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Newsletter of the Baha’ International Community July-September 2008 Volume 19, Issue 4

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Perspective: The future of food. balancing the local and global.

Concerned about

a human tights “quagmire,” Baha'is launch new discourse.

In Iran, Baha'is face new attacks — and gain increased support.

COLLECTIVE

Tatsi

Review: Collective Security Within Reach — Sovaida

Maani Ewing says humanity has laid the groundwork for peace.

“The earth is but one country, and mankind its citizens” — Baha‘u’Hah

Bahai holy places in Israel added to UN

World Heritage list

The Shrine of Baha'u'llah and the Shrine of the Bab join the Vatican, the Old City of Jerusalem, and the Pyramids, among other places, as sites of “outstanding universal value.”

Aview of the Shrine of Bah@’wllah, upper right, shows the design of the surrounding gardens. The Shrine is located outside Acre, Israel, and is a major site of pilgrimage for Bahd’ts.

CRE, Israel — The holiest place on earth for Bah@ts is an 19th century mansion and sur-

rounding grounds outside this historic city in northern Israel. Known as Bahji, it is the final resting place of Bah@wll4h and the main pilgrimage site for the more than five million Baha'is worldwide.

Now that site and another Baha holy place in nearby Haifa have been added to the United Nations’ World Heritage list, recognized for their “outstanding universal value” as part of hu- manity’s cultural heritage.

The decision by the UNESCO World Heritage Committee, meeting in Quebec City, Canada, on 8 July 2008, means that the Shrines of Baha’wllah and the Bab join a list of internationally recognized sites like the Great Wall of China, the Pyramids, the Taj Mahal, and Stonehenge.

The World Heritage list also includes places of global religious significance like the Vatican, the Old City of Jerusalem, and the remains of the recently destroyed Bamiyan Buddha statues in Afghanistan.

The Bah@t shrines are the first sites connected with a religious tradition born in modern times to be added to the list, which is maintained by UNESCO, the United Nations Educa- tional, Scientific and Cultural Organization.

“The decision to include the Bah@1 Faith’s two most holy sites on the World Heritage list is noteworthy because it adds yet another layer of international recognition to the Bah#1 Faith as an historic and cultural phenomenon of global importance,” said Albert Lincoln, secretary general of the Bah#1 International Community.

World Heritage, continued on page 12 [Page 2]is published quarterly by the Office of Public Information of the Bahda’i International Community, an international non-governmental organiza- tion which encompasses and represents the worldwide membership of the Bahai 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'i International Community — Suite 120 866 United Nations Plaza New York, New York 10017 USA

E-mail: onecountry@bic.org http://www onecountry.org

Executive Editor: Douglas Moore

Editor: Brad Pokorny

Associate Editors:

Vladimir Chupin (Moscow) Kong Siew Huat (Macau) Ralf Wolf (Germany)

Editorial Assistant: Veronica Shoffstall

Design: Mann & Mann

Subscription inquiries should be directed to the above address. All material is copyrighted by the Baha’t 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 fol- lows: “Reprinted from ONE COUNTRY, the newsletter of the Baha’t International Community.”

© 2008 by The Baha'i International Community ISSN 1018-9300

Printed on recycled paper @

The future of food: balancing the local and global

le this year, global food prices climbed to an all-time high, according to the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAQ).

While consumers in developed countries have been forced to look a bit harder for discounts at their local grocer, the effect on those living in poverty has verged on the catastrophic. In some countries, among them Egypt, Haiti, and even Mexico, the rapidly escalating price of basic cereals and edible oils led to riots.

Although prices have declined since June, the crisis nevertheless highlighted an im- portant fact: our global food supply is under pressure from multiple avenues, and the need for a coordinated global approach to food and agriculture is greater than ever.

Various factors are responsible for the immediate rise in food prices. They include the rising cost of petroleum, unseasonable droughts over the last several years, and an increasing demand for a more varied diet in newly prospering nations.

These factors are likely to be compounded by other trends, such as the impact of climate change on agricultural conditions in many parts of the world, increasing soil erosion worldwide, and the continuing growth in world population, now projected to rise from 6.7 billion people to 9.2 billion by 2050.

Other factors are connected to the problem. The global food system mirrors economic inequalities. While some starve, developed nations face an epidemic of obe- sity. The industrialization of food processes is contributing to rural-to-urban migration. And many worry about the safety of our food supply because of the increasing use of questionable hormones or additives to boost yields, storage time or palatability.

Food is, of course, among the most ba- sic of necessities. But survival aside, lack of access to proper food affects health, intel- ligence, educational attainment, and a whole host of other development issues.

As well, the manner in which we produce food — whether by methods that will ulti- mately exhaust the earth or by processes that can be sustained in the long term — stands at the foundation of sustainable development.

Policy makers are increasingly looking to religious communities for help in achieving sustainable development. Faith communities and faith-based organizations not only have extensive networks at the grass roots but also sacred writings that have proven to be a powerful source of motivation for change and transformation.

Like most issues related to sustainable development, the challenges brought by the food crisis are cross-cutting and multifaceted, touching on virtually every dimension of hu- man existence: social, technical, economic, educational, moral and spiritual.

Any integrated approach to the food crisis, then, must take religion into consideration, given its influence on the attitudes, behaviors, and social practices of individuals and com- munities. Many religions, for example, have dietary laws that affect what is eaten and how it is produced. And, as with sustainable develop- ment generally, faith-based organizations have much to offer, from strong membership at the local level to moral and ethical principles that can promote positive change.

As policy makers attempt to formulate a comprehensive and integrated long-term policy on food, they will find that the holistic and global-minded principles found in the Baha’t sacred writings offer a number of im- portant insights.

First and foremost is the principle of jus- tice. Writing 80 years ago, ‘Abdu’l-Baha spe- cifically mentioned the importance of food in discussing social justice: “We see amongst us men who are overburdened with riches on the one hand, and on the other those unfortunate ones who starve with nothing: those who possess several stately palaces, and those who have [no place] to lay their

ONE COUNTRY / July-September 2008 [Page 3]head. Some we find with numerous courses of costly and dainty food; whilst others can scarce find sufficient crusts to keep them alive.... This condition of affairs is wrong, and must be remedied.”

The Baha’t writings offer a number of specific ideas about how to promote economic justice. These include concrete principles for balancing taxation and wealth re-distribution, the promotion of corporate profit-sharing as a means to improve the worker's share in productivity, and underly- ing spiritual concepts that promote indi- vidual responsibility, such as the notion that work performed in the spirit of service to humanity is equivalent to worship.

A critically important feature of today’s food crisis is the interplay between local and global forces.

