Bahá’í World/Volume 28/The Year in Review

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[Page 47]

IN REVIEW

11 the century and a half since its inception, the Bahá’í Faith.

has grown from a small, isolated community into a worldwide body, With more than five million members in virtually every nation in the world. Under the guidance of Bahá’u’lláh’s administrative framework the community continues to grow, progress, and develop every year. This article surveys events and activities of the Bahá’í world during the period between Riḍván 1999 and Riḍván 2000.

Bahá’u’lláh wrote, “the ealth is but one country and mankind its citizens.” Bahá’ís around the world are striving both to unify and to consolidate their own communities and to improve conditions in the wider society by initiating social and economic development projects; promoting the cause of peace and intergovernmental cooperation; implementing programs of moral education; developing human resources through training institutes; increasing racial, ethnic, and tribal harmony through dialogue and cooperation; supporting human rights; fostering use of the arts; and promoting scholarship.

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Internally, the‘Bahá’ís strive to create distinctive communities by such means as establishing local and national Bahá’í centers, gaining legal recognition for Bahá’í institutions, strengthening relationships with other religions and leaders of thought, and gathering in regional and national Bahá’í conferences to consult and build wider bonds of unity. Bahá’í community development is designed to promote creativity, build capacity, and develop distinctive social patterns. Beyond these activities, Bahá’ís are teaching their Faith to the people of the world, an undertaking which ‘Abdu’l-Bahá called “the greatest of all divine bestowals.” This constitutes more for Bahá’ís than a mere numerical increase; it is a responsibility to humanity—to share the teachings which they believe are the means for the advancement of the whole human race.

The sheer number of activities makes this record far from comprehensive. Instead, it aims to provide a general overview of the evolving range and sophistication ofboth local and national activities, and perhaps give some insight into the challenges of building a global community.

Africa

ANGOLA—Twenty-one people participated in Angola’s first Bahá’í study course on the advancement of women, held from 3 t0 6 May 1999. The participants in the all—day sessions studied the theme of spiritual empowerment in Bahá’u’lláh’s writings. 'In addition to

Participants in a Bahá’í' deepening 0n the empowerment of women in Luanda,

i Angola, in May 1999.

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the all-day study sessions, the participants learned and sang new songs.

BENlN—The regional women’s committee of the Sahel hosted a conference in Parakou in August 1999. More than 150 Bahá’ís from Benin, Burkina Faso, Mali, Niger, and Togo attended the event, which was covered on local radio and regional television. The departmental director of the Ministry for Women’s Affairs of Borgu attended. The conference was preceded by two days ofworkshops, a Visit to the authorities of Parakou, and Visits to nearby localities.

BOTSWANA—The summer school organized by the Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá’ís of Botswana, in collaboration with the Provincial Bahá’í Council of the North-West in South Africa, was the first to be held entirely in the Setswana language and the first to be held for all Batswana peoples on both sides of the BotswanaSouth Afn'ca border. The gathering took place in Mmabatho, South Africa, from 16 to 21 December 1999. Dithapelo 729a Bahd ’z’, the first Bahá’í prayer book in the Setswana language, was published in September 2000, after five years of effort. It is also the first hardcover book produced by the Botswanan Bahá’í community.

BURKINA—Four regional women’s conferences and four youth conferences were held in Burkina during the period under review. Between November 1999 and January 2000, Burkina’s recently formed drama group Light of Unity toured parts of the country and performed before some 4,800 people, ofwhom more than 350 became Bahá’ís. The group also met with traditional chiefs and government and religious officials. Jean Jacques Yem Of Céte d’Ivoire spent a month in Burkina training Bahá’í youth in the use of the arts to teach the Bahá’í Faith.

CAMEROON—The Bahá’í youth ofDouala participated in the city’s parade to commemorate the International Day of the Afiican Child on 17 June 1999. Later, during a program in the Village hall of Akwa, the youth performed a “Dance of Unity” which they had choreographed and sang songs they had composed. The program was presided over by a provincial representative of the ministry

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Women celebrating International Women 3' Day in Douala,

C amemon.

for Youth, Sport, and Social Affairs, and was attended by the minister for the Advancement of Women. The youth were interviewed by radio and television reporters and awarded prizes by the ministers for “Best Peace Message,” and “Best Message for Children’s Education for Peace.”

CAPE VERDE—In December 1999, Leilani Smith-Tellez traveled from the United States to Cape Verde to teach the Bahá’í Faith. During her Visit, she was interviewed about the Faith on national television, radio, and newspapers. She also had the opportunity to give presentations about the Bahá’í teachings and social and economic development programs undertaken by the Bahá’ís t0 the president of cabinet ministers; the minister for Education, Science, Youth, and Sport; and the director and founder of the oldest women’s organization in Cape Verde.

CHAD—After almost a decade, Bahá’í youth in Chad were able to hold a national youth conference. Seventy—two youth from fourteen localities gathered for two days in April 1999 at the Samandari Institute in Manda to consult about the role of Bahá’í youth, the different avenues of service open to them, and children’s education. In June, a teaching project guided by two full—time facilitators from the Samandari Institute and composed mainly of youth brought 340 people into the Bahá’í Faith.

CONGO REPUBLlC—The government of the Congo Republic invited representatives of the Bahá’í Faith and other religions to

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make presentations at a two-day meeting in the Parliament building in Brazzaville. Held from 17 to 19 December 1999, the time, called “Awareness-raising Days,” was focused on conciliation and forgiveness.

COTE D’IVOIRE—In May 1999, a campaign for the advancement ofwomen was launched in the region of Danané, where participation of women in Bahá’í activities has been low because of entrenched traditional attitudes about female inferiority. Plans for further strengthening the campaign include the adaptation of the training manual “A Campaign for the Advancement of Women: Training Package for Men and Women” to the needs and culture of the locality.

DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF CONGO—A Bahá’í family in the Democratic Republic of Congo took the initiative of renting an exhibition hall in Lubumbashi from mid-March to mid-June 1999. Family members placed a large banner over the entrance announcing a Bahá’í exhibit and printed six hundred leaflets to distribute to Visitors. A highlight of the hall’s activities over the three months was a symposium held on 12 June entitled “What Religion for Africa?” A professional writer and friend of the Bahá’ís gave the keynote address at the gathering. Some 2,250 people Visited the hall, more than 2,500 leaflets were distributed, twenty books were given away, and nine declarations of faith were recorded.

DJIBOUTl—The Local Spiritual Assembly of the capital City of Djibouti embarked in J u1y 1999 on a four—month campaign to teach the Bahá’í Faith. In Tadjoura, the Bahá’ís first went to the sultan to obtain permission to inform the people about the Bahá’í teachings. He remembered the Bahá’ís from a past Visit and gave his permission, saying, “The world is in serious trouble; we need these kinds of teachings.” The Bahá’ís distributed literature in the local language.

ERITREA—About fifty people attended the meeting sponsored by the national teaching committee of Eritrea on 19 September 1999, to inform Asmara’s Bahá’í community of the current status of the Ahdieh teaching project. Under the auspices of the project, four

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traveling teachers joined two short—term pioneers in Agordat for three weeks, where they distiibuted Bahá’í literature and welcomed two people to the Bahá’í community. Elsewhere, Bahá’ís managed to open a temporary Bahá’í center and undertook teaching activities in Mendefera.

ETHIOPIA—A young man who became a Bahá’í in Addis Ababa in April 1999 shared the news with two friends in his home near the Kenyan border. They also became Bahá’ís and in turn told their friends about the Faith they had found. Several local Christians and Muslims heard how the Bahá’í Faith was spreading in their town and together went to the police asking that the three Bahá’ís be jailed. After three days in jail, the Bahá’ís went to court. The plaintiffs reported to the judges that the young men were creating havoc by spreading a strange religion and were teaching it with unfamiliar and peculiar materials. The judges responded by stating that the Bahá’í Faith is well—known and the confiscated books had been printed in Addis Ababa, where the Faith is officially recognized. After their release, news of the trial spread. By the end of the month, thirty-three people had become Bahá’ís after hearing of it by way of the trial. A meeting was called for the new Bahá’ís, who elected a Local Spiritual Assembly.

GABON—The National Spiritual Assembly of Gabon is in the process of renovating its national center in Libreville. It has successfully completed the first phase of the work and has begun the second phase, which involves constructing an upper level on the main annex of the center.

THE GAMBIA—Sang Correa, a well-known Gambian boxer who is a Bahá’í, married Elizabeth Mendy in Correa’s hometown of Lamin on 22 May 1999. The Local Spiritual Assembly of Lamin conducted the region’s first Bahá’í marriage, strengthening the Assembly’s ability to apply Bahá’í laws and understand their relationship to traditional practices.

GHANA—On 9 June 1999, the Local Spiritual Assembly of Madina presented a set of books on the Bahá’í Faith to the newly opened Institute of Local Government Studies, whose mandate is to train

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local government employees from all over the country. The Bahá’í delegation was well received by the Institute’s director and deputy director. The director was particularly interested in the Bahá’í concept of consultation and offered to arrange a forum in which the region’s different religions could present their teachings and their relevance to local government administration.

GUINEA—A Bahá’í in N’zao organized a meeting on 27 July 1999 to help raise awareness of the problem of feminine genital mutilation in Guinea.

KENYA—Some 550 Bahá’ís representing twenty-six countries attended an international youth conference in Nairobi for four days in December 1999. The theme of the conference was “Youth 2000: The Role onouth in the Coming Millennium.” It was officially opened by Dr. V. G. Simiyo, chairman of the Department of History at the University of Nairobi. Topics discussed included the mission of Bahá’u’lláh, the Bahá’í Covenant, the lives of selected early Bábi and Bahá’í figures, the training institute process, tribalism and superstition, and social and economic development. Most talks were followed by workshops, and the arts played a prominent role. Fourteen members of the Continental Board of Counsellors and two Counsellor members of the International Teaching Centre attended the event.

LESOTHO—In an effort to establish ties with people of capacity in Lesotho, the Bahá’í community presented copies of the Bahá’í International Community’s recently published statement, Who

Balm ’z's present the statement Who is Writing the Future? to His Majestv King Lelsie 111 ofLeSOI/zo.

[Page 54]THE, Bahá’í WleD

is Writing the Future? to invited guests at the celebration of the anniversary of the birth of the Bab in Maseru on 20 October. Several guests spoke about the document, including Mothusi Mashologu, a well—known Basotho dignitary, and Khoeli Pholosi, a member of the National Spiritual Assembly. A delegation had previously presented a copy of the document to His Majesty King Letsie III, who received it graciously. The document was also presented to government ministers, members of Parliament, and other prominent people in the community.

LIBERIA—During a Visit to Liberia, five African American women met with government officials, civic groups, and women’s organizations in Monrovia, after which they joined a teaching project. From Monrovia, the group traveled to Dolo’s Town where they held training courses in computers and on the use of the arts to teach the Bahá’í Faith.

