CONTRIBUTION OF UNESCO TO THE SECRETARY-GENERAL S PRELIMINARY REPORT ON DIALOGUE AMONG CIVILIZATIONS

Transcription

1 Conférence générale 30e session Document d information inf Paris 1999 General Conference 30th Session Information document Conferencia General 30 a reunión Documento de información 30 C/INF.8 21 October 1999 Original: English CONTRIBUTION OF UNESCO TO THE SECRETARY-GENERAL S PRELIMINARY REPORT ON DIALOGUE AMONG CIVILIZATIONS

2 (i) CONTENTS 1. INTRODUCTION 1.1 Resolution of the United Nations 1.2 UNESCO s mandate 1.3 A culture of peace 1.4 Evolution of the concept of dialogue 1.5 Ethics and values 2. ACTIVITIES BEING IMPLEMENTED TO PROMOTE THE CONCEPT OF DIALOGUE AMONG CIVILIZATIONS : SPECIFIC EXAMPLES 2.1 Intercultural dialogue 2.2 The intercultural and Route projects 2.21 Slave Route 2.22 East-West Intercultural Dialogue in Central Asia 2.23 Spiritual Convergence and Intercultural Dialogue 2.24 Iron Road in Africa 2.3 Cultural pluralism 2.31 UNESCO Cities for Peace Prize 2.32 Ethnic tensions in multicultural societies 2.4 Advancement, transfer and sharing of knowledge 2.41 Education and promotion of linguistic diversity 2.42 Associated Schools 2.43 Scientific dimension of dialogue 2.44 Communication 2.5 Human rights and tolerance 2.51 Education for human rights 2.52 Tolerance, a new basis for dialogue and peace 2.53 Tolerance and non-violence, an interactive strategic principle for dialogue 2.54 For peace and tolerance, for a dialogue among cultures 2.6 Social progress 2.61 MOST 3. FUTURE ACTION 3.1 Regional meetings 3.2 Recent initiatives of Member States 4. CONCLUSION

3 30 C/INF.8 1. INTRODUCTION 1.1 Resolution of the United Nations In November 1998, the General Assembly of the United Nations proclaimed the year 2001 United Nations Year of Dialogue among Civilizations. The resolution, proposed by Islamic Republic of Iran and supported by a large number of countries, invites Governments, the United Nations system, including UNESCO to plan and implement appropriate cultural, education, and social programmes, to promote the concept of dialogue among civilizations, including through organizing conferences and seminars and disseminating information, and scholarly material on the subject. The Director-General of UNESCO, consulted at the outset by the Iranian Vice-Minister for Foreign Affairs, had supported the idea of submitting a resolution to the General Assembly proposing the theme of dialogue among civilizations for an international year. 1.2 UNESCO s mandate Promoting dialogue among civilizations, cultures and religions is central to the mission and activities of UNESCO. The Constitution of the Organization stipulates that peace, if it is not to fail, must be founded upon the intellectual and moral solidarity of mankind, and that UNESCO was created for the purpose of advancing, through the educational and scientific and cultural relations of the peoples of the world, the objectives of international peace and of the common welfare of mankind for which the United Nations Organization was established and which its Charter proclaims. The ethical and political message contained in UNESCO s Constitution remains absolutely relevant to the needs of the present day, as can be seen in the challenge embodied in the United Nations resolution on a dialogue among civilizations. Following the discussions which took place during the 156th session of the Executive Board on the theme of a dialogue among civilizations, UNESCO s role in the United Nations Year of Dialogue among Civilizations has been included in the agenda of the 30th session of the General Conference, on the initiative of Lithuania. 1.3 A culture of peace The United Nations Year of Dialogue among Civilizations does not only naturally follow on from the celebration of the International Year for the Culture of Peace in the year 2000, for which UNESCO is the lead agency, but its very substance is also an integral part of the concept of a culture of peace, one of the Organization s major preoccupations today. The dominant theory now, which is strongly emerging from the ashes of the Cold War, is the theory of the clash of civilizations, the clash of cultures and religions. In the fundamental field of ideas where mentalities are shaped, values are built, behaviours are structured, it is in this realm of ideas that the culture of peace is to be firmly grounded. The culture of peace is based on the belief that human beings, cultures and civilizations by their interactions, based on common values, can build a better world. Thus, in responding to the prediction of a clash of civilizations UNESCO is promoting the reality of the dialogue of cultures, religions and spiritual traditions. The United Nations Year for Dialogue among Civilizations, 2001, which is also the first year of the International Decade for a Culture of Peace and Non-Violence for the Children of the World, will provide the opportunity to strengthen the above concepts by setting in motion actions that will facilitate and promote dialogue among civilizations.