No approach can succeed without a deep exploration of how to better address trade, agricultural subsidies, development, climate change, and energy policy at the global level. At the same time, food and agriculture remain intensely dependent on local condi- tions. Soil, climate, the availability of water and labor, and even the educational level of farmers — all have their impact.

Further, even as international agriculture has become increasingly commoditized, mak- ing it possible for consumers in one region to enjoy out-of-season fruits and vegetables nearly around the year, many today are calling for a return to “local food.” This is spurred by concerns over food quality and safety and by the realization that the packaging and trans- portation of food produced elsewhere some- times adds greatly to the carbon footprint.

Significantly, the Baha’ writings, which emphasize the oneness and interconnected- ness of humanity, also address the small-scale side of life on this planet. They emphasize the importance of individual initiative, ethical behavior, local control, and community par- ticipation — all elements needed to ensure the proper balance between the global and the lo- cal dynamic in any solution to the food crisis. Specifically, the Baha’ writings offer:

« An understanding of the fundamental role agriculture plays in community life. The Baha’t writings uniquely emphasize the importance of agriculture, placing it in the first rank among social concerns and emphasizing its significance as an honorable profession. “The fundamental basis of the community is agri- culture, tillage of the soil,” said ‘Abdu’l-Baha. “All must be producers.” Food production and agriculture is the world’s single largest

source of employment; nearly 70% of the poor in developing countries live in rural areas and depend on agriculture for their livelihoods. The farmer must be accorded his or her rightful place in the processes of development and civilization building.

« Amodel for community administration that balances the local and the global. Unique among religious communities, the Baha’i writings es- tablish a clear hierarchy between locally elect- ed governing councils, national-level admin- istration, and international coordination. This bottom-up/top-down administrative system is already functioning around the world, and it encourages sensitivity to local conditions with a unified global perspective.

¢ An explicit call for equality between women and men. Equality is something that is unmistakably necessary for progress in food and agriculture. According to the FAO, women produce between 60 and 80 percent of the food in most developing countries and are responsible for half of the world’s food production. The Baha’i view that women and men are fundamentally equal creates new possibilities for change and transformation at the grass roots.

• Teachings on health and consumerism that

recommend a moderate and simple diet. Although Baha’ dietary laws allow the eating of meat, vegetarianism is encouraged. “The food of the future will be fruit and grains,” wrote ‘Abdv’l- Baha. “The time will come when meat isnolon- ger eaten.” Such a prescription, research shows, contributes not only to individual health but also to planetary well-being, by reducing the disproportionate demand for land and resoure- es needed for intensive animal rearing.

¢ An emphasis on the importance of science and technology, moderated by moral values. As the world seeks to boost food output, ques- tions over genetically modified food, petro- leum-based fertilizer, and bio-fuels — among other issues — highlight the need for scien- tific progress governed by social concern. The Baha’t writings encourage a reliance on science but also stress the need for consultation about its impact and direction.

Taken altogether, these principles — along with other aspects of the Baha’t teachings on the environment, ethics, social justice, com- munity participation, and the importance of diversity — offer a vision for human-scale living with deep roots at the local level that is nevertheless guided by a keen understanding of the trends and conditions at the global level. It is precisely such a balance that can help to solve the food crisis in the long run. #*

The Baha’ writ- ings, which emphasize the oneness and interconnected- ness of humanity, also address the small-scale side of life on this planet. They emphasize the importance

of individual initiative, ethical behavior, local control, and com- munity participa- tion — all ele- ments needed to ensure the proper balance between the global and the local dynamic in any solution to the food crisis.

ONE COUNTRY / July-September 2008 [Page 4]“Human rights mechanisms have proven incapable of ad- dressing, much less preventing, violations on a massive scale... [We must] begin to chart a course out of the quag- mire in which hu- man rights mat- ters are bogged down.”

— Bani Dugal,

Baha‘ International Community

Participants gathered at the offices of the Baha’é International Community in New York, from 19-22 May 2008 to launch a new “Human Rights Discourse.”

Eas

Concerned about “quagmire” in human rights, Baha’is launch new discourse

EW YORK — Concerned that the goal

of establishing a universal standard for human rights has become mired in compet- ing international agendas, the Bah@t Interna- tional Community has launched an initiative to explore how best to strengthen the promo- tion of human rights and ensure their central place in the governance of human affairs.

“It is alarmingly apparent that human rights are being assaulted from all sides,” said Bani Dugal, the principal representative of the Baha’ International Community, at the opening session of the first effort in this new initiative, a “Human Rights Discourse,” held 19-22 May 2008 at the BIC offices here.

“Human rights mechanisms have proven incapable of addressing, much less prevent- ing, violations on a massive scale,” said Ms. Dugal, while the elimination of various forms of discrimination “has yet to be manifested in spirit and in formal processes.”

In launching a new discourse on human rights, Ms. Dugal said, the goal is “to begin to chart a course out of the quagmire in which human rights matters are bogged down.”

Against that backdrop, the May event brought together some 30 individuals who spe- cialize in human rights, international law, and social action to discuss the challenges facing the advancement of human rights and how the vi- sion for a universal standard might be realized.

Participants, who came from 12 coun-

tries, included representatives of UN mis- sions, officials of UN agencies, academics, and activists from human rights-oriented non-governmental organizations, along with one journalist. Many had prepared discussion papers in advance of the meeting.

The focus was on three themes: reconcil- ing rights with responsibilities; the challenge of implementing the emerging doctrine of “re- sponsibility to protect”; and how to safeguard established rights currently under threat.

The format of the meeting was informal, using a modified version of the Chatham House tules that gave participants the choice to remain anonymous in the attribution of their remarks, allowing them to engage in a free-flowing con- versation without fear of offending particular governments or organizations.

While the discourse produced no formal outcome document, there wasa rich exchange of ideas. A number of points emerged:

+ Thatrights and duties are interdependent among all actors in society, whether govern- ment, corporate, or individual. All human be- ings have a moral obligation torespect, uphold and defend the rights of others, especially in view of the principle of collective trusteeship, an understanding that every human being is born into the world as a trust of the whole.

• Nevertheless, states have a primary

responsibility to respect and protect human tights. In doing so, they must consider the human rights of individuals outside their borders. States should support the United Nations in protecting endangered popula- tions, including responsibilities to prevent, react and rebuild, despite the costs and risks to personnel.

+ The attempts of governments who are committing human rights violations to enlist the support of other rights-violating govern- ments should be resisted. Efforts must be made to ensure that the Human Rights Coun- cil is not politicized in this way.

• An important step toward creating and

implementing a universal standard of human tights is the involvement of individuals and organizations at all levels of society, through

ONE COUNTRY / July-September 2008 [Page 5]processes that emphasize the moral, legal, and religious foundation of human rights.