Radio programming created by Liberian Bahá’ís, broadcast on the international service of Kiss Liberia Communication Network, have proven to be quite popular. Regular programs such as “Society and Religion,” “Morning Meditation,” “Special Features,” and “DC. Talk” stimulate public inquiries and discussion.

MADAGASCAR—Twenty-one members of Local Spiritual Assemblies took part in an institute training session held from 25 September to 2 October 1999 at the Bahá’í center in Antananarivo. The first half of the course was spent studying the concept, role, and functions of the institute and the place of human resource development in large-scale community growth. The other half was spent studying the Bahá’í teachings on spiritual subjects such as prayer, meditation, the soul, and the purpose of life.

MAURITIUS—On 1 J anuary 2000, some two thousand children gathered at the State House, Le Réduit, to celebrate peace, along with the president of the Republic of Mauritius. On behalf of the Bahá’í children of Mauritius, Rouhangiz Baichoo, a twelve—yearold Bahá’í girl, addressed a vote of thanks to the president for his treatment of children and interpreted a song composed by a Malagasy Bahá’í entitled “Citoyen du Monde” [“World Citizen”].

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The president, his family, and other dignitaries were moved by the song and asked that it be sung several times so that the other children could learn it.

MOZAMBIQUE—During the “Green Light Teaching Project,” initiated by the Bahá’í community in Mozambique, more than twenty-five hundred people in forty-nine new localities in the Sofala and Manica provinces in the central part of the country became Bahá’ís. Also, the first program to train tutors of institute study circles in Mozambique was held for four days in June 1999, at the national Bahá’í center. Tutors are those who are expected to form independent study circles in their home communities after they have been trained. The training included Vigorous study of the Bahá’í writings, and discussion of attitudes important for tutors including the need to encourage students to be independent and active participants in their own learning.

NAMIBIA—In a long-term, large—scale effort to promote race unity in Namibia, the Bahá’ís of Windhoek have Visited nearly all of the City’s primary and secondary schools. During race unity presentations to principals, teachers, and students, more than ten thousand people have heard the Bahá’í perspective on race relations. Organizers hope to Visit all the schools in the capital and expand the project to outlying areas.

Namibia’s first international Bahá’í summer school attracted more than four hundred Bahá’ís from seven countries in December 1999. The event, with the theme “Building a Unified, Vibrant, Cohesive Community,” was enlivened by presentations by Hassan Sabri from the United Kingdom and Kevin Locke from the United States, and by a performing arts festival.

RWANDA—Many members of the minority pygmy tribe known as Abatwa have become Bahá’ís and are actively participating in the Bahá’í community of Rwanda. In the past, the Abatwas had consistently refiJsed to integrate with modern society or to accept any religion.

SAO TOME AND PRiNClPE—Forty-eight Bahá’ís have completed courses at the Elise Lynelle Training Institute in $510 Tome and

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In Gisenye, Rwanda, local Balm 'I's work to build a regional center for the area.

Principe, where they studied the Bahá’í teachings on spiritual subjects such as the purpose, significance, and nature of the soul, and prayer and meditation.

SENEGAL—In its 5 and 6 October 1999 issues, a widely-read Senegalese newspaper printed an article on various “dangerous sects” being introduced to Senegal, including the Bahá’í Faith. Under the guidance of the National Spiritual Assembly of Senegal, a letter was written to the editor to give the position of the Bahá’ís on the issue. When there was no response, the Bahá’ís again contacted the paper and a delegation of three Senegalese Bahá’ís met with the editor—in-chief. In the 13 December issue the letter of the Bahá’ís was finally published.

On 17 April 2000, the Bahá’í community of Senegal launched the first Bahá’í Web site of French-speaking Africa, at <www.sn.bahai.org>.

SEYCHELLES—In the Seychelles, Bahá’í holy days are now regularly announced on radio, TV, and in newspapers. There was also national media coverage of the laying of the foundation stone of the new national center, and a feature program on SBC TV on the statement Who is Writing the F uture?, which also received coverage in the national newspaper Seychelles Nation.

SIERRA LEONE—In recognition and appreciation of the constructive ideas offered by two Bahá’ís during a television interview concerning the peace process, members of the Bahá’í community

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of Sierra Leone were invited to participate in two subsequent interviews on national radio in the spring of 1999. The first focused on the role of religion in nation building, and a member of the Local Spiritual Assembly of Freetown gave a Bahá’í perspective on the topic. The second interview focused exclusively on the Bahá’í Faith.

SWAZILAND—Bahá’í work in education in Swaziland advanced from the established six preschools and one primary school to include a Bahá’í high school, known as Setsembiso Sebunye High School, which opened its doors to 107 students in January 2000. The building, housing the first two forms for a five-year program, will be expanded over the next five years. This will culminate in an education complex on a four—hectare campus for one thousand students by 2005. The school aims to include moral and spiritual education, advanced information technology starting from primary school, and a community development outreach program of service to the greater community. The Bahá’ís in Swaziland also recently dedicated their new local center in Nginarnadolo. The previous local Bahá’í center in the area became the first Bahá’í primary school and is now administered by the government.

TANZANlA—On 3 December 1999, seventeen Bahá’ís, including thirteen secondary school students, traveled from Iringa t0 Mbozi to begin a ten-day teaching trip sponsored by the Local Spiritual Assembly of Iringa. The group had prepared for the trip by organizing a program of songs, puppet shows, and introductory

A Sllrld}? sessionfbr Bahá’í' scouts held in S670 Tomé and Principe.

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V Counsellor

_ member offlie International fiac/ting C entre Joan Lincoln (rear, ‘ SILrt/ifrom left) withparticipants in a teaching con 'erence in Marna’i, Niger.

talks abofit the Bahá’í Faith. The grofip was received warmly in each Village they Visited, with audiences ranging in size from one hundred to five hundred people.

TOGO—Sixty-five members from twelve Local Spiritual Assemblies—four from Burkina Faso and eight from Togo—met in Papri, Togo, for two days in May 1999 to discuss teaching, the advancement of women, children’s education, and the importance of holding Nineteen Day Feasts in their respective Bahá’í communities. The first part of the conference was followed by an evening fireside, which was followed by focused teaching campaigns throughout the country.

UGANDA—A large number of religious leaders representing the Catholic Church, the Church of Uganda, Orthodox Chn'stians, other Christian denominations, the Muslim community, and the Bahá’í community were invited to a workshop in Kampala on religious tolerance. The workshop was sponsored by the development organizations Always Be Tolerant, SNV Netherlands, GTZ Germany, and the German Development Service and was held on 17 F ebruary 2000. Participants discussed the need for religious unity and obstacles to it, the use of consultation and other tools to solve conflicts, particularly in connection to the fourteen—year civil war raging in the north of the country, and prospects for Ugandan social and economic development. George Olinga of the National Spiritual Assembly chaired both the morning and afternoon sessions.

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ZAMBIA—A regional seminar for Bahá’í headmen was held in Sinazongwe, Zambia, from 11 to 13 June 1999, with nineteen traditional leaders attending. The purpose of the meeting was to provide an opportunity for the headmen to meet and interact, to deepen their knowledge of the Faith, and to consult about the best ways to strengthen their respective Bahá’í communities.

r’r

ZIMBABWE—The Local Spiritual Assembly of the Baha IS Of Bulawayo organized a seminar called “Curriculum for the Twenty-First Century,” held on 9 June 1999. Representatives from twenty-two Of the region’s sixty-three primary schools attended, as did seven secondary school teachers and staff and lecturers from the National University of Science and Technology. As part of their attempts to put into practice the Bahá’í teachings on education, the Bahá’ís of Mubayira inaugurated their first Bahá’í preschool in October.

African Bahd ’13", including many who traveledfi‘om Rwanda to participate in a_voulh conference, pose in_fi‘nnl Qf the House Ql'Wmts'hip in Kampala, Uganda.

The Americas

ALASKA—Hundreds Of Bahá’ís from all corners of the state re sponded to the programs and courses of the Alaska Bahá’í Institute, participating in courses, conferences, and training sessions. Two

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training conferences focused on development skills for Local Spiritual Assemblies, training in the fundamental verities of the Bahá’í Faith, skills for teaching, and training for facilitators of the institute’s courses. The ABI developed a statewide network of course facilitators, increasing their number from sixteen t0 seventy~six facilitators, and brought the institute’s courses to about four hundred people in more than thirty towns and villages.

ARGENTINA—Some thirty members of Argentina’s Local Spiritual Assemblies gathered at the national Bahá’í center in Buenos Aires for two days of consultations in October 1999. Training sessions were held in inter—Assembly cooperation, the training institute process, and the role of officers. In addition, an entire day was spent discussing the role of Assemblies in handling personal matters. Participants were also able to spend half a day in consultation with the National Spiritual Assembly.

BAHAMAS—On 2] January 2000, the Bahá’ís of the Bahamas were given a thirty-minute slot on national television, free of charge, to air “The Power of Prayer” video program produced by the Bahá’í community in the United States.

BARBADOS—The national women’s committee of the Bahá’ís of Barbados cosponsored a two-day workshop called “Women Speak Across Faiths—Action and Reflection.” The Bahá’ís participated in panel discussions sponsored by the gender studies department of the University of the West Indies and organized a dance

Men and women Study training institute materials in Sucre. Bolivia.

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‘U‘Lf‘ z.‘

Youth at the Third Bahá’í' Gathering 0/71/17)Descendanfs in Brazil.

presentation entitled “Healing Battered Women” at the same university. Local daily newspapers covered all of the events.

BELIZE—The first national Bahá’í children’s conference of Belize took place in August 1999, in Belmopan. After prayers there was a discussion of the Bahá’í teachings about race unity. Stories, songs, and other activities reinforced the lesson of beauty in diversity.

BERMUDA—Bermuda’s Bahá’í youth workshop met every week during the summer. Workshop members made contributions to the Bahá’í summer school in August, held a spiritual gathering later that month, and were guests on the “Bahá’í Live” radio program.

BOLIVIA—More than six hundred Bahá’ís, including hundreds of Quechuas and scores of Aymaras from Bolivia and Peru, as well as representatives of the Mapuche from Chile and Argentina, the Wichi from Argentina, the Guaymi from Panama and Costa Rica, and the Kariri Xoco and Fulni—o from Brazil, attended the second Encounter of the Native Peoples of the Americas, held in Sucre for two days in August 1999. The event reflected the growth of the Bahá’í Faith in Quechua and Aymara communities. Participants consulted about the progress of their respective Bahá’í communities, specifically examined the elements of their native cultures which help or hinder their Bahá’í development, and shared music and dance.

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BRAZIL—The fifth annual World Citizenship Awards, sponsored by the National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá’ís of Brazil, were presented in Rio de Janeiro 0n 8 December 1999. A jury composed of members of eight non-governmental organizations and the Bahá’í community recognized six individuals and four institutions for their outstanding contributions to the development of society and the promotion of peace and understanding.

