tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-51909755681859251532024-03-12T20:45:30.098-07:00Federico Mayor Zaragoza (ENG)Federico Mayor Zaragozahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04180667018896947119noreply@blogger.comBlogger418125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5190975568185925153.post-7151597219931701872024-01-12T04:21:00.000-08:002024-01-12T04:21:10.172-08:00The cry<p><span style="font-family: verdana;"> </span></p><p class="MsoPlainText" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">The situation is so serious on a global
scale, so complex, that it gives the impression that it is not possible to
redress the current bleak situations: war conflicts that remain unresolved in
the midst of extreme poverty; immigration in intolerable conditions, while we
are perplexed by the very costly preparation of trips to space and other
planets instead of for the better knowledge and care of the Earth. The
proposals of the 1960s (UNESCO, "Man and the Biosphere"; Club of
Rome, "The Limits to Growth") were, as was later the case with the
two Earth Summits (1992, Rio de Janeiro, and 2002, Johannesburg), completely
ignored. Economic interests have continued to prevail and it is particularly
regrettable that in the conclusions of the COP meetings on the environment,
general agreements are announced... but "non-binding". What a
disgrace!<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">On some infrequent occasions, attempts
have been made to substitute force for words: Wilson in 1919, creating the
League of Nations; Roosevelt, in 1945, establishing the United Nations and
promoting the Declaration of Human Rights; Obama, at the end of 2015, signing
with vision and courage the Paris Agreements on Climate Change and the
Resolution "to transform the world" of the 2030 Agenda....</span></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">But then, as has been the case for
centuries, the force of arms prevailed over mediation and ceasefire. "<i>Si
vis pacem para bellum</i>” has been the invariable response of the great
powers. The time has now come, given the situation we are facing, to replace <i>bellum</i>
with <i>verbum</i>, the weapons of war with words, with diplomacy.</span></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">It is essential to recall here President
Eisenhower's courageous speech when, on handing over the presidency of the
United States in January 1961 to John Fitzgerald Kennedy, he had the courage to
state that in the United States power is not in the hands of the president, but
in the hands of the "war industrial complex"!<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">It is therefore very important and urgent
to convey to the public the need to act without delay, given the potential
irreversibility of certain processes. The word "irreversible" should
be one of the main reasons for reflection in this respect.</span></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Added to all this is the intolerable risk
of the possession of nuclear warheads, which were reduced at the Reykjavik
meeting between Donald Reagan and Mikhail Gorbachev in October 1986 from 17,000
each to 6,000. When this number was reached, President Reagan cited
"global security reasons" for not pursuing, as was desirable, total
elimination. Clearly, the war-industrial complex remained, and so we continue.
Shortly afterwards, Reagan created the G6 (G7...) which still represents
plutocratic and supremacist global governance.</span></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Alongside such dangerous prospects, there
remained and remains today the immense capacity of the conscious citizenry to
bring about the transition to a new era through scientifically sound action.</span></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">It is imperative to act not only with a
strong will, but without further delay, to stop the genocide of some and the
infanticide of others, as well as terrorism. The time has come to regard
remembrance as a duty and silence as an act of unacceptable irresponsibility.</span></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">As if these challenges and problems were
not enough, it is now necessary to add the challenge posed by so-called
"artificial" intelligence, so that instead of favouring human
creativity so that the invention of a desirable future can prevail and take
root, dehumanisation is taking place.</span></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">It is clear that there is now an urgent
need for a citizenry that is fully aware of reality and of the possibilities of
intervention on a global scale, no longer spectators of what is happening, but
actors in the new destiny.</span></p>
<p align="center" class="MsoPlainText" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: center;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Now, at last, "We the peoples",<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">to make possible the urgent transition
from the present governance to democratic multilateralism, without veto.
Roosevelt's design of the United Nations, adopted in San Francisco in 1945, is
perfect... but it was immediately disabled by the veto of the five victors of
the Second World War. The European Union, which opened doors of hope for a
democratic system, was also collapsed by the absurd condition of
"unanimity".<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">The UN Charter stated in its first
sentence that "We the peoples" are to spare our descendants the
horror of war... It was a great challenge and a great hope. Now we have to
recognise that it could not be implemented because of the veto, as I have
already indicated, but also because "peoples" did not exist until a
few decades ago. Most human beings were born, lived and died within a few
square kilometres and could not express themselves. But in recent decades, we
have recognised our equal dignity and are now able to express ourselves freely.</span></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Today, and I insist on this because it is
very important, "the peoples" now exist and can participate. Now,
yes, the first article of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights is
beginning to become a reality. Now, yes, "We the peoples" can demand
a model of democratic governance on a global scale, with a new concept of
security (human security, led by the President of the World Academy of Arts and
Science, Garry Jacobs). Numerous institutions (Other News, Roberto Savio; World
Peace Forum, José Félix Benz; Impulsa Talentum, Brú Recolons;...) are already
joining together in a large global network to mobilise a conscious citizenry in
favour of a new era with enlightened horizons.</span></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">In addition to the aforementioned
governance actions, an immediate ceasefire must be put into effect in the
current open conflicts, putting an immediate end to the sacrifice of the
civilian population, especially children. The elimination of nuclear warheads
and the promotion of nuclear fusion as an energy source is another issue that
needs to be addressed resolutely. The regulation of large fortunes and of
migrants and refugees is another issue that must be addressed globally without
delay.</span></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">In the light of the very serious social
situation that characterises the world today, the many endless wars, the
climate emergency... it is essential to reach a <u>great global pact for the
proper redirection of current trends</u>.</span></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">It is necessary to <u>promote prevention</u>,
both of diseases and of very serious situations of social justice, and to
eliminate those anachronistic aspects that still exist today, such as the
application of the death penalty.</span></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">This is the 75th anniversary of the
Declaration of Human Rights. Its implementation is essential for the
implementation of the agreements that "We the peoples" must reach
without delay. The first article of the Universal Declaration ends by saying
that we must be <u>united in brotherhood</u>. Yes: only fraternity could lead,
at this time, to a solution on a global scale, to a new era. <u>A great global
network</u> of academic, scientific and artistic institutions could make itself
heard. And the force of reason would finally prevail over the reason of force.</span></p><p class="MsoPlainText" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;"><a href="https://www.other-news.info/the-cry/" target="_blank"><i>Published Other News</i></a></span></p>Federico Mayor Zaragozahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04180667018896947119noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5190975568185925153.post-12029124237170088812023-10-19T10:54:00.001-07:002023-10-19T10:54:04.623-07:00Pressing global problems, global responses without delay<p><span style="font-family: verdana;"> </span></p><p class="MsoPlainText" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;"><span lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Now, already urgent, as the Charter of the
United Nations begins, "We the peoples... have resolved to save succeeding
generations...".</span></span></p><p class="MsoPlainText" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">To this end, it is necessary to resolutely
and far-sightedly rethink the actions —a duty of memory— that could redirect
present trends and provide fully effective forms of governance on a global
scale in the Anthropocene. It is therefore imperative to remove the veto in the
United Nations (78 years without being able to implement the Charter) and in
the European Union (disabled by the unanimity requirement). Andrea Rizzi published
on Tuesday 10 October in <i>El País</i> a
very interesting and timely article entitled "An explosive front in a
world sinking into global disorder".</span></p><p class="MsoPlainText" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Only if democratic multilateralism allowed
the European Union to take decisions without the absurd requirement of
unanimity (the antithesis of democracy), could very rapid and scientifically
based global action be taken on the environment, citizenship education and
awareness, culture of peace and non-violence, care for the most needy, migrants
and refugees, drug traffickers... which would prevent the current decline.</span></p><p class="MsoPlainText" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Europe was the hope for safeguarding
democratic multilateralism, for strengthening capacities for global
understanding and action. It is clear that the historic and urgent moment for
action has arrived. Further delay could increase the risk of <u>irreversible</u>
processes. It would be the resounding failure of humanity, endowed with
distinctive faculties that allow it, properly used, to create, invent, solve,
in the fascinating context of the universe.</span></p><p class="MsoPlainText" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">In recent decades, the good news has been
that discrimination based on gender, ethnicity, belief, ideology... is
gradually disappearing and <u>equal dignity and the ability to express oneself
freely is being established </u>thanks to digital technology. Despite the
insurmountable limits of progressive irreversibility, there is still time.
Young people must be the main protagonists of the changes that must be
undertaken without delay.</span></p><p class="MsoPlainText" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">The immense ressources made available
today to the plutocratic and supremacist governance of the G7 must be
transferred to an efficient democratic multilateralism to transform the world
as a whole. The adoption of a Universal Declaration of Democracy can be the
turning point towards the new era. It is the conscious citizenry that must,
with solid knowledge of the cause, lead the transition from the governance of
merchants to that of equal human beings in dignity.</span></p><p class="MsoPlainText" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><span lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 150%;">Pope Francis himself, in his recent
apostolic exhortation on the climate crisis (4 October 2023) proposes
"Reconfiguring multilateralism. </span><span style="line-height: 150%;">Action must
be taken <u>with the commitment of all</u>".</span></span></p><p class="MsoPlainText" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Artificial intelligence must always be
guided by natural intelligence. Progressive dehumanisation would be nonsense.
Every human being able to rebel, to argue, to imagine new paths and bridges,
our hope. Neuromorphic chips must be used to the extent that they can favour
the expansion of knowledge, and not detract one iota from the distinctive
faculties of the human species.</span></p><p class="MsoPlainText" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Any reflection undermined by ideological
or sectarian impositions must be quickly countered by knowledge and wisdom. The
migration crisis, the climate emergency and the digital transformation are
essential points that must be addressed quickly and with knowledge for new
political and ethical guidelines. An example of real solutions to the climate
emergence is nuclear fusion, an inexhaustible source of energy without waste.</span></p><p class="MsoPlainText" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Now it is the voice of scientists,
intellectuals, philosophers, writers..., of the generations threatened by the
overflowing economic and military power that must be raised and heard.
President Eisenhower himself highlighted the supreme power of the
"war-industrial complex" in the United States. Now is the time for democracy, for the force
of reason, for mediation... to be established on a global scale in order to
move from plutocracy and supremacism to the new era.</span></p><p class="MsoPlainText" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Now a culture —i.e. everyday behavior— of
peace and the invention of new directions. It cannot be postponed: the very
habitability of the Earth is in danger.</span></p><p class="MsoPlainText" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">I insist, the various current armed
conflicts, the climate emergency, the digital transformation, social
inclusion... these are the major issues that must finally be tackled on a
global scale. And there is only one way forward: to finally make it possible
for "We, the peoples" to assume the responsibilities that have not
been exercised for so many years. <u>A large global coalition of universities
and institutions of art and science could be the mobilising voice for a
conscious citizenship</u>.</span></p><p class="MsoPlainText" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><u><span lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 150%;">Prevention</span></u><span lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 150%;"> must become the supreme objective of the
new governance. We are currently proposing a very concrete and urgent example
for national and international consideration: to prevent the development of
pathological alterations that cause serious and irreversible neurological
deterioration in newborns, so that, as a human right, the actions to be taken
are placed at the level of the State.</span></span></p><p class="MsoPlainText" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">We must all work together to ensure that
citizens are not impassive spectators of what is happening, but very active
participants in the actions that must be taken to address global problems that
in some cases have already reached —despite the many warnings of the scientific
community and the "Earth Summits", always ignored by the G7— the
limits of no return: "We the peoples", united in a global Network of
universities, artistic and scientific institutions, will act swiftly and wisely
to address, before it is too late, the present threats to humanity as a whole.
Territorial security must henceforth include <u>human security</u> (food,
drinking water, health, education and environment) and give priority, at all
levels, to the effective implementation, on its 75th anniversary, of the
Declaration of Human Rights.</span></p><p class="MsoPlainText" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Let everyone reflect
on the unacceptable irresponsibility we would be incurring if we do not react
firmly to redirect current trends. Let us not forget: the people now have a
voice. Let us try to ensure that they do
not have to resort to shouting.</span></p>Federico Mayor Zaragozahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04180667018896947119noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5190975568185925153.post-33488239574468087722023-04-18T04:19:00.001-07:002023-04-18T04:19:09.352-07:00Global emergency situation: urgent action is imperative<p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #1e1e1e;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">The global situation has reached an unprecedented and
pressing level of complexity, and the current trends that need to be urgently
addressed are greater in number and magnitude than in the past. With a world
population of 8 billion human beings, the solutions applied so far to provide
adequate food, efficient health services, quality education for all and, above
all, "humane treatment" for all, have progressively shown their wear
and tear and their inadequacy... The outlook is very bleak if we continue to think
that "no one can fix this" and we are spectators of what is happening
instead of actors fully involved in discovering and inventing solutions.</span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; margin-bottom: 12pt; text-align: justify;"><span lang="EN-US" style="color: #1e1e1e;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Yes: for the first time in history, the human species
is progressively recognised as equal in dignity, whatever its gender,
ethnicity, ideology, beliefs, sexual sensitivity, etc., and, moreover, it is
able to express itself freely thanks to digital technology. Citizens, aware of
global threats, particularly those that are potentially irreversible, can now
act in favour of effective multilateralism on a planetary scale, can now fulfil
their urgent intergenerational duties, can now ensure the preservation of the
habitability of the Earth, can now exchange force for words...<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; margin-bottom: 12pt; text-align: justify;"><span lang="EN-US" style="color: #1e1e1e;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">For all this it is necessary to know, to remember and
to act. Duty of memory... Crime of silence..., I have written it many times and
I repeat it now. To invent the future and overcome inertia, it is imperative
that "We, the peoples..." dare to know and know how to dare. If we
remain spectators, impassive, distracted, abducted by social networks and
"artificial" intelligence, we will not be able to "change course
and ship" as Professor José Luis Sampedro advocated.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; margin-bottom: 12pt; text-align: justify;"><span lang="EN-US" style="color: #1e1e1e;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Now we can. We must act now, thinking of the
generations to come. Otherwise, we would deserve that terrible sentence of
Albert Camus, which I often quote: "I despise them because they dared so
little when they could do so much". <o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; margin-bottom: 12pt; text-align: justify;"><span lang="EN-US" style="color: #1e1e1e;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Otto Schermer, in his recent splendid article
"Protecting the flame", showed that we now, at last, have well-established
guidelines and benchmarks, such as the 2030 Agenda and the SDGs to guide our
daily behaviour. "We need to know what is happening, to respond
creatively.... and to mobilise collectively", he writes. Know... and do!
Science, conscience and the full use of the distinctive faculties of the human
species...<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; margin-bottom: 12pt; text-align: justify;"><span lang="EN-US" style="color: #1e1e1e;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">As I have commented on other occasions, it is urgent
to change confrontation for mediation and dialogue. Moving from "para
bellum" to "para verbum" implies intergenerational alliances and
alliances with the media to make the democratisation of multilateralism
possible, starting with the United Nations System - adopting a Universal
Declaration of Democracy, with the elimination of the five disqualifying vetoes
since its very creation - and continuing with the European Union, incapable of
deciding since it fell - or was pushed - into the trap of
"unanimity". <o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; margin-bottom: 12pt; text-align: justify;"><span lang="EN-US" style="color: #1e1e1e;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Science and conscience for the benefit of the human
species, ensuring that political decisions will in the future have the
scientific basis that is essential to carry out the radical transformations
demanded by the current situation on a planetary scale. As José Manuel Morán,
Vice-President of the Spanish Chapter of the Club of Rome, underlined, "it
is not only a question of being very clear about what should be done, but also
about how".<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; margin-bottom: 12pt; text-align: justify;"><span lang="EN-US" style="color: #1e1e1e;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">I have already noted that one of the great challenges
that must be addressed without delay is that of migration on a global scale.
From 1 January this year to 9 March, 4 500 migrants have arrived on British
shores alone. All human beings are equal in dignity and deserve equal
treatment. It is a real disgrace, I never tire of repeating, that every day 4
billion dollars are spent on arms and military expenditure, while thousands of
people die of hunger, extreme poverty and brutal uprooting... thousands of
people die. The solution lies in a global pact on migration and the extension
of the UN Convention on the Rights of Refugees. We must once and for all put an
end to raised and armed hands and make open and outstretched ones proliferate.
Now, in addition to territorial security, there is also human security, the
security of the human beings who live in such well-protected territories. <o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; margin-bottom: 12pt; text-align: justify;"><span style="color: #1e1e1e;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">It is particularly
urgent to ensure that the Mare Nostrum ceases to be an unfortunate necropolis
for so many immigrants, instead of agreeing - as the United States, the United
Kingdom and Australia have recently done - to place several nuclear submarines
in the Pacific Ocean, each of which costs around 3.5 billion dollars...<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; margin-bottom: 12pt; text-align: justify;"><span lang="EN-US" style="color: #1e1e1e;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">It is necessary to take advantage of the extraordinary
development of digital technology, but to ensure that robotisation never
exceeds its limits and produces a very dangerous dehumanisation, especially
when it comes to making decisions that must always make maximum use of the
fantastic and hopeful faculties that distinguish the human species. It is a
matter of improving the quality of life and productive capacity, with a
conscious and responsible citizenship, and the fundamental pillar is, and
always will be, full freedom, transforming data into knowledge and knowledge
into wisdom. <o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; margin-bottom: 12pt; text-align: justify;"><span lang="EN-US" style="color: #1e1e1e;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Now, at last - and this is our hope - we can finally
put into practice the first sentence of the United Nations Charter: "We
the peoples ... have resolved to save succeeding generations from the horror of
war". Until recently, "the peoples" did not exist... and male
power was absolute. Now, at last, we recognise ourselves as equals and can
express ourselves freely. Now we can stop being spectators of what is happening
and participate now, without delay, in moving from a culture of confrontation,
imposition, domination and war, to a culture of encounter, dialogue, mediation
and peace, so that all conflicts, active or latent, are resolved by word and
not by force.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; margin-bottom: 12pt; text-align: justify;"><span lang="EN-US" style="color: #1e1e1e;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">There is an urgent need to replace plutocratic and
supremacist G-group governance with democratic governance. The first step is to
achieve a European Union without the blanket veto of "unanimity" and
a renewed and fully multilateral United Nations. On the 75th anniversary of the
Universal Declaration of Human Rights, we must activate great popular clamour
for its validity and widespread respect while resolutely implementing the
Climate Change Agreements and the 2030 Agenda. "The windows to ensure a
sustainable future are closing", the United Nations has just announced...
and "We, the peoples" continue to ignore the pressing appeals about
the very habitability of the Earth..., we continue to postpone our essential
duties concerning the future of our children and descendants... Social networks
and the media keep us obedient, silent, distracted... while "the windows
are closing"! <o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; margin-bottom: 12pt; text-align: justify;"><span lang="EN-US" style="color: #1e1e1e;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">The visible irruption of the university students could
initiate this process. "The silence of the intellectuals": this is
the title of the excellent article by Boaventura de Sousa Santos in Other News
on 28 February, which lucidly warns us about the attitude to adopt.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<h1 style="background: white; text-align: justify;"><span lang="EN-US" style="color: #1e1e1e; font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: small;">The
duty to remember. "Let us remember in order to continue to make a better
life possible", added Oscar Arias (Dec.2022)... "The lessons of our
history, with the experiences they have taught us, show us that peace is
achieved neither by weapons nor by war, neither by death nor by hatred, neither
by forgetting nor by indifference... Peace is achieved by placing the human
being at the centre of our concerns. Peace is achieved by defending life. Peace
is achieved by investing in our peoples and not in our armies; by exchanging
ideas and not bombs; by preserving forests and not prejudices. Peace is
achieved by changing the culture of war to a culture of peace in our societies.
<o:p></o:p></span></span></h1>
<h1 style="background: white; margin: 0cm; text-align: justify;"><span lang="EN-US" style="color: #1e1e1e; font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: small;">Now
we know. Now we can. </span></span><span style="color: #1e1e1e; font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: small;">Now we must!</span><span style="font-size: 13.5pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></h1>Federico Mayor Zaragozahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04180667018896947119noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5190975568185925153.post-80126679545357111662023-03-08T03:36:00.001-08:002023-03-08T03:36:10.303-08:00Europe can no longer remain a self-absorbed spectator<p> </p><p align="right" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: right;"><i><span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Now, "we the peoples”
can. Now, we must.<o:p></o:p></span></span></i></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Now, when, at last, we all
recognise each other's equal dignity, a fundamental pillar of human rights, and
can express ourselves freely thanks to digital technology, we can, at last,
actively participate in favour of democratic multilateralism; <o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: verdana;">we are now, at last, aware of
global threats on a world scale, some of them potentially irreversible, which
call for an urgent redirection of current trends; <o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: verdana;">now, at last, we could get
involved in global governance in order to change, as Professor José Luis
Sampedro said, "course and ship";<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: verdana;">now, at last, the awareness of
human talent and its capacity to invent the future allows us to react with hope
in order to shed light on the horizons that are so bleak today...<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Now also, as it was done in
1945 with the United Nations by the veto of the five victorious countries of
the Second World War... it is the European Union, the most important entity on
a global scale, which has been disqualified from decision-making by the
requirement of unanimity, which amounts to a veto of all the States that make
it up! What nonsense! The most qualitatively relevant organisation on Earth,
skilfully removed from global governance...</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: verdana;">when nuclear fusion appears on
the scientific horizon as the great solution for the unlimited production of
energy without pollutants;<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: verdana;">when the insane possession of
nuclear warheads that could end the sublime mystery of life appears with
particular forcefulness;<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: verdana;">when the habitability of the
Earth is deteriorating due to climate change, with plutocratic governance
having ignored all the proposals that have been made, some as important as
those of the "Earth Summits" (Rio de Janeiro 1992 and Johannesburg
2002), and the Resolution "to transform the world" (United Nations,
2015) on the 2030 Agenda...<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: verdana;">when 8 billion human beings
—each unique human being, capable of creating, our hope— should be the only
socio-economic point of reference...<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">We must mobilise, conscious of
our collective responsibility, and promote the takeover of the G7, G8... and
the immediate adoption of a Universal Declaration of Democracy... while
ruthlessly eliminating tax havens and regulating the consumption and
trafficking of illegal drugs...</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">For the first time in history,
we are in a position to invent the future of humanity's prodigy, with the
collaboration of the experience of the elders and the verve of the youngest, to
illuminate with special care the paths of tomorrow.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">This great mobilisation in
favour of a culture of peace could save "succeeding generations" —in
the words of the United Nations Charter— many mistakes, many horrors...</span></p>Federico Mayor Zaragozahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04180667018896947119noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5190975568185925153.post-21799272067662337992023-01-23T02:31:00.000-08:002023-01-23T02:31:20.060-08:00Looking ahead with hope<blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0 0 0 40px; padding: 0px;"><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0 0 0 40px; padding: 0px;"><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0 0 0 40px; padding: 0px;"><p style="text-align: left;"> <span> </span><span> </span><span> </span><span> </span><span> </span><span> </span><span> </span><span> </span><span> </span><span> </span><span> </span><span> </span><span> </span><span> </span><span> </span><span> </span><span> </span><span> </span><span> </span><span> </span><span> </span><span> </span><span> </span><span> </span><i style="text-align: right;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 150%;">Teacher, help me look ahead!”</span></i></p></blockquote></blockquote></blockquote>
<p align="right" class="MsoPlainText" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: right;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 150%;">Eduardo Galeano (a pupil who saw the sea for the first time).<o:p></o:p></span></i></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">We are living in times of
great confusion, which instead of clearing things, rather cast a shadow over
them; times of accelerated revision, dehumanization, confrontation and
violence... Times of artifice and oblivion, of fear and disregard for the huge
human capacity... The COVID-19 pandemic has been followed by great natural
catastrophes and ecological modifications, some of which have an irreversible
nature... And straightforward wars have been added to the “hidden” ones; the
social gap on a global scale has become even greater, and thousands of migrants
are constantly claiming, while moving and living in unacceptable human
conditions, that the global governance takes care of them, in full compliance
with the essential principle of equal dignity.</span></p><div style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="line-height: 150%;"><o:p> <br /></o:p></span><span lang="EN-GB" style="line-height: 150%;">The neoliberal plutocracy,
aided by multiple tax heavens, has replaced political guidelines by
merchandising; and justice, which was the cornerstone of coexistence and
supportive progress, has lost its essential independence in favour of
ideological links - "conservative" or "progressive" - which
are radically intolerable....<br /></span><span lang="EN-GB" style="line-height: 150%;"><o:p> <br /></o:p></span><span lang="EN-GB" style="line-height: 150%;">And as happened with the
veto of the five victors of the Second World War in the case of United Nations,
an organisation that was deprived since the beginning from the possibility to
take any decision, it is now the European Union, due to the absurd request of
unanimity — which is the antithesis of democracy— who may not play the
essential role it should be playing, thus leaving the world as a whole in the
hands of the reason of force of unsuitable “democracies” … The current “global
disorder” (</span><span lang="EN-GB"><a href="https://www.lavanguardia.com/internacional/vanguardia-dossier/revista/revista/20221213/8641320/desorden-mundial-vanguardia-dossier-86.html"><span style="color: windowtext; line-height: 150%;">title of the Dossier
from the Spanish journal La Vanguardia from January to March 2023</span></a></span><span lang="EN-GB" style="line-height: 150%;">) requires the
unpostponable construction, - that could not be imagined up to now, of a<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>new multilateral democratic system. The
adoption of a great Universal Declaration of Democracy could become the big
global reference enabling this crucial renewal of global governance.<br /><o:p></o:p></span><span lang="EN-GB" style="line-height: 150%;"><o:p> <br /></o:p></span><span lang="EN-GB" style="line-height: 150%;">José Enrique de Ayala has
recently dealt with great success with these issues (“La crisis geopolítica de
un mundo multipolar”) in </span><span lang="EN-GB"><a href="https://www.ccoo.es/b7faef77f05ac86ed2de9d2102776ad5000001.pdf"><span style="color: windowtext; line-height: 150%;">La Gaceta Sindical
from December 2022</span></a></span><span lang="EN-GB" style="line-height: 150%;">, where Francisco Aldecoa deals with the urgent need to go
further in the construction of a European federal project.<br /><o:p></o:p></span><span lang="EN-GB" style="line-height: 150%;"><o:p> <br /></o:p></span><span lang="EN-GB" style="line-height: 150%;">We human beings “are” not
in the world, but “are” rather the world, stresses Emilio Lledó in his
excellent chapter entitled “Education for democracy” </span><span lang="EN-GB"><a href="https://www.penguinlibros.com/es/filosofia/304805-libro-identidad-y-amistad-9788430624515"><span style="color: windowtext; line-height: 150%;">from his book <i>Identity
and friendship</i></span></a> </span><span lang="EN-GB" style="line-height: 150%;">(Taurus 2022): “The human look” -writes the author- “is
simultaneously a vision and an interpretation.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>A vision that may understand what it sees (...). The possibility to
understand has to feed itself continuously with freedom and light (…).The light
of words is what creates the universe of what is human”… I will repeat here two
concepts that are essential for a new beginning: the duty of memory and the
crime of silence. Yes: now “We, the peoples”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>can finally put into practice the third paragraph of the preamble of the
Universal Declaration of Human Rights, ”compelled to rebellion”. A general
mobilization for a democratic multilateralism that requires —as indicated by </span><span lang="EN-GB"><a href="https://www.other-news.info/from-crisis-to-new-beginning/"><span style="color: windowtext; line-height: 150%;">Roberto Savio and
Giuliano Rizzi (<i>OtherNews,</i> 13 October 2022</span></a></span><span lang="EN-GB" style="line-height: 150%;">)— “re-establishing a
compass to identify the new paths of change”. Pressing changes in order to put
into practice, at last, the first sentence of the Charter of the United
Nations: “We, the peoples are determined to save succeeding generations from
the scourge of war”.<br /><o:p></o:p></span><span lang="EN-GB" style="line-height: 150%;"><o:p> <br /></o:p></span><span lang="EN-GB" style="color: black; line-height: 150%;">Until a few decades ago, “We, the
peoples” did not exist. Under the absolute masculine power, 90% of the
citizenry was born, lived and died in a few square kilometres. They only knew
what happened in their immediate environment. And they were fearful, obedient,
silent, muted. Whereas now “the peoples” can at last take action, if we succeed
in making them abandon the inertia of being impassive spectators to become
diligent makers of the future we long for. Now, at last, with a conscious
citizenry, capable of reacting, knowing that hope lies in human creativity, the
boundless faculty of each of us to design his own future. Desperate migrants
will continue to pour in, at the risk of their own lives, as long as a few ones
continue to cling to a speculative economic system with huge military
investments, a productive relocation to the East - anything goes, regardless of
working conditions - and managerial and innovative relocation to the West,
which favours only 20% of humanity and widens social rifts. There is enough
place for everyone and we are all equal in dignity. The big challenge for the
future we dream with is to share more equally. And to do so we only need to
take a look at the world in general to be able to understand what we fear
comparatively. It is only when we “see” the world that we suddenly feel we are
brothers and sisters (as established, by the way, in Article 1 of the Universal
Declaration of Human Rights). The solution is development.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>With a big global sustainable development
plan, the right conditions for habitability and progress would be created,
allowing immigration to become a freely taken decision that would benefit
everyone.<br /></span><span lang="EN-GB" style="line-height: 150%;"><o:p> <br /></o:p></span><span lang="EN-GB" style="color: black; line-height: 150%;">“Democratic” Europe, Europe of the
human rights -described in year 2000 in one of its most precise and precious
“Charters”-, while “developed” and prosperous Europe... is looking elsewhere.