Humanitarian intervention

The discussion of the emerging doctrine of “the responsibility to protect” was among the most lively, as participants debated whether states should intervene militarily to protect populations whose rights are being violated or whether traditional norms of state sovereignty should hold sway. The doctrine is sometimes known as “humanitarian intervention.”

Participants brought up real world ex- amples, such as Darfur and Rwanda, as well as the humanitarian crisis that followed Cy- clone Nargis in Myanmar last May, saying the international community should have felt the obligation to intervene militarily to prevent bloodshed or a larger crisis.

Others noted the complexities of such ac- tions. “We should not be too euphoric about this abstract notion,” said one participant, noting that, for example, it would have taken a huge military force to intervene in Burma if the military regime there wanted to fight. “The peo- ple with guns on the ground control relief.”

National politics also prevents states from acting on a strictly moral plane. “People will recall that in Somalia, it took the deaths of just afewUS military personnel to freeze the United States out,” continued the same individual.

Nevertheless, participants agreed, the international community needs to find ways to strengthen its commitment to the respon- sibility to protect. “One dimension is winning support from the local population,” said a par- ticipant who isa legal specialist in humanitar- ian intervention. “How do we inspire people around the world to support their govern- ments in giving aid or sending in troops?”

Freedom of religion or belief

Another vigorously discussed topic concerned how to promote freedom of reli- gion or belief. “Our laws, both national and international, loudly speak of freedom of religion with all its essential attributes, but our day-to-day practices evidence widely prevalent inhumanities and human miseries emanating from religious intolerance and discrimination,” wrote one participant, in a paper prepared for the discourse.

Several participants noted that freedom of teligion or belief has become something of a “second-class citizen” within the realm of hu- man rights, in part because any dialogue about teligion often becomes contested. As a result, the issue is often swept under the rug.

“It is very difficult to mobilize big, inter- national non-governmental organizations on questions of freedom of religion or belief,” said one participant. “It is very normal to be defended if you hold a political idea. But if you have a religion, they say, why don’t you just hide that fact?”

One way to better enforce current laws on freedom of religion or belief, participants said, would be for the UN Human Rights Council to demand information on the efforts of governments to protect the right to change one’s religion as part of the Council's periodic review mechanism.

A third area of discussion concerned the right to development. Participants called it complex and noted it means different things to different people in different places. The promotion of development is dependent not only upon the states but also supporting actors, such as the United Nations, multi- national corporations, NGOs, and individu- als. There is no way to assure human rights without international cooperation and an enabling environment, participants said.

The Bahai International Community intends to continue the discourse on human rights with further gatherings and activities in other places, said Ms. Dugal.

“Several participants said they saw the discourse as a way to help bridge the divide between north and south in discussions on human rights, and as a way to bring different coalitions together,” she said.

“And we see this as an organic, ongoing process,” said Ms. Dugal. “Our hope is to bring together and consult with more special- ists on human rights, including those who work on the front lines as defenders at the national and even local levels.” #

Tradj Roberto Eghrari, a Bahai and president of the National Forum on Human Rights Education, a coalition of NGOs involved in human rights education in Brazil, speaks at the Human Rights Discourse at the Baha’é International Community offices in New York in May

“We see this as an organic, ongoing process. Our hope is to bring together and consult with more specialists on human rights, including those who work on the front lines as defenders at the national and even local levels.” — Bani Dugal, Bahai International Community

ONE COUNTRY / July-September 2008 [Page 6]A number of Iranian human rights activists, like Shirin Ebadi, as well as promi- nent Iranian journalists and writers, have given support to Baha‘is — or condemned the government for its oppression of them.

In June 2008, the Mousavi family of Fars province narrowly escaped injury when an arsonist poured gasoline and caused an explosion and fire that destroyed a hut near where the family was sleeping outside their home.

' aE

Iranian Bahd’is face new attacks — and also gain increased support

EW YORK — In recent months, Iranian

Bah@is have continued to face increas- ing persecution from their government and its proxies. At the same time, however, they are receiving growing support and succor from both inside and outside Iran.

Among recent developments:

+ At the United Nations, Secretary Gen- eral Ban Ki-moon issued a 20-page report expressing concern over human rights vio- lations in Iran against Bah@#is — and other minorities, women and juveniles.

• In July, Iranian rights activist and Nobel

Prize laureate Shirin Ebadi took the case of defending seven Baha'i leaders who were jailed in March and May — and for this she has been severely attacked in the govern- ment-controlled news media.

+ Another sign of internal support for Bahd@is came with the release, by an Iranian human rights group, of a secret report that essentially exonerated three Baha'is cur- rently imprisoned in Shiraz. The confidential report, written by an inspector for a regional representative of Iran’s Supreme Leader, found the Baha'is, arrested in May 2005 along with 50 others, were essentially innocent of government charges. Yet the government has

been unwilling to release them.

+ Violence directed against Iranian Bah@ts by the government or its proxies continues, and arson against Baha@’{ homes and vehicles emerged as the latest tactic of oppression against them.

+ Bahai university students continue to face impediments to enrollment or expulsion after matriculation, and recent court cases have confirmed that such exclusion remains official government policy.

“The Bah@is of Iran face increasing at- tacks, arson, rising imprisonments, the deprivation of education and income, and day-to-day harassment,” said Bani Dugal, the principal representative of the Bahd’t Inter- national Community to the United Nations. “Yet, in the midst of this grim reality, there is aray of hope in the fact that many individuals and organizations both inside and outside of Iran are raising their voices in support.”

Iranian activists give support

A number of Iranian human rights activ- ists, like Shirin Ebadi, as well as prominent Iranian journalists and writers, have in recent months given support to Baha'is — or con- demned the government for its oppression of them.

In September, for example, noted Iranian activist Ahmad Batebi published an extensive article on the prominent online newspaper Rooz titled “The Bahais and higher education in Iran.” The article discussed government ef- forts to block Bah#ts from attending university and the recent arrests of Bahai leaders, outlined Iran's obligations under its constitution to pro- tect freedom of religion, and concluded with a thetorical question, asking why the Islamic Republic of Iran seems “so afraid ofany contact between the people and not only the Bah@is but every religious minority group.”

Iranian journalist Akbar Ganji, likewise, has recently expressed concern about the situation of Iran’s Bah@is in several recent speeches or articles, including an article titled “The right of being Bah@t versus being Baha’t with rights,’ published on 11 June 2008 on his Web site.

ONE COUNTRY / July-September 2008 [Page 7]The report of the UN Secretary General on human rights in Iran devoted nearly a full page to the situation of Iran’s 300,000-mem- ber Baha’t community, which is that country’s largest religious minority.