4 30 C/INF.8 - page Evolution of the concept of dialogue As a result of the implementation by UNESCO of a number of activities with a strong intercultural dimension, the concept of dialogue has evolved from simple reciprocal knowledge, to that of interaction. This means that UNESCO has gone beyond the traditional, but limited approach of highlighting a better knowledge of each other, to an analysis of the dynamics of interaction between cultures and civilizations through a better understanding of the long memory, the long-term processes involved. In the light of this concept, culture is no longer experienced as an enclosure, but understood and even practised as a process of opening out to others. This new approach should help UNESCO and its Member States in avoiding situations whereby the promotion of identities and the protection of the cultural heritage are exploited in favour of exclusion, nationalism and ethnic or religious strife - as witnessed by many of today s conflicts. To the contrary, cultural heritage, identity and artistic creation thus naturally become the very substance on which interaction is based. 1.5 Ethics and values At the heart of global dialogue among civilizations lies the question of ethics and values. Mindful of its unique mission as an ethical and intellectual agency in the family of the United Nations, UNESCO has been endeavouring to draw together common threads in the worldwide search for common ethical values and principles. UNESCO s Medium-Term Strategy ( ) calls for the Organization urgently to address the crisis of values caused by today s rapid social changes, in accordance with its core ethical mission. 1 The Division of Philosophy and Ethics has thus pursued the quest for conceptual and philosophical foundations for a universal ethics, a common substratum of values essential to productive and peaceful coexistence, both among individuals and nations. The resulting document, A Common Framework for the Ethics of the Twenty-first Century, is the product of extensive research and consultations carried out since 1997 in the frame of the UNESCO Universal Ethics Project. 2 This Common Framework for the Ethics of the Twenty-first Century is an ethical framework which is suited for a dialogue among civilizations in search of common values. Such a common ethical framework would enable all cultures, societies and individuals to engage in dialogue and to deliberate on the tasks of survival and flourishing. This global dialogue is the beginning of an evolutionary process in which the commonality of problems facing humanity, in spite of the differences which separate, could lead to a common ethical vision. 1 2 UNESCO document 28 C/4, paragraphs 37, 38, 40. The six principal meetings of the project have been as follows: First Meeting of the Universal Ethics Project, in cooperation with the Maison des sciences de l homme (Paris, March 1997); Second Meeting of the Universal Ethics Project, in cooperation with the Italian Institute for Philosophical Studies (Naples, 1-4 December 1997); Universal Ethics: from the Perspective of Chinese Ethical Traditions, in cooperation with the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences (Beijing, 1-3 June 1998); Universal Ethics: from the Perspective of Different Religious Traditions, in cooperation with the Centre UNESCO de Catalunya (Sitges, Spain, 9-10 October 1998); Universal Ethics: In the Light of African Experience, in cooperation with the Centre Africain des Hautes Etudes (Porto-Novo, Benin, May 1999); Universal Ethics: from the Nordic Perspectives, in cooperation with the Tercentenary Foundation of the Bank of Sweden and University of Lund (Lund, Sweden, 3-5 June 1999).