Europe of the markets has forgotten “democratic principles” which were so
lucidly written in the UNESCO Constitution at the end of the Second World War. <br /></span><span lang="EN-GB" style="line-height: 150%;"><o:p> <br /></o:p></span><span lang="EN-GB" style="line-height: 150%;">The most
relevant lesson of the global crisis produced by the coronavirus is that
knowledge is the essential pillar of the new era. In just a few years deep
changes of a very different nature have occurred that should now allow us -if
we remain tied to memories and do not accept, once again, that a few ones
distract and intimidate the many ones- to reach the following great objectives:
the equal dignity of all human beings whatever their gender, ethnicity,
ideology, beliefs, etc.; the participation of the citizenry at a national (real
democracy) and international scale (democratic multilateralism) to fully
exercise a governance excluding the plutocratic artifices (G7, G8, G20) of
neoliberalism and ensuring a fine intergenerational legacy; the popular mobilization
in presence and in the cyberspace because, for the first time in history,
everybody has the capacity to express and communicate themselves thanks to
digital technology; set up without delay a new concept of security to deal not
only with territorial conflicts but also with natural or provoked catastrophes;
a new concept of work, that will liberate humanity of many tasks that do not
require the use of its distinctive faculties, always with the machine at its
service and never the other way round; education during the whole life - not to
be confused with training - developing personal autonomy, reflexive and
creative faculties...; The implementation of the 2030 Agenda (Sustainable
Development Goals) cannot be postponed, taking into account the indisputable
priority of potentially irreversible processes...<br /></span><span lang="EN-GB" style="line-height: 150%;"><o:p> <br /></o:p></span><span lang="EN-GB" style="line-height: 150%;">In an article about artificial intelligence (“El País”, Ideas,
8.3.20 20), José María Lasalle wrote the following: “We are about to penetrate
in a scenario where the negative externalities that AI may unleash - if not
developed within an appropriate regulatory framework - can lead to dystopia,
exclusion and inequality... The European Commission approved on 19 February
2020 a White Paper on AI that outlines an ethically based AI... which must be
human-centred. The aim of this proposal is to try to improve democracy and the
market without giving up the responsible autonomy of citizens and
consumers..."<br /></span><span lang="EN-GB" style="line-height: 150%;"><o:p> <br /></o:p></span><span lang="EN-GB" style="color: black; line-height: 150%;">Environmental regulation and the
implementation of the objectives of peace <u>with</u> the Earth and <u>on</u>
Earth can already be glimpsed. It is now possible for “the peoples” to
accomplish the mission that was entrusted to them by the United Nations on
1945. It is in the creative capacity that our collective hope lies because, for
the first time in history, human beings, equal in dignity, may freely express
themselves thanks to digital technology. This is why it is so urgent that as
many people as possible become aware that the future is finally in their
hands...<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And that they must overcome the
temptation to "let themselves go", to be abducted by irrelevance and
irresponsibility. The first article of UNESCO Constitution defines the
“educated” as those who “are free and responsible”. The moment has come for
liberty, the supreme gift and responsibility, starting by always taking into
account the next generations.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> <br /> </span></span><span lang="EN-GB" style="line-height: 150%;"><o:p> <br /></o:p></span><span lang="EN-GB" style="line-height: 150%;">A new beginning is
imperative in which, aware of the big challenges we have ahead, but also of the
reasons for hope, we can raise big popular clamours that shall eliminate the
plutocratic governance and contribute to a diligent democratic multilateralism.<br /></span><span lang="EN-GB" style="line-height: 150%;"><o:p> <br /></o:p></span><span lang="EN-GB" style="line-height: 150%;">Educated within liberty
and responsibility, the future must be cleared out by virtue of the distinctive
faculties of the human species: reflecting, imagining, anticipating,
innovating, creating!, excluding forever force and money from the government
institutions.<br /></span><span lang="EN-GB" style="line-height: 150%;"><o:p> <br /></o:p></span><span lang="EN-GB" style="line-height: 150%;">With the leadership of
intellectual, scientific and cultural communities, represented by people who
have reached a great notoriety, and by those who have a great knowledge and public
recognition (I am thinking of Leo Messi and Joan Manuel Serrat...) we would be
able to gather many followers, especially young people who will allow the
transition from force to a culture of peace and non violence, from irrelevant
and easily manageable multitudes to people who “direct their own lives”,
according to the wise definition of Francisco Giner de los Ríos in reference to
the objective of the educational process: to educate sowers of solidarity,
capable of sharing, of living together, of going out of their way for others.<br /></span><span lang="EN-GB" style="line-height: 150%;">We must remember today in
the first place the war in Ukraine but also other wars (such as mentioned by
Andrea Rizzi, José Naranjo and Antonio Pita in <i>El País</i> of 21/12/2022 in
their article </span><span lang="EN-GB"><a href="https://elpais.com/internacional/2022-12-24/la-guerra-de-ucrania-es-terrible-estas-otras-tambien.html"><span style="color: windowtext; line-height: 150%;">“The war in Ukraine
is terrible.</span></a><a href="https://elpais.com/internacional/2022-12-24/la-guerra-de-ucrania-es-terrible-estas-otras-tambien.html"><span style="color: windowtext; line-height: 150%;"> Also these other
wars”)</span></a> </span><span lang="EN-GB" style="line-height: 150%;">where most of the information is modulated by big oligopolies, in order
to put into practice the great mission “We, the peoples”, a formula that was
premature in 1945 but has now become possible. And this is a big hope, which
has recently become sounder with other good news: first of all, the energy of
nuclear fusion which - contrary to what is happening with nuclear fission -
leaves no radioactive residues and is an inexhaustible source of energy.
Although the ITER project was languishing since many years, now finally the US
Department of Energy (National Ignition Facility) has succeeded, with laser
energy of 3 million degrees Celsius, in transforming hydrogen into helium plus
neutrons.<br /><o:p></o:p></span><span lang="EN-GB" style="line-height: 150%;"><o:p> <br /></o:p></span><span lang="EN-GB" style="line-height: 150%;">Now it is possible to
comply with the ecological requirements of 8 billion people who may - thanks to
democratic multilateralism without vetoes - successfully steer the common
destiny.<br /></span><span lang="EN-GB" style="line-height: 150%;"><o:p> <br /></o:p></span><span lang="EN-GB" style="line-height: 150%;">At last “the peoples”, the genuine democracy, at the helm of the
ship Earth!... to keep away the plutocratic groups from the global governance
and be able to face unacceptable ravings, such as that of the tycoon Elon Musk,
who has announced that "in six months he will put a chip in the human
brain". “We, the peoples” shall not consent to <u>dehumanization</u>, the loss
of freedom and creativity, which are the two big pillars of the human species. </span><span lang="EN-GB" style="line-height: 150%;">Critical moments are
approaching... but also great opportunities for change that cannot be
postponed... for <u>a new beginning</u>.</span></span></div>
Federico Mayor Zaragozahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04180667018896947119noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5190975568185925153.post-74311383904508415582022-09-07T06:29:00.000-07:002022-09-07T06:29:01.617-07:00Mikhail S. Gorbachev / Imagination, the Unexpected (1931 - 2022)<p><span style="font-family: verdana;"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-align: justify;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">"Politicians alone cannot address all the challenges of today's
world. Politics must interact with civil society and the intellectual
community. Consequently, dialogue is absolutely indispensable, a high-spectrum
dialogue to help us develop bold and feasible approaches to be able to solve
the challenges of our globalised world. The world needs a vision oriented with
the will and perseverance to turn it into reality. We need to cultivate a new
culture and foster new approaches, because the world needs a culture of peace”.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-align: justify;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">With these words Mikhail Gorbachev opened the third meeting of the World
Political Forum, held in Bosco Marengo, Italy, on 8 July 2002. At that time,
the former President of the Soviet Union had already become one of the most
important figures in history. Once again, as I listened to him, I thought of
the mistake Western leaders were making in disregarding the words of someone
who had set an example, with extraordinary imagination and skill, of resolving
one of the most important challenges of the contemporary world without the use
of weapons, without a single drop of blood. Obsessed with their accounts and
dividends, they followed the guidelines of their specialisation: to look the
other way. This failure to look in the right direction has led humanity to the
current systemic crisis.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-align: justify;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">On 15 December 1984 Gorbachev arrived in London at the head of a
delegation from the Supreme Soviet. It was the first visit by a Soviet
delegation to Britain for some 15 years. His speech to the House of Commons was
<i>extraordinarily bold</i>: the nuclear age demanded <i>new "political
thinking"</i>; the danger of war was a reality; the cold war constituted
an abnormal state of relations conducive to the danger of warlike
confrontation; in a nuclear war there could be no victors; no state can build
its own security by threatening that of others; in the limitation and
elimination of armaments, and in particular of nuclear weapons, the Soviet Union
was prepared to go as far as its Western interlocutors wished... In his speech,
one phrase was particularly widely used<i>: "Whatever else may separate
us, we live on the same planet. Europe is our common home; a home, not a
battlefield"</i>. It is clear that Mikhail Gorbachev was already speaking
a different language.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-align: justify;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">On that occasion he displayed a large map on which all the major nuclear
arsenals were marked. "Each one of these small squares is enough to wipe
out all life on earth... Thus, <i>with the accumulated stockpile of nuclear
weapons, we could annihilate our civilisation a thousand times over.</i><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>His address to the British Parliament on 18
December had a major impact in both the UK and the US.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-align: justify;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">In October 1986 the Issyk-Kul Forum met. Mikhail Gorbachev himself
described it as follows: "In October 1986 an event had taken place which
was to be of considerable importance in the years of <i>perestroika</i>. I am
referring to the meeting at the ISSYK-KUL lake, which brought together leading
artists from all over the world, including Arthur Miller, Alexander King, Alvin
Toffler, Peter Ustinov, Zulfu Livanelly, Federico Mayor and Afework Teklé...
Its initiator was the writer Chinguiz Aitmatov. <i>They spoke of nuclear
dangers, ecological catastrophes, and the progressive lack of dignity,
including in politics.</i> My meeting with the participants of that Forum took
place on 20 October, a week after Reykjavik...".<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-align: justify;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">It was after the meeting by the Issyk-Kul lake that that distinguished
group of intellectuals and creators <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>—to
which must be added James Baldwin, Augusto Forti, Rustem Khairov, Yaser Kemal,
Lisandro Otero and Claude Simon— had an extraordinarily interesting meeting
with the Secretary General. I was entrusted with the chairmanship and it was a
memorable occasion for me to hear the vision and approaches of people who spoke
not only of freedom but also of responsibility, and of how we could best advise
the General Secretary of the Soviet Union so that he could bring about the
necessary transformations. How could we help to implement <i>perestroika</i>?<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-align: justify;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">In order to give a better understanding of the context in which the
first Issyk-Kul Forum meeting took place, I would like to highlight President
Gorbachev's statements at a press conference he gave on 14 October 1986
following the Reykjavik Summit. Gorbachev underlined all the proposals made to
President Reagan on the reduction and elimination of nuclear armaments, with
extensive verification facilities; total elimination by the Americans and the
Soviets of "medium-range" missiles; the situation in Asia and the
difficulty of establishing forecasts... Gorbachev openly described that, at one
point, a "real battle" of the two approaches to world politics —including
the termination of the arms race and nuclear warheads— had begun... "<i>I
realised," Mikhail Gorbachev said, "that the American President is in
thrall to the US military-industrial complex</i>”<i>.</i><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This statement is particularly relevant and
had already been made by President Eisenhower at the end of his term in
office.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>"I believe that the
President of the United States and I must come to an agreement on my next visit
to Washington.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Otherwise, a great
historic opportunity would have been lost".<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-align: justify;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">In October 1989 Mikhail Gorbachev was awarded the Nobel Peace
Prize.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He was unable to attend the
ceremony in Oslo because he had urgent duties to attend to.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>For this reason, he delivered the <i>"Nobel
Lecture"</i> in Oslo on 5 June 1991 in which he spoke extensively and profoundly
about the need for peace to prevail over all other conditions.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He expressed his confidence that solidarity
and change had been accepted by the "whole world to meet global
challenges".<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-align: justify;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">How formidable! Who would have thought that a politician from the Soviet
Union would, with great imagination and skill, be able to end the "Cold
War" without a single victim, peacefully... when President Reagan was
talking about the "Star Wars"...?<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-align: justify;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Mikhail Gorbachev, very concerned about preserving the quality of human
life, created in Geneva, a <i>"Green Cross International" </i>which
has as its objectives the global challenges of security, eradication of poverty
and environmental degradation. Alongside the Green Cross, President Gorbachev
founded "The World Political Forum", accompanied by Andrei Grachev,
in this case, as well as Alexander Likhotal in the case of the "Green
Cross".<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-align: justify;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">I would like to mention the emotion I felt at the event held in the
great Albert Hall in London<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>—filled to
overflowing— on Gorbachev's 80th birthday in 2011. "The man who changed
the world", stood in the centre of a great arch in the huge Hall. The man
who redirected so many erroneous trends unfortunately found himself confronted
by impassive, short-sighted and irresponsible leaders and men, incapable of
benefiting from such unexpected historical inflections. And, amidst the
cheering, I thought of what I had written in 1991: "The Berlin Wall
crumbled because a system based on equality had forgotten about freedom. Now,
the alternative system will also crumble because, based on freedom, it has
forgotten about equality. And both of justice”.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-align: justify;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">On the first day of October 2016, Moscow joined the <u>"Disarmament
for Development" campaign </u>sponsored by the International Peace Bureau
in Geneva, led by Ingeborg Breines and Colin Archer, to achieve 10% of the
colossal daily investments in arms and military expenditure. In Berlin, the
symbolic city, we paraded in large numbers "unter den Linden". We
counted on the support of Gorbachev and that of Pope Francis. But, as it is now
the norm, in the media, "his master's voice" did not give it the
slightest importance. But there have been and will be many more who will be
inspired by Gorbachev's fabulous record. His imaginative and unexpected
proposals have been and will continue to be very relevant guidance in my daily
behaviour.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-align: justify;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Gorbachev is a giant, shining star to guide the courses of tomorrow. His
legacy will remain, as glimmers of hope for a future that is yet-to-be-made. </span><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p>Federico Mayor Zaragozahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04180667018896947119noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5190975568185925153.post-75038348702913634852022-09-07T06:27:00.005-07:002022-09-07T06:31:26.017-07:00Faced with global threats, “We the peoples”<p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><span style="text-align: justify;">Faced with global threats that are today looming over
mankind -some of them of an irreversible nature- and looking into the eyes of
our descendants and the forthcoming generations, it is inevitably up to “Us,
the Peoples” to fulfil our essential duties, now that we are aware of the
seriousness of the situation and we know, at last, that we are equal in dignity
and able to express ourselves freely. Joining our voices in a big popular
clamour we shall firmly promote:</span></span><span style="font-family: verdana; text-align: justify;"> </span></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText" style="margin-left: 36pt; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-align: justify; text-indent: -18pt;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: verdana;"><span lang="EN-GB"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">-<span style="font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span></span></span><span lang="EN-GB">The
immediate cease of fire in Ukraine and other ongoing conflicts, with the
corresponding peace processes being started immediately after, <o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText" style="margin-left: 36pt; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-align: justify; text-indent: -18pt;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: verdana;"><span lang="EN-GB"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">-<span style="font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal;"> T</span></span></span><span lang="EN-GB">he
immediate change of the supremacist plutocratic governance (G6, G7, G8, G20...)
-that has led the world as a whole to an extremely risky situation
(environmentally, nuclearly, socially...)- by a democratic, multilateral
governance, with a reformed and broadly extended United Nations willing to
adopt, in a first extraordinary meeting a </span><span lang="EN-GB"><a href="https://declarationdemocracy.wordpress.com/declaration-democracy-2/">Universal Declaration of Democracy</a></span><span lang="EN-GB">, aimed at redirecting the gloomy trends we
are facing now and making possible the transition from a culture of imposition,
domination and war to a culture of encounter, dialogue, conciliation, alliance
and peace, <o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText" style="margin-left: 36pt; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-align: justify; text-indent: -18pt;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: verdana;"><span lang="EN-GB"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">-<span style="font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span></span></span><span lang="EN-GB">The
total elimination of nuclear warheads, because it is<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>unbearable from all points of views that the
Sword of Damocles of total extermination should cast a shadow over the destiny
of human species,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText" style="margin-left: 36pt; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-align: justify; text-indent: -18pt;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: verdana;"><span lang="EN-GB"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">-<span style="font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span></span></span><span lang="EN-GB">the
immediate review of justice institutions, in order to put an end to the ruling
of<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“conservative” or “progressive”
judges, which are bad judges whose sentences are dictated by virtue of their
own ideology instead of administering impartially the law such as is required
by the quality of a “fair” justice.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText" style="margin-left: 36pt; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-align: justify; text-indent: -18pt;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: verdana;"><span lang="EN-GB"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">-<span style="font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span></span></span><span lang="EN-GB">eradicate
without contemplation the “tax havens”, which are a big obstacle to reducing
the social gap that is constantly growing ,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText" style="margin-left: 36pt; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-align: justify; text-indent: -18pt;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: verdana;"><span lang="EN-GB"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">-<span style="font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span></span></span><span lang="EN-GB">the
current Security Council,<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>deprived of
its veto capability, would be reinforced both by an Environmental Security and
Economic Security Council,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText" style="margin-left: 36pt; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-align: justify; text-indent: -18pt;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: verdana;"><span lang="EN-GB"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">-<span style="font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span></span></span><span lang="EN-GB">also
on the scale of other local, regional and worldwide institutions, the obstacles
that have always for the same reasons of absolute power hindered the democratic
function would be removed: the most clear and urgent example is represented by
the European Union, which cannot continue to accept that specially relevant
decisions are adopted unanimously, which is the antithesis of democracy,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText" style="margin-left: 36pt; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-align: justify; text-indent: -18pt;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: verdana;"><span lang="EN-GB"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">-<span style="font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span></span></span><span lang="EN-GB">The
new concept of security<a href="file:///C:/Users/Admin/AppData/Local/Microsoft/Windows/INetCache/Content.Outlook/2VHOCJC5/Ahora%20s%C3%AD%20por%20fin%20TRAD%20ES-EN.docx#_ftn1" name="_ftnref1" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn1;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="mso-special-character: footnote;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span lang="EN-GB" style="line-height: 107%;">[1]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a>
shall take very much into account the quality of the environment and the
adequate conservation of the sea, the earth and the air. The unacceptable
recycling of waste, with accumulations and dumps designed to satisfy
disproportionate economic ambitions instead of preserving the quality of the
earth and its aquifers as well as the sea bed -lets never forget that the water
of the sea occupies 2/3 of the earth’s skin- that slowly fills itself with
toxic substances thus reducing the carbon dioxide recapture capacity of the
phytoplankton,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText" style="margin-left: 36pt; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-align: justify; text-indent: -18pt;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: verdana;"><span lang="EN-GB"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">-<span style="font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span></span></span><span lang="EN-GB">Having
also into account that summer fires may be prevented with the adequate action
during winter (firewalls, space limitations...) , and with the availability of
devices and technical media of all type that allow a swift and adequate action<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>when a fire occurs. Yes: the world
citizenship is claiming for less bombs and more firemen, less war planes and
more media to look after the Earth, less soldiers in the garrisons and more
military emergency units... and more health workers...</span></span></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Everything mentioned above has been a part of multiple
projects whose aim was to move from the reason of force to the force of reason.
But it couldn’t be put it into practice -I must insist on this- because the
“peoples”did not exist: 90% of mankind was born, lived and died in a few square
kilometres and a radical discrimination was made based on gender, sexual
sensibility, beliefs, ideology, ethnicity... In only a few years, the
progressive equality in dignity has opened new scale future perspectives and
-what is important for human beings -now fully equal!- may be freely said. Now
it has become possible to participate and, “We, the peoples”can and must raise
our voices to face those menaces that could otherwise reach points of no return. Now we can finally
leave war (<i>“bellum”</i>) and chose word <i>(“verbum”</i>). Now we can fulfil our
unavoidable intergenerational responsibilities.</span></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">My mother -I have never forgotten it- always told me:
“Never accept what you find unacceptable”.
Well: it is unacceptable that due to the veto of the five victor
countries and due to unanimity, respectively, the United Nations and the
European Union cannot fulfil the important role they should be playing in order
to open a new era in which the culture of peace and non violence could finally
supersede confrontation and force, in which democratic multilateralism would
allow the agreements that are not possible in the context of a supremacist
plutocracy.</span></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Today, the citizenship who has become aware, equal in
dignity and capable of expressing herself
freely, could allow humanity -“the eyes of the universe”- to start a new period
of grandeur making use of the unlimited distinctive creative capacities of the
human species. Today, the time has come: “We the peoples” can invent the
future. We cannot remain silent any longer. Let us raise our voice so that hope
and joy of living are again possible.</span></p>
<div style="mso-element: footnote-list;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><br clear="all" />
<hr align="left" size="1" width="33%" />
<!--[endif]-->
<div id="ftn1" style="mso-element: footnote;">
<p class="MsoFootnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Admin/AppData/Local/Microsoft/Windows/INetCache/Content.Outlook/2VHOCJC5/Ahora%20s%C3%AD%20por%20fin%20TRAD%20ES-EN.docx#_ftnref1" name="_ftn1" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn1;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span lang="EN-GB"><span style="mso-special-character: footnote;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" lang="EN-GB" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[1]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></span></a><span style="mso-ansi-language: ES;"> Mayor Zaragoza, Federico (2021): <i>Inventar el
futuro</i>, Córdoba, Ánfora Nova. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
</div>
</div>Federico Mayor Zaragozahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04180667018896947119noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5190975568185925153.post-16921399689368612862022-09-07T06:23:00.006-07:002022-09-07T06:23:48.103-07:00Compelled to rebellion<p><span style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">The moment has come for the citizenship, who has
progressively become aware of the threats that are looming over mankind, to
react, to take action against a global plutocratic governance (G6, G7, G8, G20)
that has led the world as a whole to a situation of progressive deterioration
of the habitability of the planet -with a few irreversible processes for the
first time in history- and an irreducible social gap and military and weapon
expenses of more than 4,000 million dollars, while thousand million people are
still dying from hunger and extreme poverty...</span></span></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Different institutions and responsible persons have
been alerting since many years ago how urgent it is every day to cope, with all
our knowledge and available media, with the terrible ecological and
socio-political threats. I never get tired of repeating it: since the 70s of
last century, the UNESCO and Club of Rome already alerted how urgent it was to
look for new paradigms of economic growth and development. There was no
reaction.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><span lang="EN-GB">In 1992, in Rio de Janeiro, in a big </span><span lang="EN-GB"><a href="https://www.un.org/en/conferences/environment/rio1992">“Summit of the Earth”</a></span><span lang="EN-GB"> an excellent document was drafted —</span><span lang="EN-GB"><a href="https://www.un.org/english/esa/sustdev/agenda21/index.htm">the 2021 Agenda </a></span><span lang="EN-GB">— in order to redirect these sombre trends… Nothing
happened. The G7, led by George Bush senior, disregarded the document as has
been the usual behaviour of US Republican Party when confronted with
multilateralism, with the anxious appeals.</span></span></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><span lang="EN-GB">We don’t give up our change projects. On the contrary,
spurred by the scientific community, </span><span lang="EN-GB"><a href="https://www.un.org/en/conferences/environment/johannesburg2002">alI Summits of the Earth was prepared in Johannesburg,
in 2002</a></span><span lang="EN-GB">, followed
by a </span><span lang="EN-GB"><a href="https://documents-dds-ny.un.org/doc/UNDOC/GEN/N99/774/46/PDF/N9977446.pdf?OpenElement">Declaration and Action Program on a Peace Culture
(1999)</a></span><span lang="EN-GB"> and </span><span lang="EN-GB"><span class="MsoHyperlink">the Charter of the Earth </span></span><span lang="EN-GB"> (2000). </span><span lang="EN-GB"><a href="https://www.un.org/development/desa/es/millennium-development-goals.htm%20of%20the%20five%20victorsl">The Milenium Development Objetives </a> were approved with very high expectations</span><span lang="EN-GB">… Nothing happened. On this occasion it was
President Bush Junior who not only rejected the proposals of joint action...
but who decided one year later to invade Irak, based on trickery and false
information.</span></span></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><span lang="EN-GB">And what did Europe do? She remained silent. And what
did the remaining 192 countries do? They remained silent. With the veto of the
five victors of the Second World War, the United Nations could not apply
Roosevelt’s splendid design. </span><span lang="EN-GB">We had to wait for Barack
Obama to arrive to the White House -I insist on this occasion because it was a
cause of great hope- and to sign on the shiny autumn of 2015</span><span lang="EN-GB">, </span><span lang="EN-GB"><a href="https://unfccc.int/es/process-and-meetings/the-paris-agreement/el-acuerdo-de-paris#:~:text=Fue%20adoptado%20por%20196%20Partes,comparaci%C3%B3n%20con%20los%20niveles%20preindustriales.">the Paris Agreements on Climate Change</a></span><span lang="EN-GB"> and, two months later, the </span><span lang="EN-GB"><a href="https://www.un.org/sustainabledevelopment/es/2015/09/la-asamblea-general-adopta-la-agenda-2030-para-el-desarrollo-sostenible/">Resolution of United Nations General Assembly on the
2030 Agenda and the SDO</a></span><span lang="EN-GB"> “to transform the world” It was a short period because only a few
months later, the uncanny Republican President Donald Trump said with arrogance
the same day he was nominated that he would not respect the Agreements on
Climate Change nor the 2030 Agenda.</span></span></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">At that time I thought there would be an immediate
reaction from the European Union, who cannot have a quantitative influence but
can have a qualitative one over the events at a global scale. But there was
silence... Why? Because requesting unanimity to approve important decisions is equal
to the veto. Unanimity is the antithesis of democracy. With the abominable and
intolerable invasion of Ukraine by Putin it has become clear that the
prominence in the dialogue with Russia does not correspond to the European
Union but rather to the NATO, a military organization whose aim is to put into
practice the North Atlantic Treaty.</span></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">In the USA, President Biden tries to set some order in
the social, military, economic and legal situation which is becoming more
confusing every day due to the interference of
the “conservative” Supreme Court -we should have never accepted the
difference made between “conservative” and “progressive” judges, which is a
total incoherence from all points of views- and an accommodating follower of
the ex-president Trump, that not only concerns the federal level, what a
nonsense!, but rather the worldwide sphere as was the case of the recent
decision on climate change.</span></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Pandemics, war, economic crisis, habitability on the
Earth put in jeopardy... And we, “the peoples” -who only recently acknowledged
the equal dignity and can, at last!, express ourselves and participate to put
into practice the democratic multilateralism-remain distracted. I like to quote
Soledad Gallego’s wise saying when she refers to the “massive distraction” that
is brought about by the media and digital power interfering with our lives...</span></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><span lang="EN-GB">It is precisely now that it would be more dangerous to
still confuse education with training. Education is “directing our own life”
according to the excellent definition of Francisco Giner de los Ríos, to be
“free and responsible” according to article 1 of the </span><span lang="EN-GB"><a href="http://portal.unesco.org/es/ev.php-URL_ID=15244&URL_DO=DO_TOPIC&URL_SECTION=201.html">Constitutive Charter of the UNESCO</a></span><span lang="EN-GB">. We must, without further delay, listen to
the voices that are asking for a citizen mobilization, who believe that the
democratic multilateralism can count, now at last, with us, the peoples, as
quoted at the beginning of the </span><span lang="EN-GB"><a href="https://www.un.org/es/about-us/un-charter/full-text">Charter of United Nations</a></span><span lang="EN-GB">: “We the peoples,... are determined to
save future generations from the scourge of war".</span></span></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><span lang="EN-GB">Now, yes, “the peoples” can finally express themselves
freely. Now yes, equal in dignity, they may ask the cooperation of the citizens
who are conscious of the effective fulfilment of their intergenerational
duties: now yes, they can feel “compelled to the supreme recourse to
rebellion”, as established in the third paragraph of the Preamble of </span><span lang="EN-GB"><a href="https://www.un.org/es/about-us/universal-declaration-of-human-rights">the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.</a></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Now hope is possible again. Only thus can we imagine
-with great popular clamours- the swift transition from a culture of
imposition, dominion and war to a culture of encounter, dialogue, mediation,
conciliation and peace, from a plutocratic supremacism (military, financial,
energetic, digital, media dominion) to the quick adoption, within the duly
reformed United Nations, of a Universal Declaration of Democracy,</span></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Compelled to rebellion! We must be many to start this
essential transformation from force to word, from <i>bellum</i> to <i>verbum</i>, from a
culture of confrontation to a culture of understanding.</span></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Against the globalization of indifference and
ignorance, let’s bet for democratic multilateralism.</span></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Compelled to rebellion!</span></p>Federico Mayor Zaragozahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04180667018896947119noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5190975568185925153.post-85836411855361280812022-05-19T09:14:00.003-07:002022-05-19T09:14:17.463-07:00Henning Zierock<p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Dear
Heike Haensel,</span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhbKMHQzMGSXj-FeqAn3a5weo2aSz0Y2e_pUHQXYXN37_f0ApYrtt4aYB3hKsqkIePoKuHCLVRKSkEgtrbJGmUqXfdb-mQEBC8cTelyrHzWTY7G5aW7ioiRhR28PqNqRaajBGxzBUFGOw1tm-QNSx7kcZg64MSN71gDE53e1GlK5S8MHCjQFQtQyJ_vKg/s900/HenningMikro.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="602" data-original-width="900" height="214" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhbKMHQzMGSXj-FeqAn3a5weo2aSz0Y2e_pUHQXYXN37_f0ApYrtt4aYB3hKsqkIePoKuHCLVRKSkEgtrbJGmUqXfdb-mQEBC8cTelyrHzWTY7G5aW7ioiRhR28PqNqRaajBGxzBUFGOw1tm-QNSx7kcZg64MSN71gDE53e1GlK5S8MHCjQFQtQyJ_vKg/s320/HenningMikro.png" width="320" /></a></span></div><p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Dear
members of the Gesellschaft Kultur des Friedens<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Dear
family,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Dear
friends and colleagues of </span></span><span style="font-family: verdana;">Henning </span><span style="font-family: verdana;">Zierock,</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; text-indent: 14.2pt;">Henning was a champion of the culture
of peace and non-violence. Henning was in Tubingen the founder of the concept
of a culture of peace. Henning was the voice with Mikis- of all those who
firmly believe that the solution is the transition from the reason of the force
to the force of the reason, the transition from bombs to words.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; text-indent: 14.2pt;">Henning has now become invisible but
he will be always present in our lives. He will inspire action and not be a
spectators but actors to put rapidly into action a quality, solidarity, love.