CANADA—In July 1999, the Bahá’í community of Canada was invited to offer prayers and readings during the devotional program of a special event at Rideau Hall, the official residence of the governor-general, which was hosted by the wife of the governor—general, Her Excellency Diane Fowler LeBlanc. More than fifteen hundred guests, including diplomats, businessmen, members of NGOs, artists, and academics participated in the “Celebration of Life,” held to thank those who had worked in various health and peace—related projects. The multifaith devotional program featured prayer, readings, music, a tree planting, and the release of a flight of doves.

Representatives of the National Spiritual Assemblies of Alaska, Canada, Finland, Greenland, Norway, the Russian Federation, Sweden, and the United States, as well as members of the Bahá’í Council of Lapland, the Auxiliary Board, and Bahá’ís from ten local communities in the Canadian north, met for the first circumpolar Bahá’í conference, held in Yellowknife, North west Territories, from 24 to 26 September. The theme of the conference was “Creating a Culture of Growth in the Circumpolar Regions”—a response to the Riḍván 1996 message from the Universal House of Justice, which urged greater cooperation between the North American and Asiatic Bahá’í communities. Among the challenges facing Bahá’ís in the circumpolar areas are recovery from the lingering effects of colonialism, human rights Violations, environmental degradation, racism, gender inequality, difficulties facing youth, social scourges such as alcoholism and family abuse, and the pressures of social conformity. In meeting these challenges, the importance of prayer, devotional meetings, and support from Other Bahá’í communities was stressed.

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CHILE—A National Unity Gathering was held for two days in September 1999 in Santiago. Sponsored by the National Spiritual Assembly, the gathering brought together two hundred Bahá’ís, including four members of the Continental Board of Counsellors and all nine members of the National Assembly. The conference was designed to focus the community’s efforts on two main objectives: increasing the number of institute study circles and teaching more intensively in the Mapuche Indian region in the south and in the northern Copiapo desert.

COLOMBIA—Large numbers of Bahá’ís are now involved in the Ruhi training institute programs with more than 5,300 participants in some 250 study classes throughout the country.

COSTA RlCA—An interreligious gathering for peace was held on 9 January 2000 as Costa Rica’s opening event for the International Year for a Culture of Peace. The activity, which was attended by about two hundred people, took place in front of the Basilica of Los Angeles in Cartago and included statements, prayers, meditations, and songs led by Bahá’í, Buddhist, Christian, Hindu, J ewish, and indigenous representatives.

DOMINICAN REPUBLlC—In the summer of 1999, the Bahá’í community of Santiago invited representatives of the media to discuss statements and principles found in the recently released statement, Who is Writing the F uture? The exchange took place in front of a live audience with a panel composed of Fernando Perez Memem, editor of the newspaper La Informacio’n; Gladializa Pereyra, television producer and anchorwoman; J osé Gutierrez, radio and television producer; Carlos Manuel Estrella, producer; and Paul Peralta, representative of the Bahá’í community. While the panelists offered a variety of viewpoints on the history of mankind, all agreed on the need for the development of more spiritual qualities in the future.

EAST LEEWARD ISLANDS—Donald and Christine Brown from Canada Visited Antigua and Montserrat during the last months of 1999. On Antigua, Mr. Brown spoke at a public meeting on the

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In Bolivia, Balm ’I'S are engaged infmni/y literacy prQ/ects, which include early lileraqv for prest‘hoo/ Children.

wt- -‘ , Bahá’í attitude toward the third millennium. Both were interviewed on radio and television and by two local newspapers.

ECUADOR—The Bahá’í community of Ecuador engaged in many activities for children and youth. Among them were a regional youth conference that drew fifty-five youth from Chile, Ecuador, and the United States, and a children’s camp in Cuicocha, which had thirty-five participants.

EL SALVADOR—El Salvador’s Bahá’í community offered to conduct a training workshop for the country’s newly formed national committee on education in human rights and, on 10 December 1999, participated in a commemoration of the fifty—first anniversary Of the Declaration of Human Rights. A committee composed of members of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, a consortium of NGOs, and agencies of the United Nations system organized the event. In January 2000, a Bahá’í representative participated in a workshop on “Culture of Peace” in commemoration of the eighth anniversary of the peace accords in El Salvador, which was sponsored by the Commission on Culture of Peace of the Legislative Assembly, the University of Peace of Costa Rica, and the Ministry of F oreign Affairs. Copies of documents produced by the Bahá’í International Community relating to the topic were shared with more than seventy participants.

FRENCH GUIANA—Bahá’ís as young as ten years old participated in the Pearls of the Caribbean teaching project, forming a dance group that was used as a catalyst for teaching the Bahá’í Faith. During July and August 1999, three Bahá’ís from Haiti and two

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from Guadeloupe, one from Germany, and one from Quebec, Canada, j oined thirteen youth in French Guiana, where they studied material developed by the Ruhi Institute and were taught dances created by the Diversity Dance Workshop. After the two-week program, they gave three presentations to the public, were interviewed for a report on the Bahá’í community during a regional news program, and received coverage in three full-page newspaper articles.

GRENADA—A Bahá’í family prepared and arranged a series of locally produced television programs to proclaim the teachings and principles of the Bahá’í Faith in Grenada.

GUADELOUPE—In August 1999, the Pearls of the Caribbean teaching project traveled to Guadeloupe where participants joined nine Bahá’í youth from Guadeloupe and Martinique and several adults in a human rights education project. The group contacted local authorities to discuss Bahá’í involvement in the field of human rights and to obtain permission to perform dances related to the subj ect. Performances were announced on radio and television and were covered in local newspapers, and one television station produced a twenty~minute interview with a local Bahá’í.

The Sparks Qf Peace project in 1 Georgetown, .. ‘ Guyana, brought ' togetheryoutlz fl‘om all over the \ C(Iribbeanregion.

GUYANA—For twelve years the Sparks of Peace project has operated during the summer to help create a Caribbean Bahá’í youth identity. Twenty—four young Bahá’ís from Antigua, Barbados, Jamaica, St. Eustatius, St. Lucia, St. Kitts/Nevis, and Trinidad and Tobago composed the team for summer 1999. Based in Guyana,

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the team first met for two weeks of training and orientation, then formed teams and traveled for some weeks throughout Guyana, teaching the Bahá’í Faith.

The Local Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá’ís of Georgetown, Guyana, was able to finalize arrangements related to the acquisition of land for a local Bahá’í center in December.

HONDURAS—Six Of the nine Pech Indian Villages in the Department of Olancho were represented at the Pech Bahá’í Congress held in Vallecito from 20 to 21 December. Four of the five chiefs present were Bahá’ís, joining more than eighty other participants. Also attending were Rolf von Czékus, a Counsellor member of the International Teaching Centre, and Ruth Pringle, a member of the Continental Board of Counsellors for the Americas. Themes of the conference were preserving cultural identity, the growth of the Bahá’í community, and improving the quality of bilingual education for children. Sacred Pech music, along with other music, was performed. The secretary of the Federation of Pech Indian Tribes of Honduras expressed his interest in working closely with the National Spiritual Assembly on projects related to the cultural, spiritual, and material progress of the Pech people in the area.

MEXICO—The Bahá’í community of La Colima worked with Colima’s state agency Integral Development of the Family to give a three-week course entitled “Developing Our Virtues.” Classes were held in July and were attended by 120 children between the ages of seven and thirteen. The wife of the governor of the state, Mrs. Hilda Ceballos de Moreno, attended the course’s closing ceremony and gave a talk in which she expressed her gratitude to the Bahá’í community for making the classes possible and her hope that they would continue. This course was the result of a number of initiatives in the field of moral development. In another initiative, Bahá’ís supplied a weekly article called “Bahá’í Moral Development Project” to three of the city’s most widely read newspapers. The Bahá’ís also established an annual Bahá’í Human Virtues Award, which consists of publicly recognizing students, heads of households, and public school teachers who have

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distinguished themselves by living a Virtuous life. Several local and state government institutions recognized and expressed appreciation for the work.

PANAMA—An Encounter of Religions, organized by the Ministry of Women, Youth, Children, and the Family, was held 28 December 1999. An audience of approximately one thousand welcomed the president of Panama, government ministers, and representatives of the Bahá’í, Buddhist, Christian, Hindu, Muslim, and indigenous faiths. The program consisted of an introductory artistic presentation by the Bahá’í youth workshop, a dramatic presentation by the Buddhists, and songs by Christians and Hare Krishnas. The five-minute presentation by each group emphasized goodwill toward the new government and willingness to work together. Participants in a recent instilule course in Masaya, Nicaragua, display their graduation certificates.

PARAGUAY—An international youth conference was held in Paraguay in J anuary 2000, bringing together more than four hundred Bahá’í youth to consult about fulfilling the goals set by the Universal House of Justice and their role as Bahá’í youth. The conference was envisioned as the first in a series of youth confer ences for the Americas.

PERU—The first meeting of the National Spiritual Assemblies of the Andean countries took place in Lima during the first three days of October 1999. Members of the National Spiritual Assemblies ofBolivia, Chile, Ecuador, Peru, and Venezuela attended, as did two members of the Continental Board of Counsellors, to consult on teaching, strengthening Bahá’í institutions, training, and social and economic development projects.

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PUERTO RlCO—The services of Carmen Jovet, a prominent television and radio news personality in Puerto Rico, were formally recognized by the country’s Bahá’í community in a special ceremony held on 23 April 1999. The Bahá’ís thanked her for her tireless assistance in the aftermath of Hurricane George and for the recognition she has given the Bahá’í Faith over the years. Mrs. Jovet publicly thanked the Bahá’ís during her nationally broadcast radio program the next morning.

ST. VINCENT AND THE GRENADINES—A radio program called “Bahá’í Vision,” which includes interviews with Bahá’ís and non-Bahá’ís and readings from the Bahá’í sacred writings on different themes, was aired weekly and reached many of the Caribbean islands. Bahá’ís also participated in ten call-in radio programs during the last year to share the Bahá’í viewpoint on various social issues. In addition, Bahá’í activities were announced on radio and television as public service announcements.

SURINAME—The “Green Light Project” began in March 1999, as a two-year teaching initiative in the upper Suriname River district of Sipaliwini, which is home to the Saramaccan tribe and thirty percent of the Bahá’í population in that country. The project was designed to bring the Bahá’í message to twenty villages and to carry out an educational proj ect through the establishment of regular devotional services, children’s classes, and training institutes. The program was developed with the assistance of Bahá’í Secon, a foundation for social and economic development functioning under the direction of the National Spiritual Assembly.