5 2. ACTIVITIES BEING IMPLEMENTED TO PROMOTE THE CONCEPT OF DIALOGUE AMONG CIVILIZATIONS : SPECIFIC EXAMPLES 2.1 Intercultural dialogue 30 C/INF.8 - page 3 Already, the Organization has addressed many of the related issues. For instance, through various intercultural projects, such as the Routes projects, which have attracted the interest both of the academic community and of the general public, UNESCO has endeavoured to analyse the dynamics of interaction and encounter between cultures by highlighting the role of movement in the development of cultures and civilizations - movement of people, of material goods, of spiritual traditions, of ideas, of values - as well as the contributions and the borrowings that have taken place between them. These studies have underscored the need for a better understanding of the long-term processes which are the mainsprings of the memory of peoples. In view of the forthcoming celebration of the United Nations Year of Dialogue among Civilizations, 2001, it is proposed to strengthen the processes that favour a better understanding of the convergence between cultures through the discovery of a common heritage and shared values. 2.2 The intercultural and Route projects The main characteristics of UNESCO s intercultural projects are a multidisciplinary approach and a regional or interregional anchorage which, in specific historical and geographical contexts (Orient-Occident; Europe-Africa-America-Caribbean network of triangular commerce; Arab-Africa-Europe world; Islam-Judaism-Christianity in the Al-Andalus region of Spain) bring to light the depth of the interactions and therefore of the plurality that underlies the dialogue of cultures The Slave Route The Slave Route project, focuses on the dialectic relation between historical studies of the deep causes and the modalities of the transatlantic slave trade and the analysis of the interactions that it has generated. It must take into account the scope of the geographical zones involved (Africa, Europe, the Americas including the Caribbean), the multidisciplinary dimension of the questions dealt with, the complex human factors, the weight of the psychological aspect, as well as the contemporary political, social and cultural stakes of the regions concerned. UNESCO aims to make the issue of the slave trade and its consequences the subject of an international, multidisciplinary study which will highlight the processes, the mechanisms and the results of both the tragedy of the Atlantic Slave Trade and the intercultural dialogue that it engendered between Europe, Africa, the Americas and the Caribbean, and will enable the peoples concerned, as well as the universal conscience, to assume a common memory and common heritage and to create conditions that will help the renewal of their cooperation. The Slave Route project thus echoes one of the intuitions of the founding fathers of UNESCO which is inscribed in the Constitution: the great and terrible war which has now ended was a war made possible by the denial of the democratic principles of the dignity, equality and mutual respect of men, and by the propagation, in their place, through ignorance and prejudice, of the doctrine of the inequality of men and races East-West Intercultural Dialogue in Central Asia The East-West Intercultural Dialogue in Central Asia project is a follow-up to the tenyear Integral Study of the Silk Roads: Roads of Dialogue project which studied how the

6 30 C/INF.8 - page 4 movement of men and ideas brought about the interactions that took place between Orient and Occident. It focuses on aspects of the tangible and intangible heritage which are common to the various cultures of Central Asia, and can best illustrate the concept of a common heritage and plural identity. The concept of a dialogue among cultures should be anchored through outward looking intellectual research and creation, in order to give the long-term impact that is required. The Organization feels that this could, to an extent, be achieved through the establishment of institutes and centres devoted to this theme, along the lines of those already set up in the framework of the Silk Roads project, such as the International Institute for Central Asian Studies in Samarkand (Uzbekistan) and of the International Institute for the Study of Nomadic Civilizations in Ulan Bator. The network that is developing includes institutes established in Fujian (China) and in Nara (Japan). Encouraged by the positive results of the former Silk Roads project, Pakistan is in the process of establishing an institute which will work on subjects closely related to the theme of the United Nations year, the International Institute of Comparative Civilizations Spiritual Convergence and Intercultural Dialogue The Spiritual Convergence and Intercultural Dialogue project aims to bring to light the processes behind the convergence of cultures, by encouraging the creation of forums of dialogue between communities which belong to different religious and cultural spheres, but which share the same historical heritage and many common values. Another objective is to highlight the processes underlying reciprocal influences, and borrowing between cultures, and which can contribute to the renewal of perceptions of otherness and can strengthen solidarity. This project serves as a link between the Roads of Faith and the Roads of Al-Andalus projects. The latter proposes to highlight the processes, the modalities and the results of the intercultural dialogue that has developed between Judaism, Christianity and Islam, and from the geographical point of view between Europe, the Arab world and sub-saharan Africa. A more precise understanding of the complex interactions which took place over time in the Al-Andalus region, would further enrich the present endeavours of the three religions of the Book to dialogue with each other Iron Road in Africa Through the Iron Road in Africa project UNESCO is promoting increased awareness of the role of Iron in African societies. With the creation of an African Institute of Iron and Technology, UNESCO is encouraging, in cooperation with UNIDO and industrial partners, technological development and artistic ironwork 2.3 Cultural pluralism The fundamental aim at the core of UNESCO s approach is to stress the positive value of pluralism, pluralism meaning acceptance, promotion, practice and respect of diversity. UNESCO has taken various initiatives to promote the practices and to support the protagonists of cultural pluralism, in the sense of the harmonious management of intercommunity interactions within multicultural societies. The Organization has also been involved in efforts to encourage the acknowledgement, inter alia, in national constitutions, of the multicultural and multi-ethnic nature of societies, in particular in the framework of the International Decade of the World s Indigenous People ( ).

