CULTURE OF PEACE

• UNESCO PROGRAMME
  
• CULTURE OF PEACE IN AFRICA














Culture of Peace

“The inaction of the international community regarding all these conflicts which are slowly but surely crippling the continent cannot continue.” (…) “In the absence of good governance, when human rights are violated on a massive scale, the United Nations must intervene.”
Director-General of UNESCO, 5 February 1999

The promotion of democratic values and human rights and support for the democratic process are central to UNESCO’s concerns in Africa, even more so than in other regions of the world. Here, the most important tool is education: basic education, education for peace, scientific and technological education. Endorsing and supporting the democratic process is also a way of helping Africans to give new meaning to terms such as State, citizenship, ethnic identity, democracy, sovereignty and so on.

The many activities undertaken by UNESCO in this field are accordingly specially addressed to the African continent, for example in the context of the preparations for the International Year for the Culture of Peace proclaimed for the year 2000 by the United Nations General Assembly (go to http://www.unesco.org/cpp/) and on the eve of the International Decade for a Culture of Peace and Non-Violence for the Children of the World (2001-2010). The Priority Africa Department has always supported the organization of all these activities in Africa, in particular those organized in connection with the contribution by African women to conflict resolution and prevention.

One of the main events in Africa for the promotion of a culture of peace was the International Conference on the Culture of Peace and Good Governance, held in Maputo from 1 to 4 September 1997 on the initiative of the President of the Republic of Mozambique. It was attended by some 300 African, South American, Asian and European participants and representatives of international, intergovernmental and non-governmental organizations. Its purpose was to involve in the construction of a culture of peace those who have hitherto been excluded, in particular women, children and demobilized soldiers. The participants adopted the Maputo Declaration, in which they undertook to defend education for tolerance, human rights and democracy, and to promote reconciliation by encouraging the everyday practice of democracy. They launched an appeal to the populations and decision-makers of the subregion to set in train an efficient and rapid transition towards a culture of peace.

Another initiative is that of the Africa DEMOS project. A conference was held by UNESCO in Maputo from 2 to 4 July 1998 on “Africa faced with globalization: the challenges to democracy and good governance”, whose main purpose was to sustain an inclusive debate on Africa, bearing in mind the recommendations of Audience Africa and the 1997 International Conference on the Culture of Peace and Good Governance.

The 1998 Conference was attended by intellectuals, scientists, politicians and representatives of voluntary associations, invited in a personal capacity, who identified the issues raised for Africa by globalization and explored the solutions which Africans wished to find in a context of democratic governance. At the conclusion of the conference, the participants decided to set up a select group to prepare a draft declaration by the African States on the challenges facing Africa in the context of globalization, and also a Plan of Action .