COMMUNITY
PEACE: A PREREQUISITE FOR INTERNATIONAL PEACE AND DEVELOPMENT
MR WOLE BABAJIDE,A SENIOR LECTURER AT ODUDUWA UNIVERSITY AND PROGRAM CHAIRMAN AT CARLSRUN INITIATIVE FOR PEACE AND HUMAN RIGHTS DELIVERING HIS PAPER PRESENTLY
Lecture delivered by Carlsron
Initiative For Peace and Human Rights to students of Oduduwa College Of
Professional Studies, Oduduwa Plaza, Egbeda-Idimu Road, Lagos on 19th
Of April, 2016.
Good day ladies and
gentlemen,
Our organization,
Carlsron Initiative for peace and human rights (CIPEHR) is a Non-governmental
and Non-profit making organization that is dedicated to the service of
humanity. Our primary objective is to promote peace and human rights among
other things and our mission statement is promoting general peace and fundamental
human rights worldwide, while our vision is attaining a ‘PERFECT’ world where
general peace and human dignity reign SUPREME.
I will start this lecture by taking quote from a
remarkable German writer and statesman, whose name
is Johann Wolfgang von Goethe. “Let
everyone sweep the front of his own door, and the whole world will be clean”.
I will quickly add too, that the value of peace is
never known until people experience war.
Our world has gone through series of war most of
which are not only senseless but ridiculous! They had decimated humanity almost
to rubbles and if not monitored might annihilate the entire human existence and
environs.
Few of these wars include:
·
The Mongol conquests of 13th
century with estimate of 70 million
deaths.
·
The Taiping Rebellion in China
1850-1864, led by Hong Xiuquan, (who claimed to have received visions that he
was the younger brother of Jesus) which engulfed at least 70 million people, mainly civilians
·
The World War 1 & 2 that engulfed
over 105 million souls combined
·
Let’s even come home, the Nigeria
civil war of 1967-70 engulfed about 1 million deaths.
It will be shocking to note that if we estimate the
total lives lost in these few wars it is far more than the present population
of Nigeria.
War is an enemy of mankind and must be viewed as
such. It decimates living population and hinders development. The common cause
of these wars is nothing but simple disputes over certain interests which
degenerate to conflicts. These conflicts still ravage our world day in day out.
We must try to extinct war and its catastrophe of every magnitude. We must learn
to prevent disputes and conflicts and embrace peace so we can avert war and its
consequences! But how can we achieve this is what forms the basis of our
seminar today. It is on this note that I am welcoming you to this important
lecture titled “Community Peace: A
prerequisite for International Peace and Development.”
Meaning
of peace: absence of war; absence of dispute and
conflict; the management of dispute and conflict in a way that it would not
result to violence.
Dispute
and conflict: former is a short-term disagreement the later is the long-term disagreement. Dispute can be managed not to graduate to
conflict.
Meaning
of community: a group of people living in the same geographical
environment or having a particular characteristic in common.
Community’s
operational definition: it includes place of work, place
of worship, place of relaxation, market, Internet, schools, colleges,
universities, village, towns, cities, associations, groups, state of origin and
even within family setting and as such translates and ensures development
within those communities.
Peace
should be spread to the nooks and crannies of community to ensure sustainable
development.
International
peace: refers to management of international dispute and
conflict in a way that it would not degenerate into war and as a result ensure
international development.
Origin
of international peace: Apparently, the modern
international peace began with the end of 30 years and 80 years war
respectively with the signing of peace treaty of Westphalia (located in modern
Germany) in 1648. The 30 year war was between the Holy Roman Empire and France
and its allies. The 80 year war was between Spain and Dutch. This peace treaty
of Westphalia gave birth to modern international system that recognized the
sovereignty of states. The second attempt at international peace was at the
treaty of Utrecht of 1713 now in modern Netherland which ended the French
ambition of hegemony and preserved the balance of power in Europe. This gave
more recognition to the sovereignty of modern state system. The third attempt
was that of congress of Vienna of 1814/15 which ended Napoleonic wars. The
fourth major attempt was the treaty of Versailles of 1919 which established
League of Nations. The contemporary one was in 1945, in San Francisco at the United Nations
Conference on International Organization which drew up the United Nations
Charter and established the present UN.
All these attempts at peace are great landscapes
in attaining international order but a great deal of man’s souls had been lost
in this course as states always went to war at the slightest provocation.