“Reports continue to be received about members of the Baha’t community being subjected to arbitrary detention, false im- prisonment, confiscation and destruction of property, denial of employment and govern- ment benefits, and denial of access to higher education,” Mr. Ban’s report said.

“A significant increase has been reported. in violence targeting Bah#is and their homes, shops, farms and cemeteries throughout the country. There have also been several cases involving torture or ill-treatment in custody.”

Mr. Ban’s report also discussed the arrestand imprisonment of seven Bahai leaders in March and May, who are still held at Evin Prison.

Shirin Ebadi is attacked

In July, Nobel laureate Ebadi said she would help to defend the seven — and she was almost immediately attacked in the govern- ment-controlled news media. On 6 August, for example, the Islamic Republic News Agency (IRNA) ran a story suggesting Mrs. Ebadi’s daughter had become a Baha’. The story also sought to cast suspicion on Mrs. Ebadi by describing the Baha’t Faith as “perverse” and connecting it to “foreign governments.”

Mts. Ebadi responded by filing a lawsuit against the IRNA, according to the Associated Press, charging it with “spreading lies and insults.” Mrs. Ebadi also reiterated that she and her daughter were both Shiite Muslims, the majority faith in Iran.

The Baha'i International Community also responded with a statement of reply to the allegations against Mrs. Ebadi — along with related accusations that the seven Bahai prisoners had “confessed” to operating an “il- legal” organization with ties to Israel.

The statement, issued 12 August, noted that such false allegations against Baha'is and those who defend them are part of ‘an estab- lished pattern whereby the authorities make or purvey false statements about the Bah@ts, then deliberately repeat and widely dissemi- nate these falsehoods and misrepresentations to give them credence.”

Further, the statement said, such false allegations are an effort to “stir up irrational fears and prejudices” and intimidate anyone in Iran who speaks out on behalf of Bahd’ts.

“The intention, of course, is to foment hatred and mistrust of the Baha'is so that

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there exists within the general population an atmosphere wherein egregious violations of the Bah#is human rights are either condoned or not questioned,” said the BIC statement. “Moreover, having themselves done every- thing possible to rouse the population, the authorities have been disingenuously telling the Bah@ts that they will be incapable of pro- tecting them when mob violence erupts.”

Arson a new tactic

The statement also took note of increas- ing acts of violence against Bah#ts, and spe- cifically the rise in arson against Bah@i homes and vehicles.

Since April 2007, there have been least a dozen cases of arson targeting Bah@'ts, includ- ing the torching of the car of a prominent Bah@t in Rafsanjan in July 2008 and an inci- dent where Molotov cocktails were thrown into the front courtyard of the home of prom- inent Baha‘ts in Vilashahr, also in July.

In both cases, the incidents were preceded by threats against those individuals or their families. Soheil Naeimi, the owner of the torched car, and 10 other Bahai families in the town had received threatening letters from a group calling itself the “Anti-Bahaism Movement of the Youth of Rafsanjan.” The Molotov cocktails followed anonymous threats against the Vilashahr homeowner, Khusraw Dehghani and his wife, Dr. Huma Agahi, that had forced Dr. Agahi to close her clinic in nearby Najafabad where she had practiced medicine for 28 years.

University students denied

The beginning of another academic year

Nobel Prize winner Shirin Ebadi has agreed to defend the seven Iranian Baht

leaders who were arrested in spring 2008. The seven are, seated from left, Behrouz Tavakkoli and Saeid Rezaie, and, standing, Fariba Kamalabadi, Vahid Tizfahm, Jamaloddin Khanjani, Aff Naeimi, and Mahvash Sabet. All are from Tehran,

“The intention is to foment hatred and mistrust of the Baha‘is so that there exists within the general population an at- mosphere where- in egregious violations of the Baha‘is‘ human rights are either condoned or not questioned.” — Bahai Intemational

Community statement

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A confidential report that essentially proves the innocence of three Bahd’is in Shiraz, wrongly imprisoned since November 2007, came to light on 23 October 2008 when it was published on the Web site of the Human Rights Activists of Iran.

“It is a manifest injustice that the young Baha‘is of Shiraz con- tinue to remain in prison when even an internal investigation has essentially proved their innocence, even under the twist- ed terms that define criminal- ity in Iran.” — Bani Dugal, Bahai Intemational Community

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for university students in Iran also brought re- ports of continuing efforts by the government in its secret but well-documented plan to deny Bahai youth access to higher education.

Bah@t students attempting to gain admit- tance to universities and other institutions found that their entrance examination results were frozen and their files listed as “incom- plete” on the Web site of the national testing organization.

Last year, for the 2007-2008 academic year, of the more than 1,000 Baha’ students who sat for and satisfactorily completed the entrance examination, nearly 800 were ex- cluded because of “incomplete files.”

Without complete files, enrollment in all public and most private universities in Iran is impossible.

As well, Baha@is who had successfully enrolled in universities in previous years continue to be expelled as their identities be- come known to officials. And those who have sought redress through the courts have been disappointed, their cases rejected.

Secret report proves innocence

In October, a report posted by an Iranian human rights group on its Web site indicated that the government knows that the three Bah@ts currently imprisoned in Shiraz are in- nocent — and yet the government continues to keep them locked up.

The report — signed by “Vali Rustami, inspector and legal advisor of the Office of the Representative of the Supreme Leader for the province of Fars’ — was published by the Human Rights Activists of Iran on 23 October. The report was addressed to the representative of the Supreme Leader

in the province and states that it was done at his request.

Inspector Rustami examined the case of the three Bah@is, Haleh Rouhi, Raha Sabet, and Sasan Taqva, who have been imprisoned since November 2007 on four-year terms. The three, along with 51 other Bah#is and a number of Muslims, had been engaged in providing literacy classes and other humani- tarian activities to help poor youth in Shiraz when they were rounded up by government agents on 19 May 2006.

While their Muslim colleagues and one Bah@#t among them were released immedi- ately, 53 Bah#ts were held for periods ranging from several days to more than a month.

Then, in mid 2007, the three were con- victed on spurious charges, apparently relat- ing to accusations that they had been engaged in the “indirect teaching” of the Baha't Faith, considered illegal in Iran despite internation- al laws upholding freedom of religion.

Although no formal charges were ever made against the three, a government spokes- man said in January 2008 that they had been engaged in anti-government “propaganda.”

But the newly released Rustami report, dat- ed 16 June 2008, states that not only was there no mention of religion in their activities, but that youths who attended the classes told him they wanted to continue. “They stated We ... truthfully learned a lot from this group and would like them to come back to us again?” the investigator said in his report.

