniques already available or at our finger tips,” said UN Environment Programme Executive Director Klaus Toepfer. This year’s figures, partly as a result of the highest number of hurricanes or tropical storms ever seen since records began in 1850, are part of a climbing trend being linked by many in the industry with climate change as a result of human-made emissions. Insurance industry experts pointed to growing scientific evidence, including studies in the journal Nature, which indicate that major tropical storms in the Atlantic and Pacific have increased in duration and intensity by about 50 per cent since the 1970s. “There is a powerful indication from these figures that we are moving from predictions of the likely impacts of climate change to proof that it is already fully underway,” Munich Re Foundation chief executive Thomas Loster, said. He added: “Above all, these are humanitarian tragedies and show us that, as a result of our impacts on the climate, we are making people and communities everywhere more vulnerable to weather-related natural disasters.”
If you are interested in these issues, check the UNEP website (United Nations Environment Programme) which features special pages for Children and Youth. To read all the decisions adopted by the Montreal 2005 Climate Conference, go to: http://unfccc.int/meetings/cop_11/items/3394.php

Year After Tsunami, Conditions Remain Critical in Many Areas
The first anniversary of the devastating Indian Ocean tsunami, which killed over 230,000 people and displaced some 1.5 million more in 12 countries, faces challenge of the reconstruction effort for this unprecedented level of destruction. According to FAO’s post-tsunami operations, half a million people in Indonesia are still living in temporary shelter. Entire communities were destroyed and sustainable recovery requires more than a year effort. One of the lessons learned from the disaster is the need for establishing a contingency emergency fund, for which Secretary-General Kofi Annan has proposed between $500 million and $1 billion, in order to accelerate relief. If the donor response to the tsunami disaster was huge, there were delays in getting help to the people who needed it most and this is precisely where the idea of a global disaster fund came from as it would allow immediate intervention.
We wonder if anyone reading this has done any analysis of why the Tsunami in Indonesia offered the opportunity to resolve the Acheh violence and the same post Tsunami reconstruction time produced opposite results in Sri Lanka. We are very interested in the role of natural disasters in offering chances for introducing peace education and reconciliation when they occur in zones of violent or racial conflict, as happened with hurricane Katrina in New Orleans. We believe emergency education must do more than provide a safe space for young people to engage in traditional education. And that community education following natural disasters is also a golden opportunity to bring people together to discuss democratic ways of distributing reconstruction aid, and ideas for methods of town or village planning that can contribute to reconciliation. You are welcome to send your thoughts.

Code of Conduct on Arms Transfers in Central America
IANSA reported that a legally-binding Code of Conduct on Arms Transfers was adopted by the Central America regional organization (SICA), on 2 December. This is very significant, acknowledging that while Central America is not a major arms producer, governments there are nonetheless responsible for the weapons that travel through their territory.
The Code of Conduct is available at: http://www.iansa.org/regions/camerica/camerica.htm

World Peace Forum Moves to Create International Peace Secretariat
Eric Garris (from Anti-War.com) reported on the World Peace Forum held in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia from December 14-17, 2006. This event was hosted by the Perdana Peace Foundation started by Tun Dr. Mahathir Mohamad, former prime minister of Malaysia, who was also the keynote speaker. The conference brought together approximately 2,000 people from dozens of nations. Speakers included Daniel Ellsberg, antinuclear activist Helen Caldicott, outspoken British MP George Galloway, Iraq war veteran Jimmy Massey, Prince Alfred of Liechtenstein, Malaysian Prime Minister Abdullah Badawi, former Australian Prime Minister Bob Hawke, and former UN officials Hans von Sponeck and Denis Halliday. The event was financed entirely by corporate and NGO sponsors. There was extensive media coverage in the Asian world but not really in Western countries. At the outcome, the forum made a commitment to form a ‘world peace secretariat’ that will be based in Kuala Lumpur. Antiwar.com will be very involved in the secretariat.
To read Eric Garris full report and other articles visit the Anti-War.com website at: http://antiwar.com/

The Hague Appeal for Peace is circulating the information below, however this does not indicate our endorsement.
We are not in a position to evaluate them all.

COURSES, CLASSES, FORUMS

Peace Education Workshops/Seminars: Available On-line or On-site; Abuja, Nigeria; Starting January 2006
As part of the on-going global campaign for the actualization of the global culture of peace, the Interreligious and International Federation for World Peace (IIFWP) will be holding both online and on-site peace education workshops/seminars lead by the IIFWP and the Universal Peace Federation (UPF) at the Nigeria Peace Embassy in Abuja. It is intended for political leaders, senior civil servants, religious leaders, educators, NGOs and others involved and/or interested in peace building and peace education programs. The workshops will emphasize the need for peace education at homes, into the school curriculum as well as into the various community cultures. It shall discuss the mission of Peace Ambassadors to be actively involved not only on building a "Culture of Peace" but also, building "Communities of Peace" and the utilization of "Technologies for Peace" in the 21st century. The four basic courses are: General Introduction to Peace Education, The Ideal Principle for Peace, The Reality of the World of War, The Restoration of Peace.
For information and/or registration please send an email to Raphael Ogar Oko at: iifwpng@iifwpng.org

Gender and Conflict Transformation: Online Forum; January 9 to February 3, 2006
This forum is offered by The Network University (TNU): “This four-week online course aims to empower women to become key agents in conflict transformation. It is designed to bring together worldwide expertise on the relationship between gender and conflict transformation, and will use a variety of interactive methods to elicit thinking and exchange. The programme is designed for individuals within civil society organizations, working in conflict situations and operating at a regional and national level. Participants may be part of women's organizations, non-governmental organizations (NGOs), local authorities, trade unions or can be religious leaders.”
For more information or to register, go to: http://www.netuni.nl/demos/genderconflict/course.htm

Discovery Program: Creating a Muslim-Jewish Mutual Discovery Guidebook, Online Seminar
Deadline January 20, 2006
The program provides an open forum to critically analyze the different forms of media and their impact on these two communities, and creates new opportunities and possibilities to learn about the ‘other’. The Discovery Program is an intensive four-month online seminar designed to act as an educational gateway in bringing together Muslim and Jewish youth to examine their current, as well as prospective relations. Youth from all over the world are encouraged to engage in thought-provoking discussions that tackle themes related to religion, political debates, and the Arab-Israeli conflict and its effect on Muslim-Jewish relations. Each group consists of eighteen students, 9 Muslims and 9 Jews, who are selected from communities all over the world to take pictures of Muslim and Jewish religious themes, symbols, rituals and events. These photos serve as powerful and spiritual visual tools that both challenge and prompt the students to explore and reflect on many issues that are considered 'taboo'. At the end of this educational journey, the students work together to publish a photo essay that serves as an educational tool for use in Muslim and Jewish schools and communities around the world. Participants must be16-18 year-olds and applications are due no later than January 20.
For further details and application form: http://www.hagalil.com/archiv/2005/12/discovery.htm

2006 TRANSCEND Advanced International Training Programmes Announcement
These trainings are some of TRANSCEND most advanced, highly intensive programmes. Participants primarily include UN staff, staff of national and international development organizations, members of governments, government staff and diplomats, policy makers, and experienced practitioners. The three proposed training are five-days programmes and will be held in Cluj - Napoca, Romania:
Reconciliation and Peacebuilding in Divided Communities (RPDC), March 6-10, 2006
Peacebulding, Conflict Transformation and Post-War Rebuilding, Reconciliation and Resolution, May 1-5, 2006
Designing Peacebuilding Interventions and Conflict Transformation (DPI), May 8-12, 2006
For any further information visit: http://www.transcend.org or contact: training@transcend.org

Gender and Economic Policy Analysis; The Hague, Netherlands; March 20-April 7 or March 20-31 or March 27-April 7, 2006
This course consists of three one-week modules, out of which two or three may be chosen, with the second one on methodology as the obligatory course. The course is targeted towards Mid-career economists and other social scientists that work for international development organizations, government agencies and NGOs, as well as academics, who want to better understand the gendered character of economies as well as seek to develop economic policies that are gender-aware. The ISS has obtained five fellowships from the Dutch Ministry of Foreign Affair's Gender department, for participants who work on development policy.
For more information contact Tanya Kingdon, Programme Administrator Institute of Social Studies, Kortnaerkade 12 2518 AX, Den Haag, Holland or via email at: kingdon@iss.nl.