Though the situation had been remarkably stable in the contemporary
international system, but whenever it does happen, man always bears the
heaviest brunt. It is as a result of states’ imperfection and inability to
totally pursue peace that this organization initiates its plan for peace at
community level. If every community
lives in peace, the whole world will leave in peace. Let everyone sweep in front of his own
door, and the whole world will be clean says a German writer and statesman
–Johann Wolfgang von Goethe.
HOW
DO WE MAKE AND PROMOTE PEACE IN OUR COMMUNITY?
We can make peace in
our community if we realize that world peace starts with community peace and
community peace starts with peaceful relations among members of the community.
And who are these members of the community. It is you and I, hence form the
bulk of our discussion.
1.
One of the ways which peace can be achieved is manners of approach and
tolerance.
Think about the main problem(s) in your community.
Is it the annoying household down the street, or the cigarette smoke coming
from the next-door smokers? Problems are part of our everyday lives, but these
don't have to be:
- Smokers. Yes, the smoke smells awful, and is full of carcinogens which cause cancer, which can kill you. Whenever someone near your home comes out to smoke, just close the window. Carcinogens don't need to be a part of your life. If you ignore it by closing the window, nobody is doing harm to anybody (except the smokers, who are harming themselves).
- Noisy next-door neighbors. Noise is quite annoying when it isn't coming from your household, but next-door neighbors can be noisy sometimes. If they make an excess amount of noise at night, just calmly walk over to their house and politely ask them to try to keep the noise level to a minimum. This should make your noisy next-door neighbors your friends instead of your enemies.
- Domestic violence near or in your household. Not only is domestic violence illegal, but it can influence bad (or illegal) behavior in children if it is exposed to them. Domestic violence is the use of weapons or hands to potentially hurt someone. If it happens in your house, call the police immediately. Domestic violence isn't to be taken lightly, by anybody.
2. Make signs. Make them say
things like, "Peaceful area. No violence" or "Caution: Lots of
peace in this community". “Love your neighbor as yourself” Anything that goes
against violence will do. Put them in places where people will see them. This
will help with the peace level in your community.
- Bright colors will be noticed more because they are unusual. Remember bright colors, but not too bright, or it will be more of eyesore than a peace-making device.
3.
Have community development association:
Community needs several developmental projects as well as fixing certain
pressing issues. It is through this forum these are fixed. It could even be
regarded fourth tier level of governance as it involves the election of
officials that oversee to the welfare and development of the community. The
services include community sanitation, hall, security etc
4. Have community
parties/anniversaries. Parties also help people associate
and communicate with one another. Whatever the location, people will come! If
you have it at a clubhouse, you may have to pay a hefty rental payment before
you can have a party there, and you might have to clean up after it, too. It is
best to just have it at your house.
5. Have community social club
6.
Have community sport activities
7.
Preach peace in your religious community
8.
Organize community peace competition in form of essay, quiz, questions and
answers etc
9.
Smiles. When you smile, it brightens up everybody's day,
including yours. If you don't smile, you're not trying to make peace. As Mother
Teresa has said, peace begins with a smile
Tips
- Try to be friends (not foes) with your neighbors. If they do something that makes it difficult for peace to be in the community, talk it out with them. Talking with people is better than assuming the worst about them. Remember: Think it out, talk it out, work it out.
- Old foes can easily turn into friends, when you bury the hatchet with them.
This session is interactive and there is no limit
to the point that can usher in peace initiative. As an exercise, participants
are encouraged to put forth points that they think can enhance community peace.
Difference
btw dispute and conflict
Dispute is short-term
disagreement while Conflict is long-term disagreement. Since dispute is of
short–term, it can quickly be resolved than conflict. Nonetheless there are
various ways with which conflict can be resolved.
Methods of Conflict Resolution
The
primary processes for dispute resolution may utilize formal or informal methods
for conflict resolution. Formal and informal methods include:
Negotiation: involves direct contact between the parties or their representatives;
requires a willingness to communicate, and usually willingness to compromise.
Mediation: a negotiation facilitated by a neutral third-party who assists the parties in
moving to resolution. The neutral has no control over the outcome but
controls and directs the processes.
Arbitration: involves a third-party’s intervention, most often with the power to
make a binding decision.
Adjudication: our state financed and
administered court system of formalized rules and appealable decisions made by
a judge or jury.
Avoidance: a legitimate approach to settlement – consciously
chosen strategy of deliberately walking away from conflict as a strategy for
its management.