Last January, Amnesty International is- sued an action alert on behalf of the Ms. Rouhi, Ms. Sabet, and Mr. Taqva, suggesting they were prisoners of conscience, held solely for their religious beliefs, and “calling on the authorities not to torture or ill-treat them.”

“It is a manifest injustice that the young Bah@ts of Shiraz continue to remain in prison when even an internal investigation has es- sentially proved their innocence, even under the twisted terms that define criminality in Iran,” said Ms. Dugal. “The governments lies are indefensible.”

Ms. Dugal said the arrests and imprison- ment of the Bah#is have always been wrong- ful, since in any event international law pro- tects the right to “teach” one’s religion.

“However, in this case, no such ‘teaching’ was done,” she said. “The Baha'is and their Muslim colleagues were solely engaged in a humanitarian effort to serve poor children and young people in their region through free classes in literacy, hygiene, and the promo- tion of good moral values.” #

ONE COUNTRY / July-September 2008 [Page 9]Rural development is the focus at UN Commission on Sustainable Development

NITED NATIONS — Over the last 30

years, the Bah#{-inspired SAT program has trained upwards of 100,000 people in Latin America in new methods of rural de- velopment, using a distinctive integrated ap- proach that places knowledge and individual empowerment at its center.

The program and its effectiveness were highlighted at this year’s UN Commission on Sustainable Development in a “best practices” Learning Center workshop on 8 May 2008. Titled “SAT: A Model for Building Capabili- ties for Sustainable Rural Development,” the three-hour workshop examined how SAT, an acronym for Sistema de Aprendizaje Tutorial (Tutorial Learning System), helps students in rural areas develop critical thinking skills and specialized knowledge that lead to social action.

While SAT is an accredited secondary edu- cation program, it meets the distinctive needs of rural communities, said Tahirih Naylor, a UN representative of the Bah#1 International Community, which sponsored the workshop.

The tutor and students can determine the time and duration of their classes to fit into their schedule thereby allowing those occupied in farming or other agricultural activities to participate, she said. It is also designed to encourage individuals to stay in their communities and contribute to local development rather than travel to urban areas to obtain secondary education.

“Its not simply about poverty alleviation,” Frin Murphy-Graham, a faculty member in education at the University of California, Berkeley, said during the workshop. “Develop- ment is about building human capabilities.”

Dr. Murphy-Graham, a Bah#i who has researched the effects of the SAT in Hondu- ras, said the program seeks first to develop capabilities in individual and group decision- making, given that individual transformation must parallel societal transformation. “We don’t see that these two processes can be separated,” she said.

Rural development focus at CSD The Commission was held 5-16 May

2008, and this year’s meeting focused on the obstacles and barriers that have prevented sustainable development in Africa, and also on. the issue areas of agriculture, land use, rural development, drought, and desertification.

Almost 60 government ministers attend- ed this year, along with 680 representatives from 126 non-governmental organizations, according to the UN.

Need for investment in agriculture

Much of the meeting stressed the need to increase investment in research and de- velopment in innovative and sustainable agricultural technologies and infrastructure in developing countries — especially in light of the growing global food price crisis.

UN Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon, in an address to the Commission, said, “after a quarter century of relative neglect, agri- culture is back on the international agenda, sadly with a vengeance. The onset of the cur- rent food crisis has highlighted the fragility of our success in feeding the world’s growing population with the technologies of the first green revolution and subsequent agricultural improvements.”

During the Commission meeting, many countries expressed concern that a number of factors had contributed to the present situation, including climate change, unfair trade policies, poor land management, and alack ofroads and access to markets in rural agricultural areas.

In addition to the workshop on the SAT program, the BIC sponsored two side events at this year’s session of the Commission — a panel discussion on “The Ethical Dimensions of Climate Change: Implications for Africa’s Ag- ricultural and Rural Development” and another titled “Sustainable Development Without Rural Women?’ Nineteen Bahais from nine countries attended as civil society participants.

“Occurring against a backdrop of both the food and climate change crises, the com- mission this year provided a key platform for Baha@t delegates to emphasize the importance of agriculture ... in our global development strategy,” said Ms. Naylor. &

“It’s not simply about poverty alleviation. Devel- opment is about building human capabilities.”

— Erin Murphy-

Graham, faculty,

University of California at Berkeley

Erin Murphy-Graham of the University of California, Berkeley, speaks at a Bahd’t International Community workshop on rural development at the UN on 8 May 2008

ONE COUNTRY / July-September 2008 [Page 10]Bruktawit Tigabu and Shane Etzenhouser of Ethiopia have received an award from Prix Jeunesse International and from The Japan Prize for the excellence of their children’s television program, “Tsehai Loves Learning.” Shown. with them are puppets Tsehai, a yellow giraffe, at left, and Tsehai’s younger brother, Fikix in front.

Styled after classic chil- dren’s programs like “Sesame Street,” “Tsehai Loves Learning” is designed to help youngsters with reading and also to develop other skills, includ- ing interacting responsibly with the envi- ronment.

In Ethiopia, an educational TV show for children wins an audience and more

DDIS ABABA, Ethiopia — “Tsehai,” a

young giraffe, was born from the mar- riage of a local schoolteacher and an Ameri- can software developer.

Ahand puppet who is the star of her own Amharic-language television show, Tsehai went on to capture the imagination of chil- dren throughout Ethiopia — and two inter- national awards juries as well.

“Tsehai Loves Learning” is the brainchild of Bruktawit Tigabu and Shane Etzenhouser of Addis Ababa, a married couple who are both Bah@is.

Styled after classic children’s programs like “Sesame Street,” “Tsehai Loves Learning” is designed to help youngsters with reading and also to develop other skills, including in- teracting responsibly with the environment. Indeed, the curious and adventurous Tsehai lives in a world of computer graphics fash- ioned to resemble the Ethiopian outdoors.

The program became a hit on Ethiopian TV after its premier in September 2006 — and has gone on to win several prestigious international awards. In June 2008, the show

won the “Next Generation Prize” at the Prix Jeunesse International 2008, a biannual awards ceremony held in Munich, Germany, to promote excellence in children’s television. And in October 2008, it won the “Pre-school” category at the Japan Prize 2008 International Contest for Educational Media.

The Prix Jeunesse awards jury was “huge- ly impressed by the program’s ability to talk to children, to be creative as well as communi- cative, on an extremely limited budget.”

Noting that the show is directed to Ethio- pian children, the jury added that “Tsehai Loves Learning’ was inspired by a great idea born out of the needs ofits audience —which after all is the basis of all great TV.”

The prize brings a monetary award of 6,000 euros and a year of mentoring from the sponsors, which include the Australian Children’s Television Foundation, the BBC, Disney Germany, KRO (Dutch Public Broad- casting), Nickelodeon International, and ZDF (German Television Network).