Summer Institute on Peacebuilding & Conflict Resolution 2006; Santa Cruz, Bolivia; June 10-July 1, 2006
Final Deadline to Apply: April 1, 2006
The Alliance for Conflict Transformation (ACT) is a non-profit organization dedicated to building peace. ACT provides innovative research, training and intervention services to help transform destructive conflicts by addressing underlying needs and concerns, building sustainable relationships, and changing the conditions that foster violence. Founded in 1999 to expand the knowledge and practice of conflict transformation and peacebuilding, ACT empowers communities, organizations and governmental agencies to develop new conflict resolution capacities, reduce and prevent violence, and create relationships and institutions that foster sustainable peace. “Conflict is an inseparable part of human interaction. When addressed constructively it can lead to peaceful and positive change.” To accomplish these goals, ACT, in partnership with Nur University (Bolivia), developed the Summer Institute on Peacebuilding and Conflict Resolution (IPCR), an intensive 3-week residential program to build the capacity of current and future professionals to make a critical difference in furthering peaceful relations in the world.
For more information please visit: http://conflicttransformation.org/Default.aspx

Education for Global Citizenship: Professional Development Seminar; Nicaragua, June 24-July 2, 2006
The Center for Global Education at Augsburg College -Minneapolis- organizes a variety of travel seminars in Latin America and Southern Africa. This professional development seminar, held in Nicaragua, is designed to help educators from a variety of disciplines explore the relationship of education to responsible global citizenship. “You will share ideas for internationalizing curricula with colleagues, and examine new strategies to empower students for active engagement in issues of global importance. You will learn about study abroad opportunities for your students, as well as how to add an international component to your own courses.”
To read the brochure, go to: http://www.augsburg.edu/global/06facdev.pdf
You might want to check the other travel-seminar opportunities at: http://www.augsburg.edu/global/triplist.html

Master Program: International Descentralized Cooperation, Peace and Development work within the UN framework; Universidad del Pais Vasco, Bilbao, Spain
The Basque Country University in Bilbao, offers a master program designed to prepare professionals of international cooperation focusing on the United Nations system. It has been established in 1997 and it is supported by various organizations/foundations and UN agencies suche as UNICEF, UNIFEM, UNDP, FAO, among others. This Master Program brings together people from divers nationalities with a majority of South/Central American (Spanish speaking countries). The curriculum includes courses on human development, conflict resolution or education, communication and information for peace and development.
The 2006-2007 bulletin hasn’t been posted yet but for more details go to: http://www.ehu.es/pazydesarrollo/

EVENTS: CONFERENCES, EXHIBITIONS AND OTHERS

“No Name-Calling” Week in Schools, USA, January 23-27, 2006
The Misfits by James Howe tells the story of five best friends trying to survive the seventh grade in the face of all-too-frequent taunts based on their weight, height, intelligence, and sexual orientation/gender expression. Motivated by the inequities they see around them, they form a new political party during student council elections and run on a platform aimed at wiping out name-calling of all kinds. Though they lose the election, they win the principal’s support for their cause and their idea to institute a “No Name-Calling Day” at school. Inspired by this story, a coalition of more than forty education, mental health, youth advocacy, and social justice organizations was formed to support a No Name-Calling Week. The project targets grades five through eight (years when the problem of name-calling is particularly acute) but can be adapted easily for other grade levels.
To learn more about creative initiatives taken: http://www.nonamecallingweek.org/cgi-bin/iowa/home.html

Impact of Global Issues on Women and Children, Dhaka, Bangladesh, February 12-16, 2006
The goal of this international conference is to explore lessons learned from initiatives taking place around the world that have been implemented to improve the quality of life of women and children. Through the evaluation and research associated with these projects and initiatives, the conference will focus on strategies that aim to increase the positive impacts of factors such as technology, and decrease the negative impact of political, economic, and psychosocial factors.
For more information go to: http://www.ic2006.info/conference.htm

Imagining Ourselves, International Museum of Women, Exhibition Launch on March 8, 2006 (still accepting submissions)
The International Museum of Women and the Imagining Ourselves Global Team invite young women in their 20's and 30's all over the world to submit their stories and art that answer the question: What Defines Your Generation of Women? The Online Exhibit will feature an interactive multilingual gallery of over 300 interpretations of young women in answer to this question. If you are a young woman with images to share, a story to tell and a voice that wants to be heard, you have every reason to be a part of this growing community of a global generation.
For more information go to: http://www.imow.org/exhibits/imagining/index.php

Parihaka International Peace Festival, Celebrating Leaders in Non-violence, Taranaki/Aotearoa, New Zealand, March 10-12, 2006
“In Aotearoa (New Zealand), during the land wars of the 19th century, two great indigenous leaders of non-violence shone through to the entire population of the country. Te Whiti O Rongomai and Tohu Kakahi built Parihaka Pa (community) as a refuge for those alienated from their homes and land. This place drew the disaffected together to create a community of peace and to non-violently resist further land alienation and destruction of the indigenous Maori culture and livelihood. Te Whiti and Tohu utilized creative non-violent strategies later employed by other more well-known activists such as Mahatma Gandhi and Martin Luther King. When English settlers, supported by the central government, tried to occupy stolen native land, Parihaka citizens pulled up the survey pegs or continued to plough the fields in defiance of the authorities. When an armed constabulary set out to invade Parihaka in 1881, Te Whiti and Tohu sent out children to greet them with flowers, women to greet them with food, and men to help them transport their supplies - bold, clever, political and humanist attempt to defuse the violent intentions of the government. The authorities responded by ransacking Parihaka and arresting many of the residents. However, the incredible publicity generated by the non-violent movement shattered the propaganda of the indigenous Maori people as ‘heathen savages’ and started a turn around in recognition of Maori rights and the development of a just and peaceful nation.”
The Parihaka International Peace Festival celebrates the vision and example of Te Whiti and Tohu, and the openness of the people of Parihaka to advocate non-violent action in the face of oppressive forces and daunting odds. This vision can help us forge a culture of peace and nonviolence throughout the world now and into the future. The Program includes music, film, comedy, Peace Forum, jamming, tree planting, among others.
For further information visit http://www.parihaka.com/ or contact peace-speak@parihaka.com

Using History Skills and Concepts to Promote an Awareness of European Citizenship , EUROCLIO Annual Conference, Malta, March 20-26, 2006
EUROCLIO (European Association of History Educators) was established in 1992 to work on “improving European history education so that it offers a constructive contribution to stability and democracy in Europe and prepares young people for society. History is an important school subject for the political and civic development of our young people. It teaches pupils about the backgrounds of today’s world. History, however, has also been a topic open to political interference, propaganda, and indoctrination. No other school subject leads to such emotional debate in society, politics and the media. In the recent past, sadly, there are many examples of how History can be misused for petty political objectives.” EUROCLIO promotes positive, balanced history teaching, in Europe and beyond, and in cooperation with UNESCO, the Council of Europe, the European Union, the OSCE, national governments, and many organizations and institutions active in the field of education.
For more information please visit: http://www.eurocliohistory.org/

Challenges and Possibilities in Gender Equity Education, Hong Kong, China, June 22-24, 2006
This Second International Conference on Gender Equity Education in the Asia-Pacific Region will be held at the Hong Kong Institute of Education, from June 22-24, 2006. Scholars, educators, programme administrators, non-governmental organization representatives and students from the Asia-Pacific region will be brought together to share their thoughts, research findings and experiences on issues related to gender equity education, as well as any emerging strategies and pedagogies. Keynote speakers will be invited from the region to discuss issues concerning sexualities, femininities and masculinities, curriculum and teaching, education policy and reform, pedagogies, and citizenship.
Enquiries can be addressed to the Organizing Committee of the Gender Equity Education Conference by email: geec@ied.edu.hk or by phone: (+852) 2948-8562

