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Newsletter of the Baha’t International Community October-December 1999

Volume 11, Issue 3

In Atlanta, USA, an innovative effort to keep youth off the streets and in school

In Washington, the

World Bank holds a second summit with world religions

In South Korea, an international confer- ence for NGOs focuses on deeper partnerships

Review: Celebration:

Congo Music — An album from Congo offers a global mix of styles.

"The earth is but one country, and mankind its citizens” - Baha’u‘llah

In South Africa, the world’s religions

gather for dialogue and action

Building on the ethical framework established at the1993 Parliament of the World’ Religions in Chicago, the 1999 Parliament seeks to translate interreligious dialogue into joint intercommunal activities.

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African youth perform at the closing ceremony of the 1999 Parliament of the World’s Religions.

APE TOWN, South Africa — Without doubt, one of the highlights for religious lead- ers gathered here for the 1999 Parliament of the World's Religions was a speech by a secular political leader: former South African President Nelson Mandela.

Addressing the thousands of representatives gathered from the world’s major faith groups, the 81-year-old former political prisoner said that religious institutions played a major role in bringing about the end of apartheid in South Africa.

“Without the Church and religious institutions, | would never be here today,” said President Mandela, explaining that it was Christian, Muslim, Hindu and Jewish religious groups that were instrumental in providing him and other young blacks with an education — and later in giving comfort to political prisoners and their families.

“| appreciate the importance of religion,” he said on 5 December 1999. “You have to have been in a South African jail under apartheid where you could see the cruelty of hu- man beings to each other in its naked form. Again, religious institutions and their leaders gave us hope that one day we could return.”

President Mandela went on to say that “religion will have a crucial role to play in guid- ing and inspiring humanity to meet the enormous challenges we face” in the next century.

In a few short lines, President Mandela summed up one of the major themes of this gathering: that religions, especially when they work together, can and must play a critical role in solving the problems humanity faces.

Parliament, continued on page 8 [Page 2]

is published quarterly by the Office of Public Information of the Baha’t International Community, an international non-governmental organiza- tion which encompasses and represents the worldwide membership of the Baha’t Faith.

For more information on the stories in this newsletter, or any aspect of the Baha’t International Community and its work, please contact:

ONE COUNTRY

Baha’t International Community - Suite 120 866 United Nations Plaza New York, New York 10017 USA.

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Subscription inquiries should be directed to the above address. All material is copyrighted by the Baha'i International Community and subject to all applicable international copyright laws. Stories from this newsletter may be republished by any organization provided that they are attributed as follows: “Reprinted from. ONE COUNTRY, the newsletter of the Baha’ International Community.”

© 2000 by The Bahd’t International Community

ISSN 1018-9300

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The invisible new movement

Re change is among the hallmarks of yur modern era. In the last decade alone, the development of the internet, the end of the Cold War, and the acceleration of glo- balization have transformed our world. Unnoticed against this backdrop may well be one of the greatest and, ultimately, most paradigm-shattering changes ofall: the dramatic coming together of the world’s re- ligions and the development of a worldwide interfaith movement for social progress.

Although this movement is in many re- spects still in its infancy and will no doubt undergo many tests and trials, the distance it has traveled already is remarkable, given the world’s long history of religious division and rivalry.

For thousands of years, religious differ- ences were more often the cause of war than peace. Even today, many of the 50 mostly small-scale wars still boiling around the world have roots in religious strife.

All the more remarkable, then, that reli- gious leaders at the highest levels have be- gun not only to meet and “dialogue,” but have managed to produce consensus docu- ments that set out common positions on sig- nificant social, economic and moral issues.

In this issue of ONE COUNTRY, we re- port on two such meetings and their output — the 1999 Parliament of the World's Reli- gions (PWR) and its final document “A Call to Our Guiding Institutions,” and the sec- ond high-level meeting of the World Faiths Development Dialogue (WFDD) and its re- markable statement “Poverty and Develop- ment: An Interfaith Perspective.”

As Thomas Lachs, a representative of the Reform Jewish Community to the WFDD, put it: “I feel it is sensational, that so many of the leaders of the world’s faiths can get together and issue a common document. Don't forget that the normal relationship between religions over the centuries has been war.”

A careful reading of the Parliament's “Call” and the WFDD's “Perspective” tells much about the directions of this new move- ment and its implications. Both documents speak of the interdependence of the world’s peoples. The Perspective views “the whole of humankind as a family,” and the Call

emphasizes the need for “robust coopera- tion within the human family” and an ethic of “world citizenship.”

Both documents also underscore the commonality of moral virtues and their role in contributing to a lasting solution to glo- bal social problems.

“No society can be truly developed until the people within it have made their own the attributes which are commonly known as ‘virtues,” states the Perspective. “These include trust, solidarity, altruism, compan- ionship, honesty, respect for others, toler- ance, forgiveness and mercy.”

The Call speaks of the “strength” of such values, noting that they are “held in com- mon by the world’s religious and spiritual communities.”

The two documents emphasize and un- derscore the social principles that have be- come the hallmarks of progressive thought in our age. Both documents emphasize the need for women’s equality and the full imple- mentation of “universal human rights.” They stress the importance of recognizing and tolerating diversity, the necessity of pro- moting sustainable development, and the identification of justice as a prerequisite for peace. They both call for urgent action to eradicate poverty.

Taken together, these precepts constitute a new global ethic —a term used at the Par- liament to describe the set of values religion- ists are striving to promote.

At first glance, agreement on all of these ideas might not seem new, Of late, we have become used to hearing progressive think- ers and activists promoting such values and ideals. Historically speaking, however, the world’s religious communities have not al- ways upheld these principles in practice; indeed, religious leaders through the ages have often drawn opposite interpretations from their scriptures.

So the emergence of agreement on these values and ideals from interfaith consulta- tions is of enormous significance

In the first place, the theological mean- ing is tremendous. By implication, agree- ment on fundamental values suggests that God is one and His reflection in the human

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ONE COUNTRY / October-December 1999 [Page 3]FREEDOM

spirit is universally manifest. For, surely, if there were more than one God, then one would expect instead the emergence of a multiplicity of definitions of good and evil.

In other words, recognition of funda- mental and universal spiritual values is philosophically synonymous with recogni- tion of the oneness of God. Religious schol- ars will no doubt be forced increasingly to ponder this point.

More important to the secular world, however, is this observation: If the world’s religious communities have essentially agreed that certain progressive ideals and moral virtues are universal and represent the definition of “good,” such an agreement gives a huge moral impulse to these ideals.