TRINIDAD AND TOBAGO—Each year the government of Trinidad and Tobago honors citizens who have done outstanding work in different areas of nation building. This year, two of the awards were presented to Bahá’ís. Henry Collymore received the Trinity Cross—the highest award in the country—for distinguishing himself in the field of medicine and community service. Mansingh Amarsingh was given the Hummingbird Silver Medal for his twenty-five years of service to the nation in sports. The

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presentations were made by President Arthur N. R. Robinson at his official residence on 31 August 1999.

UNITED STATES—In a 7 April ceremony in San Francisco, Dorothy Nelson, senior judge of the US Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit, received the 2000 D’Alemberte/Raven Award for Outstanding Contribution to Dispute Resolution from the American Bar Association’s Section of Dispute Resolution. The award recognizes members of the legal profession who have contributed significantly to the field of conflict resolution. J ames Alfini, chair of the ABA Section on Dispute Resolution, called Judge Nelson “a noted jurist and educator whose early recognition of the need to focus on dispute resolution alternatives has had a profound impact on the growth of the ADR field.”

In May 1999, Firuz Kazemzadeh, secretary for external affairs of the National Spiritual Assembly of the United States, was named by President Bill Clinton to the nine—member US Commission on lntemational Religious Freedom. The commission studies international violations of religious freedom and issues recommendations each year for US responses. Dr. Kazemzadeh’s appointment was announced along with the appointment of Laila Al—Marayati, a leading US spokeswoman on Islamic issues, and Charles Z. Smith, a justice of the Washington State Supreme Court. Dr. Kazemzadeh has testified frequently before the House International Relations and Senate Foreign Relations Committees on behalf of the National Spiritual Assembly concerning the religious repression of the Bahá’ís, particularly in Iran. “The promotion of religious freedom abroad is a priority of the Clinton presidency,” the White House news release of 5 May stated. “These three distinguished appointees will further ensure that international religious freedom continues to be an integral part of the administration’s foreign policy.”

On March 9, 2000, the US president organized “A Call to Action: The President’s One America Meeting with Religious Leaders.” More than 150 religious leaders, including five Bahá’ís, attended the meeting, whose purpose was to discuss the commitment of the United States’ faith communities to improving racial

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relations. Dr. Robert Henderson, secretary-general of the United States National Spiritual Assembly, spoke to the gathering on behalf of the Bahá’ís, highlighting the Bahá’ís’ efforts towards race unity. The press release issued by the White House regarding the event specifically mentioned the 110,000 Bahá’ís in the US, and their creation of “programs, Videos, and TV spots which are designed to reach households across the country with positive messages of spiritual solutions to social problems.”

For the past five years the Persian-language Bahá’í radio program “Payam—e D0031” has been broadcasting from the Washington, DC, area in the United States in order to disseminate accurate information about the Bahá’í Faith to Persian-speaking audiences. On 14 November 1999, “Payam—e Doost” was broadcast for the first time on the World Wide Web, marking the first time a radio program produced by Bahá’ís has been available throughout the world on the Internet.]

URUGUAY—The eightieth anniversary of the establishment of the Bahá’í Faith in Uruguay was celebrated at a conference held in Montevideo on 18 and 19 September 1999. Isabel de Sénchez, a member of the Continental Board of Counsellors for the Americas, was among the one hundred participants.

VENEZUELA—Approximately one hundred youth from most major regions of Venezuela participated in the national youth conference held in Cabudare from 29 July to 1 August 1999. The conference was organized into workshops, Which focused on study, living a Bahá’í life, the country’s goals for the Four Year Plan, systematization, evaluation, and planning, and service in the areas ofinstitutes, children’s classes, use of the arts, and expansion and consolidation projects. On the final day the youth formed groups according to the twelve geographic areas represented at the conference. Each group analyzed the status of the Four Year Plan goals for its own area and then made specific commitments to assist in achieving those goals.

‘ P({Vttm—c) D005! is accessible at <www.bahairadio.org.>

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WEST LEEWARD lSLANDS—During the course of the past year, Bahá’ís in the West Leeward Islands have established ongoing children’s classes, devotional meetings, and study circles.

Members of'the United States A dvz'SOIfy Committee on Religious F reedom Abroad, including Secretary OfState MadeleineA/bright (seated, thirdA/i'om left) and Counsellor

Wilma Ellis (seated, filr right).

Asia

ANDAMAN AND NICOBAR ISLANDs—The Local Spiritual Assembly of Port Blair, in the Andaman and Nicobar Islands, held a series of public competitions for school children. Different contests were held for children from kindergarten to grade eight, while secondary students were asked to write for five minutes on the question Who is Writing the Future?, a task inspired by the recent statement of the same name by the Bahá’í International Community. More than six hundred students participated in the contests, and some 850 people attended the awards ceremony held on 12 November.

ARMENlA—The Bahá’í institute in Armenia has been offering study courses on “Fundamental Verities,” and “Arising to Serve,” and on art, drama, and music. By April 2000, about one—third of the Bahá’ís in the country had completed the first two of these courses. A postgraduate student named Goar Vardanyan, who is not a Bahá’í, wrote a dissertation on the Bahá’í Faith, which was received with interest in the scholarly community and published during the summer of 1999.

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BANGLADESH—Three Bahá’ís from Bangladesh attended a conference on women and peace held in Dhaka on 2 and 3 October. The gathering was hosted by the NGO Women for Women, and representatives were invited from NGOs for women in SAARC countries (South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation)Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, the Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka. The Bahá’í representatives took an active part in all of the workshops and plenary sessions, and in some instances selections from the Bahá’í writings were shared with the participants. One of the decisions made by all of the participants was to publish a newsletter for children in the SAARC nations, which would carry articles on peace and respect for diversity. The Bahá’ís also presented two statements to the conference: “Women and the Peace Process” and “Ending Violence Against Women.”

CAMBODIA—On 25 January 2000, the Bahá’ís of Cambodia sponsored a high-level interfaith event to which representatives of five maj or religions were invited. Called World Religion Day, the event was so successful that His Majesty King Norodom Sihanouk sent a letter of gratitude to the Bahá’ís for organizing it. More than 250 people, including ambassadors, ministers, community leaders, UN workers, and university students, gathered at the Hotel Intercontinental in Phnom Penh to hear presentations from each delegation on the theme of “Unity of Religions.” Three prominent newspapers in the country covered the event.

In Cambodia, an NGO development worker explains [/16 Bahd ’l' concept of equality Qf't/ze sexes.

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Bahá’í's rslnnrvmse their literature at a 1700/: exhibition in India.

GEORGlA—The institute process in Georgia took a further stride in its development with the holding of a facilitators’ course for three days in May. Sponsored by the board of the national training institute, the course brought together twelve Bahá’ís from five different communities and was a precursor to another tutor training course attended by thirty—seven Bahá’ís.

HONG KONG—The Hong Kong Bahá’í community’s annual Award for Services to Humanity was presented on 12 November 1999. Some 140 people attended, including sixty Bahá’ís. The secretary ofjustice, a member of the Legislative Council, the consulgeneral for Chile, a representative of Xinhua News Agency, a leading educator, and other community leaders were among the special guests. Cecilia Chan, a professor at the University of Hong Kong, was given the award for 1999 for her work in the field of moral education.

lNDlA—Among other engagements during his state visit to India in November, Pope John Paul II attended an interreligious meeting in New Delhi. Representatives of nine religions, including Zena Sorabjee, a member of the Continental Board of Counsellors of Asia, shared the platform with the pope during the 7 November event organized by the Catholic Church, which was telecast live throughout India and the world. Many ambassadors, high-ranking government officials, political and civic leaders, and intellectuals, as well as cardinals, archbishops, and other senior religious

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dignitaries were present. Each religious representative had two minutes in which to address the pope and the assembly.

The president of India, His Excellency Dr. Kocheril R. Narayanan, gave one of the President’s Awards for Remarkable Achievements in the Field of Education to Setwan Yadav, the principal Of the JNKT Government High School in Khagaria. The ceremony took place on 5 September in the presence of government ministers and other prominent people.

JAPAN—In July 1999, nearly one hundred Bahá’ís from all over Japan and Visitors from every continent spent four days at the foot of Mount Iwate, in the north of the country, attending the annual Bahá’í summer school. Nobuko Iwakura, a member of the Continental Board of Counsellors of Asia, delivered the keynote address. The focus of the study sessions was Who is Writing the F uture?, a statement released by the Bahá’í International Community in 1999.

KAZAKHSTAN—More than 270 Bahá’ís attended the international Bahá’í winter school in Almaty for five days in January, including two members of the Continental Board of Counsellors for Asia and fourteen members of National Spiritual Assemblies of Central Asia. The core of the conference was a series of workshops on subjects such as Bahá’í community development, the use of the arts, and living a Bahá’í life. They also held a memorial gathering for Amatu’l-Bahá Rúḥíyyih‘Khánum, who had died a few days earlier.

On 10 December, the Bahá’í community of Kazakhstan took part in the second Round Table on Freedom of Conscience, Belief, and Religion. The theme of the event was “State, Society, and Religion,” and it was conducted with the assistance of the Office of Democratic Institutes and Human Rights in Almaty. Representatives of many religions, government ministries, and departments participated in the conference, whose purpose was to establish better relations between state, public, and religious organizations. The Bahá’ís were represented by a member of the Continental Board of Counsellors, an Auxiliary Board member, and a member of the National Spiritual Assembly of Kazakhstan. The meeting concluded with a consensus regarding the need for

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government to respect international standards on human rights and to search for effective methods of interaction between governmental and religious associations.

The Bahá’í'17001/1

at (he Seoul International

C ()Iqlérence (2/ "NonGovernmental Olganizmions, held [045 October I 999 in Korea.

KOREA—The 1999 International Conference of Non—Governmental Organizations was held from 10 to 15 October at Olympic Park, Seoul. With more than eight thousand people attending from 107 countries, the event was dubbed by the media the “Olympics of Culture.” The theme was “The Role ofNGOs in the 21st Century: Inspire, Empower, and Act!” The principal representative of the Bahá’í community to the United Nations, Techeste Ahderom, served as an organizer of activities under the theme of human rights, and a member of the National Spiritual Assembly of Korea worked as director for program planning for the Korean organizing committee and as vice—spokesman during the conference. Other Bahá’ís served as speakers or in other roles. The program consisted of five plenary assemblies on human civilizations Of the past and future, ten thematic meetings on the conference’s main topics—peace and security, the environment, education for all, ethics and values, human rights, social and economic development, youth and children, public health, gender equality, and productive aging—workshops, clinics, and regional caucuses. Cultural performances and more than one hundred exhibits enlivened the atmosphere. The president of the Republic of Korea, Dae-Jung Kim, spoke during the opening session, and the secretary—general Of the United Nations, Kofi Annan, sent a message on video. The

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conference was initiated by the Global Cooperation Society International in consultation with the United Nations Economic and Social Council and Kyung Hee University, Seoul.