World Peace Forum 2006, Vancouver, Canada, June 23-28, 2006
“The World Peace Forum 2006 is an international gathering of individuals, groups and civic governments from cities and communities to envision a culture of peace, justice and sustainability in our lifetimes.
The goal is to build networks of citizens and civic governments committed to a culture of peace and sustainability. While global militarism is increasing, resources available for human needs such as health care, education or housing are decreasing. The World Peace Forum 2006 will discuss best practices and provide tools for these networks to have a major influence on their national governments to reduce military spending and promote peaceful solutions to conflicts in the world. The program will include plenary sessions, thematic workshops, roundtable discussions and cultural shows. All these activities will be developed around the themes of global justice, women and peace, youth, First Nations, peace education, racism, sustainability and disarmament, among others.”
For more details or/and to participate, visit the website at www.worldpeaceforum.ca

Women's Eye on Peace II, Photography Exhibition, Melbourne, Australia, October 2006
Call for entries, submissions close on July 31, 2006
The International Women's Development Agency (IWDA) is a non-profit organization that creates positive change for women and their communities. IWDA invites women from across the globe to submit entries in Women's Eye on Peace 2, to be launched in Melbourne, Australia in October 2006. You don't need to be a professional photographer and the images don't need to be picture-perfect. It should illustrate how you see peace and which images resonate in your minds eye (and camera!). The inaugural Women's Eye on Peace exhibition held in October 2004 attracted hundreds of beautiful and inspiring images from across the globe. All funds raised from the event funded an IWDA peace-building forum for Afghani women that were held in Islamabad in the beginning of this year. All proceeds raised from Women's Eye on Peace II will support IWDA's work with women working towards peace.
For more information please visit: www.iwda.org.au or click here for registration form (PDF).
You can also email Kathy Proctor at kproctor@iwda.org.au or peace@iwda.org.au

RESOURCES, MATERIALS, PUBLICATIONS

Teacher Training manual: Towards a Culture of Peace Through Teacher Education, By Irma-Kaarina Ghosn (Lebanon)
This is a very simple, basic manual tailored to the local context of its author, Irma-Kaarina Ghosn, who is director of the Institute for Peace and Justice Education at the Lebanese American University. It is available both in English and Arabic, not yet on the web but hard copies are available free of charge for the cost of postage only.
You can contact Irma by e-mail: ighosn@lau.edu.lb or send your request to: Institute for Peace and Justice Education, P.O.Box 36, Byblos, Lebanon

Final Report of the Moroccan Truth Commission, Case Material for Learning Session
This official process started on January 7, 2004 with the establishment of the Commission by King Mohamed VI and officially ended on December 12, 2005. The public hearings, latest development of the Commission were organized by the Moroccan Equity and Reconciliation Commission (IER: Instance Equité et Réconciliation) as part of an official truth-seeking process focusing on disappearances and arbitrary detentions perpetrated against Moroccan citizens from 1956 until 1999. The IER was the first truth commission to be established in the Middle East and North Africa region. The impact of these hearings, televised live across Morocco, could be enormous, not only in the country but throughout the region.
Public hearings have become a common feature of truth-seeking processes around the world, the most recent examples being in Ghana, Peru, Timor-Leste, and Sierra Leone. They are not trials, nor are they meant to be a substitute for prosecutions. Their aim is usually not to uncover previously unknown information, but to constitute one important step in restoring dignity to citizens who have suffered state-sponsored human rights violations and who have been forced to remain silent about their experiences for fear of reprisal or societal exclusion. Hearings are an important step in the construction of a new relationship between a state and its citizens, though they do not only affect these two sectors. Society as a whole can participate in the important debate about its own past, the violations that were committed in its name, the origins and causes of such violations, and the safeguards that must be put in place to prevent the repetition of such abuses. As Betty Reardon pointed out: “This is interesting case material for learning sessions on the reconciliation phase of the conflict process or the striving for justice phase of human rights violations”.
The Commission official website is available in Arabic, French and Spanish. You should also check the International Center for Transnational Justice (ICTJ) website for other valuable documents (press releases, statements, etc.) about the Moroccan Truth Commission, including a report published last November (English).

Educators for Social Responsibility's Online Teacher Center
ESR Online Teacher Center provides teaching resources on a range of issues related to international security, conflict resolution, peacemaking, violence prevention, and social responsibility.
Check this online Teacher Center at: http://www.esrnational.org/otc/

Encyclopedia Of Life Support Systems, a Virtual Dynamic Library Equivalent to 200 Volumes
The Encyclopedia of Life Support Systems (EOLSS) is a web-based resource that provides knowledge base in support of sustainability of all life support systems throughout the world. The UNESCO-sponsored EOLSS body of knowledge is an integrated compendium of sixteen encyclopedias. It attempts to forge pathways between disciplines in order to show their interdependence and helps foster the transdisciplinary aspects of the relationship between nature and human society. It comprehensively examines from their origins, the threats facing all the systems that support life on Earth (climate, world’s oceans, forests, water cycle, atmosphere, social systems, etc.) The contributions in the EOLSS offer step-by-step explanations on how to apply the abstract or the pure sciences such as mathematics, to assess environmental pollution or to predict food consumption patterns. However, technical solutions alone won’t resolve the current ecological crisis. EOLSS therefore covers a diverse range of social issues, from human rights and poverty to psychology and anthropology. Best efforts are being made to make the EOLSS widely accessible to the global public in order to espouse education for sustainable development. It is a virtual dynamic library with contributions from thousands of scholars from over 100 countries and edited by hundreds of subject experts-designed to be a guide and reference for a wide range of users. Thus, the EOLSS is made available free of charge to universities in the UN list of least developed countries and disadvantaged individuals worldwide. Universities from developing countries also receive an appropriate discount and it is available to others at nominal subscription rates.
For all the details, go to: http://www.eolss.net/

UNESCO Report on Cultural Trade: Developing Countries Lag Far Behind
The UNESCO Institute for Statistics (based in Montreal) just published a report entitled: International Flows of Selected Cultural Goods and Services 1994-2003, Defining and capturing the flows of global cultural trade. This report reveals that three countries - the United Kingdom ($8.5 billion), United States ($7.6 billion) and China ($5.2 billion) - produced 40 per cent of the world’s cultural trade products in 2002, such as books, compact disks, videogames and sculptures, while Latin America and Africa together accounted for less than 4 per cent. Between 1994 and 2002, international trade in cultural goods increased from $38 billion to $60 billion. But “while globalization offers great potential for countries to share their cultures and creative talents, it is clear that not all nations are able to take advantage of this opportunity,” UNESCO Director-General Koïchiro Matsuura noted. “Without support to help these countries participate in this trade, their cultural voices will remain marginalized and isolated.” According to the report Latin America and the Caribbean accounted for only 3 per cent of the total trade of cultural goods in 2002, one point more than in 1992, though far behind other world regions. Oceania and Africa have not shown any progress, with a combined share of less than 1 per cent in 2002. It analyzes cross-border trade data from about 120 countries and presents new methodology to better reflect cultural trade flows, contributing to UNESCO’s effort to collect and analyze data that clearly illustrate the central role of culture in economic, social and human development.
You can read this interesting report at: http://www.uis.unesco.org/template/pdf/cscl/IntlFlows_EN.pdf

Gender, Health and development in the Americas: Basic Indicators 2005
Through this publication, PAHO, UNFPA and UNIFEM seek to provide government, civil society, academia, and other cooperation agencies with a set of basic statistical indicators that illustrate the differences between women and men in terms of health status and its socio-economic determinants. It is hoped that the evidence of gender inequality presented in this publication will facilitate an understanding of such disparities, the identification of information gaps, the formulation of initiatives aimed at eliminating inequities, and the creation of conditions that guarantee all people the exercise of their right to health.
To download and read this report (available in English or Spanish) go to: http://www.unifem.org/resources/item_detail.php?ProductID=54