The global ethic identified in these docu- ments in many ways echoes the social prin- ciples that have emerged from the major United Nations conferences of this decade, as well as parallel statements and plans by secular civil society. Yet no one could argue that anyone — the UN, governments, or civil society at large — has yet fully implemented these principles anywhere.

Religion has a long acknowledged and special role in promoting and instilling val- ues — and so itis especially meaningful that the world’s religious communities are now coming together around the promotion of this new global ethic, which, in the face of pervasive materialism and deep-rooted prejudices, still has detractors and oppo- nents in many quarters.

Religious belief and the individual quest to understand spiritual reality lie at the foun- dation of human motivation and social transformation for the majority of the world’s peoples, who are religious believers.

Although interfaith organizations like the Council for the Parliament of the World’s Religions and the World Faiths Development Dialogue are usually care- ful to avoid any specific recognition of religious unity, the degree to which the world's religions have in these recent documents identified a commonality of purpose and values suggests an underly- ing process of convergence that goes be- yond simple notions of tolerance and mutual respect.

In the long run, such a convergence of ide- als and values — not to mention teachings and spiritual vision — has the capacity to re- vitalize the role of religion in world affairs, returning it to its rightful place as one of the guiding instruments for human progress.

“The central purpose of the divine reli- gions is the establishment of peace and unity among mankind,” said ‘Abdu’l-Baha in the early part of the twentieth century. “The foundations of all the divine religions are peace and agreement, but misunderstand- ings and ignorance have developed. If these are caused to disappear, you will see that all the religious agencies will work for peace and promulgate the oneness of humankind. For the foundation of all is reality, and real- ity is not multiple or divisible.” #*

United Nations Commissioner for Human Rights Mary Robinson, second from right, was among the featured panelists at a discussion entitled “Challenges and Hopes for Freedom of Religion or Belief in the New Millennium,” which was held 5 November 1999 at the UN headquarters in New York. Also participating were, left to right: William Vendley, Secretary-General of the World Conference on Religion and Peace; David Little, Professor of the Practice of Religion, Ethnicity, and International Conflict at Harvard University; Janis Bjorn Kanavin, Human Rights Ambassador of the Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs; Anwarul K. Chowdhury, the Permanent Representative of the People’s Republic of Bangladesh to the UN; Ms. Robinson; and Nikoo Mahboubian, a Baha’i International Community representative to the UN, who chaired the discussion as president of the NGO Committee on Freedom of Religion or Belief. For a full report, see the ONE COUNTRY website at www.onecountry.org.

ONE COUNTRY / October-December 1999 [Page 4]Thomas Robinson, center, holding the basketball, with a group of STAR program participants at a recent basketball practice session at the Baha'i Unity Center.

The Bahé‘i Unity Center offers a

RESETS

In Atlanta, basketball helps get youth off the streets and into their studies

Dias COUNTY, Georgia, USA — After practice, coach Thomas Robinson gathers his dozen or so school- age basketball players in a circle on the polished wooden court floor and gives them a quick pep talk.

Unlike typical coach-to-player motiva- tional speeches, however, Mr. Robinson fo- cuses not on their talents as a team or their handling of the ball but rather on their will- ingness to do academic work.

“Is there anyone who feels uncomfort- able about studying?” he asks, receiving a collective “no” back from the group.

“Why?” he asks again, looking around with intensity.

“We don’t want to be stupid,” responds one young player.

The exchange reflects the unusual na- ture of the program, which is run by Mr. Robinson and his wife, Cheryl, at the Baha’t Unity Center here on the outskirts of met-

ropolitan Atlanta in southern DeKalb County. The STAR program, as it is called, requires its athletes to maintain a minimum median-level grade average in school. Oth- erwise, they are not allowed to play. And for many of the mostly African American students in this predominantly black neigh- borhood, basketball is a much cherished activity.

“Most youth athletic programs — and this isn’t to knock them — are just about basketball,” said Mr. Robinson, a 34-year- old African American lawyer, explaining that the STAR program not only requires good grades but also provides special after-school tutorial sessions. “So as an athletic institu- tion, we function differently and, we hope, can be a model for other youth programs.”

The same goal, it could be said, applies to most of the programs offered at the Baha’i Unity Center, which include a Friday night basketball game/group dialogue session for

ONE COUNTRY / October—December 1999 [Page 5]older youth, a computer class for adults, and training in public speaking for youth and adults. All of these programs are aimed at empowering and uplifting African Ameri- cans. Also connected with the Center is a nationally recognized local outreach pro- gram serving refugee and immigrant fami- lies in DeKalb’s northern region.

Founded four years ago in response to local concerns at evidence of rising violence, health problems and drug abuse among area young people, the Center seeks through such programs to address core issues facing young people and their families in a frag- mented society where many families lack direction and young people are drifting into negative behavior.

“We have identified needs in this gen- eral community, needs that include train- ing in conflict resolution, skills training, parenting training and virtues training,” said Fred Ming, a director of the Family Unity Institute, a Baha’i-run non-profit organiza- tion which sponsors the various outreach programs offered at the Center. “There is a lot of capacity out there in this community, but it is not connected. We want the Family Unity Institute and its programs to be a unity force, consolidating the capacity for the ben- efit of all.”

Diversity in DeKalb

DeKalb County has the distinction of being the most diverse county in the state of Georgia. An influx of refugees from East- ern Europe and Asia, as well as new migrants from Hispanic regions, has raised the non- English speaking population to more than 10 percent of the county’s roughly 600,000 people, who are almost evenly divided be- tween blacks and whites.

Yet these diverse populations are largely separate, living throughout the county in neighborhoods that have become defined primarily by race. In the southern part, for example, more than 70 percent of the popu- lation is black, according to the Atlanta Re- gional Commission. In the northern part, blacks compose less than 20 percent of the population — and some neighborhoods are nearly all white, with fewer than 7 percent blacks. (See map at upper right.)

The neighborhood in which the Baha’i Unity Center is located is predominantly black — and it is that population that the Family Unity Institute mainly serves. The area is not poor, but the high level of ra- cial segregation has left many young

people here feeling bitter and isolated from the mainstream

“This isn’t a county where people have se- vere economic needs,” said Sharon Akiele, chair of the Local Spiri- tual Assembly of the Baha'is of DeKalb County South, the local governing council for the Baha'i community here. “But there are definitely declining so- cial values when you have so many teenage parents, when you still have significant drug use, and you have one of the fastest growing populations for AIDS among young African American girls.”