7 30 C/INF.8 - page UNESCO Cities for Peace Prize This prize 3 honours cities that efficiently combat poverty and exclusion and are firmly committed to the daily construction of inter- and intra-community dialogue in urban settings. By means of this International Prize, UNESCO s aims are to contribute to the devising of local policies by providing concrete information on truly successful projects and to encourage international cooperation among cities by fostering the construction of the UNESCO Cities for Peace Network. Successful urban projects are featured, every two years, in the trilingual publication, The City: A User s Guide and integrated into a database ( culture/citiesforpeace) Ethnic tensions in multicultural societies Exchanges of information are being developed on ways and means of regulating interethnic tensions in multicultural societies and defining strategies for the promotion of pluralism in conflict areas such as, for example, the Great Lakes (Africa) and the Balkans (Europe). 2.4 Advancement, transfer and sharing of knowledge The advancement, transfer and sharing of knowledge, one of the Organization s basic functions, constitutes an essential element in the dialogue among civilizations. This is clearly illustrated in two of its basic standard-setting instruments, the Convention against Discrimination in Education (1960) and the Recommendation concerning Education for International Understanding, Cooperation and Peace and Education relating to Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms (1974). Through many of its education, science and communication programmes UNESCO addresses different aspects of the theme Education and promotion of linguistic diversity In the field of education and promotion of linguistic diversity, language teaching and particularly multilingual education are a key factor in the development of communication and understanding among peoples. A number of activities are being carried out within the Linguapax project specifically in favour of a dialogue among civilizations: a UNESCO report on the world s languages to be published in 2001, is being prepared; the Linguapax network is being developed with the establishment of new UNESCO Chairs on language themes; an Advisory Committee for Linguistic Pluralism and Multilingual Education was set up during the 155th session of the Executive Board; numerous guides for language policies in plurilingual countries are being produced, as well as other information materials, and a Linguapax website is being created Associated Schools The UNESCO Special Project Young peoples participation in world heritage preservation and promotion gives youth a chance to learn about world heritage sites, about the history and traditions of their own and other cultures, about ecology and the importance of protecting biodiversity. Launched in 1994 and managed by the World Heritage Centre and the Associated Schools Project, this worldwide project seeks to encourage tomorrow s decisionmakers to unite and actively participate in world heritage preservation and promotion, thereby promoting a dialogue of civilizations. 3 In addition to other prizes mentioned elsewhere in this document, there are several UNESCO prizes which cover aspects closely linked to the theme Dialogue among Civilizations, for instance: International Simón Bolívar Prize, International José Martí Prize, UNESCO Prize for Children s and Young People s Literature in the Service of Tolerance, Félix Houphouët-Boigny Peace Prize, Kalinga Prize.