Cycles of Violence: Gender Relations and Armed Conflict
This book describes ACORD's research "Gender-sensitive design and planning in conflict-affected situations", carried out during 2000 and 2001 in five communities living in the shadow of violent conflict in Juba (Sudan), Gulu (Uganda), Luanda (Angola), Timbukta (Mali) and the Lower Shabelle region (Somalia). It also includes analysis of data collected in Eritrea and Rwanda and addresses the challenges in methodologies and tools for research in turbulent environments.
To read this book: http://www.acord.org.uk/cycles_of_violence.pdf or visit: http://www.acord.org.uk/newbook.htm

Neolibs, Neocons and Gender Justice: lessons from global negotiations
This paper (2005) was written by G. Sen and produced by the United Nations Research Institute for Social Development (UNRISD). It reflects the context within which the struggle for gender justice is played out in the global environment. It provides an analytical frame to explain the core of the tensions between gender justice and other elements of social/economic justice, and the strategic implications of the multiple sites in which gender relations operate. It concludes that the feminist voice has altered the global discourse in the last two decades. The space provided by the United Nations, for all its limitations and weaknesses, has been invaluable. The author emphasizes that to protect the gains made and to promote progressive change, the lessons of the two decades need to be integrated, assimilated and consolidated, and the space created by the UN for the feminist agenda must be protected and strengthened.
It is only available in English for now but French and Spanish versions are expected. To read this paper: http://www.unrisd.org/80256B3C005BCCF9/(LookupAllDocumentsByUNID)/15E6EA635E8A955BC12570B500357029?OpenDocument&language=en

GRANTS, AWARDS AND JOBS OPORTUNITIES

Teachers College Columbia University Seeks Faculty Member in Peace Studies
Application Deadline February 15 for Appointment September 1, 2006
The programs in International Educational Development (IED)/Comparative and International Education (CIE) in the Department of International and Transcultural Studies seek a faculty member to provide leadership through teaching and scholarship in peace studies in education. In addition to research, teaching and advising responsibilities, the new appointee is expected to network well with academic communities (including Columbia University) and international organizations devoted to the study of peace and education. The applicant should have earned a doctorate in peace studies, education, international affairs, political science, or a related social science field, with a record of peer-reviewed publications in peace studies broadly defined. In addition, applicants should show evidence of a strong research agenda and demonstrate a record of exemplary teaching and advisement.
If you are interested please contact Professor Ofelia García at: ogarcia@tc.columbia.edu

1325 Award: Women, Peace and Security
Last October 27 marked the fifth anniversary of Security Council Resolution 1325 on women, peace and security. To underscore the importance of activities in this field, the Netherlands has announced the establishment of the 1325 Award, a money prize of 15,000 euros and a specially designed art work. The award will be presented in March, on or around International Women's Day, to an individual or civil society organization making an inspirational contribution to implementing Resolution 1325.
From today, organizations operating in the field of development cooperation may nominate individuals or organizations for the award on the following website: http://www.1325award.nl/

Australian Federation of University Women
South Australia Inc. Trust Fund AFUW works for the advancement and equality of opportunity of women worldwide through initiatives in education, friendship and peace. AFUW places priority on providing financial assistance for women to undertake university studies in Australia and overseas.
For more information on how to apply go to: http://www.afuw-sa-bursaries.mx.com.au/

Canada Research Chair in Human Rights, Diversity and Identity
Two years of funding is available to support a graduate student interested in studying critical geography or issues of spatial justice as part of an inter-disciplinary MA program offered by faculty members in Community, Culture and Global Studies at the University of British Columbia. The specific research topic will be decided in consultation with the student. However there is an interest in students studying issues related to the Politics of Identity and Cultural Economies of Neoliberalism.
For further information, please contact, Lawrence D. Berg, D.Phil. at: Lawrence.Berg@ubc.ca and check the following: www.chrdi.org/ldb/index.htm

2006 Human Rights Advocates Program Columbia University, USA
Deadline for applications: February 28, 2006
The application for the 2006 session of the annual Human Rights Advocates Program (HRAP) at Columbia University is now available. This Program is exclusively for activists working on problems that result from the impacts of the global economic system. The Program encourages applications from groups and individual human rights leaders in the Middle East and North Africa. It features a four-month residency at Columbia University in New York City with a structured curriculum of advocacy, networking, skills-building, and academic coursework. The current focus seeks to cover key impacts of the global economy, particularly on the following issues: Labour rights, Migration, Health, Environmental justice, Corporate social accountability, International financial institutions. Activists working in the above areas from a gender perspective are strongly encouraged to apply.
For further information or/and to apply please visit: http://www.columbia.edu/cu/humanrights/training/adv/hradv_pgm.htm

Founded in 1999, the Hague Appeal for Peace Global Campaign for Peace Education (GCPE), is an international organized network which promotes peace education among schools, families and communities to transform the culture of violence into a culture of peace. Over 140 organizations worldwide have endorsed it.

Peace education is a holistic, participatory process that includes teaching for and about human rights, international law, nonviolent responses to conflict, social and economic justice, gender equity, environmental sustainability, disarmament, traditional peace practices and human security. The methodology of peace education encourages reflection, critical thinking, cooperation, and responsible action. It promotes multiculturalism, and is based on values of dignity, equality and respect. Peace education is intended to prepare students for democratic participation in schools and society.

The Global Campaign for Peace Education has two goals:
- To see peace education integrated into all curricula, community and family education worldwide
- To promote the education of all teachers to teach for peace

The Hague Appeal for Peace Global Campaign for Peace Education Worldwide Activities Brief e-newsletter highlights how and where the GCPE network is active and growing. Submissions are encouraged! Please contribute how you are working for peace education including dates, locations, a brief description, and a website and/ or contact information and send it to helene@haguepeace.org For more information on the Hague Appeal for Peace and to become an endorser of the GCPE visit www.haguepeace.org.

Special Thanks

The Hague Appeal for Peace is grateful to the following for their generous support:

The Ford Foundation, Robert and Fran Boehm, The Arsenault Family Foundation, Olof Palme Minnesfond, Sponsors for Educational Opportunity, Compton Foundation, Stewart R. Mott Charitable Trust, Samuel Rubin Foundation, The Simons Foundation, Norwottock Foundation, CarEth Foundation, Loretto Community, Rissho Kosei Kai, General Board of Global Ministries, United Methodist Church, Tides Canada Foundation Exchange Fund of Tides Foundation, Wade Greene and several anonymous donors, Robin Lloyd, Steven Grand-Jean, Ruthie Ristich

Helene Leneveu
Program Associate
Hague Appeal for Peace
777 UN Plaza, Third Floor
New York, NY 10017
Tel: (+1) 212-687-2623
Fax: (+1) 212-661-2704
Website: www.haguepeace.org

"A culture of peace will be achieved when citizens of the world understand global problems; have the skills to resolve conflict constructively; know and live by international standards of human rights, gender and racial equality; appreciate cultural diversity; and respect the integrity of the Earth. Such learning can not be achieved without intentional, sustained and systematic education for peace." Global Campaign for Peace Education

Pen vs. Sword
Editor Iryna Vidanava Is Pushing Change in Belarus. The Government Is Pushing Back.

By Philip Kennicott
Washington Post Staff Writer
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/12/27/AR2005122701325_pf.html
Wednesday, December 28, 2005; C02

After more than a year in the United States, Iryna Vidanava says she doesn't feel like an idiot when she smiles on the street. In her homeland of Belarus, spontaneous good humor toward strangers just isn't done in public places. In the grimly efficient, Soviet-era subway and on the rattletrap buses that ply the drab streets of Minsk, almost every face is studiously expressionless. Even most young people put up a shell and stay nervously within it.

Changing that, in some ways, has become her life's work. And it may land her in prison.