Yes: Henning, as happens with the stars, has left us physically but his light
will permanently illuminate the parts of the new era.</span><span style="font-family: verdana; text-indent: 14.2pt;"> </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Please,
keep in contact.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">With
highest esteem,</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Federico Mayor</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><u><span lang="ES-TRAD" style="color: #002060; mso-ansi-language: ES-TRAD;">_______________________<o:p></o:p></span></u></b></p>Federico Mayor Zaragozahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04180667018896947119noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5190975568185925153.post-69799501288753228552022-05-05T04:50:00.003-07:002022-05-05T04:50:50.453-07:00United for the sake of peace and democratic multilateralism, to avoid a new international chaos<p style="text-align: justify;"><span><span style="font-family: verdana;">Let’s take urgent action, now that we may express
ourselves freely through great popular clamours, and let’s request:</span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="line-height: 150%;">- an immediate ceasefire in Ukraine and the outset of
a sound and open peace process,</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="line-height: 150%; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">- the urgent elimination of unanimity as a voting rule
in the European Union, so that the EU may fully assume the role as interlocutor
which it is supposed to play and that the NATO has now taken over, <o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">- the implementation of Roosevelt’s excellent design
of the United Nations: “We the peoples,... are determined to save future
generations from the scourge of war” <o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">- through the eradication of the veto and the
replacement of the current supremacist plutocratic governance (G6,G7,G8,G20),
thus avoiding a new world chaos <o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">- based on military power, on the reason of power
instead of the power of reason <o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="line-height: 150%;">- and finally to stop being impassive spectators of
what is happening and become conscious and responsible citizens who fulfil
their unavoidable intergenerational duties.</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="line-height: 150%; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="line-height: 150%;">- in order to ensure compliance both with the Paris
Agreements on Climate Change and the United Nations Resolution on the 2030
Agenda and the Sustainable Development Goals to “transform the world”, which
were signed by President Obama and later declared null and void by his
successor President Donald Trump on the same day he was nominated, without any
reaction -a crime of silence- from the remaining 192 countries.</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="line-height: 150%; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"></p><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Yes: united for the sake of peace, now at last all equal in dignity, so we can
look our children in the eyes and tell them that we will do whatever it takes
to prevent the culture of war from imposing itself over and over again on the
culture of peace and non-violence, and the interests of the "great
dominion" (financial, military, energy, media, digital) from continuously
prevailing over those of the citizenry.</span><span style="font-family: verdana;">
</span><span style="font-family: verdana;">- to totally eradicate nuclear weapons and implement a new concept of
security, allowing both the defence of the territory and of the people living
in those well protected areas (food, drinking water, quality health services,
environmental care, education for all throughout life),</span></div><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="line-height: 150%;">- in summary, to ensure that the human species -an
unbelievable superabundance of intellectual and creative capacities- can live
and coexist fully on a well-preserved land. </span><span lang="EN-GB" style="line-height: 150%; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">United for the sake of peace, for the sake of word,
for the sake of democracy.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Let’s always bear in mind the wise preamble of the
Charter of the Earth: "We stand at a critical moment in the Earth's
history, a time when humanity must choose its future. As the world becomes
increasingly interdependent and fragile, the future poses greater risks and at
the same time greater promises... We are one big human family and one big
community with a common destiny. We must join together to bring forth a
sustainable global society based on respect for nature, universal human rights,
economic justice, and a culture of peace”.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">We must make sure that no one feels excluded in this
choice, so that </span><u style="font-family: verdana;">a new beginning</u><span style="font-family: verdana;"> is made possible. </span><u style="font-family: verdana;">We need to put an
end to a system that from time immemorial has been based on absolute male power</u><span style="font-family: verdana;">.
A few men, a bunch of them, have exercised command in such a way that even life
itself had to be sacrificed for the sake of their own purposes, without any
possible discussion.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Since they were territorially and intellectually
confined in very limited territorial spaces, the inhabitants of the Earth were
silent and obedient subjects. In two occasions, at the end of the two great
wars of last century, attempts were made to progressively replace the
unrestricted use of force with words, negotiation and diplomacy.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">But every time security prevailed over peaceful
coexistence. At the end of the two great “hot” wars, in 1918 and 1945, two prominent
American Presidents, Wilson and Roosevelt respectively, tried to establish a
world order based on mediation and multilateralism. Unfortunately, on both
occasions the perverse adage “If you want peace, be prepared for war” was
applied without restrictions, always driven by the big weapon manufacturers
and, as it had for centuries, security prevailed over peace.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">It is essential not to forget the incommensurable
prejudice caused by United States Republican Party’s failure to support the
League of Nations created by Wilson. This is what made possible the resurgence
of Germany as a belligerent power... and what pushed Hitler to write -in 1933-
in his book “</span><i style="font-family: verdana;">Mein Kampf</i><span style="font-family: verdana;">” that “the
Aryan race was incompatible with the Jewish race”.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">The seeds of Fascism gave
rise to Benito Mussolini’s fascism and they found a fertile soil in Japan's
Empire of the Rising Sun, with the Tanaka Plan and Emperor HiroHito..... This
convergence of a few great supremacist movements led to the Second World War,
an atrocious war with millions of victims, at the end of which President
Franklin Delano Roosevelt established a perfectly designed organization, the
United Nations. The first sentences of the Charter clearly summarise the broad
outlines of global governance: “We, the peoples... are determined to save
future generations from the scourge of war"... Based on the relevance they
could still have today, It may be worthwhile highlighting </span><u style="font-family: verdana;">the three pillars
of what could have been a new era</u><span style="font-family: verdana;">: i) </span><u style="font-family: verdana;">it is the peoples</u><span style="font-family: verdana;"> who are
entrusted to take the reins of destiny into their own hands; </span><u style="font-family: verdana;">ii) peace</u><span style="font-family: verdana;">
must be built in order for humanity to escape from the “scourge of war”; </span><u style="font-family: verdana;">iii)
intergenerational solidarity</u><span style="font-family: verdana;"> is the supreme commitment of every human
being.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">The design of the United Nations as established in
1945 - complemented three years later with the Universal Declaration of Human
Rights - is unbeatable. But at that time, “We, the peoples” had nothing to do
with reality: 90% of human beings were born, lived and died within a few square
kilometres. They were fearful, submissive, obedient, silent... and women were
highly discriminated against.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">In the late 1980’s, when
thanks to Nelson Mandela and Mikhail Gorbachev many detrimental trends could
have been redirected, supremacism and fanaticism managed again to cast a shadow
over the world as a whole. The great dominion regained its absolute power. The
sects - some of them promoted by intelligence services themselves - were once
again countering the efforts of genuine democracies...</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">It has been frequently said that the “Universal”
Declaration was in fact a mere reflection of Western vision.</span><span style="font-family: verdana;"> </span><span style="font-family: verdana;">I must point out in this respect that it was
subject to extended consultation with the main representatives of the different
civilizations and cultures. When I was Director-General of UNESCO, I found in
the archives of the Organization the letter written in February 1947 by Mahatma
Ghandi to Julian Huxley, the first Director-General. He thanked him for sending
the draft, and explained that he had discussed it with the “most intelligent
person I have ever known, an illiterate woman, my mother, who has pointed
out...”. Among the suggestions, it was indicated that it might be advisable to
include a few duties along with the rights that were declared...</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Two quotations from the preamble are particularly
relevant: at the end of the first paragraph it is stated that these rights are
deemed to ensure that “human beings shall enjoy... freedom from fear".
This promotion of self-esteem and of the need to express dissent where it
exists is endorsed in the second paragraph of the preamble when it is said that
it is essential that human rights be protected by the rule of law "if man
is not to be compelled to have recourse... to rebellion". Now, when finally
“We, the peoples” </span><i style="font-family: verdana;">can express ourselves
freely</i><span style="font-family: verdana;">, it is essential to bear in mind that </span><i style="font-family: verdana;">we must</i><span style="font-family: verdana;">.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">In order to take due and
timely action we must prepare ourselves with great rigour, and have a sound
knowledge of the sources and roots of violent attitudes and conflictive
reactions. Supremacism is the origin of many conflicts and acts of
violence.</span><span style="font-family: verdana;"> </span><span style="font-family: verdana;">The best way to counteract
supremacism is to be aware that all human beings are equal in dignity,
regardless of their sex, skin colour, beliefs, ideologies, cultures...</span><span style="font-family: verdana;"> </span><span style="font-family: verdana;">Another important source of terrorism is
extreme poverty and hunger.</span><span style="font-family: verdana;"> </span><span style="font-family: verdana;">Cultural
diversity is a valuable asset. Xenophobia, hatred and rejection are ethically
intolerable and represent a threat to peace.</span></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Europe, in particular, must be a benchmark for the
full exercise of human rights. </span><u style="font-family: verdana;">The Charter of Fundamental Rights of the
European Union</u><span style="font-family: verdana;">, from year 2000, is much more important, far more important
than the risk premium. The crisis is not only economic. It is above all an
ethical crisis. It is the breakdown of a system based on greed and
short-sightedness. A system that has replaced ethical values with stock market values,
and the United Nations with plutocratic groups. A system that dared to invade
another country, causing thousands of casualties, mutilated and displaced
people, based on false arguments to justify its geo-economic ambitions.</span><span style="font-family: verdana;"> </span><span style="font-family: verdana;">A system that has not been able to mobilize
“the peoples” and force Putin to put an end to his intolerable decision to
invade Ukraine, nor to respond with millions of voices from all continents.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Plutocratic groups do not have the capacity to confront the threats
that are looming on a planetary scale. Such a difficult mission can only be
carried out by a United Nations endowed with the adequate human, technical and
financial resources, and which integrates </span><u style="font-family: verdana;">all</u><span style="font-family: verdana;"> countries, so that it is
truly "the peoples" who "build the defences of peace" and
ensure </span><u style="font-family: verdana;">a dignified life for all</u><span style="font-family: verdana;">.</span></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Peace for everyone. Peace on
Earth. This is the deepest human longing since the dawn of time, unreachable
for a power based on imposition and force.</span></p>
<p style="line-height: 150%; margin: 0cm; text-align: justify;"><em style="font-family: verdana;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="line-height: 150%;">Let’s react. Let’s stop being impassive spectators.
Let’s raise our voice, Millions of voices so that, once and for all, we can
free ourselves from the colossal ecological and war threats that cast today a
shadow over our common destiny.</span></em></p>
<p style="line-height: 150%; margin: 0cm; text-align: justify;"><em><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-style: normal; line-height: 150%;"><o:p><span style="font-family: verdana;"> </span></o:p></span></em></p>
<p style="line-height: 150%; margin: 0cm; text-align: justify;"><em><span lang="EN-GB" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">United for the sake of peace and democratic
multilateralism!</span></span></em><em><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" lang="EN-GB" style="font-style: normal; line-height: 150%; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-font-style: italic;"><o:p></o:p></span></em></p><p style="line-height: 150%; margin: 0cm; text-align: justify;"><em><span lang="EN-GB" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></span></em></p><p style="line-height: 150%; margin: 0cm; text-align: justify;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><a href="https://www.other-news.info/noticias/unidos-por-la-paz-y-el-multilateralismo-democratico/" target="_blank">Published in Other News</a> (Spanish)</span></span></p>Federico Mayor Zaragozahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04180667018896947119noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5190975568185925153.post-12701012957047863082022-03-02T01:16:00.003-08:002022-03-02T01:16:17.334-08:00War in Ukraine: diplomacy with a veto?<p><br /></p><p class="MsoPlainText" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="line-height: 150%;">Without the least intention
to decrease Putin’s responsibility, we should consider - with as much urgency
and stamina as possible - which have been the causes of this war and other
conflicts, of the existence of nuclear weapons, plutocratic governance, global
threats that are potentially irreversible... We should ask ourselves why Europe
- that was deemed to play an important qualitative role on a global scale - was
not even present as a speaker, because it was absorbed by the NATO... the North
Atlantic Treaty Organisation... which extends eastwards and speaks in the name
of European citizenship... We have the duty to remember.</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="line-height: 150%;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">We must remember which were
the reasons that gave rise to the Second World War - the Aryan, Roman and
Japanese supremacism, because the League of Nations had been abandoned by the
United States from the very beginning- ... We should take into account that it
was the veto of the victors which made Roosevelt's excellent multilateral
design of the United Nations to be considered useless...</span><span style="font-family: verdana;"> </span><span style="font-family: verdana;">“We the peoples... are determined to save
future generations from the scourge of war"...</span></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">We have just had a new evidence
of the irrelevance of the United Nations, because 196 countries are fully
dependent on the will of five countries... And the same can be said of the
European Union that must adopt all its decisions unanimously, a rule that leads
to 27 vetoes because unanimity is the antithesis of democracy... And this is
why it is the NATO who speaks in the name of Europe.</span></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">All crises may potentially
become an opportunity for change. The current crisis, whose origin was the
reason of force, could become an incentive for a great global movement in
favour of the force of reason, of mediation, of word, of democratic
multilateralism at a global scale, allowing - once the possibilities for action
have been exhausted when faced to global irreversible threats - to the
effective implementation of the 2030 Agenda and the Agreements on Climate
Change.</span></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Yes: now, for the first time
in history, the recognition of the equal dignity of all human beings is about
to be achieved, without any discrimination based on gender, ethnicity,
ideology, belief, sexual sensitivity... Now, for the first time in history,
human beings can express themselves freely, now thanks to digital technology
and they can therefore </span><u style="font-family: verdana;">participate</u><span style="font-family: verdana;">, which is the basis of democracy...
Now, at last, when we are finally aware of the present situation and trends -
“We, the peoples” may raise our voice and fulfil our essential responsibilities
towards future generations... We can no longer be abducted by the immense power
of the media - "a weapon of mass distraction", according to Soledad
Gallego's accurate definition and warning-. We shall never again be mere spectators,
but rather actors of the great transition from a culture of imposition,
domination, violence and war to a culture of encounter, dialogue, conciliation,
alliance and peace.</span></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">It is a duty of memory to
take resolute action. It could become a crime of silence. The time has come for
a great global coalition, led by women and youth, for the sake of peace and
non-violence, of conflict resolution within the context of a democratic
multilateralism that shall supersede the governance of the G6, G7, G8 and G20.</span></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">A global coalition whose aim
is to achieve the great transition from force to word, by reshaping the United
Nations through a change in the composition of its General Assembly, so that
“the peoples” are truly represented with 50% of its representatives belonging
to the civil society, and the rest of its members (the other 50%) representing
the States, and with the veto being replaced by well-weighted and balanced
percentages...</span><span style="font-family: verdana;"> </span></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Yes “We, the peoples” shall
at last be able to look into the eyes of our descendants and tell them that we
shall not leave behind a Planet whose habitability has been deteriorated; that
nuclear warheads shall be immediately disposed of; tax heavens shall disappear
and the huge amounts currently devoted to territorial defence shall also be
used to ensure human and food security, water, health, education, environmental
protection - of the inhabitants of these well-protected territories...</span></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: verdana; line-height: 150%;">To achieve these pressing
transformations, it is essential to eradicate imposition and establish
democracy: democracy on a personal, local, national, regional and international
scale. Just as in 1948 the United Nations adopted the Universal Declaration of
Human Rights, the renewed United Nations could adopt a Universal Declaration of
Democracy (</span><a href="file:///C:/Users/Admin/AppData/Local/Microsoft/Windows/INetCache/Content.Outlook/2VHOCJC5/GUERRA%20EN%20UCRANIA%20ES_EN.docx#_ftn1" name="_ftnref1" style="font-family: verdana;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span lang="EN-GB" style="line-height: 150%;"><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span lang="EN-GB">[1]</span></span></span></span></a><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: verdana; line-height: 150%;">) to address and to solve the
problems of the new era.</span></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; text-align: left;">We consider Putin’s decision as the main reason,
but we don’t neglect other issues that are regrettable or the need to redirect
Ukraine’s conflict. We can turn them into an opportunity for change if the
awareness of what has happened in the past pushes us to quickly change so that
it is, at last, "We the peoples" who take the reins of our common
destiny into our own hands.</span></p><div style="mso-element: footnote-list;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><br clear="all" />
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<p class="MsoFootnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Admin/AppData/Local/Microsoft/Windows/INetCache/Content.Outlook/2VHOCJC5/GUERRA%20EN%20UCRANIA%20ES_EN.docx#_ftnref1" name="_ftn1" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn1;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span lang="EN-GB"><span style="mso-special-character: footnote;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[1]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></span></a><span lang="EN-GB"> <a href="https://declaraciondemocracia.wordpress.com/declaracion-democracia-2/">https://declaraciondemocracia.wordpress.com/declaracion-democracia-2/</a><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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</div>Federico Mayor Zaragozahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04180667018896947119noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5190975568185925153.post-92155529987143283642022-02-10T08:47:00.003-08:002022-02-10T08:47:23.711-08:00Democracy, the only solution<p> </p><p align="right" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: right;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size: 10.0pt;">“The only way to reach a
peaceful international order<o:p></o:p></span></i></p>
<p align="right" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: right;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size: 10.0pt;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>is to promote democracy”<o:p></o:p></span></i></p>
<p align="right" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: right;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size: 10.0pt;">Fernando Vallespín<o:p></o:p></span></i></p>
<p align="right" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: right;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size: 10.0pt;">“El País”, January 23rd 2022.<o:p></o:p></span></i></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span lang="EN-US"><o:p><span style="font-family: verdana;"> </span></o:p></span></i></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">The cornerstone of all human rights is equal dignity.
This is already stated in the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European
Union of year 2000, which has seemingly not been read carefully by most of
today’s European leaders. In 1945, at the end of a horrendous war during which
the most abominable methods of extermination were used, the United Nations was
founded –“We the peoples”…”- and, just a few months later, the UNESCO whose
Constitution states that "democratic principles" - justice, equal
dignity, freedom and solidarity - should guide governance, and education should
contribute to the breeding of "free and responsible" people. Educated
people, that is, people who act by virtue of their own reflections and not
based on the dictates of someone, and are neither bound nor terrified by
dogmas, threats, blind obedience....</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="line-height: 150%;">The essential objective of education should be to
breed a “free and responsible” citizenship which - as stated in the first
paragraph of the Universal Declaration of Human - “shall get rid of fear”.</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="line-height: 150%;"> Cease to be subjects and become citizens.
Individuals who are able to fully exercise the unique capacities of human
beings: thinking, imagining, foreseeing, inventing their future, which should
never be accepted as irreversible. Fanaticism and dogmatism must be eradicated
so human beings may soar high in the endless space of spirit, once their wings
are released from every attachment or burden.</span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">The equal dignity of all human beings has
progressively been achieved, but the global hegemony of large oligopolies and
the war-industrial complex still remains.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="line-height: 150%;">Until very recently, mankind had always been dominated
and tamed by absolute male power. A few men held the reins of our common
destiny in their hands.</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="line-height: 150%;">
We have been impassive spectators instead of actors; mere recipients of often
biased information, instead of issuers; witnesses afraid to intervene. Muted,
silent. </span><span lang="EN-GB" style="line-height: 150%;">Since
they were territorially and intellectually confined, human beings lived in
subjugation, and had no option but to offer their own lives to fulfil the plans
of the most powerful. Without any possible discussion.</span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="line-height: 150%;">Now, since a few decades ago, "We the peoples” - at last men and
women on an equal footing - have progressively earned the right to demonstrate,
to express our objections and proposals.
</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="line-height: 150%;">We are
facing multiple and urgent transitions which for the first time in history may
be tackled with some prospects of success: global awareness, free expression
and, particularly, a progressively higher percentage of women in
decision-making.</span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="background: white; line-height: 150%;">The
solution is a true democracy at a personal, local, national, regional and
international scale. This is why it is of the utmost urgency to quickly proceed
to the refoundation of the United Nations System, and the eradication of the
G7, G8 y G20… </span><span lang="EN-GB" style="line-height: 150%;">One
of the worst omens that are threatening today us is the return of racism and
xenophobia. I have said many times -bearing in mind particularly years 1936 to
1939- that supremacism gives rise to hate and confrontation. And it kills. This
is why I’m in favour of zero tolerance and active citizens -instead of
impassive spectators distracted by the huge power of the media- because
“tomorrow might be too late”. It is most disturbing to see how supremacism,
racism, fanaticism, dogmatism are sprouting everywhere... without anyone
seeming to recall what happened not so long ago... We cannot tolerate this new
outbreak of the same scourges because they are the greatest source of
confrontation, the greatest source of victims throughout history, a history
that must not be repeated. All human beings are equal in dignity; this is the
foundation for peace and justice.</span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="line-height: 150%;">Given the neo-liberal drift towards the same attitudes
of the 1930s, a great popular mobilisation in the streets and in the cyberspace
is needed to eradicate the plutocratic groups and strengthen the United
Nations, as a genuine multilateral organisation whose Charter begins with these
wise words "We, the peoples...". </span><span lang="EN-GB" style="line-height: 150%;">Faced with current perspectives of various kinds
(ethical, political, economic) the speedy re-foundation of a United Nations
System endowed with the necessary personal, technical and financial means would
be excellent news.</span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="line-height: 150%;">Concerned, committed, undaunted citizens, who know how
to overcome the fear that grips so many wills, could make come true - through a
“global movement” - a United Nations General Assembly soon supported by 50% of
civil society, which would then adopt a Universal Declaration of Democracy (</span><span lang="EN-GB"><a href="https://declaraciondemocracia.wordpress.com/">https://declaraciondemocracia.wordpress.com/</a>)</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="line-height: 150%;">. </span><u><span lang="EN-GB" style="line-height: 150%;">Democracy is the sole context where it is
possible to imagine a “new beginning”, the new era of a world in which governance shall be inspired by justice,
equality, liberty and solidarity</span></u><span lang="EN-GB" style="line-height: 150%;">, that is by the “democratic principles” so wisely set out in the
UNESCO Constitution, rather than by the markets, by the great military, energy,
financial and media powers that still try today to satisfy, through the
"great dominion", their ambitions for power, which have produced so
many negative results.</span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><u><span lang="EN-GB" style="line-height: 150%;">Today for the first time in history, remote
participation is possible thanks to modern communication technology</span></u><span lang="EN-GB" style="line-height: 150%;">.</span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><u style="text-align: justify;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="line-height: 150%;">Let us put into practice
without any further delay the 2030 Agenda and the Sustainable Development Goals</span></u><span lang="EN-GB" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;">. Let us all demand that 2022
be the beginning of the reduction of armaments, of the culture of force and
violence, in favour of the culture of encounter, conciliation and dialogue.</span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><span style="text-align: justify;">The time for silence and
submission is over. </span><u style="text-align: justify;">The duty to remember and the duty to take action</u><span style="text-align: justify;">:
implementation of the 2030 Agenda and the SDGs, in order to further reduce the
ecological degradation whose effects are becoming more intense and more
frequent; swift global agreement on the elimination of nuclear weapons;
immediate regulation of military organizations who actually represent the
hegemony at a global scale in some countries, as well as the huge networks of
military bases all over the world; regulation of trafficking and consumption of
illegal drugs; elimination of tax havens and plutocratic groups...; a new
concept of "human" security, so that the inhabitants of territories
that are so well “protected” by defence mechanisms may have access to the five
priorities of United Nations: food, drinkable water, quality health services,
caring for the environment, and education for everyone during the whole life;
promoting science and the advice of those having the required expertise;
reinforcing preventive measures, especially in the field of health, with the
immediate example of vaccination for everyone and not only for the inhabitants
of the most prosperous countries; ensuring the independence of justice;
personal commitment to invent the future and, resorting to our boundless
resilience, never again accept impositions, dogmatism, supremacism... </span><u style="text-align: justify;">Every
unique human being capable of creating, there lies our hope.</u></span></p>Federico Mayor Zaragozahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04180667018896947119noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5190975568185925153.post-14880505583510548202022-01-16T10:30:00.005-08:002022-01-16T10:30:33.377-08:00Urgent change in global governance<p> </p><p align="right" class="MsoPlainText" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: right;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 150%; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 150%; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">A duty of memory. The memory of oblivion. The
duty to take action and speak out.</span></i><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 150%; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span></i></p>
<p align="right" class="MsoPlainText" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: right;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 150%; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">A crime of silence.</span></i><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 150%; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span></i></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">New Year’s Eve 2021 calls for
a very careful reflection and for decisions that should be taken without delay.
The year that has just ended has been unusually rich with events and tendencies
that must be kept in mind and corrected to avoid points of no return from being
reached. For the first time in history, some of the threats we are facing at a
global scale are of an irreversible nature and the Earth’s habitability could
be put in jeopardy already in the Anthropocene, if we forget once again what
was agreed and we fail to assume our intergenerational responsibilities.</span></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Until very recently we were
unaware of what was happening in the world and we couldn’t express ourselves.