KYRGYZSTAN—Representatives from the National, International and Slavic Universities, Bishkek Autotransport Technical School, and directors and teachers of Bishkek and Tokmok schools attended a conference on “The Bahá’í Faith and Education” held in the National Library of Bishkek on 14 December 1999. The purpose of the conference was to inform these leaders of thought about the aims and history of the Bahá’í Faith. A book exhibition was held, and the schools’ libraries were presented with selections of the Bahá’í writings.

MALAYSlA—Almost 1,200 Bahá’ís gathered at four regional conferences held simultaneously on 25 and 26 June 1999, in Malaysia. The programs of the conferences, held in Sungei Petani, Kuala Lumpur, Klang, and Kota Baru, were similar. The first day began with the keynote message from the Spiritual Assembly of Malaysia, followed by a presentation of Who is Writing the F uture? and a slide presentation of the construction projects on Mount Carmel at the Bahá’í World Centre. The second day was spent in detailed discussions of the region’s plan for expanding and strengthening

. ,*

Bahá’í's in Erdenbulgan, Mongolia, stand infivmt Qf their new local Bahá’í' center.

--'_—-——“ .aig-Q‘

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.I ’3‘

V g

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its Bahá’í community. Ten members of the Continental Board of Counsellors for Asia attended the conferences.

MONGOLlA—The Bahá’ís Of Erdenbulgan, an isolated village of about three thousand people in the north of Mongolia, dedicated their new Bahá’í center in May. Traditional music, dance, and comedy performances delighted the large audience. The town’s deputy mayor and education officer attended and spoke warmly Of the Bahá’ís and their contributions to the life of the village, specifically mentioning the three-year—old vegetable growing project.2 Rosalie Tran, a member of the Continental Board of Counsellors of Asia, opened the center and was the guest of honor at a two-day women’s seminar, the first activity to take place there.

In October, the National Spiritual Assembly of Mongolia received registration certificates for the provinces of Darkhan and Zavkhan, which enables the National Assembly to carry out Bahá’í activities there.

In Mvanmal; assistants [0 the the A uxi/[ary Board members hold a study course.

NEPAL—Bharat Koirala, chairman of the National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá’ís of Nepal, former editor of the Nepalese newspaper Gorkhapatra and founder of the Nepal Press Institute, was given the Knight International Press Fellowship Award in October 1999 which “honors outstanding individuals who have made remarkable contributions to the media in their region of the world.” Koirala was singled out for his role in “spearheading many innovative programs in communication to reach the rural masses and for his continued support and struggle for freedom of express10n.

3 See pp. 285—90 of this volume for a profile of the Mongolian Development Center, which sponsors the vegetable growing project in Erdenbulgan.

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In Labipur, two hundred people attended a regional women’s conference. The local Bahá’ís organized food and accommodations for all the participants. “What was rewarding,” said one conference attendee, “was the active participation of women in the discussions regarding the progress of the Faith, concern for the welfare of women and children, and issues of health and hygiene and the education of women and children.” In a society where the participation of women in the Bahá’í community is still quite low, the proportion of female participation in institute courses has risen to thirty percentfla phenomenon that has aroused the curiosity ofneighbors. Seeing the change effected in participants, more and more people have attended and graduated from training courses on the Bahá’í teachings.

PAKISTAN—The local youth committee of Quetta organized a celebration of the country’s Independence Day at the national Bahá’í center on 13 August 1999. The meeting began with prayers in Urdu and Arabic, followed by singing and a tableau presented by Bahá’í children. The Bahá’í speaker stated that independence imposes great responsibility on people and that free people must use their freedom for the progress of humankind as well as their own nation. She said that Independence Day was an opportunity to consider one’s contribution toward the welfare of all people. Two local newspapers covered the event.

PHILIPPINES—On 20 September 1999, the Bahá’í community of the Philippines organized the observance of the International Day of Peace, which was hosted by the city government of Muntinlupa (part of the National Capital Region) and attended by some 2,750 people. About two hundred people were also present at a second venue, the World Peace Park inside the New Bilibid Prisons Reservation. City mayor Jaime R. Fresnedi and vice mayor Vicente Chua led the local dignitaries. Dr. Reynaldo Imperial, chairman of both the Association for Bahá’í Studies in the Philippines and the national education committee, spoke on behalf of the Bahá’í community. Bouquets of flowers were laid at the base of the monument at the World Peace Park and prayers were offered followed by the ringing of the Peace Bell.

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The External Affairs Office of the Bahá’í community of the Philippines worked with the United Nations Information Center (UNIC) in its human rights education campaign. The UNIC has invited the Bahá’ís to participate in planning and consultative meetings for the International Year for the Culture of Peace in the year 2000.

SABAH—Following a conference in Kg. Manggis, in the Malaysian state of Sabah, in April 1999, Bahá’ís undertook a two-week campaign to teach their Faith. Thirty Bahá’ís carried out teaching and consolidation activities in the villages, resulting in enrollments in the Bahá’í community and in existing communities becoming more knowledgeable about the procedures of Bahá’í elections.

SARAWAK—A special project to open Lusong Laku, in the Malaysian state of Sarawak, to the Bahá’í Faith and to teach the Penan tribespeople began successfully in the fall of 1999. Forty-three people enrolled as Bahá’ís.

The Bahá’í Office for the Advancement of Women played an active part in a workshop on legal literacy held in Kuching on 5 December 1999. The workshop was organized by the Malaysian National Council of Women’s Organizations and sponsored by the Konrad Adenauer Foundation. Subjects covered included the Domestic Act, the Child Protection Act, and family law. A member of Parliament opened the event, and speakers included representatives from the Sarawak Welfare Department, the Royal Police of Malaysia, the One-stop Crisis Centre of Kuching Hospital, and the Association of Women Lawyers.

SINGAPORE—In June 1999, the work of Mrs. Shirin Fozdar was recognized in a documentary television program about persons of Indian origin who have made significant contributions to the development of Singapore. Mrs. Fozdar, who was one of the first Bahá’í pioneers to that country in 1950, was acclaimed in many circles for her work in promoting the advancement of women. The year 2000 marks the fiftieth anniversary of the establishment of the Bahá’í community in Singapore. Celebrations will

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be held throughout the country from May to September, based on the theme “Unity in Diversity.”

SR1 LANKA—In 1949, the first Sri Lankan citizens became Bahá’ís, making 1999 the fiftieth anniversary of the establishment of the Bahá’í Faith in the country. The National Spiritual Assembly encouraged Local Spiritual Assemblies and individual believers around the country to organize suitable commemorative events. Young Bahá’ís trained in leadership and drama by Sri Lanka’s national training institute formed a youth group called the Institute of Positive Behavior. During its first year the group staged shows in twenty localities in Kalutara, Kadugannawa, Dehiowita, Hatton, and the Vavuniya regions in front of eight thousand people.

TAIWAN—Following the earthquake in Taiwan on 21 September 1999, the Bahá’í community, short of material resources, decided to assist in reconstruction efforts by offering free classes for children in areas damaged by the quake. The Bahá’ís now offer very successfill classes in three locations. One member of the Bahá’í community arranged for a one-hour radio program to air every Sunday morning on earthquake-related stress, such as anxiety and depression.

THAILAND—The sixth Southeast Asian (SEA) Bahá’í Forum, composed of representatives from the National Spiritual Assemblies of Cambodia, Laos, Malaysia, the Philippines, Sabah, Sarawak, Singapore, and Thailand, was held in Bangkok for two days in September. Zenaida Ramirez, a member of the Continental Board of Counsellors for Asia, guided the consultations on subjects such as the progress of the training institutes, the need for a systematic program for teaching people of Buddhist background, the pooling of professional resources, external affairs, and strategies for establishing ties with leaders of thought. Joint sessions with youth representatives highlighted the need to help prepare Bahá’í youth to enter the new century with a clear sense of how to respond to these challenges and echoed the parallel SEA national youth committee conference held at the same time.

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UZBEKISTAN—The government of Uzbekistan invited representatives of the country’s religions to a press conference held on 12 August 1999, to celebrate the anniversary of the passing of the law on religious liberty. A Bahá’í representative spoke to the gathering and was later given assurance that legal registration of additional local Bahá’í communities would soon take place. Several communities were formally recognized under the law soon afterwards, to bring registered communities to a total of five: Bukhara, J izak, Navoi, Samarkand, and Tashkent.

VIETNAM—During the serious flooding in Vietnam in late 1999, many local Bahá’í communities made contributions of both time and money for the relief of Victims. During the year the Bahá’í community also formed a women’s committee, an external affairs committee, and a legal committee, which will coordinate social and economic development projects such as literacy programs and microeconomics.

such asflzmily, children ’5 education, and the advancement ofwomen.

Australasia

AUSTRALIA—More than 450 men and women from some fifteen countries attended the International Women’s Conference in Bm'sbane from 16 to 18 September 1999, making it one of the

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largest and most diverse women’s events ever held in the country. Sponsored by the Office for the Advancement of Women of the Bahá’í community of Australia, the conference gathered an outstanding lineup of educators, activists, lawyers, and religious and government leaders from around Australasia and elsewhere to speak on issues related to the advancement of women. Almost one-third of the participants were indigenous Australians. The event was aimed at “forging new partnerships among diverse sectors of society, taking practical measures to promote the advancement of women, and looking towards spiritual and moral values as the key to consolidating gains.” The types of partnerships discussed included not only inter— and intragender interactions, but also alliances with businesses, government, like-minded nongovernmental organizations, different cultures, and spiritual groups. Some fifteen plenary sessions and seventy workshops focused on such topics as education, communication and the media, the workplace, women in the United Nations, health and healing, business and technology, diversity, social and economic development, and issues related to indigenous peoples.

In response to an invitation from the National Spiritual Assembly of Australia, His Excellency Sir William Deane, governor—general of Australia, officially opened the new ACT (Australian Capital Territory) Bahá’í center on 10 December.

This year’s annual Clara and Hyde Dunn Dinner, held in OCtober 1999 in Sydney, featured a lecture by Dr. Robert Kim—Farley,

Children at Newport Public School in

A ustralia learn

, \about the Bahá’í' Faith as part ofa Special religious education program.

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a Bahá’í who works for the World Health Organization. The dinner, named after the first Bahá’ís in Australia, is dedicated to the social ideals they championed. Dr. Kim—Farley’s lecture, entitled “Health for All: The Challenge of the New Millennium,” was presented to an audience of more than 180 people and addressed the changing needs of a global society in seeking answers to humanity’s health crises.

COOK ISLANDS—A national teaching conference was held on 14 August 1999, at: the Bahá’í center on Rarotonga Island to discuss the hosting of firesides, systematic planning, and teaching the Bahá’í Faith. Each Local Spiritual Assembly was encouraged to develop a systematic plan for teaching the Bahá’í Faith in its area.