Statistical data for the county confirms the often sharp distinction between the races in terms of social indicators and problems. Scores on standardized academic tests are lower on the average for African Americans, for example, and in 1997, some 17 percent of the white women who had babies were unmarried, compared to 55 percent of Afri- can-American women.

“What those birth rate figures mean is that roughly half of the kids in the DeKalb school system are from a single parent, and probably from a relatively low income, poorly educated single parent,” said Dou- glas Bachtel, a sociologist and demographic

Metropolitan Atlanta - percentage of population by

The darkest regions indicate neighborhoods where more than 70 percent of the population is African American. In the lightest regions, less than 7 percent of the residents are African Americans. (Source: Atlanta Regional Commission, 1998.)

Cheryl Robinson works with Ervin Chapman during one of the required tutoring sessions sponsored by the STAR program. Ms. Robinson, a middle school teacher, is academic director of STAR

ONE COUNTRY / October-December 1999 [Page 6]The Center and the Institute take an overarching view of social problems and their causes. Bahda’‘is view disunity, intolerance and self-centered materialism as the underlying causes of most social problems; they see remedies in the promotion of unity, tolerance and high moral standards.

specialist at the University of Georgia

Concerned about these trends, the Southern DeKalb Spiritual Assembly, which represents the roughly 100 members of the Baha'i Faith in the district, decided in the early 1990s that something must be done. “The Assembly decided that however small we are, and however limited our resources are, we would do something for the youth — and we would do it for all of DeKalb County,” said Rosland Hurley, a member of the local Assembly and a lawyer.

At the same time, Mottahedeh Develop- ment Services (MDS), a non-profit agency established by the Baha’f community of the United States of America to promote social and economic development worldwide, had established a domestic partnership program for grassroots projects in the USA. The two groups joined forces and the result was the purchase of a former Baptist church along with its recreational and classroom build- ings — which became the Baha'i Unity Cen- ter and is owned by the South DeKalb As- sembly — and the establishment of the Fam- ily Unity Institute, which operates out of the Center under the joint sponsorship of the Assembly and MDS.

The approach of the Center and the In- stitute is to take an overarching view of so- cial problems and their causes. Baha’is view disunity, intolerance and self-centered ma- terialism as the underlying causes of most social problems; they see remedies in the promotion of unity, tolerance and high moral standards.

Within that framework, the programs of the Institute have arisen largely as members of the Baha'i community have come forward

The Baha'i Unity Center in DeKalb County, Georgia

to volunteer their time and talents.

The STAR program, for example, had been established previously in another neighbor- hood by Mr. and Mrs. Robinson, who are both Baha'is. But the facilities of the Center and the framework of direction suggested by the In- stitute offered an ideal setting for their project, which has received modest local publicity and tremendous community support for its inno- vative approach at encouraging young Afri- can Americans to study harder and succeed academically. STAR is an acronym that stands for “scholarship, teamwork, ambition and re- spect.”

Among young people here, working hard in school is not something that is always encouraged by peers; winning at basketball is. The program capitalizes on that second ambition by requiring attendance at tuto- rial session for students to be eligible to stay on the STAR basketball team. Tutorial ses- sions often incorporate basketball themes into their lessons. “For math studies, we might study Michael Jordan's shooting per- centages, and then come out on the court and calculate our own shooting percent- ages,” said Mr. Robinson.

Mr. Robinson, a Stanford University edu- cated lawyer employed as a senior homicide prosecutor for neighboring Fulton County, said an important goal of the program is to keep its young participants off the streets and engaged in positive activities.

“Keeping these kids busy and in school is important,” said Mr. Robinson. “Statisti- cally, over 90 percent of youth involved in juvenile criminal justice system are school dropouts.”

The program currently serves about 30 youth, aged 9 through 15, Parents say they are delighted with its double focus. “My boys love basketball,” said Marie Bryant, who has two sons in the program. “They get up with the ball in their hands; they go to bed with the ball in their hands. So this motivates them to do good school work. For both of them, their grades have improved.”

Umoja means unity

Another program at the Center serves older youth, aged 16 through 25, also using basketball as a motivating force. The issues addressed by the Umoja Soldiers, as the group is called, are somewhat more hard- core, ranging the gamut of concerns facing young black men in America, from police harassment to the attractions of illegal drugs.

“When we started the program, we

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ONE COUNTRY / October-December 1999 [Page 7]wanted to promote a positive atmosphere for youth in this area as an alternative to just hanging out in the streets,” said Adrian Hooper, 23, one of the program's founders. “And over time we started to focus on the issues and problems faced by the African American community.”

The Umoja Soldiers meet every Friday night at the Center, and from 30 to 60 young men regularly attend. After a game or two of recreational basketball, the group gath- ers ina circle of chairs to discuss the prob- lems and challenges the members face.

The word “umoja” means “unity” in Swahili, and it is in the “unity circle,” as the program’s founders call the discussion ses- sion, that the dialogue is guided toward prin- ciples of tolerance and self-respect.

“The purpose of Umoja Soldiers is to empower young African American brothers mentally, spiritually, and physically in order that we can achieve self-determination and attain unity,” said Anthony Outler, 22, an- other founder and currently the group's leader. “The whole thing behind it is that as a people, black men have been given false notions about who they are — like for in- stance the whole thing about always being ‘cool’ and ‘down’ and in the way violence and drugs and alcohol are glorified or the way women are treated.”

Mr. Outler said the discussion leaders suggest alternatives, urging the young men to think for themselves and to recognize their spiritual nature. “We can't just preach and say, ‘don’t do drugs’ — that wouldn't be accepted,” said Mr. Hooper. “But the discus- sions are more like an investigation of truth, all with a common theme, which is just not to accept what everybody else is doing.”

At the present time, the other programs at the Center — such as the computer class and the public speaking sessions (which are co- sponsored by Toastmasters International) — also mainly serve local African Americans.

There are exceptions to this focus. The Institute also runs an outreach program en- titled “Healthy Multi-Cultural Families” that serves Asian and Hispanic families in and around Chamblee, a city in the northern part of DeKalb County. Chamblee has recently seen a large influx of refugees and immi- grants and many are deficient in English lan- guage skills. The program provides an after school tutorial for children whose poor En- glish might otherwise retard their progress through school.

The program, which won national rec-

ognition in the form of a Martin Luther King Day of Service grant for $5,000 from the National Service Corporation in 1998, also aims to prevent injury and violence in the families it serves by providing health edu- cation and working to strengthen family bonds and uplift the status of women.