“The Prix Jeunesse prize recognized ‘Tsehai Loves Learning’ for its social impact

10

ONE COUNTRY / July-September 2008 [Page 11]as well as the quality of the production rela- tive to its low budget,” said Mr. Etzenhouser. “The Japan Prize focuses on the educational value of the content, so ‘Tsehai’ has now been recognized internationally for quality, social impact, and educational value.”

“Tsehai” is the first TV program in Ethio- pia to use puppets and animation to teach letters, numbers and shapes, with all instruc- tion in the dominant language of the country. It also offers social and moral lessons, and introduces issues such as stress, the loss of a parent, even something as serious as the child slave trade in Africa.

“For many of Ethiopia’s children, the show is the closest thing to early childhood education they have ever received,” said Mr. Etzenhouser.

“Unless children are sent to private kin- dergartens, most will not receive the type of education they will need to become good stu- dents,” said Ms. Tigabu. “Without this atten- tion being given to these children at an early stage of their development, most will suffer during the rest of their school careers.”

For most of 2006 and 2007, the show aired on weekends, with each eight- to 10-minute episode running for two weeks before a new show debuted.

“T myself have two children, and every morning they want to watch Tsehai,” said

Seifu Seyoum, head of program services for ETY, the national TV station, interviewed in 2007. “There are many children and parents who like this show.”

UNESCO provided a grant to help with the first four programs. A private company, Jolly Jus, provides support in the form of advertise- ments, and DVD sales also generate revenue. Although the program is currently off the air, its producers are working with UNESCO and development agencies to have it shown in lo- cal cinemas and community halls.

For the couple, even the production of the show represents a love story. “We do it because we love the children of Ethiopia,” Mr. Etzenhouser said.

Ethiopia, a country of 74 million people, has a literacy rate of 41 percent among people over the age of 15, according to the United Nations Development Programme. Mr. Etzen- houser and Ms. Tigabu created “Tsehai Loves Learning” to contribute to improving reading among children.

The couple met while teaching in Addis Ababa at the Two Wings Academy, a school inspired by Baha'i principles, which place great importance on the education of chil- dren. They were married in May 2004. “Tse- hai really is what we feel for each other,” said Ms. Tigabu. “It is our personal love story.” %#

Vietnam recognizes its Bahais as a religious community

O CHI MINH CITY, Vietnam — The

government of Vietnam has given full recognition to the Baha’i community as a religious organization.

A certificate was presented to representa- tives of the National Spiritual Assembly of the Bah@is of Vietnam at a ceremony on 25 July 2008.

It was the final act in a series of steps that included the election in March 2008 of the Baha’t Assembly — itself a landmark event in that it was the first time in many years that elections for the governing council were held. Government representatives were on hand to observe the balloting.

The head of the central government’s Committee for Religious Affairs, Nguyen The Doanh, officiated at last week’s ceremony in Ho Chi Minh City.

The official government news agency re- ported the event and referred to comments by the chairman of the Baha National Spiritual

Assembly, Mr. Nguyen Thuc: “[He] said the Government’ recognition of the Baha’ reli- gion ‘charts a new course of development for the entire Baha’i community’ and motivates followers to make more contributions to so- cial and humanitarian activities and to drive to preserve traditional spiritual values.”

The Baha’i Faith was established in the country in 1954, and the first National Spiri- tual Assembly of the Baha’is of Vietnam was elected 10 years later. In the mid-1970s, formal activities of the community were suspended.

The Vietnam News Agency said the July ceremony means that “the Government’s Committee for Religious Affairs has recog- nized the Baha’i Community of Vietnam asa religious organization able to operate on an equal footing with other religions.”

The Baha'is of Vietnam are now working on consolidating their community and expanding social projects to serve the people of Vietnam, particularly in the area of education. #

“For many of Ethiopia’s chil- dren, the show is the closest thing to early childhood edu- cation they have ever received.” Mr. Etzenhouser said.” — Shane Etzenhouser, co-

producer, Tsehai Loves Learning

ONE COUNTRY / July-September 2008

ll [Page 12]The Shrine of the Bab on. Mount Carmel in Haifa, Israel, was one of two major Baha'i holy places inscribed on the UN World Heritage list in July 2008 The permanent resting place of the sacred remains of the Bab, the Forerunner of the Baha'i dispensation, it is a major point of pilgrimage for the five million Baha'is worldwide.

“The two holy Baha‘i shrines are tangible places of great meaning for one of the world’s religions. [They demonstrate] authenticity as tangible expres- sion of the body of doctrine and system of values and beliefs that form the Bahai faith”

— UNWond Heritage Committee

WORLD

r so

World Heritage, contirued from page one

“In so doing, it highlights an historic process that has unfolded in the last two hun- dred years, wherein a small persecuted group originally found only in the Middle East has spread and taken root around the globe, to the extent that its present membership includes people from virtually every nationality, ethnic group, and religious background.

“For the more than five million Baha'is around the world, the World Heritage Com- mittee’s recognition of their most cherished holy places is a cause for rejoicing, and a unique testimony to the triumph of love and unity over violence, hatred and persecution,” said Mr. Lincoln.

The Baha’ holy places were inscribed on the basis of two among six possible criteria that determine whether a man-made site has ‘outstanding universal value,” which is the defining characteristic that all World Heritage sites share. Satisfying any of the six qualifies a site for inscription.

In the case of the Baha’t holy places, the two criteria met were that the sites “bear a unique or at least exceptional testimony toa cultural tradition or to a civilization” and that they are “to be directly or tangibly associated with events or living traditions, with ideas, or with beliefs, with artistic and literary works of outstanding universal significance.”

In its decision on 8 July, the 21-member

Baha’i holy places added

aad TAGE

to World Heritage list

World Heritage Committee stated that the Bah@i sites met the first criterion because, “as the most holy places of the Bah@t Faith, and visited by thousands of pilgrims each year from around the world, [they] provide an exceptional testimony to, and are powerful communicators of, the strong cultural tradi- tion of Baha’t pilgrimage.”

The second criterion was satisfied by the fact that the “two holy Bah@t shrines are tan- gible places of great meaning for one of the world’s religions,” said the committee.

The properties demonstrate “integrity linked to the history and spiritual home of the Bahai Faith” and demonstrate ‘authenticity as tangible expression of the body of doctrine and system of values and beliefs that form the Bahai Faith,” the committee concluded, adopting the recommendation of an expert advisory body, the International Council on Monuments and Sites (ICOMOS).