Additionally, an age-old discrimination prevented us from acting together. After
Roosevelt created in 1945 the United Nations, setting up a new wisely designed
multilateral frame, the reason of power prevailed once again over the power of
reason, and weapons succeeded again over words. “We, the peoples”, the
protagonists of the first sentence of the Charter of the United Nations, did
not yet exist at that time, and the General Assembly was then composed by state
representatives -all of them male- ... Until three decades ago, 90% of human
beings were born, lived and died within a few square kilometres, dominated by
absolute male power. They were fearful, silent, unequal, obedient,
submissive... Now, when it is more urgent than ever, the peoples may at last
participate and they do so actively -that is, they live democratically-
because, thanks to a great extent to the digital technology, they can express
themselves freely. And equal dignity for everyone has been gradually
acknowledged -this being the greatest recent triumph of mankind.</span></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">When recalling the major
features of year 2021 - plutocratic neoliberal governance, pandemics, climate
change, emigration, hunger and extreme poverty... - we must be aware that,
after remaining silent since the dawn of time, the time has come for democratic
multilateralism which is now possible thanks to citizen participation. Our
lives should no longer be secured by military bases and highly expensive war
weapons, but rather by the new solutions offered by the duly renewed United
Nations - with a General Assembly having a weighted vote instead of veto, and
comprising “We, the peoples”, the civil society, alongside the representatives
of the governments. These new solutions should allow us -as so wisely advised
by José Luis Sampedro- “to sail in a different direction in a new ship”.</span></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">In order to ensure the
participation of all citizens, we must all be aware of the current challenges
we have ahead and of how we should cope with them. We must have a “memory of
oblivion” and, all together, all equal, all aware, actively participate,
knowing at all times what we should do so that human intelligence always
prevails over “artificial intelligence” and not the other way around. An “informed
and diligent” citizenship should be able under such crucial circumstances to
fulfil the purpose entrusted to "the peoples" in 1945: “to save
succeeding generations from the scourge of war”... the scourge of an exhausted
planet, the scourge of a small number of formidable consortia that are leading
the world as a whole towards the abyss... In this respect, it is worthwhile
recalling Aurelio Peccei when, in the 1960s, with as much anticipation as
wisdom, and acting as a sentinel of the future, he already warned of "the
chasm ahead of us”.</span><span style="font-family: verdana;"> </span><span style="font-family: verdana;">And, with him, all
those who have since then endlessly repeated the same alerts and warnings which
have always gone unheeded. The role of the scientific, academic, artistic, intellectual
communities... has become much greater today when there are so many “peoples”
that have realized that a response must be given to their calls and not those
of the “market”... UNESCO, the US Academy of Sciences, the "Earth
Summits" (Rio in 1992; Johannesburg in 2002...)... have invariably been
neglected due to the hegemonic ambitions of those who, since the 1980s, have
gathered together in plutocratic groups (G6, G7, G8, G20).</span></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">With President Barack Obama
in the White House, it became possible to sign -in that shiny Autumn of 2015-
the Paris Agreements on Climate Change and the United Nations Resolution to
“transform the world”, both related with the 2030 Agenda and the Sustainable
Development Goals. But when after a few months -I must insist on it- Donald
Trump imposed once again the hegemony of the United States and announced
unequivocally that he would not implement the agreements signed by his
predecessor, the response was silence. Silence all over the world. Silence in
the European Union... because, in the meantime, the EU capacity to take action
had been substantially decreased when unanimity became a requirement for the
approval of some of the most relevant decisions... and unanimity is the very
antithesis of democracy!</span></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">To achieve the urgent change
in global governance and promote the United Nations I have briefly described
above, the first solemn act should be the endorsement of a Universal
Declaration of Democracy, because only a genuine democracy at all levels (local,
national, regional and global) - and this is the main belief that must serve as
a premise - will allow to straighten up the current wreckage and to start
walking towards a future worthy of the immense faculties that distinguish the
human species: thinking, imagining, anticipating, innovating, creating! Every
unique human being capable of creating, of inventing, there lies our hope.</span></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">A duty of memory... and a
crime of silence - now that we may, and we therefore should express ourselves-.
The memory of immigrants from countries rich in natural resources... which are
exploited by international oligopolies... Only three days ago, on 28 December
2021, the press reported that 188 migrants had drowned off the coast of
Libya... Libya! What a great value is given to the resources found in Libya's
soil and subsoil... and what a small value is given to the inhabitants of this
country... The memory of Yemen with more than 70% of its population living in
extreme poverty, a population placed "under the caring custody" of the
great Saudi economic power... And let´s not forget the Syrians, after seven
years of endless suffering caused by a war that those who were supposed to
prevent or solve in a context of multilateral mediation have been unable to
stop... And the memory of Afghanistan... And of so many African countries
-Africa, a source of wisdom and human solidarity-... And the memory of Haiti, a
country that should be always taken into account because, after all kinds of
suffering, "it has run out of tears", according to "El
País" from 22 August... The memory of the past consequences of supremacism
in Europe and Asia, in order to prevent intolerable actions such as the
invasion of Iraq from happening again... or "Operation Condor" in
Latin America... which opened wounds that will be difficult to heal... And a
special duty of memory to solve once and for all the coexistence between
Palestinians and Israelis. In June 1995, with Yasser Arafat and Yitzhak Rabin
an agreement was reached... which was immediately ruined due to the
assassination of the Prime Minister... The memory of the autocracies that in
many countries allow corrupt governance, drug trafficking and intolerable
abuses of power... The memory of the assault on the Capitol of the United
States... The constant memory of the abused Nature... The memory of the Arctic
pole that, when melting, releases methane gas with an ecological effect far
greater than carbon dioxide... And let us not forget the huge military
expenditure that is made while the inhabitants of these well-protected
territories often starve and live in extremely precarious conditions... I
cannot stop repeating that it is intolerable to spend every day more than 4
billion dollars on weapons and military expenditure while thousands of people
are dying of starvation, most of them children between the ages of one and
five...</span></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;"><u style="font-family: verdana;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="line-height: 150%;">A new concept of security</span></u><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: verdana; line-height: 150%;"> must be implemented without
delay to provide citizens with more resources of all kinds in the event of
natural disasters, health problems, etc., always bearing in mind the five
priorities of the United Nations: food, drinking water, quality health
services, care for the environment and lifelong education... The duty of memory
of more than 4000 feminicides in 2020 in Latin America, as revealed in an
article published in Other News on 25 November 2021... The duty of memory of
the recent authentic "fraud" of Glasgow COP 26, where it turned out
that the "commitments" reached were not "binding"! (And,
therefore, were not “commitments”). And,
only 48 hours later it was made public that the NATO's capacity for action had
to be extended "for geostrategic and defensive reasons"... As always!</span></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="line-height: 150%;">As always, the language of weapons, of
strength, of the culture of war instead of the culture of encounter, dialogue,
conciliation, words, peace. Against authoritarianism, a democratic
multilateralism... </span><span lang="EN-GB" style="line-height: 150%;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">A duty of memory of those who
violate the human rights of their fellow human beings by refusing to be
vaccinated, and in doing so also act against all scientific recommendations.
But above all the duty of remembrance of those who have had no access to a
vaccine due to the reprehensible greed of the most prosperous.</span><span style="font-family: verdana;"> </span><span style="font-family: verdana;">Now that we are aware of what is happening on
Earth as a whole, we must get to the root of the problems... and no longer accept
the social gap which gives rise to so much affliction that cannot be solved by
resorting to force but rather to words and justice.</span></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">A duty of memory to avoid
going back to the “pre-pandemic normality”, with huge drinking parties that are
highly infectious... Let’s not get back to the globalisation of ignorance, with
thousands of people acting irresponsibly, instead of being aware of the
essential role they must play in the redirection of the ecological and social
situation, and being ready to actively participate... If “going back to
normality” means going back to plutocratic governance, being ruled by the
intentions of huge, omnipresent and omnipotent consortia, the current
challenges on a global scale will become even worse. Some years ago we had no
guidelines to follow. Now we do: the 2030 Agenda and the SDGs... And the
democrat President Joe Biden in the White House.</span></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">If only the extremely rich
did pay their fair share of taxes! I was recently shocked to learn in the press
that in Spain 2/3 of the fortunes over 30 million euros will not have to pay
wealth taxes... All equal -supremacism and racism must disappear in the near
future-, all united, let us raise our voice and participate in the
reconstruction, the invention of the future that we owe to the generations that
are just a step behind ours... Albert Camus' sentence “I despise them because
they could have done so much and dared so little” encourages me, more than ever
in the past, to act with urgency. There would be no excuse for us today if our
descendants were to blame us for not having duly prepare ourselves to face
current challenges, some of them of an irreversible nature.</span></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">“The supreme duty is to go
on” said Pedro Salinas. Yes: failure occurs only when we stop trying.</span><span style="font-family: verdana;"> </span><u style="font-family: verdana;">Let’s transform the world</u><span style="font-family: verdana;">, according
to the title of the UN resolution on the Agenda 2030 and the SDGs. A duty of
memory. A duty of action. A crime of silence.</span></p>Federico Mayor Zaragozahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04180667018896947119noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5190975568185925153.post-37313637946031015772021-11-22T04:47:00.004-08:002021-11-22T04:47:43.006-08:00Glasgow: “We the peoples, compelled to rebellion”<p></p><p class="MsoBodyText" style="margin: 0cm 5.55pt 0.0001pt 5pt; text-align: justify;"></p><p class="MsoBodyText" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm; margin-left: 5.0pt; margin-right: 5.55pt; margin-top: 0cm; text-align: justify;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">Despite
the excellent scientific reports that have once again alerted us of the need to
adopt urgent measures and implement without delay the Paris Agreements on
Climate Change, and the 2030 Agenda from United Nations General Assembly
-deemed at “transforming the world”-, despite the attendance of so many active
institutions and representatives of the global citizenry, with a high rate of
young people having a great communication capacity... despite the fact that
there are countries that strongly believe that current trends need to be
immediately redirected without any hesitation... finally “big powers”
(financial, military, energy, digital and media industries...) have again<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>further postponed, with a complete lack of
intergenerational responsibility, the implementation of measures that could
still stop the current ecological drift.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: Verdana, "sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt;">Since
decades -I cannot stop repeating it- many communities, especially the
scientific community, have drawn attention to the need to radically transform
the global governance, pointing out the urgency of a joint action at a global scale
through a democratic, rational and efficient multilateralism that would also
allow solving conflicts by means of the power of reason instead -as has been
the case since the dawn of time- of the reason of power. “If you want peace, be
prepared for war”:</span><span style="font-family: Verdana, "sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: Verdana, "sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt;">this rather perverse
adagio has been systematically adopted by the absolute male power that has had in
its hands for centuries the reins of our common destiny... and still has them
today -I will insist over and over again until this is no longer the case-
since every day 4,000 million dollars are invested in military expenses and in
the weapon industry while thousands of people are dying from hunger and extreme
poverty, most of them girls and boys ranging from one to five years old.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: Verdana, "sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt;">Despite
the attempts of three American Democrat Presidents to move from force to word -
Wilson in 1919, Roosevelt in 1945, and Obama in 2015 - the truth is that their
efforts in favour of multilateralism have invariably been countered by
hegemonic convictions which are leading us today to a clear deterioration of
the Earth's habitability conditions -after having ignored all warnings about
the irreversible processes that are threatening humanity as a whole for the
first time in history.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: Verdana, "sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt;">The
failure of present generations to fulfil their urgent duties could irremediably
lead to the rights of future generations being seriously violated.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: Verdana, "sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt;">Since
the 1950s the UNESCO -thanks to the foundation of the International Union for
the Conservation of Nature; the geological, hydrological and oceanographic
programmes; and “Man and the Biosphere” ... as well as the Club of Rome that
has been warning about the limits of growth... and the US Academy of Sciences
in 1979, stressing the role of seawater... and then two "Earth
Summits"! (In Rio in 1992 and Johannesburg in 2002)... and the "Earth
Charter" in 2000 -.... and the Declaration and Programme of Action on a
Culture of Peace (United Nations 1999)... all of them supporting guidelines for
the future which have always been set aside by neoliberal plutocratic groups
(G-6,G-7,G-8,G-20) driven by American Presidents belonging to the Republican
Party...</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: Verdana, "sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt;">Finally,
in the hopeful autumn of 2015, the Paris Agreements and the United Nations
Resolution on the 2030 Agenda and the SDGs were signed with President Obama...
A duty of memory: a few months later, President Trump came into office and
immediately said that America would not implement any of the agreements signed
by his predecessor... And the European Union, unable to oppose him, remained
silent... because there are some measures whose approval requires unanimity... and
unanimity is the antithesis of democracy...! With a six-year delay, and already
on the brink of the abyss, at the beginning of COP-26 some expectations were
raised by "commitments reached between the major powers"... but it
then turned out that these were "non-binding" commitments!</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: Verdana, "sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt;">What an
outrage, what a nerve!</span><span style="font-family: Verdana, "sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: Verdana, "sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt;">If they are
non-binding they may not be considered as commitments. This is how the great
opportunity that Glasgow represented has ended in uncertainty and despair,
because a large part of the conscious citizenry clearly knows that the last
opportunities to face and redirect the current situation have now vanished.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: Verdana, "sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt;">It will
therefore be necessary to substantially modify our daily behaviour, lifestyle,
before red lines in ecological deterioration are reached... Citizens can no
longer be, to a large extent, "distracted spectators" of what is
happening.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: Verdana, "sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt;">The Arctic is melting and not only do
the sun's rays lack a "mirror" to reflect them, the</span><span style="font-family: Verdana, "sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt;"> </span><i style="font-family: Verdana, "sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt;">permafrost
</i><span style="font-family: Verdana, "sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt;">has also been accumulating for centuries large pockets of methane which,
when released, have a far worse effect on climate change than carbon dioxide.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: Verdana, "sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt;">Clearly,
the solution is now "We, the peoples", as we are so wisely and
prematurely referred to at the beginning of the Charter of the United Nations.
In 1945, the “peoples” had no voice of their own and most of them were born,
lived and died in a few square kilometres... Their possibilities to be informed
were limited to their immediate environment. They were, thus, fearful, obedient,
silent, submissive. In the last three decades, they have become capable to
express themselves freely, owing to a large extent to digital technology, and
discrimination based on gender, sexual sensitivity, ideology, belief,
ethnicity, etc., has been largely eliminated.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: Verdana, "sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt;">Now, at
last, “the peoples” may finally actively participate at a local, regional and
global scale.</span><span style="font-family: Verdana, "sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: Verdana, "sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt;">With great popular
clamour, plutocratic governance may be eliminated and democratic
multilateralism can be strengthened... Now, "the peoples" may demand once
and for all that nuclear warheads cease to be an intolerable "sword of
Damocles" for humanity as a whole... And that tax havens disappear from
the map, and a new concept of security is implemented that shall reduce the
enormous expenditure on weapons and current military spending, and shall allow
the inhabitants of territories that are so efficiently protected by current
defence systems to also have access to food, drinking water, quality health
services, lifelong education for all, proper care of the environment... The
peoples shall at last take action because the Universal Declaration of Human
Rights itself –what a wonderful foresight! – states the following in the second
paragraph of the preamble: ... "so that man is not compelled to have
recourse, as a last resort, to rebellion...". Some days ago I published </span><i style="font-family: Verdana, "sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt;">“Glasgow, global consciousness to change the
current path”</i><span style="font-family: Verdana, "sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt;">. In the light of the poor results of the COP26 and, above
all, the untimely and discouraging announcement that the USA will at very short
notice significantly increase its military power- it has now become clear that
it is up to the conscious citizenry, “compelled to rebellion”, to see -with
joined hands and voices- that the requested transitions are made before points
of no return are reached.</span><span style="font-family: Verdana, "sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: Verdana, "sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt;">And we</span><span style="font-family: Verdana, "sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: Verdana, "sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt;">“the peoples”, looking into the eyes of our
descendants, shall call for governments that are willing to implement a
diligent multilateralism, as well as for a United Nations that will still be capable
of taking the most urgent steps leading to the radical changes that cannot be
further delayed. Compelled to rebellion, we will achieve, in no time, the
transition from power to word. We will invent a new future.</span></p><br /><p></p><p></p>Federico Mayor Zaragozahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04180667018896947119noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5190975568185925153.post-32402029667520228322021-11-08T04:17:00.004-08:002021-11-08T04:17:49.072-08:00Glasgow, global consciousness to change the current direction<div style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">We’ve all heard that when the Titanic was sinking, the
orchestra continued playing waltzes. In no time all musicians and dancers had disappeared
under the water. Let’s do whatever it takes to avoid the same thing from
happening at a planetary scale. Despite countless alarms and appeals, the
plutocratic neoliberal governance continues to take clearly inadequate and
partial measures, instead of the strong, urgent and joint action that is
needed. Big corporations are still earning huge benefits and misleading people
when they should take the lead in the promotion of change and citizenship
awareness. And while diffidently
expressing their support for ecological measures and the implementation of the
2030 Agenda, Great Powers are investing bigger amounts in weapons and military
expenses, thus stressing their disagreement with “contending powers”, when they
should at least take an emergency break to allow the joint and global action
that is urgently needed to avoid further deterioration of the habitability of
the Earth. And, as a result of the above, a larger number of war devises are
being stocked -including nuclear artefacts, what a nonsense!-, thus investing
-I must insist once again- 4,000 million dollars per day, while thousands of
people are dying from hunger and extreme poverty, most of them girls and boys
ranging from one to five years old.<br /><span lang="EN-GB" style="line-height: 150%;"><o:p> <br /></o:p></span><span lang="EN-GB" style="line-height: 150%;">It is sensible to have
appropriate defence mechanisms... but the defence of people living in those
well-protected areas must not be disregarded. The United Nations have
appropriately identified five major priorities: food, drinking water, quality
health services, lifelong education for everyone, looking after the
environment. I must stress once again that this new concept of human security
must prevail now, without delay. It would allow us to solve many of the big
global problems we are facing today: forced migration, the impact of natural
disasters, the globalization of ignorance... For decades, the UNESCO (the
International Union for the Conservation of Nature, the Geological, Hydrological
and Oceanographic Programs, “Man and the Biosphere”, the ecological
reserves...); the Club of Rome (“Growth Limits”...); the USA Academy of
Sciences (1979); the first “Earth Summit” (Rio de Janeiro, 1992); the Charter
of the Earth in 2000; the second “Summit” in 2002 in Johannesburg... have made
increasingly urgent appeals, always unheard by the GDP governance, which
despises multilateralism and encourages supremacism.<br /></span><span lang="EN-GB" style="line-height: 150%;"><o:p> <br /></o:p></span><span lang="EN-GB" style="line-height: 150%;">In the “hopeful autumn” of
2015, with the democrat President Barack Obama in the White House, it became
possible to sign -in the General Assembly of United Nations- the Paris
Agreements on Climate Change and the Resolution to “transform the world” whose
aim was the urgent implementation of the 2030 Agenda and the Sustainable
Development Goals. These were two particularly relevant and appropriate
documents because they requested - at last! - from global citizenship, who was
now aware of the seriousness of the situation, to take appropriate and
responsible actions for future generations.<br /></span><span lang="EN-GB" style="line-height: 150%;"><o:p> <br /></o:p></span><span lang="EN-GB" style="line-height: 150%;">But, a few months later, the
astonishing Donald Trump became President of the United States, endorsing every
hegemonic assumption of the Republican Party, and making it clear - with an
unusual vigour and alacrity - that he would not implement the Paris agreements
nor the 2030 Agenda... And everyone remained silent. The rest of the world
remained silent. And he European Union, once a source and an example of
solidarity, democracy and multilateralism, was unable to oppose his statements,
because the adoption of far-reaching resolutions sometimes requires
unanimity... and unanimity is the opposite of democracy! And nothing was done
until the arrival of the democratic duo Biden-Harris, six years later... The
Arctic is already melting by leaps and bounds and the "permafrost"
not only entails the disappearance of the "mirror" that reflects the
sun's rays but also the release of large quantities of methane, which is much
more pollutant than carbon dioxide... And the Antarctic is beginning to crack
and the glaciers are shrinking... And, most alarming of all, despite the action
of laudable civil associations, the world as a whole continues to be caught in
the economic web of production relocation, energy sources, tax havens... with
growing social gaps.... We are becoming closer and closer to the abyss of
irreversible processes, which would entail leaving behind a wrongful and
irretrievable legacy for our descendants. In the 1960s Aurelio Piccei already
warned: “Chasm ahead!”.<br /> </span><span lang="EN-GB" style="line-height: 150%;"><o:p> <br /></o:p></span><span lang="EN-GB" style="line-height: 150%;">“We the peoples, ... are
determined to save future generations from the scourge of war". This is
how the Charter of the United Nations begins, with as much clarity as capacity
to foresee the future. Because, in 1945, the peoples didn’t yet exist. 90% of
humanity was born, lived and died in a few square kilometres, thus ignoring
what was going on beyond their immediate environment, always placed under the
absolute male power. They were obedient, fearful, silent, they had no voice and
could not express their opinions. But today, for the first time in history -and
there lies our hope- they can express themselves. Mankind now has a voice of
its own and the mass media at their disposal. And today - we must insist on
this - all human beings are equal in dignity, with no discrimination based on
gender, sexual sensitivity, ideology, beliefs, ethnicity... Now, at last,
"We, the peoples" can demand, through great popular clamours, a
democratic multilateral governance, whose first decision must be the adoption
of the "Universal Declaration on Democracy" and which, having the
support of Great Powers, should firmly redirect the current trends.<br /> </span><span lang="EN-GB" style="line-height: 150%;"><o:p> <br /></o:p></span><span lang="EN-GB" style="line-height: 150%;">Only thus will the G-20
meetings in Rome and the Ecological Summit in Glasgow be able to achieve their
pressing objectives. Only thus will we dare look into the eyes of those who
come within a stone's throw of us and tell them: “We have behaved as "free
and responsible” individuals, as the UNESCO Constitution defines educated
people. We will first have to overcome the resistance of so many... And to alert
those who, despite the countless appeals, still remain distracted and
obfuscated, carelessly dancing as if nothing was happening ... as in the wreck
of the Titanic...</span></span></div><div style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></span></span></div><div style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="line-height: 150%;"><a href="https://www.other-news.info/noticias/glasgow-conciencia-mundial-para-cambiar-de-rumbo/ " target="_blank">Published in Other News</a></span></span></div>
Federico Mayor Zaragozahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04180667018896947119noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5190975568185925153.post-92232923042139330842021-09-02T03:55:00.003-07:002021-09-10T10:06:14.948-07:00There is only one solution: a great global Pact on the Earth’s habitability<p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: right;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">“It all depends on the pain produced by what you’re looking
at”.<o:p></o:p></span></span></i></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: right;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Mario Benedetti.<span style="background: white;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></span></i></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;"><span lang="EN-US" style="background: white; line-height: 150%;"><o:p><span style="font-family: verdana;"> </span></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="background: white; line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Headlines such as those found in
newspapers in the last few days highlight the truly dire situation we are about
to reach: <o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;"><span style="background-color: white; font-family: verdana;">"Ecocide, international
crime..." "Citizens pressure on governments and companies must spur
an agreement at the Glasgow Summit to avoid climate suicide...” "Dangerous
future: UN report urges immediate action to avoid worst-case climate
scenario...". “Extreme fire: the devastating effects of fire in
California, Siberia or Greece are examples of the impact of climate change...”</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;"><span style="background-color: white; font-family: verdana;">In such a bleak scenario the fact
that multimillionaire Branson "flew to the edge of space” with his own
craft is hard to understand and absolutely intolerable... He did so in direct
competition with Jeff Bezos from Amazon, both billionaires having exhibited an
irresponsible neglect of their most pressing duties!</span></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Security in the age of robots
and drones -the new "warlords in the sky"- must today, more than
ever, be clothed in essential human values and take on the new demands of human
security.</span></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">After years of neoliberal
governance by plutocratic groups (G-6,G-7,G-8,G-20), the social gap has
widened, democratic multilateralism has finally been</span><span style="font-family: verdana;"> </span><span style="font-family: verdana;">set aside, and the Nation-State,</span><span style="font-family: verdana;"> </span><span style="font-family: verdana;">still based on weak structures at a regional
scale, languishes while citizens are progressively overshadowed by digital
technology -which both gives them a voice and turns them into a silent and
disoriented citizenship-; but, with the reflections brought about by the
pandemic confinement, citizens have become increasingly aware of the
precariousness of health care facilities, the privatisation of education and
health centres, that has increased in recent years, the social effects of
relocation of production, and the unfortunate result of the excessive
concentration of economic activities in tourism.</span></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">In case ecological arguments were
not convincing enough, recent events in Afghanistan represent a true knock on
the door... After twenty years of “mixed” governance, it turns out -after
United States withdrawal without leaving behind a well prepared replacement
program- that the Taliban and heroine continue to be the irresponsible masters
of a country whose future is once again in jeopardy because democratic
multilateralism did not take action on time!</span></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">The threat to security posed
by the non-fulfilment of the 2030 Agenda, and aggravated by the potential
irreversibility of some processes, has increased the despondency and discomfort
of young people, who had become involved -moved by laudable feelings of
co-responsibility- in the fight against climate change and in favour of gender
equality. Once again little attention has been paid to their demands, to their
requests, to their reflections prompted by COVID-19.</span></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">In most cases when young
people have been heard the aim was not to satisfy their demands but rather to
give them an answer and contradict them... The only response they need today to
be able to build the path towards a new era is a radical change in security,
investing considerable human, economic and technical resources in food,
education, health, ecology.... and, above all, care and information services
should become “more humane”, </span><u style="font-family: verdana;">by placing human beings where today one only
finds technology, and extending psychological attention given to people of all
ages, especially the youngest and the elderly</u><span style="font-family: verdana;">. To do so we can take
advantage, thanks to longevity, of an underused treasure: the experience of so
many retired people who possess a great stock of remedies.</span></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Today's epidemics are
"synergistic" and involve social factors. They have an adverse effect
on health -hunger, obesity, climate change- in different socio-economic,
political, ecological... contexts. They require a treatment that cannot be
exclusively biomedical. They have many important aspects that cannot be
neglected: educational, social, media... COVID-19 has diverted medical
attention from widely spread sicknesses, with considerable morbidity and
mortality, and affected the mental and emotional health of the population.</span></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Many irresponsible
behaviours, also found in adult individuals even in politicians -some of which
argue that “human rights” allow them to jeopardize the health of their fellow
human beings (!)-, urgently require a clear definition of the frontier between
liberty and crime.</span><span style="font-family: verdana;"> </span><span style="font-family: verdana;">Crime against
health... The barbarians who organize “illegal parties”, resulting in new
outbreaks of contagion, should be forced to understand that they are acting
against the human rights of those who may, due to their unconsciousness, suffer
from the disease and sometimes become seriously ill.</span></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Liberty, without limits.
Violence, none. The speedy circulation of information through social networks
should be compensated with truthful messages that can clarify many ideas and
news, and promote personal reflection, “autonomy”... Discomfort and rebellion
are becoming generalized feelings in many countries where most people enjoy a
considerable prosperity... What is happening?</span><span style="font-family: verdana;">
</span><span style="font-family: verdana;">Why are the recommendations of scientists and experts not being
accepted? First of all, probably due to the self-interested adaptations made by
specific rulers... Anyhow, </span><u style="font-family: verdana;">in the current situation, a general unease can be
perceived at a global scale, a confusing popular reaction that should be
closely analysed and taken into account</u><span style="font-family: verdana;">. How can the deep social unrest
found in countries such as France be explained? And what is happening in
several Latin American countries, especially in those most affected by the
presence of "merchants"? Why are anti-system supporters proliferating
in countries where a good system is urgently needed?</span></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Today there are globally more
visible “signs” to make us aware of how urgent it is not to miss again this new
opportunity... But </span><u style="font-family: verdana;">we need first to change ourselves</u><span style="font-family: verdana;">, we citizens of the
world who should not place our trust in algorithms, but rather in the
distinctive faculties of human species, and sympathise, share, coexist...
strive to </span><u style="font-family: verdana;">make come true for our descendants and for all children of the
world this possible future that cannot be further delayed because -for the
first time in history- it has an expiry date</u><span style="font-family: verdana;">.</span></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Yes, indeed: up to now everything was based in the
means of deterrence, in the elimination of the enemy: whoever had more
soldiers, more weapons, more guns, more cannons, more bombers, more
battleships, more long-range rockets... was the winner. As soon as a battle was
over, everyone had to get ready for the next one. And this is how we have
reached the current status quo where big corporations that produce
sophisticated weapons and giants of digital technology have become the masters
of the world. </span><u style="font-family: verdana;">From a culture of war to a culture of peace. From force to
word. From confrontation to mediation</u><span style="font-family: verdana;">. Until very recently, there was an
absolute male power. The past, unheard, silenced.</span><span style="font-family: verdana;"> </span><span style="font-family: verdana;">Either “</span><span style="background: white; font-family: verdana;">the
peoples” become aware that we are on the brink of an abyss and they react and
implement worldwide the Paris Agreements and the 2030 Agenda, within the
framework of the democratic multilateralism of the UN, or humanity as a whole
will suffer the consequences affecting the quality of life on Earth, consequences
that will be irreversible in some areas.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Irreversible environmental damage, deaths caused by
hunger and extreme poverty, fires and other disasters, immigrants... These are
the </span><u style="font-family: verdana;">urgent issues that must be dealt with <i>now</i>, by means of a <i>unanimous
agreement</i> at a worldwide scale, based on the overall awareness that it is
an historical responsibility of our generation which must be assumed without
further delay</u><span style="font-family: verdana;">.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;"><span style="background-color: white; font-family: verdana;">Glasgow is our last opportunity.