“We have found through informal inter- views that many new immigrants are expe- riencing family violence and that women are often targets of abuse,” said Carole Miller, director of domestic programs at Mottahedeh Development Services. “The primary prevention method has been to pro- mote the development of bonds of trust, love and respect in youth and their families, through education and health-related activi- ties for the entire family.”

More than 60 families have been served by the Healthy Families program.

In another area of endeavor, the Insti- tute has twice sponsored interfaith confer- ences with the idea of bringing together the various ethnic and religious groups that in- habit the county.

In the future, the Center and Institute hope to reach out increasingly to the wider community in DeKalb county.

“There are a lot of organizations that address the problems facing families and children, but there are not a lot of organi- zations here addressing them from a per- spective of unifying diverse groups,” said Ms. Hurley of the Baha’i Assembly. “We look at this community as one, not as a bunch of separate groups. And it is our perspective that the social ills facing us require that we all come together.” #*

Anthony Outler, center, and Adrian Hooper, at right, founded the Umoja Soldiers, a discussion group for young adults that addresses real world issues ranging from drugs to police harassment. At left is Vicki Muhammad, who lives near the Center.

“When we started hepimalani, wa) wi i eae

ONE COUNTRY / October-December 1999 [Page 8]Among other things, the Parliament offered up a blueprint for religious and secular partnership in addressing global challenges in the new millennium.

1999 Parliament of the World’s Religions offers a chance for dialogue and action

Parliament, continued from page one

Held here 1-8 December 1999, the Par- liament drew more than 7,000 participants from some 90 countries. Coming six years after the last Parliament, held in Chicago in 1993 to commemorate the 100th anniver- sary of the famous 1893 World's Parliament of Religions, the South African event offered a glimpse of some of the current directions in the worldwide interfaith movement — which by all accounts is growing and gain- ing strength and acceptance.

“We're convinced that the international interreligious movement is one of the most important features of the modern world,” said Jim Kenney, international director of the Council for the Parliament of the World's Religions (CPWR), co-sponsor of the event, along with the Parliament of the World’s Re- ligions, South Africa (PWRSA)

“Our motivation in holding the Parlia- ment comes from the fact that the world is shrinking and that diversity is more and

South Africa’s interreligious community has long been involved in the fight for justice in South Africa. Representatives of various religions met with then President Nelson Mandela at his official residence on 12 June 1999 to discuss the efforts of religious communities in ensuring free and fair elections. Shown left to right are: Lester Hoffman, representing Judaism; the Rev. Mxolisi Mpambani, an Anglican priest; Amy Seidel Marks, of the Baha’i community; President Mandela; Anglican Archbishop Njongonkulu Ndungane of Cape Town; and Imam Rashied Omar, of the Islamic community,

more apparent,” said Mr. Kenney. “Iwenty years ago, a Westerner might never have encountered a Buddhist or a Baha’i or a Muslim or a Hindu. Now, in many places, the followers of all of these traditions live adjacent to each other.”

Kenney said that the Parliament was in- tended not only to increase and improve the dialogue among faith groups but to take them to the next level of involvement: joint common actions.

To this end, the Parliament unveiled two new efforts: a major interfaith consensus document, “A Call to Our Guiding Institu- tions,” and a listing of interreligious projects, announced under the heading of “Gifts of Service to the World.”

The “Call” offers a blueprint for religious and secular partnership in addressing glo- bal challenges in the new millennium.

“We find ourselves at a moment when people everywhere are coming to recognize that the world is a global village,” says the Call, which touches on a wide range of is- sues, from sustainable development to glo- bal governance, from Third World debt re- lief to media ethics.

“Unique to this moment is the possibil- ity of a new level of creative engagement between the institutions of religion and spirituality and the other powerful institu- tions that influence the character and course of human society,” the Call continues. “What is needed now is a persuasive invitation to our guiding institutions to build new, reli- able, and more imaginative partnerships to- ward the shaping of a better world.”

The listing of “Gifts of Service” repre- sents the beginning of such “joint common actions” in the field of interreligious and religious/secular cooperation. Presented to the Parliament in the form of a booklet, it details some 250 projects that reflect a “com- mitment to interreligious convergence.”

“To me, this is very exciting — that we are starting to see common actions and co- operative projects across religions,” said Howard Sulkin, chairman of the CPWR. “In the past, that was heard of much less.”

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ONE COUNTRY / October-December 1999 [Page 9]The Parliament opened with a colorful procession of religious leaders and believ- ers through the streets of Cape Town. How- ever, as several thousand African indigenous religionists, Baha’is, Buddhists, Christians, Hindus, Jains, Jews, Muslims, Sikhs, Zoro- astrians and others wound their way through this diverse city, they were at times heckled by fundamentalist Muslim and Christian groups that opposed the Parlia- ment — a reflection of the challenges that surround interfaith dialogue.

Protests met with tolerance

Yet the protests were met largely with smiles of tolerance. “The examples of pro- test were minimal compared to the overall sense of unity that pervaded the eight days,” said Louise Todd Cope, founder of Cloak the Earth, a USA-based interfaith organiza- tion.

The daily program of the Parliament be- gan with morning prayers and meditations, followed by numerous workshops and talks, and, in the evening, plenary sessions and artistic performances. Scholars, activists and religious leaders addressed topics ranging from the basic teachings of world religions to an exploration of faith-inspired solutions to world problems.

“Much time and energy was devoted to discussing practical problems such as pov- erty and discrimination, social injustice and the stifling of ancient traditions, environ- mental pollution and global ethics, eco- nomic exploitation and health issues,” said Varadaraja V. Raman, Professor Emeritus of Physics and Humanities at the Rochester Institute of Technology in the USA and a representative of the Zygon Center for Sci- ence and Religion. “Thus, for example, in one session a speaker expounded on the human rights violation suffered by millions of untouchables in India, while in another, an eminent scholar interviewed some Na- tive American elders on how their religions and cultures have been marginalized in modern America.”

Viewed from a distance, the crowd of participants offered an ocean of color. Hin- dus adorned in saffron robes sat with Chris- tian priests dressed in black robes with white collars. Moslem clerics attired in all-white shirts and trousers walked with Buddhists draped only in yellow cotton. Women of all colors dressed in brightly colored silk saris chatted with men and women dressed in business suits. Always present were Africans,

often wearing traditional clothing.

During the final three days, an Assem- bly of some 400 religious and spiritual lead- ers gathered for consultations and to make further commitments to joint common ac- tion. Included in the Assembly meeting were secular leaders from business, agriculture, academia, the media and international or- ganizations, such as the World Bank.