EASTERN CAROLINE [SLANDS—The Bahá’ís of Pohnpei sponsored a seminar for women in October 1999. The sessions on women and finance, moral education, and family consultation were favorably received, and requests were made for similar events to be held in the future.

HAWAIIAN ISLANDS—The Bahá’ís of Koolaupoko, on the island Oahu, entered a float in Kailua’s annual Fourth of July parade, winning first prize in the category for religious organizations. The theme of the entry was “1,000 Years of Unity and Aloha.” The float was later featured on the evening news of all three local television stations.

KlRIBATl—Two Ocean of Light conferences were held in Kiribati early in the year, one on Abemama Island in January 1999, and the other on Kiritimati Island in February. Both meetings were organized by local Bahá’ís and featured singing and dancing. The morning sessions were composed of presentations on various topics, including teaching and consultation, followed by discussion.

MARIANA ISLANDs—About fifty Bahá’ís assembled at the University of Guam for the Marianas Bahá’í summer school held on 22 and 23 May 1999. Through workshop—style courses, Bahá’ís had the opportunity to study different aspects of the Faith and enjoy the company of their friends.

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NEW CALEDONIA AND THE LOYALTY ISLANDs—More than ninety Bahá’ís attended the national winter school held in Yaté, New Caledonia, in September. Participants studied the relationship between traditional practices and the Bahá’í teachings, among other subjects.

In the midst of a nationwide examination of new religious movements, a scholar named Jean Paul Aluze contributed a paper on the Bahá’í Faith to a four—volume encyclopedia on the indigenous peoples of New Caledonia and the Loyalty Islands. These detailed synopses of many minority religious groups in the country will be distributed throughout the French-speaking Pacific. At a time when several established churches have raised their voices in criticism of the New Caledonian Bahá’í community, the author’s portrayal of the Bahá’í Faith and its community was welcomed by the Bahá’ís as a positive contribution to the Islands’ debate on religious values and pluralism. Among other things, the encyclopedia notes the Bahá’í Faith’s forty—year history in the Islands and the fact that it “is recognized as a world religion,” something particularly important in the face of local accusations that the Bahá’í Faith is a “cult.” The encyclopedia will be distributed to institutions of higher learning and libraries throughout the French—speaking world.

NEW ZEALAND—Terrence O’Brien, former ambassador of New Zealand to the United Nations, was the keynote speaker at the Association for Bahá’í Studies conference held at Victoria University in Wellington, New Zealand, in July 1999. The conference’s theme was “Global Prosperity,” and Mr. O’Brien’s experience at the United Nations and as director of the Institute for Strategic Studies at Victoria University enabled him to speak about the role of regional and international organizations in world development. He stated that the United Nations is a monumental organization, unprecedented in human history, whose shortcomings can be attributed to its member states, not the UN itself. More than a dozen Bahá’ís presented papers at the conference.

Thirty Bahá’í youth participated in a week-long project in January 2000, in memory of Hedi Moani, a New Zealand Bahá’í

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who was murdered because of his beliefs in October. The group embarked on a wide range of voluntary service activities, including helping with environmental clean-up work, assisting at the blood bank, and cleaning the houses of those suffering from arthritis. Some time was spent each afternoon distributing invitations to the public for concerts and talks each evening, which were also organized by the Bahá’í youth.

PAPUA NEW GUINEA—Dr, Sirt’is Naraqi, a member of the Continental Board of Counsellors and former resident of Papua New Guinea, was decorated as a Commander of the Order of the British Empire. During a ceremony held at the Government House in Port Moresby on 28 October he was honored for his distinguished services to medicine and science and for contributing to the growth of the nation. Dr. Naréqi spent eighteen years as a medical specialist and head of medicine at the University of Papua New Guinea. The presentation was made by the govemor—general, Sir Silas Atopare, on behalf of Queen Elizabeth II.

SAMOA—In June and July 1999, the Hawaiian and Samoan Bahá’í youth dance workshop traveled to Western Samoa and American Samoa, performing more than thirty-five times for some fifteen thousand people. Samoan radio, television, and newspapers covered the workshop, and the performances were well received by the traditional leaders of the village communities they Visited. In May, the Samoan Bahá’í youth workshop performed and did community service in urban areas of Apia and Page Pago. After their tour with the Hawaiian youth, the Samoan youth held a fundraiser for a village preschool and performed in national public events.

SOLOMON lSLANDS—The seventh annual Blums’ Community Service Award program took the form of an interreligious service for unity held in Honiara in September. The award, founded by Bahá’ís to honor the spirit of the first Bahá’í pioneers to the island, was changed this year, said the organizers, “from the normal recognition of service by Solomon Islanders to a worship service as it was felt that this was more appropriate under the present ethnic circumstances in the country.” More than three hundred

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people attended to listen to the govemor—general, Father J ohn Lapli, give an overview of unity, and representatives of several churches and the Bahá’í community read selections from their sacred writings. Banners created by students from local primary schools were presented, and several choirs provided music. The entire program was broadcast live on national radio.

TONGA—Bahá’ís in Tonga broadcast a radio program in September 1999 entitled “Prayer.” Though the Tongan Bahá’ís have previously broadcast programs, this was the first show produced without any restrictions, and the first on a well—established FM station. They received substantial positive feedback concerning the content.

After three years of operation, Tonga’s Ocean of Light School has an enrollment of 176 students, including three of the king’s grandchildren. This year a kindergarten was built and a pre—high school curriculum was added. The school has received encouragement and assistance from Bahá’ís in Australia and New Zealand.

VANUATU—The Bahá’í community of Vanuatu played an important part in the economic summit meeting convened by the Tafea provincial government and held in Isangel, Tanna, from 6 t0 8 October 1999. The gathering was held to examine uses of the island’s resources. Bahá’ís were involved in the preparations for the meeting at the national and local levels. As a member of an umbrella group of NGOs, the National Spiritual Assembly of Vanuatu was invited to submit comments on the draft plan and to present information on Bahá’í development projects, particularly in the field of literacy. At the local level, Bahá’í youth were asked to help construct the meeting house and other facilities for the summit, and they offered to provide musical enteitainment in the evenings. The Bahá’í community was the only religious group invited to send representatives to the meeting and was able to formally offer the Bahá’í perspective on sustainable, huinan—centered development, bolstered with specific suggestions of lines of action the government could take. Many prominent people attended the final day of the summit, including four government ministers,

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three members of Parliament, the high commissioners of Australia, New Zealand, and the United Kingdom, representatives of AusAID and the Asian Development Bank, several directorsgeneral of government departments, and the president of the provincial council, who joined the many local leaders already present at the gathering. In all, more than one thousand people were present, including observers. At the signing ceremony, the Bahá’ís were asked to sign the document on behalf of all of the religious groups in Vanuatu, and afterwards they received a formal delegation from the provincial government expressing appreciation for the contributions made by the Bahá’ís.

WESTERN CAROLINE ISLANDS—The first international Bahá’í youth conference to be held in the Republic of Palau, in the Western Caroline Islands, took place in Ngardamau from 18 to 24 July 1999. Nine Bahá’ís from Palau and nine from Yap explored the theme “Becoming Our True Selves,” with sessions offered on Bahá’í identity, prayer and meditation, study of the Bahá’í writings, living a Bahá’í life, and consultation, interspersed with service projects for the State of Ngardmau such as picking up trash, cleaning, and painting. The conference ended with a dramatic performance and a short talk for the public.

The choir Oft/1e Bahá’í House of Worship in Samoa peljfbrms 0n 4 Augustfor thefilming qf'a video series.

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Europe

ALBANIA—The use of Ruhi Institute materials has met with success in Albania. Courses, held once a month in nine communities for four consecutive months, have increased the number of Bahá’ís teaching the Faith in their communities and have led to an increase in Bahá’í enrollment in the country.

In an effort to alleviate some of the suffering due to ethnic strife in Kosovo, the National Spiritual Assembly and individual Bahá’í families in Albania hosted Kosovar refugees in their homes.

AUSTRIA—In Austria, “Act Now” events were held every three months to provide Bahá’í youth and their friends with the opportunity to think critically and take action on themes such as Who is Writing the F uture?, thus opening a path for them to engage in a process designed to lead to peace.

In November 1997 the Bahá’í community of Baden founded “Family Days” in Baden, Which has evolved into an annual fourday event with programs and seminars, music, and arts for adults, youth, and children. The municipality and its cultural office, local newspapers, a Catholic parish, and two schools collaborate with the Bahá’ís on this project.

BELARUS—An international youth conference held 28 March 2000 in Minsk brought together some 170 people from Belarus, Canada, Croatia, the Czech Republic, Moldova, and the Ukraine,

Women in Brussels, Belgium, preparing to read “Words Q/Peace " as part of a celebration for the Week ofPeace in October 1999.

[Page 89]YLAB 15 REVIEW

Participants in Bulgaria fsfirst Ru/zi traim'n g institute in Kostenels, Bulgaria, in F ebruary 2000.

including many members of the youth committees of central Asia. Just one-third of the attendees were Bahá’ís. The conference focused on developing artistic skills and featured workshops, a concert, and dramatic performances. Bahá’ís initiated a teaching project in Minsk afterwards.

BELGIUM—The Belgian government asked for advice and recommendations from civil society with regard to its projected plan for sustainable growth. The response by the National Spiritual Assembly of Belgium marked the first time the Assembly had officially submitted recommendations to the government.

On 20 April Professor Kamyab Samii, a member of the National Spiritual Assembly, was granted by royal decree, at the request of the University of Louvain-la-Neuve, the civil decoration Officer of the Order of Leopold for his work in education and scientific research. In November, he was also elected as an associate member of the Royal Belgian Academy Council of Applied Sciences.

BULGARIA—The second annual One World Peace Tour by a youth dance workshop from the United States took participants throughout Bulgaria, where they performed and assisted the Bahá’í community in its teaching work for almost seven weeks during the summer of 1999. The workshop danced in the parks and streets of several cities, was featured numerous times on radio and television, and performed with the renowned Bulgarian musicians

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B.T.R. and Kolselo, the latter during a concert held at the National Palace of Culture.

CANARY ISLANDS—Women in the Canary Islands organized and participated in celebrations of Peace Week from 15 to 23 October, and in training aimed at helping them to become organizers, public speakers, facilitators, and teachers in support of peace. The effort was part of a broad campaign coordinated by the European Women’s Task Force, and similar events were held in nineteen countries throughout Europe.

CYPRUS—Twenty-one Bahá’ís gathered for a teaching conference held at the Bahá’í center in south Nicosia on 30 October, where they consulted about the country’s goals for the Four Year Plan and planned strategies for reaching greater numbers ofpeople with the Bahá’í teachings.