Every Declaration of the "Summits", every Resolution of the United
Nations, every Manifesto of the Club of Rome and other institutions in favour
of a new concept of security and a culture of peace, has been ignored by a
plutocratic governance that has not only acted irresponsibly with regards to
future generations, but has also, with a great media hype, acted irresponsibly
in the face of the future, and has for the first time in history turned
citizens, who were capable of expressing themselves freely, into silent
spectators of what is happening whether they disagree with its views or are
fanatical followers of its delirium.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;"><span style="background-color: white; font-family: verdana;">Nothing more can be expected from the
richest countries on the Earth that are at the helm of our common destiny. The
process of civic emancipation cannot be stopped. </span><u style="background-color: white; font-family: verdana;">The greatest challenge both
at an individual and collective scale is to transform our way of life. The
world is entering a new era</u><span style="background-color: white; font-family: verdana;">. I must insist that the immediate nuclear
disarmament must be one of the first demands of citizen power. This was another
great global Charter promoted by a huge clamour from citizens all over the
world.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;"><span style="background-color: white; font-family: verdana;">We must now move from having a
Charter to implementing it. We have to yearn for better and not for
"more", and the "asymmetric wealth" must be replaced by a
freely chosen moderation shared by all. We must take action at once, with no further
delays, especially when irreversible processes are at stake.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;"><span style="background-color: white; font-family: verdana;">The time has come to take action all
together: based on this conviction, and in order to celebrate the 75th
anniversary of the United Nations and UNESCO, the following organizations
-Spanish Federation of UNESCO Clubs, Centres and Associations (FECU), Culture
of Peace Foundation and DEMOSPAZ Institute of the Autonomous University of
Madrid, and the Spanish National Commission for UNESCO Cooperation- have
prepared a day-long celebration entitled "Society as the fundamental
pillar towards peace", dedicated to the inalienable duty we all have,
whatever our condition, ideology, beliefs..., always bearing in mind the
generations to come. The event is supported by institutions such as the
International Peace Bureau, the World Academy of Art and Science, the United
Nations University of Peace, AIPAZ, the European Centre for Peace and
Development, the Global Movement for a Culture of Peace...</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;"><span style="background-color: white; font-family: verdana;">The new era will not wait for mankind
to be ready to face global threats. It is up to humanity to anticipate events
and act accordingly.</span><span style="background-color: white; font-family: verdana;"> </span><span style="background-color: white; font-family: verdana;">Today citizens of
the world are capable of organizing big demonstrations at a worldwide scale
with a democratic multilateralism in favour of an economy based on knowledge
and on a global and sustainable human development, by fulfilling the SDGs. </span><u style="background-color: white; font-family: verdana;">Let
nobody say that it isn’t possible</u><span style="background-color: white; font-family: verdana;">. Today the main responsibility of all
human beings is to make it clear to future generations that we behaved as we
should given our astonishing intellectual faculties.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="background: white; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 150%;"><o:p><a href="https://www.other-news.info/noticias/unica-solucion-gran-pacto-mundial-sobre-la-habitabilidad-de-la-tierra/" target="_blank"> Published in Other News</a></o:p></span></p>Federico Mayor Zaragozahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04180667018896947119noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5190975568185925153.post-35088442645650402172021-07-13T03:52:00.001-07:002021-07-13T03:52:11.277-07:00Irresponsible plutocratic governance<p> </p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">The Earth’s habitability is dramatically
deteriorating... and the richest and most powerful countries still continue to
take actions in the wrong direction. <o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">The neoliberal plutocratic governance has rejected
democratic multilateralism, especially since the end of the 1980s. President
Reagan created the G6 shortly after Nelson Mandela and Mikhail Gorbachev had built
in a very short period of time new and unexpected furrows that were bound to
contain the seeds of a new era, in which the reason of power would finally be
replaced by the power of reason...</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">After a few years of containment, thanks to the
presence of highly notorious European leaders, the G7 was created (adding
Canada), then the G8 (adding the Russian Federation)... and, finally, with the
2007 financial crisis, the decision was taken to expand to 20 the number of
countries “in command” -despite the fact that the United Nations included 193
countries!-. But as Prof. Juan Antonio Carrillo had already warned -with great
lucidity and anticipation- regardless of the number placed after the letter G,
the lead will always be in the hands of the United States whose Republican
Party has rejected multilateralism since 1919 (League of Nations)... with the huge
and extremely dangerous inconsistency represented by the fact that the
President who created the League of Nations never belonged to it.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">The increasingly urgent “warnings” from the
international scientific community, concerning the global danger posed by a
lifestyle that has harmful effects on the Earth’s habitability, have been quite
numerous but also totally ignored. In the 1960s, the UNESCO -that had already
founded the International Union for the Conservation of Nature and the
International Geological and Hydrological Programmes- placed special emphasis
on the role of the oceans, and launched the major “Man and the Biosphere”
Programme. In 1972, Aurelio Peccei founded the Club of Rome and introduced “the
limits of growth” for consideration by all Member States.</span><span style="font-family: verdana;"> </span><span style="font-family: verdana;">In 1979, the United States Academy of
Sciences warned that the CO2 emissions were not only increasing but also the
recapturing capacity by the sea phytoplankton was decreasing. And silence was
the general reaction. And the Exxon Mobile Foundation was created to
de-emphasize this fact with the help of pseudo scientists.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">In 1992, the Summit of the Earth took place in Rio
Janeiro with the leadership of Maurice Strong, and the Agenda 21 was presented
to the world. There was no reaction. Ten years later when the Charter of the
Earth, which is an excellent guide for action at all levels, already existed
since 2000, the Earth Summit was held in Johannesburg... However, the
neoliberal governance continued to ignore the wise recommendations from the
experts... up to 2015 when, thanks to Barack Obama, the Paris Agreements on
Climate Change were signed, as well as the United Nations Resolution on the
2030 Agenda and the Sustainable Development Goals.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">This sweet autumn break was followed by a cold and
unusual winter with the arrival of Donald Trump in the White House: “I do not
intend to implement neither the Paris Agreements nor the 2030 Agenda”. And the
rest of the world remained silent, as also did the European Union, which used
to be an example of democracy, human rights and solidarity...</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">We are now six years behind schedule, but during his
term Joe Biden may achieve the tough transition to the new era, represented by
the Anthropocene, if we all have the capacity -now that women and young people have
a leading role- to put into practice the lessons learned during the COVID-19
confinement: the awareness that we will only be safe if </span><u style="font-family: verdana;">everybody</u><span style="font-family: verdana;"> is
safe; that global threats require globally agreed actions; that we cannot keep
investing every day thousands of millions in weapons and military expenditure
while thousands of human beings are dying of hunger and extreme poverty; that
the supreme duty of current generations is to leave behind a habitable Earth
for future generations, allowing them -despite the irreversible damage already
caused- to keep under control the indispensable conditions of a dignified life;
that, once they become aware of reality, “the peoples” will choose a lifestyle
in compliance with the specific patterns that have been scientifically
established.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">If we want the cross-eyed and short-sighted people who
still are in favour of a neoliberal governance to finally become reasonable and
realize that the time has come for radical changes, it is imperative for
citizens to become aware of what is really happening and stop being impassive
witnesses to become active participants. Until just a few decades ago, “We the
peoples” -as we were so brilliantly referred to at the beginning of the Charter
of the United Nations- could not express ourselves. Now, thanks largely to
digital technology, we have a voice of our own. And we are all equal in
dignity, without distinction of any kind, such as gender, ethnicity, belief,
ideology... We may now through public outcry, either in the streets or the
cyberspace, express what must be done to avoid our intergenerational legacy
from being a deteriorated habitability. Restating the words of the Charter of
the United Nations in its first paragraph, we may finally proclaim that “We,
the peoples, are determined to save succeeding generations from the horror of
living under unhealthy and extreme conditions...”</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">News such as a temperature of 50 degrees centigrade in
Canada and the northern region of the United States have a huge mobilising power;
we must take action at once today, and swiftly an firmly implement</span><span style="font-family: verdana;"> </span><span style="font-family: verdana;">the SDGs, following the advice of the
scientific community.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">I remember how strongly we were warned about the risk
entailed by the melting of the Arctic ocean, not only due to the permafrost
“reflection“, but also to the release of methane which is much more harmful
than CO2… The same media that say nothing today about the official visit of the
UN Secretary General have remained silent or have given very little importance
to the progressive disappearance of the Arctic or the presence of cracks in
Antarctica... They do not want the excellent and pressing proposals of the
Secretary General... nor the confidence in multilateralism expressed by the
Prime Minister and Head of State to tarnish the exciting announcements of
recovery, “normalization” and reinstatement of market-based governance. The UN
has warned about a great heat wave... Let us, citizens of the world, remain
aware, watchful and ready to take all required actions so that our descendants
do not have to resort to this terrible sentence by Albert Camus which has had
so much influence in my life: “I despise them because they could have done so
much and dared so little”.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><a href="http://www.other-news.info/noticias/2021/07/irresponsable-gobernanza-plutocratica/ " target="_blank">Published in Other News</a></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></p>Federico Mayor Zaragozahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04180667018896947119noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5190975568185925153.post-1665027478712956972021-04-30T03:29:00.004-07:002021-04-30T03:29:42.689-07:00With Joe Biden and Kamala Harris, now at last “We, the peoples“<p> <span style="text-align: right;"> </span></p>
<p align="right" class="MsoPlainText" style="text-align: right;"><i><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 10.0pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“When you let critical
moments </span></i><i><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 10.0pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span></i></p>
<p align="right" class="MsoPlainText" style="text-align: right;"><i><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 10.0pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"> pass by, it is
later useless </span></i><i><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 10.0pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span></i></p>
<p align="right" class="MsoPlainText" style="text-align: right;"><i><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 10.0pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"> to run after
them to try to catch them”</span></i><i><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 10.0pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span></i></p><p align="right" class="MsoPlainText" style="text-align: right;"><i><span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></span></i></p><p class="MsoPlainText" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">On 2 November 2008 I wrote an
article entitled “I had a dream:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Obama,
President of the United States!”... “I dreamed that Martin Luther King’s dream had
come true. I dreamed that women and men, black and white, young and old could
at last live peacefully in the United States thanks to a President whose skin was
black... Obama represents change, a new paradigm, but also a new style, a new
way of facing challenges, based on ethical values and democratic principles,
with equal opportunities for everybody, and hope for everyone everyday...
Obama, an Afro-American, a citizen of the world for worldwide citizens who are
aware of the world village as a whole and not only of its wealthier areas...<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">As Maimonides said in his
“Guide for the Perplexed”, we need someone at the head of the most powerful
nation on Earth who commands respect and confidence, who has the ability and
the tools needed to seize an historic opportunity for radical change, allowing
subjects, both in the United States and throughout the world, to become
citizens".</span></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">The dream was made true and,
in times that were extremely difficult due to the global financial crisis,
trends and perspectives in place during the neoliberal and plutocratic era of
his predecessors experienced great changes.</span></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">He re-established relations
with democratic multilateralism and, for the first time in many decades,
listened carefully to the advice of the international scientific community,
signing in autumn 2015 the Paris Agreement on Climate Change and the UN General
Assembly Resolution on the 2030 Agenda (Sustainable Development Goals) "To
Transform our World".</span></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">As Lluis Bassets wrote only a
few days after his appointment, “this is a new President for a radically new
time”.</span></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">After so many unheeded
appeals, after so many unfulfilled promises, President Obama’s legacy
represented a true pause for hope: for the first time in history, human beings
had become gradually aware of the need to join forces to be able to cope with
potentially irreversible threats, and to do so based on the recognition of the
equal dignity of all human beings and their capacity to express themselves
freely, something that has been made possible to a large extent thanks to the
new information and communication technology.</span></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">I have been repeating for
years that it is unacceptable from every point of view that $4 billion dollars
are spent every day on arms and military expenditure, while thousands of
people, most of them children between the ages of one and five, are dying of
hunger... The solution is clear: democratic multilateralism instead of
plutocracy.</span></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">A refoundation of the United
Nations System must be urgently done, starting with the General Assembly which
should have 50% of State representatives and 50% of civil society
representatives and institutions, with a weighted vote but no veto, and adding
to the current Security Council a Socio-Economic Council and an Environmental
Council.</span></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="line-height: 150%;">A democratic... multilateralism!
A genuine democracy at a local, national, regional and international scale. An
ethical, social, political, economic and cultural democracy such as mentioned
in the draft text of the <u>Universal Declaration of Democracy</u></span><a href="file:///C:/Users/Admin/AppData/Local/Microsoft/Windows/INetCache/Content.Outlook/96KZ66M4/Biden%20ES_EN.docx#_ftn1" name="_ftnref1" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn1;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span lang="EN-GB" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="mso-special-character: footnote;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span lang="EN-GB">[1]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></span></a><span lang="EN-GB" style="line-height: 150%;">, which was drawn up some
years ago by Karel Vasak, Juan Antonio Carrillo Salcedo… and was subsequently
signed, among other well-known personalities, by Mario Soares, Adolfo Pérez
Esquivel, Javier Pérez de Cuéllar, Boutros Boutros Ghali..... with the
inclusion of nuances and suggestions made by prestigious experts on these
matters.</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="line-height: 150%;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">I must insist and emphasize
that the solution is democracy at a local and global scale: the voice of the
peoples, of all peoples. This will allow us to reach the “intellectual and
moral solidarity of mankind” proclaimed by the UNESCO Constitution, one of the
most enlightening documents of the 20th century which begins as follows: “Since
wars begin in the minds of men, it is in the minds of men that the defences of
peace must be constructed”. Building peace through education provided to everyone
throughout their whole life.</span></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">We’ve always lived within the
context of the law of the strongest. ”If you want peace get ready for war” said
an old and particularly perverse adage. We now have to make the transition from
a culture of conflict to a culture of brotherly relations, as stated in article
one of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. I would like to emphasize
that the past has already been written. The only thing we can do is to describe
it and we must do it as accurately as possible.</span></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">But we must write all
together the future still to come, still to be built, seeking inspiration in
the great universal values, pleading for the dignity of all human beings and
bearing always in mind that only if we remain united, joining our hands and
voices, will we be able to face the manifold global challenges that are looming
over humanity at the dawn of a new era, the anthropocene, which calls for
audacious approaches and unprecedented responses.</span></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">The time for silence and
submission is over. The duty to remember and to take action: implementation of
the 2030 Agenda; immediate global agreement on the elimination of nuclear
weapons; regulation of trafficking and consumption of illegal drugs;
elimination of tax havens and plutocratic groups...; a new concept of
"human" security; promoting science and the advice of those having
the required expertise; reinforcing preventive measures, especially in the
field of health; ensuring the independence of justice; education for all
throughout life... in order to invent the future and, for the sake of our
boundless resilience, never again accept impositions, dogmatism, supremacism...
Every unique human being capable of creating, there lies our hope.</span></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">With Joe Biden and Kamala
Harris at the helm of the White House, we must be ready to reconsider many
assumptions in order “to change direction and embark on a new ship” as so
wisely advised by José Luis Sampedro to young people during the 15-M, something
we should keep in mind today. The first 100 days of governance leaded by
President Joe Biden and Vice-President Kamala Harris gives humanity the hope
that was absolutely indispensable to trigger popular action at world level.</span></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">The reinstatement of Rosa
Parks' image in the Oval Office is an excellent signal. With her generous and
audacious attitude, that humble seamstress inspired Martin Luther King and
triggered a huge mobilisation in favour of equal dignity.</span></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">At that time citizen
participation was limited and required an on-site presence. Today a huge
participation is possible in the cyberspace. Today, for the first time in history,
“the peoples” may participate and democracy can have a new dimension at a
global scale. “Free and responsible”, we must rise to the present
circumstances. We can, we must. It is essential to dare... so that the
generations that come within a step of ours do not utter those terrible words
of Albert Camus, which impressed me so much, and which I have repeated so
often: “We despise them because they could have done so much and dared so
little”.</span></p><p class="MsoPlainText" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoPlainText" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;"><a href="http://www.other-news.info/noticias/2021/02/con-joe-biden-y-kamala-harris-ahora-si-nosotros-los-pueblos/ "><span style="font-family: verdana;">Published in Other News</span></a></p>
<div style="mso-element: footnote-list;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><br clear="all" />
<hr align="left" size="1" width="33%" />
<!--[endif]-->
<div id="ftn1" style="mso-element: footnote;">
<p class="MsoFootnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Admin/AppData/Local/Microsoft/Windows/INetCache/Content.Outlook/96KZ66M4/Biden%20ES_EN.docx#_ftnref1" name="_ftn1" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn1;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span lang="EN-GB"><span style="mso-special-character: footnote;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 10.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[1]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></span></a><span lang="EN-GB" style="mso-ansi-language: ES;"> </span><span lang="EN-GB"><a href="https://declaraciondemocracia.wordpress.com/"><span lang="ES" style="mso-ansi-language: ES;">https://declaraciondemocracia.wordpress.com/</span></a></span><span style="mso-ansi-language: ES;"> ”Día 15 de septiembre, Día Internacional de la
Democracia”, blog 18 /09/2018 </span><span lang="EN-GB"><a href="http://federicomayor.blogspot.com/2018/09/dia-15-de-septiembre-dia-internacional.html"><span lang="ES" style="mso-ansi-language: ES;">http://federicomayor.blogspot.com/2018/09/dia-15-de-septiembre-dia-internacional.html</span></a></span><span style="mso-ansi-language: ES;"> , y “Nosotros, los pueblos-Adopción de una
Declaración Universal de la Democracia para entrar adecuadamente en la nueva
era”, 9/10/2018 </span><span lang="EN-GB"><a href="http://federicomayor.blogspot.com/2018/10/nosotros-los-pueblos.html"><span lang="ES" style="mso-ansi-language: ES;">http://federicomayor.blogspot.com/2018/10/nosotros-los-pueblos.html</span></a></span><span lang="EN-GB" style="mso-ansi-language: ES;"> </span><span style="mso-ansi-language: ES;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
</div>
</div>Federico Mayor Zaragozahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04180667018896947119noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5190975568185925153.post-38045324538744614552021-01-20T01:55:00.005-08:002021-01-20T01:55:58.245-08:002021, at last the peoples. The duty to remember and to take action<p> </p><p align="right" class="MsoPlainText" style="text-align: right;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 10.0pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“Everything is yet to be done
and everything is possible...</span></i><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 10.0pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span></i></p>
<p align="right" class="MsoPlainText" style="text-align: right;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 10.0pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But who shall do
it if not all of us?”</span></i><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 10.0pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span></i></p>
<p align="right" class="MsoPlainText" style="text-align: right;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 10.0pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Miquel Martí
i Pol</span></i><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 10.0pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span></i></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">The COVID-19 confinement has shed light on many
issues. It has been an enlightening experience. And now, it is our duty to
remember, it is essential not to forget. And we must realize that —since we can
now finally express ourselves freely, after remaining silent and submissive for
so many centuries— the time has come for us to participate, to listen and to reconcile,
to take action, to build a new future, to defeat the huge media power which
should be seen as a terrible “weapon of mass distraction”, using the fortunate
expression coined by Soledad Gallego. Now finally the voice of “the peoples”, who
are all —and this is a great step forward and a great opportunity— equal in
dignity, regardless of sex, ideology, religion, race... At last the voice of
the peoples will be heard and they will hold the reins of world governance in
their hands, releasing it from those of a few plutocratic groups
(G-6,G-7,G-8,G-20), who are themselves the slaves of large international
corporations,keeping an eye at a global scale on each one of us, controlling
us, determining our decisions... The same technological giants that have made
it possible for us to express ourselves freely now prevent us from doing so in
order to correct current gloomy trends.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">We must remain at all times
awake and diligent so that the post-COVID period has nothing to do with the
pre-COVID, so that the “new normality” is not the same one we had before. We
must read again and again, hear again and again the beautiful verses written by
Mario Benedetti in “When the Storm is over”, and brilliantly recited by Nacha
Guevara: “… And then we shall remember everything we lost / and we will once
and for all learn / everything we had not yet learned “. For the first time in
history we are facing global threats and some of them are potentially
irreversible. I know exactly what the terrible expression “there’s nothing left
to do”means, because in 1967 I started working with newborns on the early
detection of metabolic disorders which —if not treated on time— can have a big
impact on neuronal functioning and produce a serious an irremediable
disability. At first, we could only prevent half a dozen disorders. Later the
number of disorders was gradually increased and today —thanks to “the test of
the heel”— it is possible to prevent around 30 pathological diseases... And we
are trying to rely on genomics to further increase this quantity.</span></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">A large portion of funds
currently allocated to defending the territory should rather be invested in
health and, especially, in irreversible disorders... In the meanwhile the inhabitants
of these well-protected territories are lacking food, drinking water, quality
health services, educational means...</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: verdana; line-height: 150%;">I never tire of insisting
that it is morally intolerable to see everyday thousands of people die from
hunger, most of them boys and girls ranging from one to five years old, while
more than 4,000 million dollars are invested in weapons and military
expenditure. We have the moral obligation to build <u>a new concept of security</u>
allowing us, once and for all, to make the transition from the reason of power
to the power of reason, from the sinister adage "if you want peace, get
ready for war” to “if you want peace, get ready for speech”, mediation,
dialogue. Because peace is the reflection of our daily behaviour, of an
education allowing each of us to learn how to be “free and responsible” </span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: verdana; line-height: 150%;">̶</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: verdana; line-height: 150%;">as stated in article 1 of
UNESCO Constitution</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: verdana; line-height: 150%;">̶</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: verdana; line-height: 150%;"> and to fully exercise the
unique capacities of human beings: thinking, imagining, foreseeing, innovating…creating!
Each one of us capable of expressing our own opinions and refusing to follow
the dictates of someone else, to assume ideas based on fanaticism, dogmatism,
supremacism... We should <u>change ourselves</u>before entering into a new era where
it will be possible to put into practice the great formula that was prematurely
introduced by Franklin Delano Roosevelt at the end of the Second World War, and
which is mentioned at the beginning of the Charter of the United Nations: “We
the peoples... are determined to save future generations from the scourge of
war".</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">But at that time the General Assembly consisted only
of States... and there were five vetoes (from the victors of the war). The
great powers repeatedly ignored the warnings of scientists who advisedthem to
take care of the biosphere (UNESCO, since 1949: the limits of growth, Club of
Rome 1972; limiting CO2 and other greenhouse gasses emissions, as well as the
deterioration of</span><span style="font-family: verdana;"> </span><span style="font-family: verdana;">marine phytoplankton,
that is essential for their recapture, United States National Academy of
Sciences 1979; and the 21 Agenda, carefully drawn during the first Earth
Summit, Maurice Strong, Rio de Janeiro 1992; the excellent “worksheet” for the
transition to the Anthropocene represented b y the “Charter of the Earth”, 2000
and the 2nd Summit in Johannesburg, 2002)…</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"></p><div style="text-align: justify;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: verdana; line-height: 150%;">The neoliberal governance launched by Reagan at the end of the 1980s with the
G-6, further extended to G-7, G-8... and finally the G-20</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: verdana; line-height: 150%;">
̶</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: verdana; line-height: 150%;">as a result
of the 2008 financial crisis</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: verdana; line-height: 150%;"> ̶</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: verdana; line-height: 150%;"> gradually marginalized
multilateralism and focused all attention on the GDP, thus continually increasing
the social gap, consenting to and taking advantage of tax havens, postponing as
irremediable actions for the adequate handling of drug trafficking and
corruption... The “Great Dominion” (military, financial, energetic and media
powers) went so far as to disobey the Security Council, invading Iraq based on
assumptions and lies...</span></div><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">And then, after leaving aside once again the United
Nations, it addressed—in a way that was both self-serving and erratic- the
“Arab Spring”... And it was not until a democratic President, with the
qualities of Barack Obama, was elected in the United States that a period of
hope became possible with the approval of the Paris Agreements on Climate
Change and the United Nations Resolution "Transforming our world" that
led to theimplementation of the 2030 Agenda (Sustainable Development Goals)...</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">It lasted a very short period: only a few months had
passed when President Donald Trump proclaimed, shortly after his nomination,
that he would not carry out the agreements adopted by his predecessor. And
going even further in his anti-scientific attitude, he accelerated the
extraction of oil by the highly polluting procedure of "fracking".
Faced with all these unacceptable decisions and attitudes, the world remained
silent. And the European Union, that had so much to say and to argue, also
choose to say nothing. Every space was occupied by markets, every index, the GDP;
and the political decisions taken in Latin America and elsewhere were
conditioned by merchants, who also exploited the sources of raw materials of
any sort (fuel, lithium, coltan...), while overtly or secretly privatizing
essential public services, and dealing with what should have never become a
marketable good.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: verdana; line-height: 150%;">In the global maelstrom of neoliberalism, everything
had been forgotten... and a good portion of the citizenship had been abducted</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: verdana; line-height: 150%;">̶</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: verdana; line-height: 150%;">especially by social
networks</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: verdana; line-height: 150%;">̶</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: verdana; line-height: 150%;">and was involved in a consumption contest, remaining
absent-minded and receiving just a few warnings whose impact rapidly decreased,
and which alerted them about the situation of migrants drowned in the
Mediterranean or abandoned to their fate in ignominious concentration camps...
or about queues formed in their own "rich" cities by those who were lacking everything, even a
roof over their heads... or about the worn out democracies that allowed the
most diverse forms of fanaticism, xenophobia...</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">And then the coronaviruscame.
And what could have been another epidemic in the long and rich history of
humanity became a pandemic due to the huge mobility of world citizens... to the
point that countries such as Spain hadalready become in a great extent recipients
of tourists... relocating a considerable amount of their own production and
paying attention only to the stock market index. And Regional Unions were inefficient
and irrelevant, when they were most needed in the global playing field. The
European Union itself had already become a simple monetary union, unsupportive
and precariously democratic (decisions must be taken unanimously!and unanimity
is the opposite of democracy)... In the opening sessions of the UN, only two
European States —France and Spain— were in favour of unambiguous
multilateralism...</span></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">During confinement, the
“peoples” were able to reflect about and assess what they already had and what
they were willing to have... And realize what really matters... They finally
had the serenity they needed to be able to discern what is essential. And to be
able to act with nerve, without ties and, above all, without passions and
constraints that can lead to contempt towards“others”. And also citizens forced
to stay at home asked themselves, among many other things, how anyone could
tolerate that justice be delivered by judges who are clearly biased in favour
of one ideology or another... How can it be —they wondered— that in countries such
asUS or Spain citizens naturally speak of “conservative” or “progressive”
judges when justice should be a reference of impartiality and independence?</span></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Yes, many people have become
aware of the “globalisation of ignorance and poverty” they are immersed in,
thus becoming impassive spectators instead of “active players”. In January 2021
a high percentage of people</span><a name="_GoBack" style="font-family: verdana;"></a><span style="font-family: verdana;"> have already become aware of
the fact that, for the first time, they have a voice. And they may now promote
big clamours either personally or through the cyberspace so that “the peoples”
themselves “resolve to spare future generations the horror" of
deterioration in the quality of life on Earth, of disaffection, of fanaticism,
of animosity... And they can value the countless good things that computer
technology has made possible, and take special care so that
"artificial" intelligence is always at the service of human
intelligence, of which it is the fruit, and not the other way round.</span></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">It
is the voice of the peoples and the duty of memory that shall allow us to start
together a new era. Knowing that each human being is capable to foresee —and to
create!— it is now possible to invent the future. The solution lies in the
capacity to spot sparks of light, in perseverance, in never giving up.</span><span style="font-family: verdana;"> </span><span style="font-family: verdana;">During my life I’ve always tried not to
forget the cry of a young Italian who said “</span><i style="font-family: verdana;">Presidente,
non si renda</i><span style="font-family: verdana;">!” at the end of a meeting I was chairing in Rome in the early
21st Centuryon the right to food. Everyone voted in favour..., except the
representatives of President Bush Jr. The same thing had happened with Bush Sr.
during the Convention on the Human Rights of the Child. United States was the
only country that refused to acknowledge the supreme value of each child. As
long as the US maintains its hegemony, the nuclear threat will not be eliminated
and billions will continue to be invested daily in weapons and military
expenditure. And there will continue to be no funds for endogenous development,
for healthcare aimed at ensuring a dignified life. And no funds to help
scientists design the new future that is yet to be done.</span></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">The voice of the peoples
actively participating in multilateral governance will be heard, and action
will be taken, as per the 2030 Agenda, to “change direction and embark on a new
ship” asJosé Luis Sampedro advised young people to do during the 15-M.</span></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">“A change of track is
needed”, said recently Edgar Morin, who is about to turn 100 years old. A
change of track and a change of lifestyle. How wonderful it would be if this
were the offspring of the COVID-19!</span></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Now we know that it’s possible because, as Maria Novo tells us in her verses:<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><i> “We have learned the value of reflection
and time. / Let us now use them to weave peace every day”.</i></span></span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 150%; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoPlainText" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><a href="http://www.other-news.info/noticias/2021/01/2021-por-fin-los-pueblos-deber-de-memoria-y-de-accion/" target="_blank">Published in Other News</a></span></span></p>Federico Mayor Zaragozahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04180667018896947119noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5190975568185925153.post-1937471897458779702020-11-20T10:19:00.001-08:002020-11-20T10:19:02.892-08:00Global Governance is at risk : the time has come to implement at once a democratic multilateralism<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="background: white; line-height: 150%;">Today, at last, everyone is aware
that it cannot be tolerated any longer that the common fate of humanity be
placed in the hands of the hegemony of the United States, which has been
preserved at all costs by the Republican Party.</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="background: white; line-height: 150%;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;"><span style="background-color: white; font-family: verdana;">Everything has been based up to now
on the reason of force. On investing thousands of millions on huge arsenals and
military bases. United States still has nuclear arsenals: I myself closely
followed -in October 1986- the proposal to totally eliminate warheads made by
President Mikhail Gorbachev to President Reagan in Reykjavik.</span><span style="background-color: white; font-family: verdana;"> </span><span style="background-color: white; font-family: verdana;">Only the reduction of nuclear weapons was
approved.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="background: white; font-family: verdana; line-height: 150%;">Despite being the country on Earth
that has more and better qualified scientists, the United States stands against
all arguments and recommendations made by specialists on irreversible climate
change, who say that -if the appropriate measures are not taken- the Earth’s
habitability will suffer an irreparable damage, something that would be a
historical error (and horror), as well as an affront to future generations.