8 30 C/INF.8 - page 6 The Associated Schools programme is also actively involved in the pedagogical aspect of the Slave Route project. The organization of meetings on a regional level to which both teachers and students are invited contributes to advancing knowledge among young people regarding the interactions which took place during this tragedy, and, very importantly, that have taken place since Scientific dimension of dialogue The scientific dimension of a dialogue among civilizations is being brought to light through a number of activities organized in cooperation with the Interdisciplinary University of Paris: an international conference on science and humanism was organized in April 1999 at UNESCO Headquarters, within which a session was devoted to the subject of science and religion; within the framework of the International Festival on Sacred Music, an international seminar on the subject of science and traditions was held in Fez, Morocco, in May Scientists, representing various religious confessions, debated the issue of the origin of life, the origin of the Universe and the perception of scientific realities; similarly in June 1999, in a meeting organized at the Sorbonne, Paris, scientists from different religions discussed the question of whether the Universe has a sense. An International Exhibition on Islamic Science and Technology and its history from the eighth to the fifteenth century is being organized in collaboration with the Legacy of Al-Andalus Foundation, ISESCO and ALECSO, and aims to remind the public of the spirit of tolerance that prevailed during the period covered. More specifically, it will illustrate how techniques acquired from earlier civilizations were transferred to the Islamic civilization, and through it paved the way for the Renaissance and later scientific revolutions in Europe. In partnership with the Centre for Natural Science and Theology (Berkeley, United States), the Interdisciplinary University of Paris, the Pontifical Academy of Science, UNESCO is planning a major programme called Science and the Spiritual Quest, which will comprise a number of workshops and conferences in countries such as France, Morocco, India, Japan and Italy Communication In the field of communication, through a number of multilateral and bilateral partnerships UNESCO is helping to bridge the communication and information gap, which remains a major obstacle to any dialogue. In addition, UNESCO provides support to independent media in zones of conflict. This action will be extended to new areas, and will include the support for joint activities, professional exchanges, cooperation and dialogue, in particular through press forums, press houses and clubs for media professionals from all sides. 2.5 Human rights and tolerance 2.51 Education for human rights One of the essential foundations of both a culture of peace and a dialogue among civilizations is the respect for and enjoyment of human rights and fundamental freedoms for all, without distinction as to ethnic or national allegiance, sex, language or religion, as embodied in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights 4 (1948). 4 Among the standard-setting instruments, or major declarations, drawn up under the auspices of UNESCO which are cornerstones in the advancement of international understanding mention must also be made of the Declaration on Race and Racial Prejudice (1978).

9 30 C/INF.8 - page 7 This represents a universal value, a common achievement of many different civilizations. The World Conference on Human Rights (Vienna, Austria, June 1993) agreed that all human rights are universal, indivisible, interdependent and interrelated While the significance of national and regional particularities and various backgrounds must be borne in mind, it is the duty of States, regardless of their political, economic and cultural systems, to promote and protect all human rights and fundamental freedoms (Vienna Declaration and Programme of Action, para. 5). This important conclusion was confirmed repeatedly at the regional conferences on education for human rights organized by UNESCO in Europe (Turku, Finland, September 1997), in Africa (Dakar, Senegal, December 1998), in Asia and the Pacific (Pune, India, February 1999) and in the Arab States (Rabat, Morocco, February 1999) and has become a general objective shared by specialists and human rights activists throughout the world. It should be added that, since 1978 the UNESCO Prize for Human Rights Education is awarded, every two years, to an institution, an organization or an individual in recognition of a significant activity aimed at developing human rights Tolerance, a new basis for dialogue and peace UNESCO has taken the lead within the United Nations system in a real crusade against intolerance. Tolerance is one of the basic principles both of the United Nations Charter (which calls on peoples of the world to practise tolerance and live together in peace with one another as good neighbours ) and of the UNESCO Constitution ( The ignorance of each other s ways and lives has been a common cause, throughout the history of mankind, of that suspicion and mistrust between the peoples of the world through which their differences have all too often broken into war ). Tolerance is the solid foundation of any civil society and of peace. It is at the heart of all programmes of UNESCO whose mission is to build peace on the basis of the intellectual and moral solidarity of mankind. In resolution A/RES/53/151, the United Nations General Assembly requests the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization to continue to be the lead United Nations agency in the promotion of tolerance and non-violence. At the instigation of UNESCO, tolerance has become a key notion in the prevention of violence, the emergence of a spirit of peace and the strengthening of cultural pluralism. It has become an active principle of peace and democracy. As the Director-General of UNESCO pointed out in his message on the occasion of the International Day for Tolerance (16 November 1998): The bases of tolerance are primarily dialogue, with all the values that it represents such as equality, diversity, justice and caring for others. Tolerance, which is active, watchful and liberating, will put an end to those unhealthy and mortally dangerous reflexes which are slowing humanity down, namely, violence, nationalism, exclusion and fanaticism. We have entered on a period of adaptation to new identities, an era of transculturality with its risks and dangers, as well as its opportunities to be seized. Let us make openness towards others the keynote of this era. Otherness is one of the key concepts of tolerance, that foundation for the learning of democracy and peace. Tolerance is no longer a passive principle of respect for different persons, communities and cultures, it is now a strategic policy of openness, which is closely linked with non-violence. The interaction of tolerance and non-violence is a unifying theme which strengthens the cooperation between UNESCO and other agencies of the United Nations system, such as UNHCR or WHO, and other outside partners.