The World Heritage list was established by the World Heritage Convention, which defines the general criteria for inscription on the list, and includes provisions for rec- ognizing notable natural sites, such as East Africa’s Serengeti and Australia’s Great Barrier Reef, which are both on the list. Its purpose is to identify, protect, and preserve places of “cultural and natural heritage of outstanding universal value.” The Convention was signed

World Heritage, contirued on page 14

12

ONE COUNTRY / July-September 2008 [Page 13]Bahai pilgrimage: “People can sense the presence of God”

AIFA, Israel — In its decision to inscribe the two major

Bah@t holy places on the UN World Heritage list, the World Heritage Committee focused in large part on their significance as a place of pilgrimage.

“The Holy shrine of Bah#wllah and the Holy shrine of the Bab, as the most holy places of the Baha’ Faith, and visited by thousands of pilgrims each year from around the world, provide an exceptional testimony to, and are power- ful communicators of, the strong cultural tradition of Baha’t pilgrimage,” wrote the Committee.

By any measure, the sites are beautiful. Stunning formal gardens surround them — the Shrine of Baha’wilah in the countryside near Acre, north of the city of Haifa, and the Shrine of the Bab, a golden-domed building on the slope of Mount Carmel in the heart of Haifa itself.

Pilgrims say the outward beauty is but a symbol, an ex- pression of love for the Messengers of God who lie entombed there and a beacon of hope for the future of humanity.

“Its hard to put into words,’ said Gary Marx, on pil- grimage from the United States. “You can describe things physically, but its really not about that. Pilgrimage is an experience that goes back to the dawn of mankind. It’s a yearning to connect with spiritual reality ... and to connect with yourself.”

Although the two shrines have specific meaning for Bah@'s, their spiritual nature appeals to others as well.

“People who are not Bah#is come here and say it is like a piece of heaven falling from the sky,’ said Taraneh Rafati, who has served for the past 10 years as a pilgrim guide to the Bah@t holy sites.

“Whether you are a Muslim, Jew, Christian, Buddhist, in the holy texts, heaven is described. It is like this,’ she said of the peacefulness, the beauty. “You come and feel close to your Lord. It is free of charge, and it is for everyone.”

Half a million people visited the shrine areas last year, most of them tourists wanting to see the gardens and get a close look particularly at the Shrine of the Bab, a famous landmark in Israel that looks out over the city of Haifa and Haifa Bay, and beyond that to the Mediterranean Sea.

More than 80,000 of those visitors entered the shrine itself, removing their shoes and walking silently into the room adjacent to the burial chamber of the Bab. Some just want a peek but many linger to read a prayer of Bahfwllah that adorns one of the walls, or engage in their own medita- tion or prayer. Some are visibly moved.

“The response is as varied as the people who come,” said Marcia Lample,a pilgrim guide for the last five years. “There isa spirit surrounding these places. It is palpable. People can sense the presence of God.”

19th century beginnings

Bah@t pilgrimage to Acre began shortly after 1868, when Bah@ullah arrived at the ancient walled city as aprisoner of the

Ottoman Empire. He had been banished from His native Iran 15 years earlier, and lived successively in Baghdad, Istanbul, and Edirne before being sent to Acre, which was then a remote outpost of the Ottoman Empire used as a place of exile.

Devoted followers from Iran determined His where- abouts and would travel on foot for months just to catch a glimpse of Him. Not allowed inside the city walls, the pilgrims would stand outside and look toward the citadel, hoping Bah@w'll4h would come to a window on the second floor where He was confined, even for a minute, so they could see Him wave His hand.

Later, when authorities allowed Bah@#u'lléh to live out- side the barracks, pilgrims could sometimes enter His pres- ence to show their devotion and listen to His explanations of the new revelation from God.

Sometimes He would reveal sacred verses — a prayer or other communication — for the pilgrims to take back to Iran or elsewhere to Bah@ts thirsty for contact with the leader they considered the mouthpiece of God for this age.

After His passing, pilgrims still came — to pray at His resting place and to pay their respects to His son, ‘Abdul- Baha, whom Bah@u'll4h had appointed to succeed Him as head of the Bah#i community, and later to Shoghi Effendi, the Guardian of the Bahai Faith.

z

ONE COUNTRY / July-September 2008 [Page 14]The entrance to the Shrine of Baha’u'llah, which is the holiest spot on earth for Baha'is — the place they turn to each day in prayer

“At the very mo- ment UNESCO has chosen to recognize what it calls the ‘out- standing univer- sal value’ of the Carmel shrines and what they stand for, the mullahs are moved to perse- cute these believ- ers who emerged from the very heart of Islam — and who repre- sent a future that fanatical Islam has so disas- trously chosen to reject.”

— Benjamin Balint,

The Wall Street Journal

World Heritage continued from page 12 in 1972 and has been ratified by 184 nations since then.

Atits annual meeting in July, the Commit- tee listed 27 new sites, including the Bahai holy places, bringing to 878 the number of man-made and natural sites on the list.

Experts who followed the nomination process said it was the strong tradition of Bah@t pilgrimage that convinced the Com- mittee the sites were worthy of inscription.

“The fact that thousands of people keep coming to the place — and not only Bah@is but others — this is important,” said Giora Solar, an Israeli architect who until Septem- ber served on the executive committee of ICOMOS. “Andit isnot something anecdotal to history. It started in the 19th century andit continues and is growing.”

The two shrines, one near the recognized heritage site of Old Acre on Israel's northern coast and the other on Mount Carmel in Haifa, are the resting places of Bahawilah and the Bab, the founders of the Baha'i Faith.

Bahd's believe that both Bah#ulah and the Bab were messengers of God, on a par with Abraham, Buddha, Jesus, Krishna, Muham- mad, and Zoroaster. The Shrine of Bah@u'llah is the focal point of prayer for Bah@ts all over the world, giving it an importance comparable to the Western Wall in Jerusalem for Jews and the Kaaba in Mecca for Muslims.

Born in Iran, Baha’w'llah was banished to Acre in what was then the Ottoman Empire, where he died in 1892. The Bab was executed

in Iran in 1850, and His remains were later moved to Haifa for burial.

As a practical matter, inscription on the World Heritage list will help to ensure that the sites are protected and preserved from encroachment and other threats.

“It is recognition that it has outstanding universal value, which should be preserved for all humanity,” said Michael Turner, chair of the Israel World Heritage Committee, which submitted the nomination. The Bahai World Centre prepared, as part of the documen- tation for the nomination, a comprehensive management plan detailing the measures ad- opted to protect and preserve the sites.

Beyond practical issues, the inscription of the Baha holy places by UNESCO offers a stunning contrast to the situation of the Faith in other countries, such as Iran, where Bah@is are persecuted, are denied the right to practice their religion, and have had their holy buildings destroyed.