There was a short period for hope when -thanks to President Barack Obama- the
Paris Agreements were signed in the Autumn of 2015 in order to avoid an
ecological disaster and, shortly afterwards, the General Assembly of the United
Nations adopted the Resolution on the 2030 Agenda and the SDGs “For
transforming our World”. It then seemed still possible to redirect the
situation created by neoliberalism -</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="background: white; font-family: verdana; line-height: 150%;">w</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="background: white; font-family: verdana; line-height: 150%;">hich had
rejected control by the United Nations and had entrusted world governance to
oligarchic and plutocratic groups G6, G7, G8, G20... (globally G1!)- and, after
joining forces with the "great powers" (military, financial, IT,
media, energy), it had pushed the world into an ethical, social, ecological and
economic disaster.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;"><span style="background-color: white; font-family: verdana;">Thinking about all this during the
COVID-19 confinement... about immigrants and refugees... the inability to cope
with natural disasters (fire, floods, earthquakes...)... human trafficking,
drugs... harassment perpetrated by powerful media placed under the control of
“their master’s voice”... the resurgence of fanaticism, supremacism,
dogmatism... the globalization of indifference and ignorance... an economy
based on speculation, relocation of production and war (I must once more insist
on the thousands of people -most of them girls and boys aged one to five- who
are dying from hunger each day, while more than 4,000 million dollars are
invested in weapons and military expenditure)... the democratic disaster we
have witnessed during the United States elections... and the European Union
where decisions must be unanimously adopted (!)... we become aware of the duty
we have to remember, as well as of our essential duties towards future
generations that compel us to promote through great popular clamours (now that
we have no excuse because “We, the peoples” </span><u style="font-family: verdana;">have our own voice</u><span style="background-color: white; font-family: verdana;"> and are
equal in dignity) the transition that cannot be further postponed from a
culture based on domination, imposition and war to a culture of encounter,
dialogue, conciliation, alliance and peace, from the reason of power to the
power of reason, from authoritarianism to a genuine democracy.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;"><span style="background-color: white; font-family: verdana;">Yes: the time has finally</span><span style="background-color: white; font-family: verdana;"> </span><span style="background-color: white; font-family: verdana;">come for a peaceful though firm rebellion of
all countries that are part of and are involved in democratic multilateralism;
the time has come for a renewed system of the United Nations that must have at
its disposal the adequate personnel, technical, financial and defence
resources.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;"><span style="background-color: white; font-family: verdana;">The duty to remember and to take
action.</span><span style="background-color: white; font-family: verdana;"> </span><span style="background-color: white; font-family: verdana;">As early as in 1919 the United
States Republican Party prevented the League of Nations, set up by President W.
Wilson, from having an adequate support... thus giving rise to the emergence in
a few countries in Europe (Germany and Italy) and Asia (Japan) of movements
such as the Nazi, Fascist parties and the Empire of the Rising Sun that led to
the Second World War.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;"><span style="background-color: white; font-family: verdana;">When this was over, it was the turn
of the “Cold War” between superpowers, with unacceptable operations aimed at
gaining political control such as the “Operation Condor” in Latin America with
thousands and thousands of victims... And, when the Soviet Union became, thanks
to the work and grace of Mikhail Gorbachev, a Community of Independent States,
and this gave a new opportunity to Roosevelt’s multilateral scheme, President
Reagan -backed by Prime Minister Thatcher- invented the G6, and in 1989 the
“Republican” United States did not endorse the Convention on the Rights of
Children put forward by UNICEF ( (as of today it is the only country not to
have signed it)... and the International Trade Organisation was created outside
the frame of the United Nations. Over the past four years, United States has
again withdrawn from UNESCO, together with Israel, and only three months ago it
stepped back from the World Health Organisation... and again, on November 3rd,
coinciding with the last presidential elections, it also withdrew from the
Paris Agreements on Climate Change....</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;"><span style="background-color: white; font-family: verdana;">The current European leadership has
not been able to counteract President Trump’s relentless arbitrary
actions.</span><span style="background-color: white; font-family: verdana;"> </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;"><span style="background-color: white; font-family: verdana;">Wherever you look at, people are
crying out for a joint, effective and urgent effort in the face of global
threats -most of which are irreversible- that currently represent a big menace
and which it is our supreme duty to tackle in a firm and rigorous way.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;"><span style="background-color: white; font-family: verdana;">There is only one solution:
democratic multilateralism, the union of all peoples, fully responsible
citizens who are no longer mere spectators and finally take action.</span><span style="font-family: verdana;"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><a href="http://www.other-news.info/noticias/2020/11/la-gobernanza-mundial-esta-en-peligro-ahora-si-sin-demora-multilateralismo-democratico/ " target="_blank">Publicado en Other News</a></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;"><br /></p>Federico Mayor Zaragozahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04180667018896947119noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5190975568185925153.post-50963299024543652232020-09-11T01:59:00.006-07:002020-09-11T02:05:00.606-07:00Less bombs, more fire brigades<div style="text-align: left;"><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">It has now become clear and well acknowledged, thanks
to the COVID-19, that if we pay attention solely to the GDP, as advocated by
the neoliberal approach, that is, to economic growth at the expense of human
development, we will not have at our disposal the human, technical and
financial resources to be able to deal with pandemics, fires and other natural
disasters, to extreme poverty... and yet we continue to invest huge amounts on
military activities and the production and stockpiling of weapons, without questioning
the perverse proverb, which we have repeated since the beginning of time:
"if you want peace, prepare for war". There are still arsenals
crammed with bombs and garrisons of soldiers, while an increasing number of
forests are devastated by fire, and there are not enough fire brigades and
technical personnel to foresee and to fight fire efficiently…<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Multiple anachronistic parades and missions to Mars
and the Moon are still being organized -with space excursions for super
millionaires included- at a time when "missions to Earth" as well as
lack of solidarity, immigrants and refugees call for urgent solutions. I never
tire of insisting that it is ethically intolerable to see everyday thousands of
people dying from hunger, most of them boys and girls ranging from one to five
years old, while more than 4 billion dollars are invested in defence.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">The COVID has given us the opportunity to reflect, to
become aware of a lot of things that are considered in “normal life” as
inescapable, and to see that the vast majority of citizens are not actors but
rather mere spectators of what is happening, stunned and abducted by the media,
most of which try to encourage citizens to follow the guidelines of publicity
and to pay for a consumption and “well-being” that have both been designed at
the highest levels of economic power.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Since quite some time now we have been rejecting very
sensible proposals urging us to redirect the ongoing trends that have forced us
to accept a plutocratic governance and an absolute hegemonic dominance, thus
giving rise to a two-pole situation with omnipotent and omnipresent giants
(digital companies, in particular) at one end and, at the other, the
marginalized, whose number has progressively increased as has the extent of the
social gap. But now the radical changes, that have been avoided so many times,
have become most urgent than ever because, for the first time in history,
mankind is facing potentially </span><u style="font-family: verdana;">irreversible </u><span style="font-family: verdana;">processes -such as the melting
of the Arctic Ocean- and today the possibility exists of reaching in just a few
years points of no return in the habitability of the Earth.</span><span style="font-family: verdana;"> </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Already in 1947 the UNESCO created the International
Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN) as well as a series of
international programmes (geological, hydrological and oceanographic) whose aim
was to give consistency to scientifically proved measures that could
efficiently tackle these phenomena. The great UNESCO’s program “Man and the
Biosphere” was very soon supplemented in 1972 by the first publication of
Aurelio Peccei, at the Club of Rome, entitled "The Limits to Growth".
In 1979, the United States National Academy of Sciences informed that carbon
dioxide emissions had not only experienced an increase but the oceans re-uptake
capacity was also significantly decreasing (deterioration of the
phytoplankton). This clear warning was not only ignored, but large oil
companies -Exxon Mobile- created foundations that were immediately supported by
Gulf countries with the evil purpose of spreading adverse messages. <o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">In year 1972 the Summit of the Earth was held in Rio
de Janeiro under the auspices of the UN and the smart and enthusiastic
direction of Maurice Strong. The Earth Agenda -wisely reflected in the
excellent "Earth Charter", presented at the dawn of the century and
of the millennium as a major reference for the Earth- was progressively
marginalized, as were the Millennium Development Goals for years 2000 to 2015
by precisely those who had entrusted governance on a global scale to oligarchic
and plutocratic groups. First to the G6 at the late 1980s. Then to the G7, the
G8... and the G20 in 2008 on the occasion of the financial crisis... As always
the Republican Party of the United States rejected democratic multilateralism
and favoured USA power, including nuclear weapons. During the "cold
war", the global fight for power between the United States and the Soviet
Union allowed to "justify" the nuclear threat at a global level and
the possession of the most destructive war devices. However -I had the opportunity
to follow very closely the meeting between President Reagan and President
Gorbachev in Reykjavik in October 1986- the unexpected and historic conversion
of the USSR into a Commonwealth of Independent States did neither dispel the
misgivings of United States nor allow the total elimination of nuclear weapons
and the effective functioning of a democratic multilateralism, which is more
necessary than ever.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">President Barack Obama managed not only to ease global
tensions such as the relationship with Islam, etc., but also to get the United
States to sign in 2015 the Paris Agreements on Climate Change and the United
Nations Resolution "Transforming our world" by means of the 2030
Agenda and its 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">This was a period of hope... that quickly came to an
end when, shortly after becoming President of the United Nations, Donald Trump
unambiguously announced that he would not implement neither the Paris
Agreements nor the SDGs, while giving further impetus to a neoliberal economy
based on speculation, production offshoring and war, thus rendering totally
ineffective the excellent Lisbon proposal of year 2000 which promoted a
knowledge-based economy for sustainable and humane development.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">The confinement imposed upon us by the COVID-19 may at
last redirect the political drift on a global scale, and therefore satisfy the
aspirations of so many citizens who are convinced that it is now possible to
invent a different future that will prevent us from reaching points of no
return, that will put an end to the extremely dangerous outbreaks of
supremacism, dogmatism and fanaticism that have emerged everywhere, without taking
into account the tragic consequences that such a behaviour had in the germination
of the Second World War.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Now that citizens have at last the capacity to express
themselves freely, to know what is happening elsewhere, to take action on a
totally equal footing without any discrimination based on gender, ethnicity,
ideology, belief, sexual sensitivity, lineage... it shall be incumbent on “We,
the peoples” -as we are so wisely and prematurely referred to at the beginning
of the Charter of the United Nations- to make the decision to participate, to
be co-responsible for the global governance.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">I do understand how discouraged many can feel when
they realize that actions taken to trigger the most urgent changes have do
quickly fallen into oblivion and have been inadvertently submitted to “the
lumbering pace of so much weary blood”, as accurately set forth by the poet
Miquel Martí i Pol (1974).</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Only an efficient democratic multilateralism -coupled
with a worldwide citizenry who has had the opportunity, during the pandemic, to
think about itself and about future generations, and is willing to act as a
whole- can achieve the eradication of tax havens, of the various and abhorrent
forms of trafficking, and of any behaviour that is not worthy of human dignity.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">All of this is part of a new concept of security that
concerns not only territories and borders, but also citizens who live in them,
ensuring access of everyone to the six priorities of the United Nations: food,
water, health services, protection of the environment, education for all
throughout life and peace.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">We must enter a new era. And this new era must be
built on completely different pillars. Not with more bombs. But rather with
much more fire brigades, with people trained to deal with the different
features of the new world we have longed for, knowing that it is at last the
responsibility of each of us to shape the future.</span></p></div><p><a href="https://wsimag.com/economy-and-politics/63233-less-bombs-more-fire-brigades" target="_blank">Published in Wall Street International, 31 August 2020</a> </p>
Federico Mayor Zaragozahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04180667018896947119noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5190975568185925153.post-81838980019877726882020-08-25T01:10:00.007-07:002020-08-25T01:15:38.439-07:00In the 75th anniversary of the United Nations: radical and urgent reforms for the governance of a new era<p style="text-align: right;"> <i style="text-align: right;"><span lang="">“Let
us explore what problems unite us instead of belabouring the problems which
divide us.”</span></i></p>
<p align="right" class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-align: right;"><i><span lang="">John
F. Kennedy, January 1961.<o:p></o:p></span></i></p>
<p align="right" class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-align: right;"><i><span lang="">“The
word “impossible” no longer exists in our vocabulary”<o:p></o:p></span></i></p>
<p align="right" class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-align: right;"><i><span lang="">Adolfo
Suárez, October 1976.<o:p></o:p></span></i></p>
<p align="right" class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-align: right;"><i><span lang="" style="line-height: 150%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></i></p>
<p class="MsoListParagraph" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: 0cm; mso-add-space: auto; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-align: justify; text-indent: -18pt;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span lang="" style="line-height: 150%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">1.<span style="font: 7pt "times new roman";"> </span><span style="font-family: verdana; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span></span></span><span style="font-family: verdana;"><u><span lang="" style="line-height: 150%;">Introduction.</span></u><span lang="" style="line-height: 150%;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><span>I feel impelled to insist once again on the urgent transition we must
make from a culture of imposition, domination, violence and war to a culture of
encounter, reconciliation, alliance and peace. This is the main objective of
the United Nations since its foundation in October 1945. If we rescue from
oblivion the great project that President Roosevelt had on his mind when he
established the United Nations System, 75 years ago, the premature and
brilliant idea of “We, the peoples” —set forward at the beginning of the
Charter of the UN— could finally come true. The United Nations have been
gradually set aside by neoliberalism and, therefore, it is now urgent to call
for an Extraordinary Meeting of the UN General Assembly in order to implement,
with the participation of </span><i>all</i><span>
countries, a new concept of security and a set of measures allowing us to
tackle, </span><i>before it is too late</i><span>, the
main global challenges, that is: environmental damage, nuclear threat,
pandemics, supremacism of any sort, the growing social gap, the plutocratic
governance... So that all human beings are equal in dignity and have the right
to fully exercise their unique capacities.</span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><span>UNESCO will also play, as it already did when it was founded in 1945, a
leading role in the new “take-off” of the United Nations System. The “voice of
the peoples” —that can now be heard and can no longer be ignored— will give
rise to radical changes preventing us from reaching points of no return. A </span><i>democratic multilateralism</i><span> is urgently
needed and it was a big mistake to replace United Nations by plutocratic groups
(G6, G7, G8, G20), and ethical values by market values.</span><span> </span><span>Every day thousands of people (most of them
boys and girls from one to five years old) are dying from hunger while 4,000
thousand dollars are being invested in weapons and military expenses. The human
tragedy of migration flows forced by extreme poverty is the result of the
dramatic decline in development funding. The decrease of international
solidarity is another big challenge that must be addressed without delay.</span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><span lang="" style="line-height: 150%; text-indent: -18pt;">2.<span style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span></span><u style="text-indent: -18pt;"><span lang="" style="line-height: 150%;">From force to word.</span></u></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><span>The voice of the peoples must be heard, the great popular clamours asking
for a transition from force to word, from the sinister adage “si vis pacem,
para bellum” to “si vis pacem para </span><i>verbum”</i><span>. Citizens will cease to be
impassive spectators and shall become actors mobilized by the academic,
scientific, artistic communities —in short, by intellectuals— who are aware of
the seriousness of the current situation and trends, and who should take the
lead in the face of a global situation of humanitarian emergency. But the
multidimensional tangle created by the neoliberal drift and the autocratic governance
has so far prevented –although some very recent upturns may have a significant impact
in this regard— the implementation of measures that filled with great hope —in
the fall of 2015— those who were aware of the nature of global threats posed by
a world placed in the hands of irresponsible leaders. In fact, the Resolution
of 21 October 2015 of the United Nations General Assembly, setting out the 2030
Agenda with 17 </span><u>Sustainable Development Goals</u><span>, was entitled
"Transforming our world"”</span><a href="file:///C:/Users/Admin/AppData/Local/Microsoft/Windows/INetCache/Content.Outlook/4C52P5R0/ANUARIO%20CEIPAZ%202019-2020%20TRAD%20ES_EN.docx#_ftn1" name="_ftnref1" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span face="" lang="" style="line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[1]</span></span></span></a><span>..
And immediately afterwards the </span><u>Paris Agreements on Climate Change</u><span> were
signed in the firm belief that, if we bear in mind our descendants, we should
understand how urgent it is to take action without delay.</span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><span>The text of the Charter of the United Nations clearly demonstrates the
intellectual and human quality of those who wrote it. As I’ve already
mentioned, the first sentence of the Charter is an intergenerational commitment
that has become particularly meaningful today: “We the peoples... are
determined to save succeeding generations from the scourge of war". At
that time —and since the dawn of time— absolute power was in the hands of a few
men. The rest of men and women were submissive, frightened, silent, and
obedient. Until a few decades ago the vast majority of human beings were born,
lived and died in a few square kilometres. They were intellectually and
territorially confined. And women —”the cornerstone of the new era”, as stated
by President Nelson Mandela in Pretoria in 1996— did not take part in decision
making... Now, at last, they have a voice.</span><span>
</span><span>Word at last.</span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><span lang="" style="line-height: 150%; text-indent: -18pt;">3.<span style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span></span><u style="text-indent: -18pt;"><span lang="" style="line-height: 150%;">Culture of Peace and equal
dignity. “I participate, therefore I exist”.</span></u></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><span>The </span><i>Declaration and Programme of
Action on a Culture of Peace</i><span>, approved by the UN General Assembly on 13
September 1999</span><a href="file:///C:/Users/Admin/AppData/Local/Microsoft/Windows/INetCache/Content.Outlook/4C52P5R0/ANUARIO%20CEIPAZ%202019-2020%20TRAD%20ES_EN.docx#_ftn2" name="_ftnref2" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span face="" lang="" style="line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[2]</span></span></span></a><span>
includes several education measures, actions aimed at promoting the awareness
and exercise of human rights, gender equality, freedom of speech, a sustainable
development... This was the best way to celebrate the 55th anniversary of the
United Nations and UNESCO whose main role is “building the defences of peace”.</span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><span>In 1995, on the occasion of its 50th anniversary, UNESCO participated
very actively in the Beijing World Conference on Women, it also promoted and
contributed to the holding of the World Summit for Social Development in
Copenhagen; and its General Conference unanimously adopted the “Declaration on
Tolerance”</span><a href="file:///C:/Users/Admin/AppData/Local/Microsoft/Windows/INetCache/Content.Outlook/4C52P5R0/ANUARIO%20CEIPAZ%202019-2020%20TRAD%20ES_EN.docx#_ftn3" name="_ftnref3" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span face="" lang="" style="line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[3]</span></span></span></a><span>,
whose first article sets forth with great foresight the everlasting foundations
allowing all human beings —who are all different from each other and,
therefore, unique and who are tied by the “democratic principles” set forth by
the Constitution of UNESCO— to live in peace, both as individuals and
collectivities. All human beings equal in dignity: this is the key... Herein lies
the challenge!</span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Now we may express ourselves freely thanks to the modern digital
technology, we are no longer passive witnesses but have become full citizens
who participate and stand up firmly and efficiently for our opinions, instead
of being distracted, misinformed individuals, who are manipulated by the
omnipotent and omnipresent influence of the “great powers” (military,
financial, energetic, media).</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><span>Now individuals can </span><i>participate,
this being the foundation of democracy</i><span>. They know what is happening at a
planetary scale... And they have become citizens of the world. And women, with
their inherent qualities, are on the stage. They are at last on the political
stage. They have gradually reached equality... One of the main foundations of
peace is distributive justice, </span><i>sharing
more fairly</i><span>. The new technologies imply a greater exposure to “distracting”
news, which account to a great extent for the “shame” of the “globalisation of
indifference” mentioned by Pope Francis.</span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><span>Restating the words of Descartes, I like to say the following: “I
participate, therefore I exist”.</span><span> </span><span>If I
don’t participate, I don’t exist as a citizen. People are counted (in
elections, in opinion polls) but they are not taken into account. To say what
should be said, to participate, to help building sound democracies, we must
have access to an education whose aim is to promote daily attitudes and
behaviours of conciliation, understanding, listening.</span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">We are lacking of too many things —said Blas de Otero—, but we can still
resort on word. Today at last the voice of each and everyone. Today at last a
great clamour is possible. Today at last, when we are urged by situations such
as the ongoing coronavirus epidemics and the bad omens for the Earth’s habitability,
we will be taken into account. The time is about to come to build together the
defences of peace —as we were entrusted to do by the Constitution of the UNESCO—
based on justice, on the equal dignity of all human beings, on freedom of
expression, “on the capacity of each individual to lead his own life” as so
precisely and beautifully said by Francisco Giner de los Ríos.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><span lang="" style="line-height: 150%; text-indent: -18pt;">4.<span style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span></span><u style="text-indent: -18pt;"><span lang="" style="line-height: 150%;">“Democratic principles”</span></u></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">The preamble of the UNESCO Constitution states that humanity must be
guided by the "democratic principles of justice, liberty, equality and
solidarity". And it clarifies that what is needed is an “intellectual and
moral solidarity" because an intellectual approach based on knowledge is
not enough, it must inevitably be paired with some ethical references. From now
on, those who govern us must have firmly established in their conscience and perspective
the equal dignity of all human beings. And now that all citizens can express
themselves freely, they must never again tolerate the ethical collapse produced
by an unequal and anachronistic system that continues to produce great social
pain. In both cases, knowledge (instead of unverified information) and education
(instead of training) are the key requirements. It is essential to have a sound
knowledge of the present situation because nothing can be deeply transformed
without an in depth insight into it. In whose hands has power really been
placed? And what about energy sources? To whom do large extensions of land
belong? What about the big media? And the huge industrial/armament consortium?</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><span>Recently the world has taken a sharp “turn” in many areas: demographics;
the social gap; pandemics; new “actors” on the world stage: large multinational
private corporations and media magnates at a global and continental scale;
domestic conflicts that should require some action from United Nations —and </span><i>only</i><span> from United Nations— in the event
of genocide, massive human rights violation or the absence of government...</span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-align: justify;"><span lang="" style="font-family: verdana; line-height: 150%;">Today it has become clear —and therein lies some expectation of change, albeit
tenuous— that it will not be possible to straighten out current gloomy trends
if present continues to prevail over future, force over word, economy over
politics, arbitrariness over the voice of the citizens.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The other world we long for will not come
true unless we establish a <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">new social
contract</i> (allowing to immediately tackle the problems of hunger, AIDS,
dengue fever, malaria... those "silent wars” that kill thousands of human
beings every day); a <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">new environmental
contract</i> (with “alliances” enabling us to gather in just a few hours the
technical and specialized human resources from several neighbouring countries
that are needed to deal with natural disasters such as forest fires, pests,
floods, etc. or man-made disasters such as the washing out of waste produced by
“cracks” in offshore oil tankers); and <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">new
cultural and ethical contracts<a href="file:///C:/Users/Admin/AppData/Local/Microsoft/Windows/INetCache/Content.Outlook/4C52P5R0/ANUARIO%20CEIPAZ%202019-2020%20TRAD%20ES_EN.docx#_ftn4" name="_ftnref4" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn4;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="mso-bidi-font-style: italic;"><span style="mso-special-character: footnote;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span face="" lang="" style="line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[4]</span></b></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></span></a></i>.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><span>Let’s not fool ourselves: the reform we need isn’t just a “technical”
issue. It will have to be based on </span><i>democratic
principles</i><span>. This is the only way to succeed in transforming fear, pain and
indignation into an individual action, the daily decision to strengthen
democracy through citizenship participation, understanding, dialogue and an
attitude of permanent search, with the confidence based on our capacity to
think, to anticipate, to innovate and to create that are unique to mankind.</span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><span>With their best will, some citizens offer a helping hand to those most in
need. This is great and it should happen more often. But what we need is </span><i>global politics regulated by United Nations</i><span>,
because what the poorest expect from us —and deserve— is justice, to be counted
and to be taken into account.</span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><span>Only a strong and well coordinated System of the United Nations can guarantee
the security of peace in every country. The peace of security is equal to
silence, fear, suspicion and distrust. To achieve the security of peace, it is
essential to place the best armies under the blue flag of United Nations,
whenever a military action is unavoidable. And to have available the most
advanced intelligence services so that compliance with international laws can
be ensured with the most sophisticated punitive mechanisms. To ensure that all
agencies of the UN System are fulfilling their original mission; that they lend
an ear to the peoples; that they receive the best counselling to be able to
foresee, to prevent. This would be an extraordinarily important step in the
history of mankind; and of the democratic United States of America. It would
mean that the dream of Presidents Wilson and Roosevelt has been fulfilled. And,
more importantly, the dream of billions of human beings</span><a href="file:///C:/Users/Admin/AppData/Local/Microsoft/Windows/INetCache/Content.Outlook/4C52P5R0/ANUARIO%20CEIPAZ%202019-2020%20TRAD%20ES_EN.docx#_ftn5" name="_ftnref5" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span face="" lang="" style="line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[5]</span></span></span></a><span>.</span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><span lang="" style="line-height: 150%; text-indent: -18pt;">5.<span style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span></span><u style="text-indent: -18pt;"><span lang="" style="line-height: 150%;">A duty of memory</span></u></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">It is essential to apply on time the lessons from the past. To remember
after the storm what could have been done and was not. The scientific community
has in this respect an irreplaceable role to play to ensure that appropriate
measures are timely taken to deal with global ecological, health and nutrition
threats... We have today the pressing and unavoidable duty to stop the gradual
deterioration of ecological conditions, the quality of life on Earth.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><span>We are facing a situation that allows no deferment or shortcuts. UNESCO
has played a very important and somehow visionary role, In 1947 UNESCO created
the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN) and it later
launched the Geological, Hydrological, Oceanographic Plans...the great
programme “Man and the Biosphere”...; In 1972 Aurelio Peccei, founder of the
Club of Rome, warned about the “limits of growth”; and in 1979 United States
National Academy of Sciences informed that carbon dioxide and other greenhouse
gasses emissions had not only experienced a dangerous increase but —what was
even worst— the oceans recapture capacity was significantly decreasing... The
most serious issue today is </span><i>the
trivialisation of the irreversibility of processes that can cause an
irretrievable deterioration of conditions which are essential for a normal life</i><span>.</span><i><span lang="" style="line-height: 150%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></i></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-align: justify;"><span lang="" style="font-family: verdana; line-height: 150%;">“Commit yourselves!” was the final message from Stephan Hessel. “You will
have to change direction and embark on a new ship”, added José Luis Sampedro.
Well, the time has finally come for young people to raise their voices and to
participate. In demonstrations, but specially though their proposals. There are
reasons for hope because everything seems to indicate that these radical
changes are beginning to take hold among young people. The time has come for
solutions. There’s no need for further diagnoses...<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">The time has come to lend an ear to scientists, to trust them and take
the urgent measures that any potentially irreversible process requires. Using
electric cars and renewable sources of energy, reducing the huge military
expenses and reassigning them in caring for the Earth and in the big priorities
mentioned above that are typical of a sustainable and humane global
development.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">A duty of memory. The time has come to look ahead. To look into the eyes
of boys and girls, and be ready to take firm action and never give up. I often
quote Eduardo Galeano’s account of a school trip: while getting off the bus, a
girl, who sees the sea for the first time, pulls up her teacher's skirt and
says: “Help me see!" Helping each other to look at the children and
teenagers so that they become our source of inspiration, the constant reference
of our daily behaviour.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><span>We are currently facing a coronavirus pandemics —COVID-19— and we should
not forget the many lessons this global crisis has taught us</span><a href="file:///C:/Users/Admin/AppData/Local/Microsoft/Windows/INetCache/Content.Outlook/4C52P5R0/ANUARIO%20CEIPAZ%202019-2020%20TRAD%20ES_EN.docx#_ftn6" name="_ftnref6" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span face="" lang="" style="line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[6]</span></span></span></a><span>.
When the world still remains "confined"... dispositions are already
being taken to see that, in a situation where so many things should change,
nothing changes. Health is the most important asset, and both its treatment and
prevention aspects should be taken into account, always dealing with them with
the highest professional expertise, and leaving aside any other consideration.