The closing ceremony featured a short speech by the Dalai Lama, leader of the Ti- betan Buddhists. He said he was encouraged that so many faiths could convene and honor each other's religions and expressed the hope that such meetings would result in concrete social action.

Long heritage

The 1999 Parliament builds on the heri- tage of the first World’s Parliament of Religions, held in Chicago in 1893, which brought to- gether several hundred scholars, theologians and religious leaders, including representatives of Eastern religions. Itis widely viewed as the dawn of interfaith dialogue.

The Council for the Parliament of the World’s Religions was established after a highly successful 1993 centenary of that event, called the Parliament of the World’s Religions, drew more than 10,000 partici- pants to Chicago. Among the major prod- ucts of the 1993 Parliament was a document called “Towards a Global Ethic,” a statement of global ethics as defined by the world’s ma- jor religions.

Council officials said they chose South Africa for the 1999 Parliament because of the role that religion and spirituality played in the struggle against apartheid. “We be-

Parliament, continued on page 15

More than 100 Baha'is attended the Parliament and many were integrally involved in its organization and operation. Shown above are some Baha'is marching in the opening day procession through Cape Town, under a banner that reads: “So powerful is the light of unity that it can illumine the whole earth.”

More information on the Parliament of the World’s Religions, including the text of “A Call to Our Guiding Institutions,” can be found at: www.onecountry.org

ONE COUNTRY / October-December 1999

9 [Page 10]Religious leaders gathered with World Bank President James Wolfensohn, bottom row, fourth from left, in Washington in November 1999 for a second summit meeting of the World Faiths Development Dialogue.

Participants received reports on newly launched interfaith development efforts in Ethiopia and Tanzania, offering a glimpse of the kinds of future projects that are expected from the Dialogue’s processes.

Ex ESES ~

Second summit between World Bank and world religions focuses on projects

ASHINGTON — Some twenty-one months after their ground-breaking summit at Lambeth Palace in London, rep- resentatives of the world’s major religions and top World Bank officials gathered here in November to continue their high-level “Dialogue” on how they can work together to more effectively overcome global poverty. Participants said the one-day meeting of the group, which is now called the World Faiths Development Dialogue (WFDD), was marked by a warm atmosphere, a high de- gree of enthusiasm by all parties, and a great sense that the Bank and the religions were moving towards greater understanding of — and joint activities on — the challenges of world development.

Participants received reports on newly launched interfaith development efforts in Ethiopia and Tanzania, offering a glimpse of the kinds of future projects that are ex- pected from the Dialogue’s processes.

“The commitment to improving the lives of the poor found among those at the confer- ence enables the bridging of huge cultural and theological divides,” said World Bank presi- dent James Wolfensohn and Archbishop of Canterbury George Carey ina joint final state- ment. “It is crucial to try to replicate this in many practical country settings, and the signs are that is already beginning to happen.”

Entitled “Ways Ahead for the Dialogue,” the meeting was held on 11 November 1999 at the World Bank headquarters here and, like the Lambeth Palace event in February

1998, was co-hosted by Mr. Wolfensohn and Dr. Carey.

Other participants included many of the same high-level religious representatives who were present at Lambeth meeting, including His Royal Highness Prince El Hassan bin Talal of Jordan and His Highness the Aga Khan, rep- resenting Islam; Bishop Diarmuid Martin of the Vatican, representing the Catholic Church; Rabbis Rene Sirat and Arthur Hertzberg, rep- resenting Judaism; Nambaryan Enkhbayar and Sulak Sivaraksa, representing Buddhism; Swami Vibudhesha Teertha and Acharya Shrivatsa Goswami, representing Hinduism; Sri Singh Sahib Manjit Singh, representing Sikhism; and Dr. L. M. Singvhi, representing Jainism. Lawrence Arturo represented the Baha'i Faith.

Also joining the Dialogue in Washing- ton was Michel Camdessus, the managing director of the International Monetary Fund (IMF). Although Mr, Camdessus has indi- cated that he will resign from the IMF in mid-February 2000, he reportedly expressed “enthusiasm” for the continuing participa- tion of the IMF in the Dialogue.

Dialogue to continue

The group reached several agreements. First, it was decided unanimously that the Dialogue “remains as timely and important as ever,“ and should continue for at least the next five years and that the International Monetary Fund (IMF) should be a partner in the process. Second, it was agreed that

10

ONE COUNTRY / October—~December 1999 [Page 11]the group should hold another high-level meeting in two years to assess progress. In the interim, a team of independent consult- ants will be called in to make recommenda- tions about the ongoing structure and ad- ministration of the Dialogue.

As noted, the group will also seek to bring religious leaders and secular develop- ment thinkers together at the local and na- tional levels. In particular, the WFDD hopes to encourage more grassroots and national- level interfaith development projects and collaborations like those in Ethiopia and Tanzania, said Wendy Tyndale, the coordi- nator of the WFDD.

In Ethiopia, Muslims and Christians have formed an interfaith body to make a contribution to the planning of a very large multi-donor program on food security,

“The idea is for faith-based organizations working in development to visit each oth- ers’ projects,” said Ms. Tyndale, “and to hold some regional workshops to discuss, among themselves, how the religious organizations are contributing to food security in Ethio- pia, and what, if any, is the special contribu- tion they make as religious organizations, rather than as secular NGOs. Then when they have gathered up this information, they will draw conclusions and come up with some recommendations to the multi-donor program.”

A presentation on the effort in Tanzania, where Hindu, Muslim and Christian orga- nizations are cooperating to identify key is- sues in the delivery of health and social ser- vices, was made by Dr. Wilson Mtebe, the General Secretary of the Christian Council of Churches in Tanzania. As with the Ethio- pian project, the project will draw up an inventory of what faith-based organizations are doing in the health field, in order to make an input into the national health program, which is funded in part by the World Bank.

A common statement

Also formally presented at the Washing- ton meeting was the Dialogue’s first major publication, entitled “Poverty and Develop- ment: An Interfaith Perspective.” The result of extensive consultations by members of the Dialogue, the “Perspective” presents a powerful faith-based vision of economic development based on the idea that “there can be no meaningful separation between the social, economic, political, environmen- tal, cultural and spiritual dimensions of life.”

Participants said that these activities

demonstrate the increasing willingness of the religions to work together and a serious commitment to the process of dialogue by both the religions and the Bank.