Vidanava, a graduate student at Johns Hopkins University, holds down three jobs -- putting in long days including a commute between Washington, where she lives, and Baltimore, where she studies. She has two gigs with the university, where she works as a research assistant and a teaching assistant.

And then there's what she calls "my night job" -- as editor of Student Thought, perhaps the most edgy and professional publication left in Belarus, where the government has been ruthlessly shutting down all independent media. Although Minsk is almost 5,000 miles away, she still works -- with cell phone and e-mail -- to keep alive the magazine she has edited since 1998. But as Belarus, a landlocked country sandwiched between Poland and Russia, prepares for an election in March, things have never been more difficult.

Last month, the government seized all but a handful of copies of the magazine. And now Vidanava is under investigation for financial crimes and infractions against the country's draconian press laws.

If charged, the 27-year-old editor could face a huge fine and up to six years in prison. But it's hard to know exactly what's happening with her case in Belarus. One investigator is on vacation; another has given no word on where things stand..

Please see the entire article at http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/12/27/AR2005122701325_pf.html

AfricAvenir News are kindly sent out by Eric Van Grasdorff:

Liebe Freunde,

nach einer kurzen Newsletter-Verschnaufpause geht es, kaum hat das neue Jahr begonnen, auch wieder mit unserem Programm weiter. Am Mittwoch, den 11. Januar 2006 um 19.00 Uhr wird im AWO Begegnungszentrum in Berlin-Kreuzberg Benny N. Nonyane zu "Challenges of the Pan African Parliament" einen Vortrag halten, zu dem AfricAvenir International e.V. herzlich einlaedt. Herr Benny Nonyane ist Mitarbeiter der südafrikanischen Parlamentsverwaltung. Er hat eine Ausbildung als Rechtsanwalt und ist seit 1998 Procedural Advisor am National Council of Provinces (NCOP). Nach der Entscheidung, dass der Sitz des panafrikanischen Parlaments in Johannesburg sein soll, ist Herr Nonyane durch das südafrikanische Parlament beauftragt worden, beim Aufbau des Panafrikanischen Parlaments mitzuwirken. Er befasst sich u.a. mit den Ausarbeitungen einer Geschäftsordnung und des "Code of Conduct" für die Mitglieder. Herr Nonyane absolviert derzeit einen Studienaufenthalt am Bundesrat. Der Vortrag sowie die anschliessende Diskussion erfolgen in Englisch.

Referent: Benny N Nonyane
Titel d. Veranst. "Challenges of the Pan African Parliament"
Zeit: Mittwoch, 11.Januar 2006, 19 Uhr
Ort: AWO Begegnungszentrum, Adalbertstr. 23a, Berlin-Kreuzberg
Vortrag und Diskussion auf englischer Sprache.

www.AfricAvenir.org
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Common Ground News Service - Partners in Humanity
(CGNews-PiH)
January 3, 2006

Common Ground News Service - Partners in Humanity (CGNews-PiH) is distributing the enclosed articles to build bridges of understanding between the West and the Arab world, and countries with significant Muslim populations. Unless otherwise noted, copyright permission has been obtained and the articles may be reproduced by any news outlet or publication, free of charge. If publishing, please acknowledge both the original source and Common Ground News Service, and notify us at cgnewspih@sfcg.org.

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ARTICLES IN THIS EDITION:

5. On the parquet, 'Great Satan' plays for 'Axis of Evil' by Scott Peterson
Scott Peterson, staff writer for the Christian Science Monitor, writes about the increasing numbers of Americans playing basketball in Iran. These individuals find themselves acting as ambassadors for the United States while in Iran, and dispelling stereotypes about Iranians back home. Saeed Fathi, the coach of the Peykan team, sums up this dual-role by saying "sport is a common language between all humans in the world."
(Source: The Christian Science Monitor, December 15, 2005)

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ARTICLE 1
Tapping Islam's feminist roots
Asra Q. Nomani

Barcelona, Spain - Several months ago, when a group of Spanish Muslims approached city officials here about sponsoring a conference on Islamic feminism, one responded, "Isn't that an oxymoron?"

That's what many people believe. To conservative Muslims, the phrase is an insult to Islam. But to many moderate Muslims - and I count myself among them - an Islamic feminist movement fits with the religion's early teachings and offers one of our best hopes for countering extremism. Indeed, those of us who have joined the movement since it emerged in the 1990s have come to understand that Islam needs to go backwards to its progressive 7th-century roots if it is to move forward into the 21st century.

How difficult that is - and how important - became clear to me when I joined the first International Congress on Islamic Feminism, which was held in this Spanish city in late October. When the floor was opened for questions during one session, a young Muslim man made the comment I've heard so often: "In Islam, there is no place for feminism. ... "

Sitting on the dais, where I had just chronicled our successful struggle to integrate some U.S. mosques, I took it in stride. I've become accustomed to belittling comments, even death threats.

In Barcelona, what happened next stunned me. From the middle of the audience of some 250 women and men, Amina Wadud, a Muslim scholar of Islamic studies who calls herself "a pro-faith feminist," stood up. "You are out of order," she said to the man. "What you are doing is exactly the kind of thing that we are here to be able to stop." The audience broke into cheers. Another Muslim man tried to protest. I interrupted him. "We're changing history today," I said. "We're not going to shut up."

What stunned me was not only the confidence with which we spoke but the willingness of the group to back us - 11 Muslim women scholars and activists and one Muslim man activist who had been invited to attend the conference by a small but ambitious group of largely Spanish Muslim converts, the moderate Catalan Islamic Board. The force of our collective effort convinced me that we have the strength to challenge the men's club that defines most of the Muslim world.

It was an affirmation of the commitment that had brought me and the 11 other female participants here from as far away as Malaysia, Mali, Nigeria, France, Canada, the United Kingdom, the United States and refugee camps in the disputed territory of Western Sahara to share stories from the trenches in the "gender jihad." We Muslim feminists view it as a struggle that taps Islamic theology, thinking and history to reclaim rights granted to women by Islam at its birth but erased by manmade rules and tribal traditions masquerading as divine law.

In the communities where we live, we have begun challenging customs that deny women rights from the mosque to the bedroom: gender segregation, mandatory veiling, forced early marriages, clitorectomies, polygamy, death for sex outside of marriage, domestic violence and strict domestic roles. We have many Muslim men on our side: the chief organiser of the conference was a man, Abdennur Prado, who hustled nonstop behind the scenes. And we are taking a lead from Christian and Jewish women who are generations ahead of us today in their efforts to challenge traditions that block them from the workplace, the political arena and the pulpit.

To many, we are the bad girls of Islam. But we are not anti-sharia (Islamic law) or anti-Islam. We use the fundamentals of Islamic thinking - the Koran, the Sunnah, or traditions and sayings of the prophet Muhammad, and ijtihad, or independent reasoning - to challenge the ways in which Islam has been distorted by sharia rulings issued mostly by ultraconservative men.

What we are wrestling with are laws created in the name of Islam by men, specifically eight men. The Muslim world of the 21st century is largely defined by eight madhhabs, or Islamic schools of jurisprudence, with narrow rulings on everything from criminal law to family law: the Shafii, Hanafi, Maliki and Hanbali schools in the majority Sunni sect; the Jafari and Zaydi schools, for the minority Shiite sect; and the Ibadi and Thahiri schools among other Muslims. But the first centuries of Islam's 1,400-year history were quite different - characterised by scores of schools of jurisprudence, many progressive and women-friendly. It is not Islam that requires women to wear a headscarf, but rather the scholars in the contemporary schools.

From the dais, activists dressed in everything from Parisian fashion to traditional African batik offered powerful stories of regional reform. From Malaysia, Zainah Anwar, executive director of the Sisters in Islam (dubbed "Satan in Islam" by conservatives), laid out a strategy for reforming Islamic family law in her country by, for example, educating women about their right to refuse forced marriages. And like others, she is looking beyond her country's borders for support.