Because health is a universal right. Big progress has been achieved in medical
science, but just a small portion has been shared. The big challenge is being
able to share and enlarge knowledge.</span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Gradually, epidemics —which have always existed and will continue to
exist— will become very serious pandemics because “human mobility” will keep on
growing. Until some decades ago, their propagation was very scarce because the
vast majority of mankind was confined to small spaces and the transmission of
disease outside its borders was unlikely...</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">In the “Letter to the G20” that has just been signed by “world leaders as
a response to the global coronavirus crisis”, the measures agreed upon are
exactly the same as those implemented to tackle the 2008 financial crisis, that
is, the same measures which led to the present situation and proved that
markets cannot solve global challenges. To be able to cope with global threats,
a proportionate response from “We, the peoples” is needed. Only a democratic
multilateralism —and not the plutocracy that represents the power of one sole
country— will allow us to rise to the occasion. The letter should have been
addressed to United Nations to reinvigorate the multilateralism and not to its
main opponent. It’s clear that if progress continues to be confused with the
GDP, there will be no heaven left for human beings, except tax heavens.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><span>Healthcare must be comprehensive and available for everyone. The time for
passivity and fear is over, and we must proclaim loud and firmly that society
will not make any concession when it comes to issues on which many times life
itself depends</span><a href="file:///C:/Users/Admin/AppData/Local/Microsoft/Windows/INetCache/Content.Outlook/4C52P5R0/ANUARIO%20CEIPAZ%202019-2020%20TRAD%20ES_EN.docx#_ftn7" name="_ftnref7" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span face="" lang="" style="line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[7]</span></span></span></a><span>.</span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">We are at a turning point. We must all speak out in order to build the
real democracies that are required at a local and global scale. The growing
social inequalities, the environmental deterioration, the cultural, conceptual
and moral debacle... all call for a radical change in current trends. There are
times when we have to use our imagination and courage to make come true what
seems wrongful to those who are stuck in inertia and still intend to use old
remedies for new pathologies. Every good ruler should pay attention, in the
first place, to processes that can lead to irretrievable damage.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><span>It is an essential issue. </span><i>The
awareness about intergenerational solidarity.</i><span> Millions of women and men all
over the Planet must make it clear that they will not tolerate any irreversible
damage to our ecological environment. The future is still to be done. Every
unique human being capable of creating, there lies our hope.</span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><span lang="" style="line-height: 150%; text-indent: -18pt;">6.<span style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span></span><u style="text-indent: -18pt;"><span lang="" style="line-height: 150%;">Efficient multilateralism:
this is the solution.</span></u></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Because I have a deep knowledge of potentially irreversible processes —in
1968, I decided to put in place the detection and treatment of metabolic
disorders responsible for severe neural deterioration— I already warned some
time ago which were going to be the big challenges humanity would have to face
and I mentioned that they would only be solved with a democratic
multilateralism allowing us to start a new era where the power of reason will
prevail against the power of force, and weapons shall be replaced by words,
thus allowing us to assume our unavoidable intergenerational responsibilities
at a global scale.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><span>The present time calls for our intergenerational solidarity. It is
essential to reach every agreement required to prevent us from reaching points
of no return and, thus, from making an inconceivable historical mistake.
President Obama urged prompt action when he said: “We are the first generation
confronted with this challenge —the climate change— and the last one that can
cope with it”. And Pope Francis stated, in his Enciclical </span><i>“Laudatio Si” </i><span>about
the ecological situation: “we must take action because tomorrow might be too
late”.</span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><span>In the Anthropocene, ensuring the habitability of the Earth and a
dignified life for all human beings is an </span><i>essential
responsibility</i><span> because the foundation of all human rights is the equal
dignity regardless of sex, skin colour, religion, ideology, age... It would be
a historical and irreparable mistake not to do everything possible to prevent
the legacy of the Anthropocene from being a seriously deteriorated standard of
life, with totally inefficient governance systems entrusted to plutocratic
groups consisting of 6, 7, 8 or 20 countries, under whose cover lies the
worldwide hegemony that has always been pursued by United States Republican
Party.</span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><i><span lang="" style="line-height: 150%;">Faced with the threefold
challenge of climate change and the deterioration of the biosphere, the extreme
poverty and the nuclear threat </span></i><span lang="" style="line-height: 150%;">—<i>which all
require the immediate implementation of a new concept of security and labour, a
new lifestyle</i>— we are living purposeless and without a path to follow.
Instead of promoting the search for balanced alternatives, instead of having
each day a larger number of responsible citizens who are the actors of their
own destiny rather than mere impassive spectators of events... Instead of raising
our voice through a big popular clamour, now that we can freely express
ourselves... we are easily intimidated, dazzled, and we walk aimlessly. It is
clear to the wise that the biggest problem humanity must face is not the
difference but rather the indifference, not the recognition of the equal
dignity of all human beings but rather supremacism and racism.</span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">The other possible world we all long for and deserve is today, more than
ever, possible. The mobilization of citizens should fill us with hope.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">As a scientist, I insist that a deep knowledge of reality is essential.
Otherwise superficial and biased information and appraisals will continue to
convey to the public a distorted image of facts and, therefore, a distorted
image of the measures that must be taken. We need solutions. Firm steps towards
the design of the new world.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><i><span lang="" style="line-height: 150%;">It would be a very serious irresponsibility to preserve the
current patterns. The solution is a genuine democracy at every scale: global
(efficient multilateralism), regional, local and individual.</span></i><span lang="" style="line-height: 150%;"> We must make without
delay the transition from force to word, and drastically reduce expenses on the
security of a few in order to be able to ensure a dignified life for everyone
(food, health...).</span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">We must pay attention to people who have moved from the squares and
avenues to the cyberspace and who may, if they make an appropriate use of the
new information and communication technology, mobilize thousands of citizens
and help them become actors instead of mere witnesses.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-align: justify;"><i><span lang="" style="font-family: verdana; line-height: 150%;">We must listen to them. We must pay attention to what they
say because they are and will fortunately be the leading actors of the “new dawn”.</span></i></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">We are living in a time of global crisis that has highlighted, more than
ever before, the errors of political, economic and social systems. States have
not been able to keep the markets under control and politicians have failed, in
general, in their role as mediators and guarantors of the common good, thus
casting doubts about their real mission; the disproportionate ambition and
selfishness of some “big merchants” have prevented them from contributing to
the well-being of citizens; and society has not reacted appropriately when
faced to their trickery and fallacies, while most citizens have remained
distracted and easy to manipulate, without clearly rejecting the neoliberal
consumerist system.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">What can we, the "peoples", the billions of citizens relegated
to the role of mere puppets, do? We can speak. We can use our voice first of
all to be heard and then to listen.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><span>If some irresponsible rulers decide, as President Donald Trump has done,
not to cooperate in reducing the risks that could lead to irremediably
deteriorating the habitability of the Earth, there will be no other choice, as
mentioned before, but to call for large popular clamours, both in the streets
and in the cyberspace, so that it is "the peoples" who take the reins
of our common destiny into their own hands and, </span><i>by restoring democratic multilateralism<a href="file:///C:/Users/Admin/AppData/Local/Microsoft/Windows/INetCache/Content.Outlook/4C52P5R0/ANUARIO%20CEIPAZ%202019-2020%20TRAD%20ES_EN.docx#_ftn8" name="_ftnref8" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><b><span face="" lang="" style="line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[8]</span></b></span></span></a></i><span>,
finally exclude the oligarchic groups of neoliberalism from world governance,
whose drift is leading to ecological and social upheavals (with a focus on
supremacism) that must now be dealt with urgently. </span><i>We urgently need to build a new concept of security</i><span>.</span><i> We urgently
need a radical change in our lifestyle.</i></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">We know how urgent it is and we must dare do it. Otherwise —and these are
words written by Albert Camus that have had a great impact on my life— we would
run the risk of future generations despising us because "we could have
done so much, and we dared to do so little".</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><span>In the “</span><i>Earth Charter: Values and Principles for a Sustainable Future”<a href="file:///C:/Users/Admin/AppData/Local/Microsoft/Windows/INetCache/Content.Outlook/4C52P5R0/ANUARIO%20CEIPAZ%202019-2020%20TRAD%20ES_EN.docx#_ftn9" name="_ftnref9" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><b><span face="" lang="" style="line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[9]</span></b></span></span></a></i><span>
—which should be available in all classrooms of every educational institution
and be thoroughly understood by members of parliament, rulers, members of
municipal councils and the media, because it is one of the key documents that
can inspire and guide the change of direction that has now become so urgent— we
can read the following in the Introduction: “... </span><i>We must join together to build a global sustainable society</i><span> based
on respect for nature, universal human rights, economic justice and a culture
of peace”... And we can also read in “Principle 16: promoting a culture of
tolerance, non-violence and peace... encouraging and supporting mutual
understanding, solidarity, cooperation among all peoples both within and among
nations... recognising that peace represents the integrity resulting from the
right relationship with oneself, with other individuals, with other cultures, with
other forms of life, with the Earth and everything we are a part of”...</span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Sometimes we are afraid to recognize that everything is in the end an
ethical problem. The financial crisis is only one visible part of a deep crisis
of democratic principles, which requires daring, imaginative and inclusive
solutions. A radical and urgent change based on human and environmental
sustainability has to be made so that all individuals who breathe the common
air of the Earth can exercise their right to have a dignified life.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Arsenio Rodríguez quoted Ernesto Sábato in an excellent article of last
31 October 2019 in the “Wall Street International” that I read in “Othernews”:
“When we finally take the responsibility for the pain infringed to others, our
commitment will give some sense to us as individuals and will place us beyond
the inevitability of history...”. Only if we can assume this commitment and be
aware that we must join millions of voices and millions of hands, will we be
finally able to make the peoples, the individuals, each one of us take the
reins of our destiny into our own hands, because we might be irrelevant as far
as quantity is concerned but extremely significant qualitatively.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">It’s time for action, for an active resistance. Let’s follow the advice given
by the great Mario Benedetti to his son: “Son, / never surrender / please /
don’t give up. / ... Because every day / is a new beginning”.</span></p>
<p align="right" class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-align: right;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></p>
<p align="right" class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-align: right;"><span lang="" style="font-family: verdana; line-height: 150%;">Federico Mayor Zaragoza<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p align="right" class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-align: right;"><span lang="" style="font-family: verdana; line-height: 150%;">28 April 2020<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<div style="mso-element: footnote-list;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><br clear="all" />
</span><hr align="left" size="1" width="33%" />
<span style="font-family: verdana;"><!--[endif]-->
</span><div id="ftn1" style="mso-element: footnote;">
<p class="MsoFootnoteText"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Admin/AppData/Local/Microsoft/Windows/INetCache/Content.Outlook/4C52P5R0/ANUARIO%20CEIPAZ%202019-2020%20TRAD%20ES_EN.docx#_ftnref1" name="_ftn1" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn1;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span lang=""><span style="mso-special-character: footnote;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span face="" lang="" style="line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[1]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></span></a><span lang=""> <a href="https://unctad.org/meetings/es/SessionalDocuments/ares70d1_es.pdf">https://unctad.org/meetings/es/SessionalDocuments/ares70d1_es.pdf</a><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></span></p>
</div>
<div id="ftn2" style="mso-element: footnote;">
<p class="MsoFootnoteText"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Admin/AppData/Local/Microsoft/Windows/INetCache/Content.Outlook/4C52P5R0/ANUARIO%20CEIPAZ%202019-2020%20TRAD%20ES_EN.docx#_ftnref2" name="_ftn2" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn2;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span lang=""><span style="mso-special-character: footnote;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span face="" lang="" style="line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[2]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></span></a><span lang=""> <a href="http://www.fund-culturadepaz.org/spa/DOCUMENTOS/DECLARACIONES,%20RESOLUCIONES/Declaracion_CulturadPaz.pdf">http://www.fund-culturadepaz.org/spa/DOCUMENTOS/DECLARACIONES,%20RESOLUCIONES/Declaracion_CulturadPaz.pdf</a>
</span></span></p>
</div>
<div id="ftn3" style="mso-element: footnote;">
<p class="MsoFootnoteText"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Admin/AppData/Local/Microsoft/Windows/INetCache/Content.Outlook/4C52P5R0/ANUARIO%20CEIPAZ%202019-2020%20TRAD%20ES_EN.docx#_ftnref3" name="_ftn3" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn3;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span lang=""><span style="mso-special-character: footnote;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span face="" lang="" style="line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[3]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></span></a><span lang=""> <a href="http://portal.unesco.org/es/ev.php-URL_ID=13175&URL_DO=DO_TOPIC&URL_SECTION=201.html">http://portal.unesco.org/es/ev.php-URL_ID=13175&URL_DO=DO_TOPIC&URL_SECTION=201.html</a>
</span></span></p>
</div>
<div id="ftn4" style="mso-element: footnote;">
<p class="MsoFootnoteText"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Admin/AppData/Local/Microsoft/Windows/INetCache/Content.Outlook/4C52P5R0/ANUARIO%20CEIPAZ%202019-2020%20TRAD%20ES_EN.docx#_ftnref4" name="_ftn4" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn4;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span lang=""><span style="mso-special-character: footnote;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span face="" lang="" style="line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[4]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></span></a><span style="mso-ansi-language: ES;"> Mayor F., “Un mundo nuevo” (2000).<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
</div>
<div id="ftn5" style="mso-element: footnote;">
<p class="MsoFootnoteText"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Admin/AppData/Local/Microsoft/Windows/INetCache/Content.Outlook/4C52P5R0/ANUARIO%20CEIPAZ%202019-2020%20TRAD%20ES_EN.docx#_ftnref5" name="_ftn5" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn5;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span lang=""><span style="mso-special-character: footnote;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span face="" lang="" style="line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[5]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></span></a><span lang=""> <a href="http://federicomayor.blogspot.com/2020/01/order-urgente-establecimiento-de-un.html">http://federicomayor.blogspot.com/2020/01/order-urgente-establecimiento-de-un.html</a>
</span></span></p>
</div>
<div id="ftn6" style="mso-element: footnote;">
<p class="MsoFootnoteText"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Admin/AppData/Local/Microsoft/Windows/INetCache/Content.Outlook/4C52P5R0/ANUARIO%20CEIPAZ%202019-2020%20TRAD%20ES_EN.docx#_ftnref6" name="_ftn6" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn6;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span lang=""><span style="mso-special-character: footnote;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span face="" lang="" style="line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[6]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></span></a><span lang=""> <a href="http://federicomayor.blogspot.com/2020/03/a-proposito-de-la-crisis-del.html">http://federicomayor.blogspot.com/2020/03/a-proposito-de-la-crisis-del.html</a>
</span></span></p>
</div>
<div id="ftn7" style="mso-element: footnote;">
<p class="MsoFootnoteText"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Admin/AppData/Local/Microsoft/Windows/INetCache/Content.Outlook/4C52P5R0/ANUARIO%20CEIPAZ%202019-2020%20TRAD%20ES_EN.docx#_ftnref7" name="_ftn7" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn7;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span lang=""><span style="mso-special-character: footnote;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span face="" lang="" style="line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[7]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></span></a><span lang=""> <a href="http://federicomayor.blogspot.com/2020/04/carta-al-g20-mas-de-lo-mismo-no.html">http://federicomayor.blogspot.com/2020/04/carta-al-g20-mas-de-lo-mismo-no.html</a>
</span></span></p>
</div>
<div id="ftn8" style="mso-element: footnote;">
<p class="MsoFootnoteText"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Admin/AppData/Local/Microsoft/Windows/INetCache/Content.Outlook/4C52P5R0/ANUARIO%20CEIPAZ%202019-2020%20TRAD%20ES_EN.docx#_ftnref8" name="_ftn8" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn8;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span lang=""><span style="mso-special-character: footnote;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span face="" lang="" style="line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[8]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></span></a><span lang=""> <a href="https://declaraciondemocracia.wordpress.com/">https://declaraciondemocracia.wordpress.com/</a>
</span></span></p>
</div>
<div id="ftn9" style="mso-element: footnote;">
<p class="MsoFootnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Admin/AppData/Local/Microsoft/Windows/INetCache/Content.Outlook/4C52P5R0/ANUARIO%20CEIPAZ%202019-2020%20TRAD%20ES_EN.docx#_ftnref9" name="_ftn9" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn9;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span lang=""><span style="font-family: verdana; mso-special-character: footnote;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span face="" lang="" style="line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[9]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></span></a><span lang=""><span style="font-family: verdana;"> <a href="https://cartadelatierra.org/">https://cartadelatierra.org/</a></span>
</span></p>
</div>
</div>Federico Mayor Zaragozahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04180667018896947119noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5190975568185925153.post-35035777745291634472020-07-15T04:16:00.001-07:002020-07-15T04:16:19.302-07:00A New World — Proposals for Urgent Changes<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="background: white; line-height: 150%;">As time goes by there are some
proposals that are still up-to-date and can even become more pressing.</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="background: white; line-height: 150%;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="background: white; line-height: 150%;">I have just read again the “four
contracts” I advocated for in my book “A New World” published in 2000 when my
tenure as Director General of UNESCO came to an end. I had at that time an
excellent team responsible for information and prospect, coordinated by Jerôme
Bindé. I was then and I am still convinced today that the new Century and Millennium
will bring a new era in which humanity as a whole —all human beings and not
only a few privileged individuals— will be able to fully live the mystery of
human existence, by using their capacity of creating, thinking, sharing,
anticipating.</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="background: white; line-height: 150%;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="background: white; line-height: 150%;">The four contracts I thought were
essential for a new world were the following:</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="background: white; line-height: 150%;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraph" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify; text-indent: -18pt;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">1.<span style="font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span></span></span><!--[endif]--><u><span lang="EN-GB" style="background: white; line-height: 150%;">A new
social contract</span></u><span lang="EN-GB" style="background: white; line-height: 150%;">. It included population, poverty and marginalisation
trends; changing the city, changing our way of life; the future of urban
transport; the fight against drug consumption and drug trafficking;... The
targets of this contract were peace and justice, as critical ingredients of a
sustainable development allowing the equal dignity of all human beings.</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="background: white; line-height: 150%;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraph" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify; text-indent: -18pt;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">2.<span style="font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span></span></span><!--[endif]--><u><span lang="EN-GB" style="background: white; line-height: 150%;">A new
natural contract</span></u><span lang="EN-GB" style="background: white; line-height: 150%;">. It dealt with topics such as environment; science;
sustainable development; desertification; food and energy sources;... from a
perspective aimed at replacing an economy based in speculation, offshoring and
war by an economy based in development and ensuring the habitability of the
Earth for generations to come. The <u>Intergenerational commitment</u> should
be one of the cornerstones which guide our daily behaviour.</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="background: white; line-height: 150%;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraph" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify; text-indent: -18pt;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">3.<span style="font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span></span></span><!--[endif]--><u><span lang="EN-GB" style="background: white; line-height: 150%;">A new
cultural contract</span></u><span lang="EN-GB" style="background: white; line-height: 150%;">: from the society of information to the <u>society
of knowledge</u>. It reviewed the revolution in new technologies; the future of
books and reading; the global heritage value of languages and education on the
horizon of year 2020... It should be clear that the aim is to help raising
citizens whose actions are rooted in their own reflections, who are “free and
responsible” as educated people are referred to in article 1 of UNESCO
Constitution.</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="background: white; line-height: 150%;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraph" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify; text-indent: -18pt;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">4.<span style="font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span></span></span><!--[endif]--><u><span lang="EN-GB" style="background: white; line-height: 150%;">A new
ethical contract</span></u><span lang="EN-GB" style="background: white; line-height: 150%;">. This chapter dealt not only with the “profits of
peace”, planetary security and the United Nations System, but also focused in a
very special way on the debts contracted over many centuries with the black
race, the special needs of Africa, a continent that always offsets with its
wisdom and creativity the exchanges made for the sake of its socio-economic
development and full emancipation. This very important chapter concludes —and
it is worthwhile stressing it— that the future is still to be built, that <u>the
transition from a century-old culture of imposition, violence and war to a
culture of dialogue, conciliation, alliance and peace is urgently needed</u>.</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="background: white; line-height: 150%;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="background: white; line-height: 150%;">At the end of each chapter specific
solutions were suggested, based on the mobilization of the people, personal
involvement, freedom of speech and not acting anymore as mere subjects but
rather as “masters of our own life”... </span><span lang="EN-GB" style="background: white; line-height: 150%;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="background: white; line-height: 150%;">It is clear that expectations have
not been met, and some of them are even more difficult to achieve than they
were at that time. </span><span lang="EN-GB" style="background: white; line-height: 150%;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><u><span lang="EN-GB" style="background: white; line-height: 150%;">I must insist once
again that there is no other solution than to observe the “democratic
principles” which are so clearly established in the UNESCO Constitution, at a
personal, national and global scale. </span></u><u><span lang="EN-GB" style="background: white; line-height: 150%;"><o:p></o:p></span></u></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="line-height: 150%;">The current crisis calls for the urgent re-founding of
a strong United Nations System with the moral authority that is typical of any
institution capable of bringing together all countries of the world. The
hegemonic ambitions that led to the belief that the world could be ruled by
plutocratic groups of 6, 7, 8 or 20 countries must now give way —<u>as a
response to a global clamour that will no doubt soon arise</u>— to multilateral
cooperation. A new General Assembly and new Security Councils (a Socio-Economic
Security Council and an Environmental Security Council designed to complement
the existing one) should enable —specially when the global governance is at
stake— the full exercise of those functions that require the availability of
adequate international structures. As stated in the Charter of United Nations,
action must be taken as soon as possible to see that “the peoples” —and not
only the States— are represented in the General Assembly, in order for <u>scientific
progress to allow a dignified life for all inhabitants of the Earth, by ways of
an economy that addresses the priorities that were clearly established a long
time ago by the United Nations System</u>: food (agriculture, aquaculture and
biotechnology); general access to drinking water (collection, management,
desalination. ...); quality health services; care for the environment (CO2
emissions, renewable energies, etc.); education and peace.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>An education aimed at providing everyone with
global awareness. This is a crucial point: our fellowmen can be perceived as equal
or different from us. And taking care of the environment should not be limited
to our surroundings but must rather be extended to the whole planet, because we
all have a common destiny.</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="line-height: 150%;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="background: white; line-height: 150%;">It is essential to put values —and I
am not referring to stock market values!— back in the centre of our daily lives
and to properly address challenges that can be met if we work together. The
solution lies in political measures because, in genuine democracies,
politicians must take on the will of the people. </span><span lang="EN-GB" style="background: white; line-height: 150%;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="line-height: 150%;">It is unacceptable that every time that security is at
stake, we still continue to believe that military power is the sole expression
and reference for “security”. This is a very serious mistake, a costly mistake
that usually causes great sorrow due to human losses and material damage. To
think in such a way can only make us have a wrong vision and deal exclusively
with war issues, thus neglecting many other aspects related with “human”
security, which is —in any case— the only thing that really matters. </span><span lang="EN-GB" style="line-height: 150%;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="line-height: 150%;">The difference between means devoted to potential
conflicts and resources available to face recurrent natural disasters (fire,
floods, earthquakes, tsunamis...) clearly demonstrates that the concept of
“security” </span><span lang="EN-GB" style="color: #333333; line-height: 150%;">(</span><span lang="EN-GB"><a href="http://federicomayor.blogspot.com/2016/08/urgente-un-nuevo-concepto-de-seguridad_29.html"><span style="line-height: 150%;">http://federicomayor.blogspot.com/2016/08/urgente-un-nuevo-concepto-de-seguridad_29.html</span></a></span><span lang="EN-GB" style="line-height: 150%;">)</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="line-height: 150%;"> which is still favoured by major
arms manufacturers is not only obsolete but also highly prejudicial for
humanity as a whole and it, therefore, requires a “security contract”.</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="color: #333333; line-height: 150%;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="line-height: 150%;">I must insist over and over again that we cannot constantly
see arsenals crammed with rockets, bombs, war planes and ships, submarines...
and not feel compelled to raise our voice and say that there are thousands of
human beings who are dying from starvation everyday, who live in extreme
poverty conditions without having access to adequate health services... and not
take action when confronted to this harsh reality and to the gradual deterioration
of the Earth’s habitability. We must take action without delay <u>because we
are getting close to points of no return in essential issues related with the
intergenerational legacy</u>.<span style="color: #333333;"> </span></span><span lang="EN-GB" style="color: #333333; line-height: 150%;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="line-height: 150%;">Let’s raise our voice... Now that “We, the peoples”
have become for the first time in history men and women, and we can freely
express ourselves. We can at last set up a specific time and date when millions
of cell phones will be used to condemn the unacceptable decisions taken by the
same leaders who are saying that they will not observe the Agreements on
Climate Change and Sustainable Development Goals, thus jeopardizing the quality
of life of the inhabitants of the Earth.</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="line-height: 150%;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="background: white; line-height: 150%;">The time has come for worldwide
citizenship, for living together across the borders, for sharing goods,
knowledge, experience </span><span lang="EN-GB" style="line-height: 150%;">and for courage… for standing up against those who are caught
by inertia, who keep<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>using old remedies
for new pathologies. Today’s leaders show signs of an irresponsible
short-sightedness. Every good ruler should pay attention, in the first place,
to processes that can lead to irretrievable damage. Millions of women and men
all over the Planet must say loud and clear that they will not tolerate any
irreversible damage to our ecological environment.</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="line-height: 150%;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="line-height: 150%;">The word “sharing” —which was the key concept of the
United Nations System in the 1950s and 1960s— has been gradually ousted and,
instead of strengthening countries in greatest need by means of an integral,
endogenous, sustainable and humane development, development aids have been
reduced up to unsustainable limits and the World Bank for Reconstruction and
Development has “lost” its surname and is now a tool at the service of large
financial institutions; and the nation-states have been weakened by gradually
transferring their resources and power to huge multinational structures.</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="line-height: 150%;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="line-height: 150%;">We cannot remain silent any longer. We cannot continue
to be impassive spectators of what is happening, because we would become
accomplices. The scientific, academic, educational, artistic, intellectual and,
in short, creative communities must be at the forefront of a popular
mobilization (</span><span lang="EN-GB"><a href="https://aeac.science/pacto2019/"><span style="color: #0000cc; line-height: 150%;">https://aeac.science/pacto2019/</span></a></span><span lang="EN-GB" style="line-height: 150%;">). <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They must take immediate action, without
delay, to guarantee the quality of life of citizens once they stop being
manipulated by the omnipotent and pervasive influence of the “great powers
(military, financial, energetic, media).</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="line-height: 150%;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="line-height: 150%;">We must realise that we have entered a new era in
which human beings will no longer be territorially and intellectually confined;
in which longevity will provide us with a vast experience —an experience we should
make the most of, while placing executive functions in the hands of less
elderly people—; in which young people, who have a deep knowledge of the Earth
and a global awareness and citizenship, will contribute with their imagination
and nerve to finally make come true the other possible world we have longed for.