10 30 C/INF.8 - page Tolerance and non-violence, an interactive strategic principle for dialogue In order to put this new concept of tolerance in practice, according to the Declarations of Principles on Tolerance (1995) and the Follow-up to the United Nations Year for Tolerance (1995), many actions and initiatives have been taken by UNESCO. An important work of awareness-raising of the largest public possible is engaged through the events organized each year in schools, on television, on the radio and in the press on the occasion of International Day for Tolerance (16 November), through the yearly UNESCO Prize for Peace Education and through the UNESCO-Madanjeet Singh Prize for the Promotion of Tolerance and Non- Violence, which is awarded every two years to an individual or an institution for exceptional contributions and leadership in the field of tolerance-promotion. In the framework of four Regional Networks for the Promotion of Tolerance and Non- Violence established by UNESCO (Mediterranean Sea/Black Sea; Asia/Pacific; Africa; and Latin America), several forums have been held to debate issues linked to intercommunity and intercultural dialogue. The participants of the Second Meeting of the Mediterranean Sea/Black Sea Network for Tolerance and Non-Violence, held at Primorsko, Bulgaria (17-21 June 1999), just at the end of the war in Kosovo, signed The Primorsko Appeal, declaring that education is the main tool for inculcating the values of tolerance, dialogue, non-violence and mutual appreciation and that this education should be multilingual and multicultural in order to develop tolerance and comprehension among citizens free of prejudices. The second Film Festival for Tolerance and against Exclusion will take place at UNESCO, Paris, from 20 November to 30 December This event was first created during Europe s Year against Racism in 1997, and UNESCO hopes to renew this festival on an annual basis. Conceived as an educational tool promoting tolerance, the festival is a theatre for exchange and debate on a question that has become essential to the future of our societies. In October 1999, UNESCO will publish Penser la non-violence ( Rethinking Non- Violence ), by Ramin Jahanbegloo, an Iranian philosopher and specialist of Gandhi. It deals with the thoughts, actions and strategies of great actors of non-violence, throughout history and in different cultures of the world. UNESCO intends to revitalize and promote this concept, as it did for tolerance, in order to strengthen and accelerate the dialogue among cultures in the years to come For peace and tolerance, for a dialogue among cultures The promotion of dialogue among civilizations, in particular in conflict regions, was one of the main objectives of the project For peace and tolerance, for a dialogue among cultures. In this project, particular significance was attributed to the elaboration of initiatives and implementation of concrete actions aimed at building a climate conducive to developing relations based on the principles of tolerance, respect for cultural, religious and ethnic pluralism, non-violence and dialogue as a way of alleviating tensions and settling conflicts in the countries of Central and Eastern Europe. A major effort was made to mobilize representatives of civil society and, primarily, personalities of culture and science as individuals or as influential groups of society, for raising public awareness of that the only way to get rid of the culture of war is by developing the culture of peace and dialogue among civilizations which should facilitate the establishing of a lasting and sustainable peace for humankind. Special attention was paid to cooperation with the mass media. In order to achieve the above-mentioned objectives, several major international forums and meetings of well-known personalities were organized in the framework of the project For peace and tolerance, for a dialogue among cultures, in particular in such conflict regions, as the