“I feel it is sensational, that so many of the leaders of the world’s faiths can get to- gether and issue a common document [like the Interfaith Perspective],” said Thomas Lachs, a representative of the Reform Jew- ish community to the Dialogue. “Don’t for- get that the normal relationship between religions over the centuries has been war. ”

For the Bank's part, Mr. Wolfensohn told the group that he hopes to incorporate a recognition of the importance of spiritual and moral values into all aspects of the Bank's work. Mr. Wolfensohn suggested that the failure of the efforts made so far to over- come poverty was the hitherto disconnected and project-oriented approach of all in- volved, from the faith-based organizations to the World Bank and government agen- cies. He described WFDD as a “modest at- tempt” to link faith communities with in- ternational institutions, according to a state- ment issued by the Bank. Mr. Wolfensohn said that religions have a leading role to play in the fight against corruption.

A warm atmosphere

Participants in Washington said these successes contributed to a warm atmosphere for this second major high-level meeting.

“Everyone noticed that it was a more relaxed atmosphere, both among the Bank and the faiths and among the faiths them- selves,” said Swami Amarananda of the Ramakrishna Mission, a representative of Hinduism to the Dialogue. “There seemed to be a great harmony, and above all a kind of enthusiasm has been created. Remember that nothing like this has happened before.”

Participants also said that officials of the World Bank seemed much more comfort- able discussing the spiritual aspects of de- velopment work.

“Both Mr. Wolfensohn and Mr. Camdessus spoke of spiritual values as be- ing at the heart of development, and both spoke of God,” said Mr. Arturo, the Baha’i representative to the Dialogue. “Most of the discussions during the meeting centered around values. Indeed, it was remarkable to watch major religious figures from a diver- sity of faiths, and heads of major interna- tional institutions, profess their agreement on core concepts, principles and teachings found in the world’s religions.” %

“The commitment - to improving the lives of the poor found among those at the conference enables the bridging of huge cultural and theological divides. It is crucial to try to replicate this in many practical country settings, and the signs are that is already beginning to happen.” - Statement by World Bank president James Wolfensohn and the Archbishop of

Canterbury George Carey

More information on the World Faiths Development Dialogue, including the text of “Poverty and Development: An Interfaith Perspective,” can be found at: www, onecountry.org

ONE COUNTRY / October-December 1999

ll [Page 12]The 1999 Seoul International Conference of NGOs represents the first major NGO meeting dedicated primarily to the question of how NGOs themselves might become better organized and empowered on a global level to address the broad range of challenges confronting humanity.

Eee

In Seoul, a global conference of NGOs focuses on forging deeper partnerships

EOUL, Korea — Most of the major inter-

national gatherings of civil society in the 1990s have been organized around a spe- cific issue, such as environment and devel- opment, the equality of women, or peace.

These meetings were usually held in con- nection with major United Nations confer- ences such as the Earth Summit or the Fourth World Conference on Women — with the exception of the 1998 Microcredit Summit and the 1999 Hague Appeal for Peace.

The 1999 Seoul International Conference of NGOs continues the trend of independent global NGO meetings and represents the first such major meeting dedicated primarily to the question of how NGOs themselves might be- come better organized and empowered on a global level to address the broad range of chal- lenges confronting humanity.

As such, the Seoul Conference, which was organized by NGOs themselves with- out any specific connection to a UN event and held here 10-15 October 1999, offered an important snapshot of the vision and vi- tality of international civil society. The pic- ture that developed was one of a diverse worldwide movement that is surprisingly unified in its concerns and plans for action.

“The Conference brought together dif- ferent groups of different people from dif- ferent parts of the world,” said Sudha Acharya, vice president of the Conference of NGOs, which was one of the sponsors of the event. “Yet there was a wonderful spirit of cooperation and unity.”

Drawing more than 10,000 participants representing some 1,400 NGOs from at least 107 countries, the Seoul Conference addressed 10 major themes in nearly 200 workshops and five major plenary sessions. Those themes re- examined the output of the major UN confer- ences of this decade; among the specific is- sues addressed were environment, gender equality, social and economic development, education for all, and human rights.

Yet, it was clear that the overarching con- cern of the event was the issue of how to better organize and empower NGOs so that global civil society can act in a concerted

way to address these problem areas.

This concern was reflected in the Conference’s documents, which included an opening “Vision Statement,” a “Millennium Declaration” and a “Draft Plan of Action.” All of these documents stress the intercon- nected nature of the challenges facing the world and the need for coordinated action.

“We begin the new Millennium facing grave and interconnected challenges,” states the Declaration, which was issued at the end of the Conference. “Yet, there are many rea- sons for hope. The last decades have wit- nessed the phenomenal growth of people's movements, civil society organizations and NGOs committed to addressing these ills.

“Increasingly there is more shared aware- ness of what is at stake and what we need to do together,” the Declaration continued. “In this context, the Seoul Conference consid- ered a number of interrelated themes, de- clared a shared vision for the 21 Century and agreed on concrete actions to make this vision a reality.”

Striving for a vision

The Conference was sponsored largely by the two main associations of NGOs granted status by the United Nations — the Conference of Non-Governmental Organi- zations in Consultative Relationship with the United Nations (CONGO) and the Ex- ecutive Committee of NGOs associated with the Department of Public Information of the United Nations (the NGO/DPI Executive Committee) — along with a Korean part- ner, the Global Cooperation Society Inter- national (GCS), a Seoul-based NGO with chapters in 35 countries. The conference was hosted by Kyung Hee University of Seoul and held at the Olympic Park, site of the 1988 Olympic games.

The stated goals of the meeting were to “explore and monitor” implementation of the global action plans produced by the major UN conferences of the decade, to “strengthen NGO partnerships with the UN,” and to “enhance communication and collaboration” among NGOs worldwide.

12

ONE COUNTRY / October-December 1999 [Page 13]Both in the Conference's plenaries and in numerous workshops, much was said about the critical importance of NGOs and civil society in the coming millennium, es- pecially in view of humanity’s increasing interdependence. “NGOs are now becom- ing absolutely necessary for the rights, safety and happiness of all people,” said Korean President Kim Dae-jung. “They are no less indispensable than the United Nations and national governments.”

Young Seek Choue, president of the co- sponsoring GCS, urged NGOs to increase international collaboration and forge a “glo- bal common society” dedicated to reaching effective solutions to international problems for a “single global family.”

“Globalization has made the world a ‘borderless society’,” said Dr. Choue. “How- ever, we are still witnessing a number of conflicts and disputes arising among coun- tries... To counter and overcome such anti- democratic and anachronistic inclinations of nation-states, NGOs with transnational influence must assume an active role.”