Inertia is our greatest enemy. It's time for action. We don’t need any more
diagnoses: the time has come to put into practice the solutions...</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="line-height: 150%;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="line-height: 150%;">The current situation impels us more than ever to
approve a Universal Declaration on Democracy (</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="color: #0000cc; line-height: 150%;">ethical, social,
political, economic, cultural and international - </span><span lang="EN-GB"><a href="https://declaraciondemocracia.wordpress.com/"><span style="color: #0000cc; line-height: 150%;">https://declaraciondemocracia.wordpress.com/</span></a></span><span lang="EN-GB" style="line-height: 150%;">), as the only framework
allowing the full exercise of human rights and duties. Democracy at a local,
national, regional and planetary scale; this is the solution for everyone and
everything. The force of reason instead of the reason of force, and the
evidence of the immense and distinctive creative capacity of the human species,
which cannot be reduced to small spaces or short-sighted objectives.</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="line-height: 150%;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><u><span lang="EN-GB" style="line-height: 150%;">We must invent our future</span></u><span lang="EN-GB" style="line-height: 150%;">. “Invent” the future with
the growing participation of citizens from all over the world, who are now able
to know each other and to connect through online social networks which have
become increasingly important, have a greater mobilisation capacity and may
bring new solutions for different problems, thus becoming a relevant part of
democratic performance at a local and planetary scale. Political, economic and
social innovation. Eradicate without contemplation tax evasion, tax havens and
corruption, also using alternative sources of financing, such as the tax on
electronic financial transactions; taxes that are strictly proportional to
income; a conceptual and practical review of labour and employment, typical of
the digital age...</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="line-height: 150%;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="line-height: 150%;">This “new beginning” will require a quick and wise
action in order for benefits obtained from the exploitation of natural
resources to be appropriately shared among the owners of the technology and the
inhabitants of the areas where the resources are located.</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="line-height: 150%;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="line-height: 150%;">Another equally important challenge
that requires a “contract” is the issue related with drug trafficking which
represents a real and very serious threat to worldwide stability and which
after so many years has moved towards the worst scenario: it is accepted as a
"side effect" of the economic system, of the uneven and confusing
global governance that has placed the market, instead of democratic principles,
in the forefront of planetary politics.</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="line-height: 150%;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="background: white; line-height: 150%;">The price of drugs
does not have the slightest dissuasive effect. The individual who falls into
the huge trap of drug-addiction will do everything to obtain the funds he
needs; tearing families and friends apart, stealing... His uncontrolled desire
cannot be solved with weapons but rather with an adequate health approach.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It is a public health problem rather than a
security problem.</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="line-height: 150%;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="line-height: 150%;">A large campaign should be made with
the cooperation of mass media and the society involved so that awareness is
raised against drugs. </span><span lang="EN-GB" style="line-height: 150%;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="line-height: 150%;">Eventual</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="line-height: 150%;">ly,
taking into account the dimensions of drug trafficking and its impact on
economy and crime, the consumption of drugs affects society as a whole. Addicts
are in need of help to rebuild their lives, to regain their self-control, to
start "being” again, living once more the mystery of human life. And drug
dealers must be taken to court and, even better, we must do our best to make
them disappear by taking all steps required to see that their “stuff” has no
value.</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="line-height: 150%;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="background: white; line-height: 150%;">As in the case of alcohol and
tobacco, this is an issue with deep pathological implications, and extensive
campaigns should be carried out to educate potential consumers and duly alert
society, so that they know beforehand what they are risking, and they are later
taken care of —as is done with those affected by tobacco or alcohol— in the
corresponding hospital facilities. We must appeal to the responsibility of
society as a whole because it is a tragedy that gradually affects everyone...</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="background: white; line-height: 150%;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="background: white; line-height: 150%;">To sum up, 20 years later, with the
experience and awareness acquired, and the reflections made during the
coronavirus confinement, <u>it has become clear that governance must be
multilateral</u> and it is up to “We the peoples” to actively participate in
the “<u>new beginning</u>” as established in “The Earth Charter”, an excellent
worksheet for the times ahead… There are reasons for hope: the voices of women
and young people, in the streets and the cyberspace, will foster the essential
and urgent changes that are needed. </span><span lang="EN-GB" style="background: white; line-height: 150%;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="background: white; line-height: 150%;">In the autumn of 2015, after a few
years of desirable changes and an adequate approach to many international issues
(Islam, ecology, mediation...), President Obama, an Afro-descendant, achieved a
period of hope when he signed the <u>Paris Agreements on Climate Change</u> and
the Resolution approved by the United Nations General Assembly on the 2030
Agenda with <u>17 Sustainable Development Goals</u>, entitled “<u>Transforming
our World</u>”, with future generations in mind... After 4 and a half years of
inaction due do the irresponsible behaviour of his successor, President Donald
Trump, the horizons currently overshadowed by the COVID-19 require an urgent
clarification. The opening words of “The Earth Charter” make full sense:</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="line-height: 150%;"> “We stand at a critical
moment in the Earth's history, <u>a time when humanity must choose its future</u>...”</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="line-height: 150%;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="line-height: 150%;">Let’s make it clear to all those who are now responsible
for the implementation of decisions that go beyond borders: a new worldview
with new lifestyles is urgently needed. The greatest challenge —both at an
individual and collective scale— is transforming our way of life. The world is
entering a new era. <u>There are many things that must be preserved for the
future and many others that must definitively be changed. At last the peoples.
At last the voice of the people. At last citizen power.</u> At last word and
not force. At last a culture of peace and non-violence, and never more a
culture of war.</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="line-height: 150%;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><u><span lang="EN-GB" style="background: white; line-height: 150%;">The great transition
from force to word</span></u><span lang="EN-GB" style="background: white; line-height: 150%;">. From the armed hand to the outstretched
hand.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br />The time has come for world citizenship,
for living together without borders, for sharing goods, knowledge and
experience...</span></div>
<span lang="EN-GB" style="background: white; line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">
<o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span><br />
<a href="http://www.other-news.info/noticias/2020/07/un-mundo-nuevo-propuestas-para-cambios-apremiantes/" target="_blank"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Published in Other News</span></a><br />
<br />Federico Mayor Zaragozahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04180667018896947119noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5190975568185925153.post-90310941556009740732020-06-18T11:57:00.002-07:002020-06-18T11:57:58.209-07:00All human beings equal in dignity<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 150%;">It is as simple as that. At the end of the Second
World War, the painful awareness that supremacism, racism, xenophobia,
dogmatism... were at the origin of an unprecedented war, with a huge cost in
human lives... led the rulers of that time to make two essential decisions,
among others of lesser significance: to establish a <u>democratic
multilateralism</u> —in order to gradually replace the power of force by the
power of reason— and to set some supreme ethical values, rights and duties
whose foundation should be <u>equal dignity</u> of all human beings, whatever
their gender, ethnicity, ideology, belief, sexual sensitivity, lineage... This
should allow to fully eradicate the outbreaks that had given rise to Nazism
(Adolph Hitler, 1933, “the Aryan race is incompatible with the Jewish race”...);
Fascism (Benito Mussolini’s praise of the Romans); and the Rising Sun Empire in
Japan (with Tanaka’s Plan supported by Emperor Hiro-Hito).<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 150%;">In 1945 the United Nations System was created and the
UNESCO Constitution established that the supreme value should be the equal
dignity of all human beings and the need for all societies to be guided by
“democratic principles”. Three years later, in Article 1 of the Universal
Declaration of Human Rights, emphasis was placed again on equal dignity... The
message conveyed by the expression “We, the peoples” became absolutely clear
after the Second World War: the target is democratic governance based in non-discrimination
and, thus, in the unsuitability of any “badge” that may confer an advantage to
a particular group of individuals. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 150%;">At that time male absolute power still prevailed and
90% of humanity was born, lived and died in a few square kilometres, thus
ignoring what was going on beyond their immediate environment. All human beings
were fearful, obedient, submissive, silent. Women were totally marginalized
and, despite the above considerations, racism still prevailed in most parts of
our planet —often with extremely radical features as was the case in South
Africa.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 150%;">To avoid mentioning slavery in remote though well
known periods, I will only refer here to the most relevant facts that took
place from the 16th century onwards in the American continent, where the
treatment reserved to aboriginal populations led Friar Bartolomé de las Casas
to defend natives with such determination that he was appointed "Universal
Procurator or Protector of all natives". The <i>Laws of the Indies</i>, promulgated in Burgos in 1513, were already in
favour of human rights of natives, and in 1516 Cardinal Cisneros clearly stated
that "God has given them the same talents as were given to the white
man".<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 150%;">A few years later, the Jesuit Peter Claver devoted
himself with great solicitude to alleviating the suffering of slaves who
arrived at the slave trade port of Cartagena de Indias. His struggle in favour
of human equality of black slaves resulted in his canonization by Pope Leo XIII
in 1888. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 150%;">It is also worthwhile mentioning —in the same American
context— the “Cry of Dolores” issued by Father Miguel Hidalgo in 16 September
1810, when he proclaimed Mexico’s independence and declared that natives should
be recognized as totally equal. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 150%;">I have mentioned America as an example of what was
happening in other parts of the world, in different ethnic and cultural
backgrounds, in order to emphasize that what prevented human beings from
receiving an equal treatment was the absolute power I’ve already referred to. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 150%;">As long as Africa is concerned, in year 1976 I had the
opportunity to meet a great African, the Senegalese Amadou Mahtar M’Bow, who
was then the Director-General of UNESCO. A few years later, when I was myself appointed
Director-General, I had the opportunity to establish an excellent friendship
with African leaders such as Léopold Sédar Senghor, Julius Nyerere, Aminata
Traoré, Gertrude Monguella, <em><span style="background: white; font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Félix Houphouët</span></em><span style="background: white;">-<em><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Boigny</span></em>,
Graça Machel, Doudou Diene, Kofi Annan and, particularly, with a man imprisoned
for 27 years named Nelson Mandela and who later became the world symbol of
reconciliation and universality. This is why it was in the heart of Africa, in <em><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Yamoussoukro</span></em>,
where in 1989 there was a big UNESCO meeting to launch the Program of Action on
a Culture of Peace and Non-Violence, as an attempt —precisely in Africa— to
gradually replace imposition, domination
and violence by a culture of encounter, dialogue, alliance and peace. The
transition from force to word. </span></span><span lang="EN-GB" style="background: white; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 150%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB" style="background: white; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 150%;">It was on the Island of Gorée —the
point of departure of most ships carrying black slaves, declared as a World
Heritage site so it would become a worldwide reference— that I wrote in July
1992, when the great International Programme <u>The Slave Route</u> was
created, the following verses: “<i>His last
/ look / before lying down / in the cellar. / His last / look / at that narrow
/ door, / at that island / at that land / of his / that now sails / in the
waves of disaffection / towards unknown shores. / We yearn / so much today /
for those cries / that last / travelling look / that was so brutally uprooted /
from its landscape, / its home / its shores. / They were sold / in bulk. / We
must / pay our debt</i>”. Some months later the Door of No Return was built in
Ouidah, Benin.</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="background: white; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 150%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-GB" style="background: white; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 150%;">I would like to recall some of the
words I dedicated to Nelson Mandela after he had spent 26 years in prison, the
last ones on Robben Island near Cape Town, and who was now prepared to spread so
many seeds of solidarity, harmony and peace: “<i>There you are, reckless / giving us liberty / by the handful. / We want
you to know / that our wings / have in each feather / the shadow of your bars;/
.... that from your cell / you liberate and release / so many hearts that were
anchored / in half-heartedness...</i>”.</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="background: white; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 150%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-GB" style="background: white; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 150%;">It is worthwhile stressing that when
we were at the dawn of year 2000, of a change of Century and Millennium, the
European Union drafted the Chart of Fundamental Rights which begins precisely
with equal dignity. There was some ground to believe that mankind would finally
behave as it should in one of the most crucial aspects that could allow
everybody, in the new era, to fully exercise the capacities that are inherent
to human beings (thinking, imagining, foreseeing, innovating, creating!). </span><span lang="EN-GB" style="background: white; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 150%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-GB" style="background: white; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 150%;">This has not been the case. Despite the
fact that for the first time in history, and thanks to a great extent to
digital technology, all citizens of the world know today what is happening
everywhere; they can finally express themselves freely —now that “We, the
peoples” have a voice of our own!— and women are about to achieve equality and will
soon be able to participate with all their inherent capacities... the
neoliberal drift has prevented governance from becoming multilateral and
democratic and the outbreaks of supremacism, fanaticism and dogmatism from being
fully ruled out. Multilateralism has been gradually marginalized by United
States Republican Party. This is not something new, not at all. Already in 1919
it prevented the United States from becoming a member of the League of Nations...
despite being created by one of the Presidents of the USA! (Woodrow Wilson).
Due to this decisive absence, the League of Nations was unable to properly
redirect authoritarianism and populism, and, as already mentioned, Nazism and
Fascism finally led to the Second World War. </span><span lang="EN-GB" style="background: white; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 150%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-GB" style="background: white; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 150%;">After the Cold War, which cast such a
shadow over actions taken by the United Nations System, two unexpected events —the
conversion of the Soviet Union into a Community of Independent States and the
end of the <i>apartheid</i>, the most
abominable form of racism, in South Africa, thanks respectively to Mikhail
Gorbachev and Nelson Mandela— filled mankind with hope. But it was again the
United States Republican Party, with President Reagan and the cooperation of
United Kingdom Prime Minister, Margaret Thatcher, that laid aside democratic
multilateralism and entrusted worldwide governance to only six countries, the
G6. The neoliberal drift —that subsequently gave rise to the G7, G8 and G20,
the latter as a result of the financial crisis of 2008— placed humanity as a
whole within one sole “great market” where the only reference was the gross
domestic product (GDP), a rate of economic growth but not of sustainable
development. </span><span lang="EN-GB" style="background: white; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 150%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-GB" style="background: white; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 150%;">For years a large number of
institutions and scientific bodies had drawn attention —with a growing
emphasize— to the need to reduce the “greenhouse” gases because they could lead
to an irreversible climate change with global warming and, ultimately, to the
deterioration of the Earth’s habitability.</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="background: white; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 150%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-GB" style="background: white; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 150%;">In 1947 UNESCO created the
International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN) and it later launched
the Geological, Hydrological, Oceanographic Plans...the great Programme “Man
and the Biosphere”...; and the Club of Rome, under the leadership of Aurelio
Peccei, warned about the “limits of growth”; and in 1979 United States National
Academy of Sciences informed that it was of the utmost urgency to reduce the
emissions of carbonic anhydride because the oceans recapture capacity was
significantly decreasing also due to the deterioration of marine waters
(phytoplankton)….</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="background: white; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 150%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-GB" style="background: white; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 150%;">Warnings were again ignored. And markets
continued to grow and to deserve the attention that should have been devoted to
the big priorities that had always been supported by United Nations: food,
drinking water, quality health services, caring for the environment, education
for everyone during the whole life, and peace. </span><span lang="EN-GB" style="background: white; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 150%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-GB" style="background: white; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 150%;">In 2005, after a short period of hope
resulting from attention paid to several international issues (Islam, ecology,
mediation...), President Obama, an Afro-descendant, achieved a long intermission
of hope after signing this same Autumn the Paris Agreements on global warming
and the Resolution adopted by United Nations General Assembly regarding the
2030 Agenda (Sustainable Development Goals) aimed at “Transforming our World”.</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="background: white; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 150%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-GB" style="background: white; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 150%;">Unfortunately for everyone, the
election of President Donald Trump involved a radical change in all these
trends that seemed so positive and, since the very beginning, he declared that
he would not put into practice the environmental Agreements and would rather
request bigger investments in defense... obtaining with such a demand an
obedient approval from daunted leaders who were submissive to the power of
markets, to an economy based in speculation, relocation of production and war
(I must once more insist on the thousands of people who are dying from hunger
each day, while more than 4,000 million dollars are invested in weapons and
military expenditure). Trapped in the same networks, the European Union was no
longer the democratic Europe that showed solidarity and defended human rights
and equal dignity... it started closing borders instead of seeking development
aid for emerging countries, contributing to exploitation instead of
international cooperation... however, in recent years, alarmed by ultra-right,
populist and absolutist movements, the European Union has tried to redirect its
actions. </span><span lang="EN-GB" style="background: white; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 150%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 150%;">This was the situation when the COVID-19 reached us
and came as a surprise to all those who were solely interested in human
trafficking and had not taken any of the measures vainly recommended by
scientific communities in the face of epidemics, which have always existed,
will continue to exist and become epidemics due precisely to the big mobility
of transmitters. And humanity has realized that there are a number of
guidelines we have to follow, because viruses have no understanding of
frontiers or surnames and, therefore, a new concept of security is needed, so that
the defence of territories is paired with the capacity to deal with natural or
man-made disasters and, above all, to prevent as much as possible pathogenic
agents. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 150%;">It is an intolerable scandal to traffic with health.
To let retirement homes become part of a big business instead of being a health
care service... to allow privatization to deprive these institutions from
“medical” devices that since time immemorial have been only used for
conflicts...<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">This time, we will not forget. This time, the
lessons learned will be put into practice because citizens can now express
themselves, and have clearly undestood that the reins of our common fate cannot
be put in the hands of a few plutocratic groups but rather in the hands of “We,
the peoples” as we are referred to in the Charter of the United Nations. Now —as
we can fortunately see in the worldwide reaction against discrimination of
black men and women in the United States— “the peoples” will no longer remain
silent, they will not let anybody distract them; they will express their views
in great popular clamours... knowing that today if there is no evolution, there
will be a revolution. I insist that the difference between both of them is the
“r” from responsibility. Until very recently I advised against revolution
because it entailed violence. Now that the peoples have a voice of their own,
it is no longer necessary to resort to violent demonstrations. The time has
come to replace force by word. Not the word of a few but the word of all of us.</span></div>
Federico Mayor Zaragozahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04180667018896947119noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5190975568185925153.post-38645779017940169312020-04-12T05:00:00.002-07:002020-05-13T01:48:37.942-07:00“Letter to the G20”: The same response? Not again<br />
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<span lang="EN-GB" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">P<a href="https://www.eldiario.es/tribunaabierta/Carta-G20-mismo_6_1015308473.html" target="_blank">ublished in eldiario.es</a></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">It has become obvious that the G20 –founded in 2008 to reduce the scandal
produced by the autarchic G6, G7 and G8– has been a complete failure, since it
has increased the social gap and has left behind the most vulnerable ones. We are entering a new era, in the face of
potentially irreversible processes such as climate change. We must therefore
respond as wisely and firmly as possible, and invent without delay new measures
at a global scale <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">The coronavirus pandemic has once again highlighted the shortfalls and
lack of resources that have prevented us from reducing –if not from avoiding–
the magnitude of consequences, and from downsizing not only the material damage
but, above all, the human casualties...<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">In the face of the current outbreak of coronavirus –COVID-19– we cannot
further tolerate an economy based on speculation, relocation of production and
war. We must replace it by an economy based on knowledge and the promotion of a
global sustainable development, allowing a dignified life for everyone and no
longer excluding 80% of mankind, as it is currently the case.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">When we see the radical difference there is between investments devoted
to potential conflicts and resources available to face recurrent natural
disasters (fire, floods, earthquakes, tsunamis...) or health catastrophes such
as the current pandemic, we are horrified to realize that the concept of
“security” that is still favoured by major weapon manufacturers is not only
obsolete but highly prejudicial for mankind. Therefore, it is of the utmost
urgency to establish a new concept of “security” under the close scrutiny and
direct involvement of United Nations.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Health is the most important asset, and both its treatment and prevention
aspects should be taken into account, always dealing with it with the highest
professional expertise, and leaving aside any other consideration. Because
health is a right everyone is entitled to. Great progress has been achieved in
medical science, but just a small portion has been shared. The big challenge is
being able to share and enlarge knowledge.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Gradually, epidemics –which have always existed and will continue to
exist– will become serious pandemics because “human mobility” will keep on
growing.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Until some decades ago, their
propagation was very scarce because the vast majority of mankind was confined
to small spaces and the transmission of disease outside its borders was
unlikely.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">We are presented everyday with images of the remarkable performance of
health workers who take care of all coronavirus patients with the highest
standards of professionalism and humanity, despite the dwindling resources they
have available due to the unquenchable aspiration to weaken the State that has
prevailed in recent years (this is how current democracies are “dying”...). We
praise and applaud the invaluable work that continues to be carried out by all
those who work in essential industries (such as nutrition, transport,
distribution, regulation of citizens’ everyday behaviour, cleaning,
disinfection...), as well as the involvement of military and security forces in
emergency situations.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It is under these
circumstances that we become aware -and we should never forget it again- of the
impact caused by cutbacks in research capability, and by the reduction of the
industrial network and many of the most relevant sectors of public health which
should –from now on– always be prepared for eventualities having the same
nature and seriousness as the current one.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">In the “Letter to the G20” that has just been signed by “world leaders as
a response to the global coronavirus crisis”, the measures agreed upon are
exactly the same as those implemented to tackle the 2008 financial crisis, that
is, the same measures which led to the present situation and proved that
markets cannot solve global challenges. To be able to cope with global threats,
a proportionate response from “We, the peoples” is needed. Only a democratic
multilateralism –and not the plutocracy that represents the power of one sole
country– will allow us to rise to the occasion. Why should the reins of our
common destiny be put in the hands of 20 countries when there are currently 196
countries? Problems will not be solved by “big powers” (financial, military,
energy and media industries) but rather through the voice and joined hands of
all peoples. The letter should have been addressed to United Nations to
reinvigorate multilateralism instead of its main opponent. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">The time has come –and potential irreversibility makes it even more
urgent– to redirect the current gloomy trends of the neoliberal drift, which
have led us to ignore the appeals of the scientific community pressing us to
take without delay all relevant steps against climate change and the
implementation of SDGs (Sustainable Development Goals, 2030 Agenda) agreed by
the UN General Assembly in November 2015 “to transform the world”.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Science must support citizens so that they stop being at the mercy of
large international corporations and a few governments. Information that is so
readily available today must be adequately checked so that, in the short term,
our path towards the future is based on knowledge and not interests.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Wisdom consists today in promoting the evolution of governance so that
revolution is no longer seen as the sole answer. To resort once more to
outdated solutions would be equal to siding with the excellent cartoon
published by El Roto in “El País” on April 5th: “When everything is over
nothing will be the same... except for the usual, of course!”.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Progress achieved by medical science in recent years -vaccines,
antibiotics, surgical practices, in-depth knowledge of pathophysiology,
molecular regulators, mechanisms of genetic expression and epigenetic
conditioning, cell signalling, enzymatic diagnosis and physical
introspection...- has improved the standard of life and longevity of
populations. Great advances have been achieved but the adequate means have not
been provided to ensure that they benefit <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">all</i>
human beings, equal in dignity. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">The big challenge is now the capacity to share and enlarge knowledge.
Until a few decades ago we did not know how the majority of the inhabitants of
our planet lived. Now we do know and, therefore, if we don’t ensure access for
everyone to reasonable levels of goods and services, we become accomplices. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Healthcare must be comprehensive and available for everyone. The time for
passivity and fear is over, and we must proclaim loud and firmly that society
will not make any concession when it comes to issues on which many times life
itself depends. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">The future is still to be done. And democracy is in jeopardy. The future we dream of will emerge from global
awareness, from worldwide citizenship, that will soon achieve equity and will
at last be able to express itself and will no longer be invisible, silent, and
submissive. At last, citizens will be able to freely demonstrate in the streets
and the cyberspace. At last the power of
reason will prevail over the power of force. At last, everyone and not just a
few. At last, the participation of citizens. At last, speech will shed light on
the dark paths of tomorrow.</span><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b>Signatories:</b></span></span></div>
<br />
<br />
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<span style="line-height: 24px;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><i>Foundation for a Culture of Peace</i></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 24px;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><i><br /></i></span></span><span style="line-height: 24px;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><i>Federico Mayor Zaragoza, President of the Foundation for a Culture of Peace, <o:p></o:p></i></span></span><i style="background-color: white;">President de the Spanish Association for Science Progress (AEAC)</i></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 24px;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><i><br /></i></span></span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><i>DEMOSPAZ-UAM (University Institute of Human Rights, Democracy, Culture of Peace and Nonviolence) </i></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><i><br /></i></span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><i>Manuela Mesa, codirector of DEMOSPAZ</i></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><i><br /></i></span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><i>Carlos Giménez, director of DEMOSPAZ</i></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><i><br /></i></span></span>
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><i>Adolfo Pérez Esquivel, Premio Nobel de la Paz 1980. Presidente Honorario de la Fundación Servicio Paz y Justicia en A. Latina</i></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><i><br /></i></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><i>Roberto Savio, President of
“Othernews”<o:p></o:p></i></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><i><br /></i></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 6.0pt; text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><i>Rosa María Artal, journalist<o:p></o:p></i></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><i><br /></i></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 6.0pt; text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><i>Emilio Muñoz, Promoting
Partner of AEAC<o:p></o:p></i></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><i><br /></i></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 6.0pt; text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><i>María Novo, Professor emeritus of Environmental
Education and Sustainable Development<o:p></o:p></i></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><i><br /></i></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 6.0pt; text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><i>Vicente Larraga, Founding
Partner of AEAC<o:p></o:p></i></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><i><br /></i></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 6.0pt; text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><i>Enrique Santiago, Jurist,
expert in Human Rights and International Law</i></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><i><br /></i></span></span>
<span style="line-height: 24px;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><i>Montserrat Ponsa Tarrés, journalist</i></span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 24px;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><i><br /></i></span></span>
<span style="line-height: 24px;"><i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"></span></i></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><i>Rafael Monzó Giménez, <o:p></o:p>president of the Centre UNESCO Valencia/Mediterráneo</i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><i><br /></i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><i>Jose Luis Ramón Moraleda, Justice official</i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"></span></span><br /></span>
<br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><i>Anna Jarque, expert in performing arts in values education</i></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><i><br /></i></span>
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><i>Mercedes Dumont, psicóloga</i></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><i><br /></i></span><i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Miquel Segura, president </span>Centre Internacional per a la Creativitat Audiovisual</span></i></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></i>
</span><br />
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<i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Alberto Guerrero Fernandez, <o:p></o:p>Presidente Fundacion Española de Asociaciones Centros y Clubes UNESCO</span></i></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><i><br /></i></span></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Francisco Morales Garcia, psicólogo, director de Servicios Sociales Comunitarios en la Diputación Provincial de Granada</span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></i></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><i>Antonio damian requena segovia, estadístico del Cuerpo Superior del Estado</i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><i>Celestino Olalla Lorenzo, Presidente Ong Otromundoesposible</i></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><i><br /></i></span>
</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><i>Santiago Serrate Ollé, director de orquesta </i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><i>Ángeles Saura<span style="color: #444444;">, artista y docente UAM, </span><span style="color: #444444;">Cátedra UNESCO Educación en Justicia Social</span></i></span></div>
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<span style="color: #444444;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><i><br /></i></span></span></div>
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<span style="color: #212121;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><i>Juan D. Tutosaus, médico jubilado</i></span></span></div>
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<span style="color: #444444;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><i><br /></i></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><i>Antonio Lameiro Couso, Profesor jubilado de Etica y Filosofía en secundaria<span style="color: #444444;"> </span></i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><i>Rafael Sánchez Sanz, Subdirector General África Fundación Sur</i></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><i>Juan José Tamayo, Director de la Cátedra de Teología y Ciencias de las Religiones "Ignacio Ellacuría" Universidad Carlos III de Madrid</i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><i>Professor K.M. Stokes, President, The University for Sustainability</i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><i>Jorge Álvarez, <span style="color: #666699;">Presidente de la Academia Española de la Radio</span></i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><i>Jean-Jacques Lafaye, escritor y geopolitólogo</i></span></div>
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<i style="font-family: verdana, sans-serif;">Márius Rubiralta, ex Rector de la Universidad de Barcelona. Profesor del Campus de la Alimentación de Torribera (UB)</i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"></span><br />
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<span style="line-height: 16.96px;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><i>Francisco Sierra Caballero, Catedrático Universidad de Sevilla. Presidente de ULEPICC<o:p></o:p></i></span></span></div>
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<i style="font-family: verdana, sans-serif;">Nazanín Armanian, Profesora de relaciones internacionales y periodista </i></div>
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<i style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></i>
<i style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Antonio Maíllo Cañadas, profesor de latín y coordinador general de IULV-CA de 2013 a 2019</i></div>
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<i style="font-family: verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></i>
<i style="font-family: verdana, sans-serif;">Ernesto Alba Aragón, secretario general del Partido Comunista de Andalucía</i></div>
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<i style="font-family: verdana, sans-serif;">Manuel Pineda Marín, europarlamentario</i></div>
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<i style="font-family: verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></i>
<i style="font-family: verdana, sans-serif;">Toni Valero Morales, profesor de historia y coordinador general de IULV-CA</i></div>
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<i style="font-family: verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></i>
<i style="font-family: verdana, sans-serif;">Alvaro Leyva Duran. Constituyente colombiano, ex ministro, constructor de Paz</i></div>
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<i style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></i>
<i style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Juan Rodríguez Corrales, Presidente del Centro UNESCO "Campo de Gibraltar"</i><br />
<i style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></i>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Marisa Tejada Azul, actriz y directora de </span>La Fábrica de Sueños </i></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><i><br /></i></span>
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<i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"></span></i><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><i>Manuel Bestratén Bellovím <o:p></o:p>Presidente de MIESES GLOBAL (Movimiento Internacional por la Excelencia, la Salud Empresarial y la Sostenibilidad)</i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><i>Ton Dalmau Llagostera, <o:p></o:p>Impulsor de microeconomies sociales</i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><i><span lang="EN-GB">Ramon Clotet Ballúsm </span><o:p></o:p>Miembro de Fundación Triptolemos para el desarrollo del Sistema Alimentario</i></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><i><br /></i></span>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><i>Juan Manuel de Faramiñán Gilbert, Catedrático emérito de la Universidad de Jaén<o:p></o:p></i></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><i>Miguel Angel Invarato, Gestor Cultural y Presidente "Traductores del Viento.org"</i></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><i>Jose Esquinas Alcázar, Catedrático y ex directivo de Naciones Unidas/FAO</i></span></div>
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<span style="color: #26282a;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><i>Bernabé López García, profesor de Historia Contemporánea del Mundo Árabe, UAM</i></span></span><br />
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<span style="color: #26282a;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><i>Victoriano Fernández Fernández</i></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b>If</b></span><b> <span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">you want to join send an email with your name, surname and profession: <a href="mailto:info@fund-culturadepaz.org">info@fund-culturadepaz.org</a></span></b></div>
<br />Federico Mayor Zaragozahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04180667018896947119noreply@blogger.com0