CZECH REPUBLIC—Jan Sole, advisor to President Véclav Havel Of the Czech Republic, approached the Czech National Spiritual Assembly, offering to hold a meeting to discuss the role of the religious believer in contemporary society. He stated that this offer was being made to all state—recognized churches and religions. The gathering took place in Prague on 4 June 1999, when Dr. Sole addressed the twenty-five Bahá’ís who had come from all over the country. “He spoke for an hour,” wrote one observer, “about many subjects related to ethical values in today’s society and the role of religion in promoting these values.” During the discussion that followed, Dr. Sole said he appreciated the openness, tolerance, and absence of fanaticism of the Bahá’ís he had encountered. The meeting ended with a promise by Dr. Sole to report back to the president about the gathering, and he expressed the hope that similar events would be held in the future.

ESTONIA~Estonia’s first national Bahá’í summer school was held for five days in July 1999 in Viljandi. Bahá’ís from Belgium, Canada, Finland, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Russia, and the United States were among the eighty—three participants. The community’s winter school was held in Tartu from 26 to 30 December, and attracted forty people who studied current Bahá’í thinking

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regarding community growth in workshops held in English, Estonian, and Russian.

FRANCE—The French Diversity Dance Workshop traveled throughout the country in June, meeting with great success. In Sarlat, one show began with an audience of one hundred and ended with more than 450 spectators; in Lot and Garonne, the group won the support of a government deputy; in Massy, the municipality requested a performance; and the local press in Limousin described their performance with the headline “Emotion is in the Streets.”

The second annual “Nuit de l ’Espoir” (“Night of Hope”) concert, which was first held in 1998 as part of the French Bahá’í community’s centennial celebrations, took place in Paris on 3 December 1999. It was organized by 9 Productions, a company created by Bahá’ís and non—Bahá’ís to promote the Bahá’í teachings through the arts. Under the theme of “Together for a Culture of Peace,” the “Nuit de l’Espoir” was held in collaboration with UNESCO and featured a blend of songs, dances, and other performances by well-known artists. Proceeds from the event were offered to Les Restos du Coeur, a French charity.

The July issue of Le Monde Diplomatique featured an article by William S. Hatcher entitled “Promoting Social Justice, Tolerance and Equality. The Bahá’í Faith: Humanism Against Fanaticism.” The article covers the early days of the Bahá’í movement and presents it from a global perspective.

GERMANY—On 23 January 2000, a thirty—minute documentary film on the history of the Bahá’í Faith was aired on the German cable television station Siidwestrundfunk. “On the Way to the Land of Unity—the Bahá’í Religion” was filmed in Germany and at the Bahá’í World Centre in Haifa, Israel, and was broadcast in Austria, France, Germany, Luxembourg, and Switzerland to a potential audience of some 130,000 people.

On 7 September 1999, the German Bahá’í community was represented at a joint press conference of senior representatives of Buddhism, Christianity, Judaism, Islam, and the Bahá’í Faith, held in Frankfurt. A joint declaration was released, calling for religious freedom and cooperation between religions. It received widespread

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attention from the German media, including Germany’s maj or press agency.

The Trustee of Huqfiqu’lláh, Hand of the Cause of God ‘AliMuhammad Varqa, traveled to Hofheim in October 1999. Dr. Varqa was accompanied by Counsellor member of the International Teaching Centre Firaydoun Javaheri. Approximately one thousand people from forty-one countries gathered at the conference on Ḥuqúqu’lláh as Dr. Varqa delivered several talks highlighting the spiritual aspects of the law, including its influence on the soul, society, and the development of the Bahá’í community. A new video about Ḥuqúqu’lláh was shown, and there were several artistic presentations.

GREECE—Arsis, a Greek organization for the social support of youth, in collaboration with Thessaloniki Bahá’ís, organized a seminar on “Youth and Their Rights: Creating an Environment for Youth to Develop.” Greetings from the mayor of Thessaloniki and the Vice-mayor for culture were addressed to the organizers during the event, at which the rector of Landegg Academy, spoke on human rights. The event, held on 5 May 1999, was featured on national television, and a local private television station aired a thirty-minute interview. On the radio, a twenty-minute interview focused mainly on the Bahá’í Faith, and two newspapers printed articles profiling the event.

A delegation of members 0/1/16 National Spiritual Assenzbl 1’ of Hzmgmy meets with President Alrpdd Giincz (center) in May I 999.

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HUNGARY—On 11 May 1999, a delegation of four Bahá’ís met with the president of the Republic of Hungary, Arpad Goncz, and took the opportunity to highlight some activities of the Hungarian Bahá’í community. The Bahá’í representatives expressed their appreciation for the president’s work in human rights and thanked him for the country’s consistent support for the Bahá’ís in Iran. They also mentioned that eighty percent of the Hungarian Bahá’í community belongs to the Roma minority and that the equality of all mankind is a crucial issue for the Bahá’ís. The president welcomed this news, saying that in his opinion making peace with the Roma will be the major task of Hungary for decades to come.

On 20 July, several Hungarian Bahá’ís held a meeting with Florian Farkas, president of the National Roma Association. Mr. Farkas mentioned that he found the principles of the Bahá’í Faith very attractive and expressed his hope that collaborative cultural events could be organized between the Roma and Bahá’í communities.

lCELAND—More than one thousand people came to a fair held on 26 March 2000, in Westfjords in honor of the United Nations International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination. Over twenty nationalities had their own booths offering literature, visual and audio-Visual material, artwork, and food from their country, and religious and non-governmental organizations also had booths. This is the third time that this occasion has been celebrated. The event was initiated by a Bahá’í woman in lsafjordhur, who formed a task force with others interested in the issue. It has since been supported by many organizations and the municipalities in the area. The task force has used the event to draw the attention of the Icelandic authorities to the high number of foreigners living in the region, and in May the Icelandic Parliament agreed to establish a Regional Information and Social Center for Newcomers.

REPUBLIC OF IRELAND—A multicultural calendar produced by Access Ireland was officially released by the lord mayor of Dublin, Mary F reehill, during an event held 7 September 1999, at her

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official residence. Bahá’í holy days are marked on the calendar, along with those of other world religions.

lTALY—A spirit of understanding and mutual friendship was experienced by representatives of the twenty religions invited by the Catholic Church to attend the Interreligious Assembly held in the Vatican City from 24 to 29 October 1999. The two Bahá’í representatives, Maria Augusta Hedayat and Julio Savi, reported that they “heard the participants speaking of unity of the peoples of the world, of harmony among religions, the end of the conflicts between religions.”

At the request of the Ministry of Public Education, the Italian Bahá’í community presented the project “The Earth is But One Country” during a national symposium of educational agencies. The project is aimed at increasing the ability of teachers at all school levels to cope in a multicultural society. All of the material presented at the symposium was compiled on a CD-ROM and distributed to all schools in Italy.

LlTHUANIA—The first Lithuanian Bahá’í summer school, in Kretinga, was held from 30 July to 3 August 1999. Bahá’ís from every community in Lithuania attended, as well as Visitors from Belarus, Estonia, Latvia (which had its own three-day summer school around the same time), Norway, the United Kingdom, and the United States. A member of the Continental Board of Counsellors for Europe spoke on the school’s theme, “Who is Baha’u’llah?” The participants studied a major letter from Shoghi

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Effendi and were apprised of the newly elected National Spiritual Assembly’s plan for the development of the country’s Bahá’í community.3

LUXEMBOURG—Every year, the Bahá’ís of Luxembourg host a formal celebration of the 28 June birthday of His Royal Highness the Grand Duke, which is the same day as the country’s National Day. The commemoration for 1999 featured some sixty invited guests, including representatives from different religious commun1t1es.

NETHERLANDS—“Promoting Positive Messages Through the Media: The Happy Hippo Show” was presented at The Hague Appeal for Peace conference in the Netherlands as an example of how Bahá’ís are helping create new conditions for understanding, cooperation, and lasting peace in South Eastern Europe. The Hague Appeal was convened by a number of non-governmental organizations in order to mobilize civil society in support of world peace. Participants were able to demonstrate the activities of their respective organizations, draw inspiration from each other’s efforts, and consult to plan future projects. Held from 11 to 15 May 1999, the conference drew more than ten thousand people from all over the world, making it the largest civil society peace conference in history. The Netherlands Bahá’í community and the European Bahá’í Youth Council (EBYC) had exhibition booths in the G10bal Forum area. The Netherlands community also sponsored its youth dance workshop, Awake, which gave performances on the theme of promoting tolerance.

NORWAY—On 11 November 1999, the inaugural conference for the National Dialogue on Religion and Belief took place at the University Aula in Oslo. The Norwegian government intends to initiate a year—long nationwide dialogue of religions and spiritual communities on such issues as the family, the environment, justice, gender equality, violence, education, ethics, and religious freedom. The program was composed of short talks, and

" See pp. 43—46 of this volume for more on the election Ofthe National Spiritual Assemblies ofLatVia and Lithuania.

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representatives from nine major religions, including the Bahá’í Faith, read from their sacred texts, with His Majesty King Harald V presiding. Professor Hans Kfing spoke about global ethics and the importance of religious dialogue for peace, and the Bishop of Oslo spoke about mutual respect and the issue of teaching religion in schools.

Nineteen ninety—nine was the final year of the LOTUS project at the New Era Development Institute (NEDI) in India, marking twelve years of collaboration between the National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá’ís of Norway and the Norwegian Agency for Development Cooperation (NORAD). Through the Norwegian Bahá’í Committee for Social and Economic Development (NBCSED), the Norwegian Bahá’í community and NORAD have funded projects at NEDI that have fostered the development of human resources, regional centers, and the institutional and technical capacity of the institution; During the LOTUS project, NEDI and the Telemark Teacher Training College in Norway signed an agreement regarding the value of academic, cultural and personal exchange, with special emphasis on partnership and bilateral exchange in the field of child and youth education, and environmental and peace education. The NBCSED has also been instrumental in establishing Bistandstorget, an umbrella organization for NGOs within the development field in Norway. This has created a unique opportunity for the presentation and discussion of the Bahá’í approach to social and economic development in a professional setting. The Bahá’í community is now chairing the board of Bistandstorget for the second consecutive year.

POLAND—On 29 February 2000, for the third consecutive year, a presentation on the Bahá’í Faith was made at Kopernik University’s Institute of Sociology, in Torun, Poland.

The European Family Life Task Force held a conference entitled “My Home” in the national Bahá’í center in Poland from 28 to 30 J anuary 2000. The gathering focused on promoting Bahá’í values in family life, touching on issues such as hospitality, creating a loving environment, and family consultation. Representatives

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from Belarus, Moldova, Poland, Portugal, Russia, Slovakia, and the Ukraine attended.

PORTUGAL—In July 1999, the Bahá’ís of Portugal were granted permission to offer an elective class in public high schools entitled “World Citizenship—Morals and Religion According to the Bahá’í Teachings.” After contacts were established in ten schools and a curriculum was approved by the Ministry of Education, several students in each school selected the course, which was scheduled to begin the following September.