In August, for example, Benjamin Balint, writing in the Wall Street Journal, took note of UNESCO’s recognition of the Bah#1 sites and the fact that they attract more than half a million visitors a year.

“At the very moment UNESCO has cho- sen torecognize whatit calls the ‘outstanding universal value’ of the Carmel shrines and what they stand for, the mullahs are moved to persecute these believers who emerged from the very heart of Islam — and who representa future that fanatical Islam has so disastrously chosen to reject,” wrote Mr. Balint. #

14

ONE COUNTRY / July-September 2008 [Page 15]Collective Security

Review, continued from page 16

the most ardent supporters and defenders of traditional state sovereignty did not argue that a state had unlimited power to do what it wanted to its own people.”

She also spends considerable time examining the evolution of the European Community, suggesting that its emergence after World War II from a collection of states with historic animosities that fu- eled two global wars to a highly integrated community that now cooperates across the full range of the economic sphere and, in- creasingly, on issues of security, offers proof positive that even the most entrenched partisans of state sovereignty can be enticed toward ever greater integration.

“(T]he European experience demon- strates that supranational institutions can begin life with limited spheres of jurisdic- tion that can gradually be expanded over time,” Ms. Ewing writes.

The second half of the book is devoted to proposing “What we should build next.” In that section, Ms. Ewing lays out, step by step, a series of detailed suggestions for how a genuine and workable system of collective security might be established.

Ms. Ewing, who currently resides in Washington, DC, proposes a new set of in- ternational institutions, agencies, and com- missions that she believes can create the kind of system that will engender a new level of trust and fairness in the international security arena. She argues that such a system, by win- ning over the hearts and minds of both politi- cal leaders and the people of the world, can help to create the political unity necessary to move forward.

Among her proposals: an international in- telligence and inspections agency that could give to the UN Security Council “accurate, timely and reliable” intelligence “that is not tainted or skewed by any single national in- telligence agency”; a standing UN military or police force “beyond national control” that could enforce the Security Council’s will; and an international boundary commission that might once and for all settle territorial dis- putes that have so often fueled conflict.

One of the critical insights she offers is that such a system might well be built from the bottom up, starting in many cases at the regional level, by encouraging new intel- ligence, security, and disarmament arrange-

ments, so as to create an “efficient, equitable and well-ordered international system that is based on regional security pillars around the world.”

Ms. Ewing is a Baha’i, and the Baha’t teachings explicitly say humanity’s only path to long-term peace is through the establish- ment of international institutions based on collective security. And throughout the book, she draws on this and other Baha’ principles, using them as a framework for her analysis.

“Our world cries out for new thinking and creativity,” she writes. “Fortunately, the answers are already there. The Baha’ writings, which have hitherto been little explored by the world, provide us with precisely what we need: a set of basic prin- ciples along with a blueprint for a just, ef- ficacious and comprehensive system of col- lective security that will ensure the peace and security of our world.”

Baha’w'llah identified collective security itself as the key principle for international politics. Addressing world leaders in the late 1800s, he wrote: “Should any one among you take up arms against another, rise ye all against him, for this is naught but manifest justice.”

He also identified a number of subsidiary principles and actions that must be under- taken. As delineated by Ms. Ewing, among them are: the overarching recognition of the essential oneness of humanity; a firm commitment to fairness, justice, and equity in all dealings; and an understanding that force can sometimes be a “powerful basis of peace.”

Specific actions and institutions proposed in the Baha’i writings include: the need for a global convocation or meeting to establish a firm “pact” for peace; the establishment of clearly defined national borders; limitations on armaments such that every country has only what it needs to keep peace within its borders; the creation of an “international force”; the establishment ofan effective world court; and, ultimately, a world legislature and world executive.

In her conclusion, Ms. Ewing says her goal in writing Collective Security Within Reach was to “pull together various isolated strands of thinking by individuals and groups and to consider them within the broad framework of avision of collective security in the Baha’t writ- ings” and, in doing so, show how they all “fit together like pieces of a jigsaw puzzle to create a broad-based road map to peace.”

In this effort, she has succeeded. #*

“Our world cries out for new think- ing and creativ- ity. Fortunately, the answers are already there. The Baha'i writings, which have hith- erto been little explored by the world, provide

us with precisely what we need: a set of basic prin- ciples along with a blueprint for a just, efficacious and comprehen- sive system of collective security that will ensure the peace and security of our world.”

— Sovaida Ma‘ani Ewing

ONE COUNTRY / July-September 2008

15 [Page 16]Collective Security Within Reach

By Sovaida Ma’ani Ewing

George Ronald

Oxford

0 Sa

Step by step, a recipe for world peace

f ever there were a great idea that failed most regrettably in its implementation, itis that of international collective security.

The concept is simple: to establish peace, the nations of the world should band to- gether and forcibly reject any aggression among them.

The idea stands at the core of the United Nations Charter, which says the UN's main purpose is to “maintain international peace and security” through “collective measures” including the use of military force.

Yet in practice, the UN has mostly failed to intervene to stop war — or to prevent genocide, human rights violations, terror- ism or any of the other things that in today’s complexly interdependent world must be considered a breach of the peace.

The main reason for this failure, as any student of political science knows, is that the nations of the world have been unable to create the kind of political unity necessary to undertake collective action in those cases where it is most required.

But the situation is not quite as hopeless as it seems, according to Sovaida Ma’ani Ewing, a lawyer from the United Kingdom who has thoroughly studied the concept and written a new book, Collective Security Within Reach.

As the title indicates, Ms. Ewing argues that a comprehensive system of collective security is near at hand, or “within reach.”

She makes her case by, first, discussing the progress humanity has made towards establishing a firm foundation for true col- lective security. Then she lays out a series of small but concrete steps the world could take to move the process forward.

The slow but seemingly inexorable ad- vance towards collective security is analyzed, for example, in an 80-page chapter titled “What have we built so far?”

That chapter alone is worth the price of the book, inasmuch as Ms. Ewing shows quite plainly how humanity over the last century has been steadily moving towards

greater integration. In the process, she writes, the foundations for a workable system of col- lective security have been firmly laid down.

She considers not only broad institutional steps, such as the creation of the United Na- tions itself, but also the evolution of thinking among many international leaders.

She cites, for example, a study done by the International Commission on Intervention and State Sovereignty (ICISS) as one among many studies and reports that is reframing the debate over collective security.

The ICISS was chief among proponents of the idea that the international community has the “responsibility to protect” people

COLLECTIVE

aes

Sovaida Ma‘ani Ewing

from large-scale loss of life or gross human tights violations, even if it means interna-

tional intervention. In its research, she writes, members of the ICISS were “intrigued to discover that even Review, continued on page 15

16

ONE COUNTRY / July-September 2008 