The challenge isn't just in poor villages in Nigeria or Mali. It's in the wealthy and supposedly well-educated West. In 2003, I set off a debate over the rights of Muslim women when I wrote in The Washington Post about walking through the front door of my hometown mosque in Morgantown, W.Va., and praying in the main hall, thus defying an order that women enter through a back door and pray in a secluded balcony.

We see our struggle as part of a wider peace jihad. It was a national Islamic leader who oversees the Catalan Islamic Board, Mansur Escudero, who issued the first fatwa against Osama bin Laden, months before U.S. Muslim organizations issued their own.

At the Barcelona conference, I proposed a plan called "The Islamic Dream" - an effort to connect our disparate efforts and develop a new approach for Islam in the 21st century. I would like to see us organise a summit of Islam's progressive thinkers to establish the terms of reform and define a 20-year plan to transform our world. That is where we are headed.

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* Asra Nomani is a former reporter for The Wall Street Journal and the author of "Standing Alone in Mecca" (HarperSanFrancisco). E-mail: asranomani@theislamicdream.com
Source: Seattle Times, December 11, 2005
Visit the website at www.seattletimes.com
Distributed by the Common Ground News Service - Partners in Humanity.
Copyright permission has been obtained from the author for publication.

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ARTICLE 2
Media in Iraq: the fallacy of psy-ops
Eileen M. O'Connor and David Hoffman

Washington, DC - Some top Pentagon officials say they are justified in planting positive stories in the Iraqi media about U.S actions in order to present a more positive image. Whether the policy is ethically correct misses the larger point. Pushing PR or propaganda simply doesn't work.

Showing the world the values on which American society is based and abiding by these values in our foreign policy is the best way to conduct effective public diplomacy. It's also the best way to spread democracy.

That's how the United States conducted public diplomacy during the administrations of George H.W. Bush and Bill Clinton. Since 1991, $350 million has been spent to develop independent media in eastern Europe and the former Soviet Union, areas that have seen dramatic transitions.

To the administration's credit, USAID's budget for democracy and governance activities in Iraq was $380 million in 2004, with $5 million of that going to independent media development. In the 2005 fiscal year, spending on these activities fell to $169 million, and for 2006 it will fall again, to $130 million, of which media is a small component.

In contrast, the Pentagon has awarded three known contracts to the Lincoln Group, SYColeman Inc. and Science Applications International Corp., totaling a potential $300 million over five years. The purpose, quoting from the Lincoln Group's Web site (www.lincolngroup.com), is to "inject more creativity into its psychological operations efforts to improve foreign public opinion about the United States, particularly the military."

What is unknown is how much intelligence agencies are spending for similar psy-ops operations. In addition, the administration has requested $93.1 million in 2006 for Al-Hurrah TV and Radio Sawa, whose missions include spreading the U.S. message, but which are seen as non-indigenous, non-independent stations in the Arab world, with little credibility.

Granted, building independent media may take more time than Washington policy-makers would like, especially in places such as the former Soviet Union. But the work spreads a valuable lesson: Free speech matters. When it works, it can change the entire political landscape, as was seen recently in Lebanon, and before that in Serbia, Indonesia, Georgia, Ukraine and Kyrgyzstan.

Georgian President Mikhail Saakashvili told the Washington Post's David Ignatius that the money spent in his country on building independent media was worth "more than 5,000 marines." And no American lives were put at risk during that operation.

Planting or paying for positive stories in the Iraqi press is a quick and easy way for companies like the Lincoln Group to fulfill their $100 million contract. But does America's image truly benefit from such PR efforts? A better strategy would be to empower local, indigenous journalists, media managers, owners and government officials to develop truly free and independent public and private media that are balanced, objective, fact-based and centered upon the basic value of free speech.

U.S. government funding for local, independent media has helped establish thousands of new television and radio broadcasters around the world. It has trained tens of thousands of journalists and media managers and has provided hundreds of millions of people with a professional style of journalism that they can rely on.

The Bush administration should be applauded for the money it is spending in the Middle East through USAID, the Middle East Partnership Initiative and other State Department initiatives to develop a vibrant, independent media. But paying journalists to print stories and spending hundreds of millions of dollars on PR campaigns negates the good work that has gone into developing truly independent media.

American principles, and not propaganda, are what resonate with citizens in the Middle East. If the United States seriously intends to develop democracies, it should learn from what it has done in Europe and Eurasia since the fall of the Berlin Wall.

It should stop funding blatant propaganda and use that money to fully fund democracy and governance programs, including those that develop objective, independent media.

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* Eileen M. O'Connor is President of the Washington-based International Center for Journalists. David Hoffman is President of Internews Network, which supports open media worldwide.
Source: International Herald Tribune, December 16, 2005
Visit the website at www.iht.com
Distributed by the Common Ground News Service - Partners in Humanity.
Copyright permission has been obtained for publication.

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ARTICLE 3
YOUTH VIEWS
U.S. leadership and the spread of freedom and democracy
Alawi Taqi & Bradford L. Yankiver

Pittsburgh & Safat, Kuwait - Three years of war and reconstruction in Iraq have done little to change world opinion about the American invasion and occupation of Iraq, and today, even public support in the U.S. has dramatically diminished. While many of the criticisms lobbied against the U.S. government are valid, the United States has also taken bold steps in its foreign policy that have and will continue to create positive change in the Middle East.

First and foremost, the Bush administration has reversed the U.S.'s harmful, long-standing policy of propping up authoritarian regimes for its own benefit in favour of a policy of supporting the process of democratisation. Second, under the Bush administration, the U.S. has engaged the new leadership of the Palestinian nation in a renewed peace initiative. Finally, the U.S. is beginning to encourage Middle Eastern nations to show more respect for human rights and basic freedoms.

Throughout much of the 20th century, the U.S. supported the Middle East's repressive dictators, but that approach is changing. The Bush administration has voiced its unrestricted support for democracy around the world, a positive new direction for American foreign policy.

The U.S. has also begun to help resolve the Arab-Israeli conflict. The U.S. has adopted an activist role aimed at forcing Israel to withdraw from the West Bank and Gaza and is working to create the conditions necessary for the establishment of an independent Palestinian state. The U.S. encouraged efforts to reform the notoriously corrupt Palestinian Authority and to select a Palestinian leadership that could make peace with Israel under American supervision.

As part of this effort, the U.S. has refused to allow the Palestinian-Israeli conflict to be internationalised. The conflict is often used by extremists to redirect popular frustrations over domestic problems to external actors, but the U.S. and courageous Arabs are working together to eliminate this rallying point.

With the push for democracy, the U.S. is promoting basic freedoms. Many in the U.S. take as a matter of course the freedom to believe, or not believe, in any religion they like. Freedom of speech is rarely challenged. It is normal to travel in the US without documents and identity cards. It is considered a basic right to be able to change jobs and professions without having to gain permission from a bureaucrat in the government. Yet such basic freedoms are unknown, or carefully regulated and subject to severe punishment, in much of the Middle East.

It is important to recognise that the United States of America is playing a vital role in nurturing the spread of democracy. The U.S. projects its power militarily and economically, but above all it promotes its values: liberalism, free market economies, democracy, and freedom. Critics of the U.S. invasion of Iraq should remember that empire is not the goal. However misguided the means have been, the U.S. actions suggest that it genuinely want to see democracy established in the Middle East, dictators toppled, and human rights and freedoms respected. Proof of this is the fact that the U.S. has not simply exploited Iraq for its oil nor simply established a friendly dictatorship as many critics had assumed it would. This suggests a commitment to democracy in Iraq.

The importance of freedom and democracy cannot be underestimated. Dignity, prosperity and creativity can flourish only within a climate of freedom. Furthermore, democratic political systems are the most effective at promoting economic development and fighting inequality and poverty. But it is never easy to arrive there - arguments that democratisation efforts are too costly and potentially destabilising ignore the fact that the road to democracy was long and arduous even for Western nations. Few would argue that the French or American revolutions were not worth the cost.