11 30 C/INF.8 - page 9 Caucasus and the Dniestr region: For Solidarity against Intolerance, for a Dialogue of Cultures, held in Tbilisi, Georgia, July 1995; For a Culture of Peace and Dialogue of Civilizations, against a Culture of War and Violence, held in Kishinev, Moldova, May 1998; For a Culture of Peace and Dialogue among Civilizations in the Third Millennium, held in Moscow, Russian Federation, May Social progress Social progress and helping people reach a better standard of living is a central purpose for the entire United Nations system. Peace is as indispensable to development as development is to peace, thus a dialogue among civilizations today must take into account the disparities that exist both among and within nations MOST In the framework of the MOST programme, UNESCO is particularly working on issues related to the management of social transformations and to the development of strategies of poverty alleviation. Among numerous other activities, under this programme a number of networks have been set up forming a solid basis for developing social science research in three main areas in which dialogue among civilizations is a strong dimension: the management of multicultural and multi-ethnic societies; the governance of cities; and coping with global-local linkages. 3. FUTURE ACTION 3.1 Regional meetings UNESCO is very conscious that it must address the long-term processes that have engendered suspicion and mistrust between the peoples of the world, that amidst today s rapid economic, social, political and demographic upheavals, the basic function of the Organization as a think tank, a forum for reflection and anticipation can enable the international community to gain a better grasp of the changes occurring in the world, and can help it to devise innovative strategies to meet the emerging challenges in its fields of competence. To encourage this reflection on the theme, regional meetings should be coordinated by UNESCO and the United Nations. UNESCO suggests that the possibility be examined of holding these meetings in zones where conflictual situations prevail. 3.2 Recent initiatives of Member States A number of Member States have already expressed specific interest to undertake activities related to the theme of the United Nations Year in 2001 in the framework of UNESCO s programme. Several have proposed to organize meetings on this subject: Islamic Republic of Iran will organize, in cooperation with UNESCO, a meeting in which eminent intellectual and political personalities will take part in an open discussion to reflect on the theme. The Teheran Encounter on a Dialogue among Civilizations is planned to take place early in the year 2000; Egypt, Greece, Islamic Republic of Iran and Italy have already launched a series of conferences to reflect on a specific aspect of the theme which concerns The Heritage of Ancient Civilizations: Implications for the Modern World, and together have signed the Declaration of Athens in this respect;

12 30 C/INF.8 - page 10 Lithuania has submitted a request to organize an international conference on the theme a Dialogue among Civilizations during the year 2001, in Vilnius; Pakistan has expressed the wish that the official inauguration of the International Institute of Comparative Civilizations, at present being established, takes place towards the end of 2000, as a symbolic event introducing the United Nations Year of Dialogue among Civilizations, 2001; The Francophone countries have decided that the dialogue among civilizations will be the theme of their next Summit, to be held in the Lebanon in the year 2001; The Organization of Islamic Conference (OIC) had adopted a resolution to establish an intergovernmental group of experts to prepare the United Nations Year of Dialogue among Civilizations, CONCLUSION UNESCO s action is catalytic by nature, and as such is concerned with reflection, guidance, promotion, encouragement, stimulation and mobilization at the global level. UNESCO acts upstream by making the case with decision-makers and States. But the Organization also acts downstream, in order to rally the support of the intellectual community as well as of civil society as a whole, the media and all those who are in a position to act as intermediaries at the national and local levels. In preparation of the United Nations Year in 2001, UNESCO will concentrate on mobilizing the intellectual community on the reflection and understanding of the processes, modalities and results of interactions between peoples, cultures and civilizations. The Organization will fully play its role of forum of reflection around this theme. Contacts are being made with a view to establishing a UNESCO Prize for Dialogue among Civilizations. In order to mobilize actions in its Member States, in addition to utilizing its networks of scientific, academic and cultural institutions, UNESCO will also rely on its vast international networks of UNESCO National Commissions, NGOs, the UNESCO Associated Schools, the UNESCO Associations and Clubs. It is through action at field level that UNESCO will be able to foster awareness, participation and commitment on the part of all to the fundamental need of a Dialogue among Civilizations. UNESCO s action, therefore, essentially takes place in its Member States. The deliberation and subsequent decisions of UNESCO s General Conference at its 30th session will provide further guidance on the directions which this action should take. In order to ensure the necessary coordination between the United Nations and UNESCO with regard to the year 2001, UNESCO considers that it would be opportune to establish a task force or working group between the two Secretariats.