Human rights links

United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights Mary Robinson told the gath- ering that NGOs played a key role in help- ing her office to protect and promote hu- man rights, acting not only as “direct wit- nesses” to human rights violations, but also bringing such violations to light and there- fore “shaming” governments into taking action to protect and promote human rights.

“Our work in the High Commission would be impossible without close contact with NGOs,” said Ms. Robinson. “NGOs should concentrate on deepening the impact and widening the circle.”

Ms. Robinson also said that progress in other issue areas, from peace to women’s advancement to health, is intimately linked to human rights — a view that was echoed in other speeches and workshops.

“There was a connection throughout the conference to human rights themes, based on the idea that every other issue ultimately comes down to a matter of human rights” said Ronald Brinn, the UN representative of the International Association against Drug Abuse and Drug Trafficking, a Moscow- based NGO. “People pointed out that health is a human right, clean water is a human right and so on.”

United Nations agencies that work regu- larly with NGOs expressed keen interest in

the Conference. According to the program, more than 60 representatives of various UN agencies were involved in the Conference.

“The presence of so many representa- tives of international organizations of the UN system demonstrates that new partner- ships are being developed,” said Stan Bemstein, a senior research advisor with the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) “This meeting reaffirms the growing recog- nition of the importance of NGOs.”

The Seoul Conference also produced a draft Plan of Action, tentatively titled “An Agenda for Peace, Security and Develop- ment in the 21* Century,” which offers up a list of endorsements, recommendations and action steps aimed fulfilling the promise of the UN global conferences of the 1990s.

The Agenda remains a draft document and has been posted at the CONGO website [www.conferenceofngos.org]. The plan is to have NGOs around the world continue to comment on the Agenda and then to present it in final form at the Millennium Forum in May 2000. [See related story page 14.]

Among other items, the Agenda calls for the establishment of a “standing UN Peace force”; more peace education programs in schools and universities; wider recognition that human rights are “universal, indivis- ible, interdependent and interrelated”; a mo- bilization of “social movements and civil so- ciety for the promotion and protection of human rights”; inclusion by governments and the UN of women in conflict resolution processes; and steps to “ensure that global and regional economic institutions are held accountable to international human rights principles and standards.” #*

—with reporting by Beth Bowen

The Baha’t community of South Korea was deeply involved in the Seoul Conference, sponsoring a workshop entitled “New Millennium and New Civilization” and an exhibition booth. More than 20 Bahd’is from around the world attended. Shown here at the Baha'i booth are three members of the Korean Baha’t community, left to right: Danton Ford, Kang Sung-ho, and Firaydun Mithaq. Mr. Kang also served as program director of the Conference.

Expanded coverage of the 1999 Seoul International Conference of NGOs, including the text of the declaration and plan of action, can be found at the ONE COUNTRY website: www.onecountry.org

ONE COUNTRY / October-December 1999

13 [Page 14]“Although holding the Forum at the United Nations gives it the highest degree of credibility and impact, it also means we must limit the number of people who can physically attend the main Forum.” —Techeste

Ahderom, co-chair, Millennium Forum

Full information about the Millennium Forum can be found at its website at www.millenniumforum.org

GLOBA GOvERNANCE

The Millennium Forum refines its program and opens on-line registration

NITED NATIONS — A tentative pro-

gram and tighter criteria for registration were among the topics addressed at a meet- ing of the Millennium Forum Planning Con- sultative Council in December.

Scheduled for 22~26 May 2000 at United Nations headquarters in New York, the Mil- lennium Forum will bring together repre- sentatives of civil society from all over the world to consult about the role of the United Nations in 21% Century. The Forum will also serve as an adjunct to the Millennium Sum- mit of world leaders being organized by the UN for September 2000.

As proposed to the Planning Consulta- tive Council on 14 December 1999, the for- mat for the Forum aims for a high level of interaction among participants. Under this proposal, morning plenary sessions focus- ing on each of the six main themes of the Forum will feature short keynote presenta- tions followed by active interchanges. In the afternoon, working group sessions will nar- row the focus of the discussions, aiming to produce a final document for presentation to world leaders at the Millennium Summit

The main themes of the Forum are: 1) peace, security and disarmament, 2) the eradication of poverty, including debt can- cellation and social development; 3) human rights; 4) sustainable development and the environment, 5) the challenges of globaliza- tion; and 6) strengthening and democratiz- ing the United Nations.

Also discussed was the need to tighten the criteria for participation in the Forum, due to the fact that the United Nations Gen- eral Assembly Hall can only accommodate some 1,400 people.

“Although holding the Forum at the United Nations gives it the highest degree of credibility and impact, it also means we must limit the number of people who can physi- cally attend the main Forum,” said Techeste Ahderom, co-chair of the Forum's Executive Committee. “We hope to have satellite and on- line events that will facilitate participation at other venues. But we will have to strictly hold the line in New York.”

Asa result, said Mr. Ahderom, the Execu- tive Committee has established a working set of criteria for participation. Those criteria will seek to “create a gathering that truly repre- sents the diversity, depth, and breadth of glo- bal civil society,” said Mr. Ahderom.

The Forum’s Executive Committee hopes to do this by assigning priority to par- ticipation by duly appointed representatives of non-governmental organizations and or- gans of civil society that have been the most active and/or have the most expertise in ad- dressing the major themes of the Forum; that have democratic structures and/or most appropriately and genuinely represent ma- jor groups that have often been neglected or under-represented in the global arena (such as women, youth, workers, and in- digenous peoples) and which meet the need for an equitable geographic representation of civil society.

To facilitate the selection process, a spe- cial application form that seeks to collect basic data about an organization's size, struc- ture and expertise has been designed. It is available on-line at the Forum's website at hetp://www.millenniumforum:org. The Execu- tive Committee is also working to distrib- ute paper-based versions of the application form to major regional civil society networks and focal points.

To give regionally based selection com- mittees enough time to process the applica- tions, a tentative deadline of 1 March 2000 has been established for applications.

“Because of the low level of financial re- sources that are generally available to NGOs, we must rely largely on the Internet for our registration and communications pro- cesses,” said Mr. Ahderom. “Although this puts an extra burden on those organizations without Internet access, our hope is that brother and sister organizations around the world with computers and access will assist other NGOs and local organizations in ap- plying, either by printing and distributing paper forms or helping them register on-line and also in terms of communicating news of the Forum.”

14

ONE COUNTRY / October-December 1999 [Page 15]Review: Celebration: Congo Music Review, continued from back page

tively unknown young singer named Kabila, it is accompanied by a single acoustic guitar in the style of a traditional French ballad. The result is beautiful and moving.