While there is no question that U.S. foreign policy under the Bush administration has some serious flaws, if U.S. support for democracy does not falter and the U.S. cooperates with the international community, history books may eventually look back on this period of time as the era when democracy took root in the Middle East.

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* Bradford L. Yankiver is the editor at Carnegie Mellon's school newspaper "The Tartan". Alawi Taqi is a student at the American University of Kuwait. This article was written as part of the Soliya Western-Islamic student dialogue program.
Source: Common Ground News Service, January 3, 2006
Visit the website at www.commongroundnews.org
Distributed by the Common Ground News Service - Partners in Humanity.
Copyright permission has been obtained for publication.

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ARTICLE 4
Protecting our accomplishments
James Zogby

Washington, DC - One of the first political lessons I learned after coming to Washington was taught to me by an African American activist who had, in his early years, worked as a strategist with Martin Luther King, Jr.

I had just won a minor political victory and was telling him about it. His response was, "Don't take any victory for granted, because the very forces you had to fight to win are still out there trying to undo what you've won. You must always protect your victories."

I was reminded of my friend and mentor's wise words last week, when a thoughtful reporter asked me to identify what, I thought, had been Arab Americans' most important accomplishments over the past three decades, and what, I felt, were the greatest challenges still facing the community.

My answers were that we had succeeded, despite great obstacles, in building a community and the institutions to support it, and now face the challenge of protecting that community and its institutions.

From the beginning of our work, some three decades ago, our goal had been to establish an empowered Arab American community, respected and recognised in the mainstream of American political life.

On our way we faced challenges, both internal and external to our community. First and foremost were the difficulties encountered dealing with our complex constituency, divided, as it was, by religion, country of origin and generational experience in the US. The attachments and identities of each group were different. For those born in the US, identity was shaped by their American experience. Their attachment to the Arab world was, at best, a generalised one, of a heritage and culture. The more recent immigrants, on the other hand, had their identities formed in their countries of origin, and, in some cases, by political affiliations or ideologies they had embraced.

Thirty years ago, when our efforts began, America was in the throes of a cultural upheaval, one by-product of which was the upsurge of ethnic identity movements (African American cultural nationalism, and the "hyphenated-American" organizations). No sooner had Americans of Arab descent begun organising, than civil war in Lebanon and the Arab League's expulsion of Egypt created complications that had to be overcome.

Resolving not to let our identity and organization be determined by overseas events, we focused on finding common ground and building organizations that served community needs.

As we grew and gained early recognition we encountered still other problems. Pro-Israel groups saw us a threat and placed new difficulties in our path. They sought to use their dominant positions to define and defame us. Saying that there was no Arab American community, their literature described us as "a petrodollar funded fiction" created to "support PLO terror" and serve as "an anti-Israel lobby." As a result, we faced exclusion from some coalitions, candidates refused to accept our contributions or support and some of our leaders were subject to McCarthy-like personal attacks.

By focusing on our goals, we persisted and grew in strength. We registered and organised our vote, built institutions that provided services to our community, supported Arab Americans in politics and defended our heritage and organizations against attacks-all the while articulating a responsible American political agenda that won support from a broad cross-section of Americans of Arab descent. And we did not allow imported identities or divisions to distort our work.

I knew we were on the path to success as early as 1983 when, at an event of over 800 Arab Americans in Chicago, it was observed that the attendees were a cross section of our community, representing different religions, countries of origin, and generations-all there as one community.

Today, as we witnessed in the last elections, Arab Americans are recognised and courted by both parties. Our social service institutions employ hundreds of young Arab Americans and serve the needs of tens of thousands within our community. Coalitions which once excluded us, now accept us in leadership roles. And we have even opened the first Arab American Museum-a remarkable institution that celebrates Arab contributions to civilization and the Arab American experience.

We are now empowered and empowering a new generation of young Arab Americans. And while we do not always win the policy debates on critical questions of US domestic and foreign policy, we are now part of the process.

And still pressures remain-from both within and outside of our community. Imported and divisive identities and loyalties still threaten to rupture our unity. In addition to some politicised Christian groups who deny their Arab American identity, we now face a similar challenge from some Muslim groups who deny the unity of our ethnic constituency. Then there are those who still focus exclusively on their countries of origin. While our Arab American groups respect the importance of religion and the attachment that many rightly feel toward their homelands, we maintain the importance of maintaining unity regardless of religion or origin.

There are some in the Bush Administration who have sought to play into these divisive currents-"cherry picking" groups and cultivating their support. At different times they have played the "religion card" alternately courting Muslim groups and separatist Christian groupings as well. They have also elevated in importance some of the exile country-specific political groups at the expense of the established Arab American community organizations.

The dangers here are obvious. The community we have built is being challenged by those who seek to divide us. But I remain confident that signs point to the growing strength of the community. For example, our polls show that the use of "Arab American" as the preferred form of self-identification (over country of origin and religion) is increasing. And on campuses, student groups that a generation ago were headed by Arab students are now led by US born Arab Americans, a new generation that has demonstrated real pride in their heritage.

Finally, polls also show that Arab Americans, whether Republican or Democrat, immigration or second generation, Muslim or Christian, display a remarkable convergence of views on several critical foreign and domestic policy issues, fighting defamation and discrimination, defending civil liberties, supporting Palestinian rights and the unity and sovereignty of Lebanon, to name a few.

The lesson here is that we have built a community we can be proud of, but it is an accomplishment we must defend and protect, because it is still being challenged.

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* James Zogby is president of the Arab American Institute.
Source: Jordan Times, December 5, 2005
Visit the website at www.jordantimes.com
Distributed by the Common Ground News Service - Partners in Humanity.
Copyright permission has been obtained for publication.

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ARTICLE 5
On the parquet, 'Great Satan' plays for 'Axis of Evil'
Scott Peterson

Tehran - During a time out, the Iranian basketball team huddles on the sidelines.

Amid the rising heat and scent of hard exertion, the Iranian coach tells the squad in English that he wants 30 points in the fourth quarter.

But from within the sweating cluster an excited American voice cuts in: "Let's win!" urges Texan Andre Pitts, who would lead the team to victory with 26 points. "Let's just win!"

In the quest to build a professional basketball league and bolster Iranian hoop skills, teams in the Islamic republic are paying top dollar ($15,000 a month or more) to lure players away from Europe and America, which is still sometimes called the "Great Satan." In the past two years, the number of Americans playing on parquet floors in the "Axis of Evil" has jumped from three to at least 18 in the 16-team league.

Along the way, something else has happened. The American players have become ambassadors of sorts, for both countries.

"People are people; and basketball people in America and Iran are the same," says Mr. Pitts, who is from Seguin, Texas. In the past seven years, he's played for teams in Syria, Lebanon, and now in Iran. "They really look after us a lot. My teammates are really good to me - in two years I have never had a problem. I get invited to their homes all the time."

Pitts plays for Saba Battery, which, ironically, is the team fielded by Iran's defense ministry. The other American on the team is Garth Joseph, a dual US-Dominican Republic citizen.

Together, the pair of talented foreigners shot 43 points on Sunday, well over half of those in Saba's nationally televised 77-71 defeat of team Peykan.

"We are sportsmen, not political men, and sport is a common language between all humans in the world," says Saeed Fathi, head coach of Peykan, which was the first team to import American talent, four years ago. "It's a good language," he adds.

Since the Islamic Revolution in 1979, anti-American slogans have been a fixture of government-organised events. And Pitts's Iranian teammates say he was somewhat anxious about this when he arrived. But players of both nationalities say now that the first thing to fall away are the prejudices and misconceptions fostered by governments and the media.

"We clicked from Day One," says Pitts, who sports two diamond ear studs and headphones around his neck after a recent practice.

Living in Iran has taken some getting used to, however. Alcohol is forbidden, and there are no nightclubs. Players say that their American families worry - at least at the start - about their sons or brothers working in a country lead by a clerical regime that is vilified by Washington.