To commemorate World Environment Day on 5 June, the Bahá’ís of Evora, in collaboration with the Ministry of the Environment and with the support of the municipality, organized a “Clean Dam, Live Water” campaign in which more than fifty students from two schools participated. The children, who had previously been given information about the environment, were very receptive to the idea of cleaning the local dam, which provides drinking water for the city. The teachers, too, became enthusiastic and asked to be included in fiJture activities of this type organized by the Bahá’ís.

ROMANIA—In August 1999, forty Romanian Bahá’í travel teachers were joined by youth from Bolivia, Canada, France, Germany, Greece, Italy, and the United States, who formed a group called Diversity Dance Theatre of Europe (DDT). The group performed twice a day either in rented halls or in public spaces. The professionalism of the DDT and the subjects they treated in their dances

C ounsellor Sohrab Youseffian (left) meets with Dr. Ibrahim

' Rugova, leader of ethnicAlbanians, in Kosovo, Serbia.

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prompted the national television station and two private stations to invite them to perform live on their shows. As a result of the teaching campaign spearheaded by the DDT, thousands of people directly learned of the Bahá’í Faith, and millions of people saw the televised performances.

RUSSIAN FEDERATION—The first regional Bahá’í school of the Sakha Republic was held for three days in July 1999. Forty-seven Bahá’ís from seven localities were present, as was a member of the Continental Board of Counsellors for Asia and a musical youth group from Kazakhstan. Around the same time, two Bahá’ís visited various towns in the region, including Yakutsk, Tulagina, Nerungri, Berjigestakh, Khatasi, and Kangalasi. They met with a number of dignitaries, including the minister of Culture, the vice minister of Environmental Protection, and a member of Parliament. They were interviewed for a television news program, donated books to public libraries, taught several children’s classes, and visited isolated Bahá’ís who had not had contact with other Bahá’ís for a number of years.

SlClLY—Sicily’s first Bahá’í youth dance workshop, One Family, was formed in Catania in October 1998, after being inspired by a two—week Visit from the dance workshop Panacea, formed by young volunteers serving at the Bahá’í World Centre. During 1999, membership grew from ten to thirty—five members, and One Family gave dozens of performances in schools, theaters, public parks, and other locations. The principal of one school at which they performed asked the group to organize a project using music and dance to sensitize students and their families to some of the social problems around them. In December the workshop performed at a Christian oratory, with Christian youth, nuns, and priests in the audience. After the performance the father superior said he was moved by the performance and felt that the group represented a force for peace in the world.

SLOVAKlA—A summer school for the Bahá’ís of Slovakia was held in Bystra from 31 July to 5 August 1999. About ninety people

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participated in workshops on family life, education, marriage, and teaching the Bahá’í Faith.

In March, the Voices of Bahá choir visited Bratislava for four days and participated in a series of teaching and proclamation events, culminating in a public concert which drew close to five hundred people. The choir, together with the Slovak Radio Symphony Orchestra, also made the first recording of an oratorio dedicated to Bahá’u’lláh’s Tablet of Carmel.

SLOVENIA AND CROATlA—The Bahá’í community of Slovenia and Croatia held its seventh annual winter school in the woods of Cerknica, Slovenia, in J anuary 2000. The 28 December letter from the Universal House of Justice regarding the further application of laws of the Kitáb—i-Aqdas was studied and served to inspire the gathering. As part of the popular morning show “Good Morning Croatia,” broadcast on Croatian national television, two twelve-minute segments profiling the Indian Bahá’í House of Worship were aired, and the editor plans to produce further programs on Bahá’í subjCCtS.

SPAIN—A public presentation of the Spanish translation of the Kitáb—i-Aqdas took place on 12 November at the national Bahá’í center in Spain, before an audience of two hundred. Two lectures emphasized the position of the Kitáb—i—Aqdas among religious holy books and its significance for Bahá’ís.

From 17 through 25 July, the Bahá’í community of Elche, in collaboration with Miguel Hernandez University, organized the second summer course on “Music, the Cultural Feature of Gypsy People.” Three Gypsy organizations also assisted in organizing this event, which was sponsored by Elche’s city hall and attended by three hundred people.

The Trustee of Huqfiqu’lláh, Hand of the Cause of God ‘AliMuhammad Varqé, accompanied by Counsellor member of the International Teaching Centre Firaydoun J avaheri, attended a Span 99

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ish conference on Huqfiqu’lláh in Barcelona in October 1999. Nearly five hundred Bahá’ís from twelve countries attended, and Dr. Varqé gave talks regarding the law of Huqfiqu’lláh, its spiritual significance, and its influence on individuals and community development.

SWEDEN—More than 120 Bahá’ís attended the six—day-long Swedish Bahá’í summer school in July. The focus of the summer school was The Seven Valleys, one of the primary mystical works of Bahá’u’lláh, recently translated into Swedish. Bahá’í writer Julio Savi came from Italy to conduct classes, some of which focused on Islam, Bahá’í identity, and the reality of man. Artistic works were also produced on the themes of The Seven Valleys.

SWITZERLAND—On 20 September 1999, representatives of the Bahá’í Faith, Buddhism, the Catholic and Protestant churches, Hinduism, Islam, and Judaism spoke and prayed before a crowd of three hundred people in Baden. The Bahá’í Choir of Zurich/Aargau gave its first public concert at the event. During the afternoon the various religions offered typical dishes from the diverse cultures represented in their communities. The Bahá’í speaker quoted ‘Abdu’l-Bahá concerning neighborliness: “Be kind to the strangers. . .Help to make them feel at home; find out where they are staying, ask if you may render them any service; try to make their lives a little happier.” This quotation appeared in an article written about this event. Newspapers and the regional radio and television station publicized this activity, which grew out of an interreligious study group in which several Bahá’ís have been participating over the last year and a half.

The 1999 graduation ceremonies of Landegg Academy, concomitant with the second international symposium “Converging Realities: On Integrating the Spiritual and the Scientific,” took place at the Swiss-based school from 22 to 25 April 1999. Ten young women and men from Canada, Ghana, Macau, Sri Lanka, Togo, the United States, and elsewhere—the founding class of the Academy’s bachelor of arts program—were welcomed by the rector and eighty other dignitaries and guests. “In its diversity,” said Dr. Hossein Danesh, rector of Landegg, “the graduating group em 100

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bodies the beginning of the implementation of the Vision of the Academy, to become a microcosm of the world and to eventually welcome to its campus at least one student from each country on the planet.” Seven master of arts graduates also received their diplomas. Professor Moshe Sharon, incumbent of the Chair for Bahá’í Studies at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, and Hans H6hener, former president of the Swiss Canton of Appenzell Ausserrhoden and long-time minister of Education, gave the keynote addresses at the Converging Realities conference, which attracted a number of accomplished academics. An additional event

Balm ’z's Q/‘GJYJ-S‘y descent hold a Naw R122 celebration in Sivas, Turkey.

celebrating the tenth anniversary of the World Order Studies certificate program at the Academy was held 24 July.

TURKEY—For the second year in a row, the Turkish Atatiirk Thought Society approached the Iskenderun Local Spiritual Assembly for assistance in preparing an artistic program for a celebration of May’s National Children’s Day. In recent years, the event has been adapted to include children from all cultures and is a national holiday. The Assembly’s consultations with the organizers resulted in popular musical and dance performances.

Within two days of the devastating earthquake of August 1999, members of the Turkish Bahá’í community were on the disaster site endeavoring to help the survivors. A committee formed by the National Spiritual Assembly set up two tents where differ 101

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ent daily activities were provided for nearly one hundred women and children, and a group of Bahá’í doctors also volunteered. The tent project continued for six months following the earthquake, and regular visits to relocated families continue.

The Turkish-Greek Women’s Peace Initiative (WINPEACE), organized a two—day conflict resolution seminar in Ankara, which the rector of Landegg Academy was invited to facilitate jointly with another expert. Financial assistance for the seminar was received from the Soros F oundation.

UKRAINE—Bahá’í youth and their friends from Belarus, Canada, Croatia, Luxembourg, Moldova, and various parts of the Ukraine gathered in Kiev for three days in July 1999 for the “Act Now” conference, organized by the European Bahá’í Youth Council to give further impetus to the European youth movement towards unity and peace. Inspired by the conference’s practical workshops, study sessions, and artistic presentations, the youth held several open firesides and welcomed ten people into the Bahá’í Faith.

The National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá’ís of Ukraine became legally registered on 27 July 1999, enabling the Assembly to own land, manage funds, publish literature, establish charitable institutions, and sponsor public activities.

UNITED KINGDOM—On 3 January 2000, representatives of the Bahá’í community of the United Kingdom joined members of eight other major religions in the Royal Gallery of the House of Lords for a major interfaith celebration of the new millennium. The event took place in the presence of the duke and duchess of Gloucester, Dr. George Carey, archbishop of Canterbury, and Prime Minister Tony Blair. A member of each of the religions gave a presentation on shared values, such as community, care and compassion, justice and respect, to an audience ofmembers of Parliament, religious leaders and faith community members from across the country. The British Broadcasting Corporation showed thirty minutes of highlights of the celebration immediately afterwards, and there was national newspaper coverage the next day, sending a highly public signal about the importance of interfaith dialogue. In his welcoming remarks, Chris Smith, secretary of state for Culture,

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The Unity Dance Workshop performsfor

the ”Century of Light ” awards ceremony in Belfast, Northern [ream], in November 1999.

major religions of the United Kingdom,” a statement that marks recognition of the Bahá’ís as a maj or faith community by the royal family, the government, and the Church Of England.

Bahá’ís observed the centenary of the arrival of the Bahá’í Faith in the United Kingdom with events around the country. One of the notable events was “The Wayfarer’s Journey,” a musical drama based on Baha’u’llah’s work, The Seven Valleys. Using the famous Cheddar Caves as the venue, the story was told in music, poetry, and art as the audience passed through each cave to experience another aspect of the Faith of Baha’u’llah. Some five hundred people attended the presentation, more than a hundred of whom were not Bahá’ís.

Sixteen members of the European Bahá’í Business Forum and representatives from the Bahá’ís Of the United Kingdom attended the Enterprise Summit, which was held in conjunction with the State of the World Forum from 4 to 9 May 1999, in Belfast, Northern Ireland. More than eight hundred people, representing varied sectors of society, were involved. Bahá’ís shared their perspective 0n progressive business practices in the changing world economy during the joint plenary sessions, special events, receptions, and informal discussions.

More than 1,100 people, and over two hundred dignitaries attended what is believed to have been the largest public event

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[Page 104]THE BAHA'I WORLD

ever organized by the Bahá’í community in the United Kingdom. Held in the Waterfront Hall in Belfast, Northern Ireland, on 18 November 1999, the program included performances from different cultures. Special awards were presented to local people and organizations that fostered equality, peace, elimination of prejudice, and human rights. Ulster Television, Radio Ulster, and regional and local newspapers covered the event.

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