Most of the songs, however, have a fast pace that carries the listener along with a driving rhythm. The melodies are catchy and bright, but never redundant. Instruments are a mix of Western and traditional, as in the delicate rumba Ntoma Ya Nzambe, which features three likembes, also known as “thumb pianos,” to create lead, rhythm and bass tracks.

The album was recorded and mixed in Kinshasa at Studio Aurore, a small record- ing house founded by Jason Sheper, a Cana- dian-born musician who acted as executive

producer on the album. It is distributed by Live Unity Productions, a Toronto-based production company, founded by Jack Lenz, a prominent producer, composer and artist in his own right. Live Unity also provided essential technical assistance to Studio Aurore, helping them choose and obtain modern recording equipment and also by offering the “loan” of a top recording engi- neer, Kevin Doyle.

“We are really trying to meld traditional African music with modern music in a way that makes it something that Western people would want to listen to, rather than a mu- seum piece — and which at the same time makes traditional music accessible to young Congolese,” said Mr. Sheper, who also com- posed some of the songs and plays bass on many of them. “We also wanted to create a collection of styles that, in effect, travels around the world and at the same time cel- ebrates the spirit of the Baha’ Faith.” %

UN again expresses concern over human rights in [ran

UNITED NATIONS - For the 14th time in 15 years, the United Nations General As- sembly has expressed “concern” over human rights violations in Iran, specifically men- tioning the “unabated pattern of persecu- tion” against Iran’s Baha'i community.

By a vote of 61 to 47, the General Assem- bly on 17 December 1999 passed a resolution calling on the Islamic Republic of Iran to abide by international human rights covenants and “to ensure that all individuals within its terri- tory” including “religious minorities,” “enjoy the rights enshrined in those instruments.”

The 17-paragraph resolution took note of the Iranian Government's “efforts towards strengthening democracy” and promoting the “rule of law.” However, the resolution also called for a continuing examination of human

rights in Iran, “including the situation of mi- nority groups, such as the Baha'is...”

In related news, the Baha’ International Community learned on 14 December 1999 that the death sentences against two Baha’is in Iran are being commuted. According to reliable reports, the death sentence against Dhabi'u'llah Mahrami has been commuted to life imprisonment and the sentence against Musa Talibi is in the process of be- ing commuted. Four Baha’fs remain under death sentence in Iran.

The Community also learned in late De- cember that three Baha’fs, who had been ar- rested by the Iranian Government in the au- tumn of 1998 in connection with raids against the Baha’ Institute of Higher Edu- cation, have been released. #

Parliament of the World’s Religions calls for action

Parliament, continued from page 9 lieve that there is a unique role that religion and spirituality plays in social transforma- tion,” said Dirk Ficca, executive director of the Council. “It provides resources for the people to get a clear vision of where they might go, and an outline of the most peace- ful and just way to get there.”

Once the decision was made to hold the 1999 Parliament in South Africa, much of the planning and implementation for the event was turned over to the Parliament of the World's Religions, South Africa, an au-

tonomous interfaith organization. “The South African interreligious community, humble as it was, rose to the immense task of playing host to the Parliament,” said Amy Seidel Marks, co-chair of the PWRSA anda member of the South African Baha'i com- munity. “In truth, it can be said that the 1999 Parliament of the World’s Religions was achieved on the interreligious foundations built by the those who were key players in the struggle against apartheid. "3. —with reporting from South Africa by Suzanne Bamford and Muhtadia Rice

ONE COUNTRY / October-December 1999

15 [Page 16]Celebration: Congo Music

Vision Arts and Culture

Kinshasa

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Celebration: Congo Music can be ordered from Live Unity Productions, Toronto: www.liveunity.com

EET

Out of Africa: a global mix of musical styles

n much of the Western world, religious

music as a genre is quite separate from popular music. Whether on radio stations, in concert halls, or recorded albums, the two forms are rarely mixed

In Africa, however, religious music is more often heard side by side with popular music — and is far more likely to be found on pop radio play lists.

In this context, the album Celebration: Congo Music belongs to this category, emerging as perhaps the strongest effort so far to compose and record African music inspired by the Baha'i Faith.

The result is appealing to anyone in- terested in “world music,” a current trend in popular music that blends musical styles and cultural influences from around the globe and is a major element in many of the songs of today’s top performers.

A collaborative effort involving about a dozen musicians in the Democratic Republic of the Congo — many of whom are Baha'is — and a group of Canadians who provided the technical expertise and equipment nec- essary to produce and distribute the album, Celebration features 13 songs that span a glo- bal mix of musical styles, from traditional French ballads to Caribbean reggae.

While the influences of everything from American country and western to rap are evident, the rhythm of the traditional Con- golese rumba provides a unifying underpin- ning throughout the entire recording.

The languages of the songs include En- glish, French, at least four different lan- guages or dialects from the Congo itself, and some from Nigeria

The lyrics draw on the history, teach- ings and holy writings of the Baha’i Faith, presented as a “celebration” of its inspira- tional message of unity and oneness.

The result is a happy and uplifting al- bum that almost continually surprises and delights listeners by its diversity, creativity and spirit.

Many of the songs draw on a wide range of styles and expressions even within them- selves. Take Le Desert de l'Ignorance, for ex- ample, which takes the listener on a jour- ney of styles that opens with the kind of

“pop fusion” one might hear on any of today’s top-selling songs and moves on to an instrumental section that features Con- golese and South African percussion and chants. That interlude is then overlaid with an American-style rap spoken in French. A female chorus later joins in and the song finishes with an almost symphonic cre- scendo. Although this description may read as if the song were a confused pastiche, it works well, drawing the listener into a pow- erful musical experience.

Le Desert was composed by Oscar Diyabanza, who was the artistic director for the National Ballet of Zaire for more than 20 years. Although not a Baha’i himself, Mr. Diyabanza has written a song that speaks of wandering through the “desert of ignorance” until finding Baha’u’llah’s message of “peace and love of all humankind.”

Other performers on Celebration include Pembe Lero, a percussionist and song writer who was a key figure in the collaboration

CELEBRATION

CONGO music

that led to the album, Marius Mof’Nene, a singer, guitarist and composer who per- formed for many years with OK JAZZ, one of Congo’s premier bands, and André Zamambu, a singer with the Orchestra Sim Sim, one of Congo's most venerable groups. At the other end of the musical spectrum from Le Desert is Pri¢re du Matin, a prayer of Baha'u'llah set to music. Sung by a rela- Review, continued on page 15

16

ONE COUNTRY / October~December 1999 