"I tell my family: 'I keep going [to Iran], so it can't be too bad,' " says Pitts, who is often busy countering misperceptions among friends and relatives when he returns home to Texas for vacation.

Americans "think all Iranians hate America, or have a negative attitude to the US," he adds. "It's sad, because the news shows all the bad things [about Iran] but never the good things. It's wrong, but all states are the same: There are some bad things, and some good."

America is nice, but ...

Pitts also dispenses advice to young Iranians who dream of traveling to America. "I tell them: 'America is nice, but it is not like you think it is,' " he says. "If you don't have an education behind you, it is still a struggle. You can get a drink, but not all life is like that."

In Iran, the novelty of having tattooed Americans toeing Iranian free-throw lines has yet to wear off. Before the game, some of the handful of spectators ask Mr. Joseph - a barrel-chested 7 ft. 2 in. man - to pose for photos with children.

State TV cameramen and spectators laugh every time the towering Joseph snatches a rebound and consolidates control of the ball with his tongue out and a growl.

Each Iranian team can put up to two foreigners on the court. But the Iranian game and the 'imported' player dynamic is not for everyone. Chris Herren, from Fall River, Mass., who was drafted by the Denver Nuggets in 1999, and then played for the Boston Celtics the next year, signed an agreement a month ago to play for Peykan, with a two-month trial period.

But the outside shooter drafted to score from beyond the 3-point line has recently been dogged by a family crisis in the US, injuries, and illness. During his second outing with Peykan on Sunday, he didn't score a point.

"If he can't play this game, he must go home," Mr. Fathi said after one time out, in which TV cameras caught a flash of disagreement between player and coach.

Mr. Herren left the bench before the rest of the team, could not be reached for comment afterwards, and was not at practice the next day. Fathi says the trial period is over, and Herren won't be playing in Iran.

While the Americans are here to score points and raise the caliber of Iranian play, Fathi admits that their presence also skews the results.

For example, he figures his Peykan team, loaded with six members of Iran's national team, would have beat Saba Battery Sunday by 20 points if Pitts and Joseph were not playing.

But Pitts notes that Iranian basketball is good, and getting better. "Athletic-wise, [Iranians] are very tough. The game is more physical here - it's a man's league," says Pitts. "Their skill level is rising - eventually they will be the best [in the Mideast]."

A ban on tattoos

While most here appreciate the American example, there are some aspects of the NBA that Iranian officials would prefer not to import.

Last month, the Iranian Basketball Federation banned its players from having tattoos, the Iranian news agency ISNA reported. "It has been noticed recently that some basketball players are copying foreign players and having themselves tattooed ... which is against the morals [of the Islamic republic] and unacceptable," the federation said. It called for players who have "committed such an act" to take rapid measures to "make them disappear so to avoid firmer measures" against them.

In dutiful compliance, during Sunday's game the Iranian Peykan center used strips of athletic tape to cover a large tattoo on his shoulder.

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* Scott Peterson is a staff reporter for the Christian Science Monitor.
Source: The Christian Science Monitor, December 15, 2005
Visit the website at www.csmonitor.com
Distributed by the Common Ground News Service - Partners in Humanity.
Copyright permission has been obtained for publication.

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Dear All,

A Very Happy New Year!

Zubaan announces three new publications and two book launches in Chennai, Tamil Nadu and Ahmedabad, Gujarat, respectively. The three books are Fragments of a Life: A Family Memoir by Mythily Sivaraman; Speech and Silence: Literacy Journeys by Gujarati Women translated by Rita Kothari and the South Asian edition of Women, Citizenship and Difference (Eds.) Nira Yuval-Davis and Pnina Werbner.

Fragments of a Life: A Family Memoir
Mythily Sivaraman
Foreward by Githa Hariharan and Afterword by Uma Chakravarty
208pp Hb o Rs.395 o ISBN 81 89013 11 4 o All Rights available

Mythily Sivaraman’s grandmother, Subbalakshmi, lived in the early years of the twentieth century. Married at11 and a mother by 14, Subbalakshmi lived a hard life, dealing with her husband’s frequent absences, with illness and neglect. Over the years, she became more and more reclusive, focusing on the one thing that perhaps gave her hope: her fierce desire to read. In this meticulously researched and loving book, Mythily reconstructs her grandmother’s life from the fragments of papers and notes, and an occasional diary that she left behind in a tin trunk. In doing so, she explores the silences that surround women’s innermost feelings. Subbalakshmi records even the most mundane of activities such as going to hospital, embroidering things for her daughter, but remains silent on the many other important things in her life.

Mythily’s painstaking research into both the wider context and the intimate details of Subbalakshmi’s life sheds light on the Tamil Brahmin culture with its strong silencing of women and denial of their thoughts and feelings. It explores the ways in which silence and secrecy often becomes an armour and a survival strategy for women. The book directs the reader to new archives for seeking out history, for with women, silence and speech, the written and the unsaid, the occasional fragment, the odd noting, the library ticket, the shopping list… all of these provide pointers to their lived lives and locations. In its portrayal of the life of one woman, the author weaves together different strands to give the reader a rich and complex book that contributes to new ways of approaching women’s history.

Mythiliy Sivaraman, a political and social activist of thirty years standing is currently the national Vice-President of the All India Democratic Women’s Association. She is Subbalakshmi’s daughter.

Fragments of a Life: A Family Memoir will be released at the Asian School of Journalism, Chennai on Saturday, 7th of January 2006 at 4:30pm.

Speech and Silence: Literacy Journeys by Gujarati Women
Translated by Rita Kothari
200pp Pb o Rs.195 o ISBN 81 86706 98 4 o All Rights available except Gujarati

This anthology is not only about what Gujarati women speak, but also what they don’t. In a state that registers increasing cases of violence against women, what kind of truths does its literature embody? If “malestream” writing in Gujarat seldom mirrors its everyday truths, do the women risk unpleasantness? Kothari’s introduction builds upon such premises and leads the reader to a trajectory of women writers from the beginning of the twentieth century to the present day, starting with the journal entries of a dancer at the end of the nineteenth century, to the journal entries of an academic woman at the end of the twentieth century. The wide range of stories and fictional excerpts show how Gujarati women inhabit their fictional worlds. The trajectory hints at an imperceptible shift from muffled voices to more candid ways of being, and yet it never loses completely the middle-class genteelness that characterizes literary discourses in Gujarat.

Rita Kothari teaches at St. Xavier’s College, Ahmedabad. Her publications on literary sociology of Gujarat and translation include Translating India, Modern Gujarati Poetry: A Selection, Coral Island: Poems by Niranjan Bhagat, Angaliyat (a Gujarati Dalit novel). Her forthcoming book is on the Sindhi Hindus of Gujarat.

Speech and Silence will be released on Sunday, 8th of January 2006 at the Crossword Book Store, Ahmedabad, Gujarat at 11:00 am.

Women, Citizenship and Difference
Nira Yuval-Davis & Pnina Werbner (Eds.)
272pp Hb o Rs.495 o ISBN 81 89013 33 5 o South Asian Edition
(Originally published by Zed Books, London, UK)

This book makes an important contribution towards an understanding of citizenship as mediated by other collective, historically determined identities: of gender, ethnicity, class and national status. It brings together a group of prominent international scholars from moral philosophy, law, political science and sociology to offer a major reconceptualization of the idea of citizenship. The contributors demonstrate how the growing ambivalence of State sovereignty in the face of multinational capitalism and the absence of political accountability structures are complicit in the definitions of gendered citizenship. Against these, women’s communal mobilization and political activisms are considered in terms of their power effects and political potentialities.

Nira Yuval-Davis is Professor and Postgraduate Course Leader in Gender and Ethnic Studies at the University of Greenwich, London.

Pnina Werbner is Reader in Social Anthropology at Keele University and Research Administrator of the International Centre for Contemporary Cultural Research (ICCCR) at the Universities of Manchester and Keele.

For further enquiries, please contact:
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Cheers,
JAYA BHATTACHARJI