Coercion: force; self-help; a unilateral action by one of
the parties designed to effect resolution.
Having
put forward the peace promotion in geographical community, this lecture has
been carefully designed to go further for the purpose of its audience, who are school
administrators, teachers and students, to briefly examine ways to promote peace
in the classroom as this is another community designed for teaching the young
ones the habit of peace.
It is often observed that while teachers
are setting up classroom for the new school year, they only plan lessons for
language, math, history, and geography. But one thing they sometimes forget to
plan for is peace education.
Promoting peace was a large part of Dr.
Montessori’s career – one of her most famous quotes is “Averting war is the work of politicians; establishing peace is the
work of education.” She thought it was extremely important in her day;
today it may be more important than ever.
10
Ways to Promote Peace in Your Classroom
Here are 10 ways to include peace in
your curriculum:
1. Start by defining the word “peace” with your
students. You can ask children what they think it means; their answers will
probably be very enlightening. They are often surprised to realize that peace
can be found in many places. It doesn’t just refer to “world peace”. They can have
a hand in creating a peaceful environment wherever they are.
Peace may look a little different to
everyone. To me, it doesn’t mean the absence of conflict. That would be an
idealized world in which none of us live. Rather, it’s learning how to deal
with conflict in a way that doesn’t put the rights, wants, or needs of one
person over the other. It’s learning conflict resolution skills that stress
respect for the individual and the group.
2. Declare your classroom a “peace zone”. Do not
tolerate any kind of bullying. Lay down ground rules at the beginning of the
year that are posted for everyone to see. Have all the children agree to the
ground rules (even signing the list of rules) and hold them accountable.
3. Teach conflict resolution skills. One way (that children enjoy very
much) is through role-playing. Choose a time when everyone is together and
there are no unresolved conflicts. Role-play different situations that you
notice amongst the children. Talk about
peaceful ways to resolve the conflict. You can define and discuss compromise, taking turns, and listening
skills.
One conflict resolution technique that
children love is to have one object in the classroom or home that is always
used when children are resolving conflict. Children face each other (or sit in
a circle) and whoever is holding the object gets to talk. No one can interrupt,
and once the object is passed on, the next person gets to talk exclusively. I
have seen this work wonders in tension-filled situations.
4. If you have an annual event, like a poetry recitation, a musical, or
other performance, choose “Peace” as the theme every so often. Challenge
the children to find stories, poems, and songs about peace. They may also want
to draw or paint pictures of “peace” and what it means to them. Again, much
insight can be gained by looking into their responses.
5. Peace education can
vary by age; older children will naturally be able to get into the history of
peace and conflict by studying different
countries and cultures. They can participate at a higher level by researching
and writing about peace and peace education.
6. Have children
participate in the care of their environment, showing respect for the
materials, pets, plants, and other children.
7. When studying geography,
history and other cultures, emphasize respect for the diversity of traditions
and customs found around the world and describe how they can peacefully coexist.
8. Consider having your school named an international peace site. The World
Citizen organization heads up that project, and they have information about
peace education as well.
9. Be a good example. Don’t argue with parents, your spouse, or other
teachers in front of the children. Speak
respectfully about other people. Don’t gossip. Show kindness. It can be
easy to forget that children are watching your every move, and learn more from
what you do than what you say.
10. Establish special
holidays and rituals for your school or home. These can include joyful
celebrations as well as sad occasions (like the loss of a pet). Everyone can
share in the planning, decorating, and celebrating.
Let everyone sweep in front of his own
door, so that the whole world could be clean.-Johann Wolfgang von Goethe has
said. This also goes for peace. If every community embraces and promotes peace,
the whole world will be at peace and consequently there would be overall
development; there would be improvement in quality of lives as well as
longevity. Let us join hand to work in peace so that we make this world a
better place to live in. Thank you all.
The following are parts of what we do:
·
Community peace and human rights
education
·
Dispute and conflict resolution
·
World peace and security
·
Peacebuilding through sustainable
development, employment creation and volunteer opportunities
·
Democratic principles, social justice
and human development
·
Participating in local and
international seminars and conferences
Please visit our website for more
information.
Membership is open to anyone who is interested in
helping the organization to achieve its aims and objectives and willing to
abide by its rules and regulations. If you want to become
a member please visit and fill in your information on our webpage.
Thank you for your attendance.
Wole Babajide
Executive
Chairman
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