change is our responsibility. our shared responsibility....
| Martin Luther King's 4 principles of action 1. It is a question of direct action. A certain state of emergency must be viewed concretely and brought to consciousness and so be dramatized; in this process care must be taken not to rely on vague rumours or subjective impressions. On the contrary: the state of emergency must be subjected to a careful examination. After this is done, care must be taken that the entire population of the area selected for operations be informed of the methods and objectives of the action. The action should also draw on the sympathies of those who, instead of participating in it, prefer to observe it from a distance. |
useful links (internal) Universal Declaration of Human Rights
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There is a real danger of polarising these discussions and actions by pointing the finger of blame at an individual or a group. That blaming is part and parcel of a defensive attitude, which may well spiral into denial, leading to a breakdown in communication and violence, if not recognised and dealt with. An objective assessment rather than subjective judgement is required. Love, Strength, Compassion and Forbearance are the instruments and fuel of positive change. That is the essence of people power! That's you and me, my friend! Let's go. |
| 2.
One should resort to action only after negotiations have been comducted
as long as possible. We want to win our adversaries over to our cause
bt showing them that our cause is also their cause, and their cause
is also ours. We do not suscribe to the term "win". Its place is in
the boxing ring. The site of our dispute is the conference table. Should
we fail to achieve anything there, then we must reflect, explore, in
order to make sure that the courses of action we now plan to take remain
free from antagonism. |
useful links (external) |
We will come to a functional and shared understanding by exploring our conflicts honestly as long as we all operate on the basis of a win-win resolution of our conflicts as the final and only valid outcome of our efforts. This is not to be a 'debate' where one side tries to 'win' the argument. In any truly empowering discussion there is neither victim nor vanquished, only are reassured and enlightened people. Ignorance kills! |
| 4. We do not seek the oppression of the oppressors. We strive for reconciliation; but reconciliation does not mean indulging. It is the result of strenuous efforts by all those who are taking part in the struggle. |
useful links (internal) |
Conflict resolution is proven technology. Learn it. Use it. We will need these skills, you betcha! Start by googling "conflict resolution" |
| 3.
The struggle unavoidably entails suffering. At issue is the acceptance
of the suffering. We know that we must wade through streams of blood.
Yet we are resolved to see to it - if this must be - that the blood
is not that of our adversaries. |
useful links (internal) |
Please
copy and paste the following prepared materials for this appeal, make
any ammendments you feel to and then send it to your local representatives
of politics, community, religion, media, the arts and business |
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print this off and make a sticker or flyer (right click on image to download it) |
| REMOVE THE VETO APPEAL LETTER you can copy this and send it to your local politicians, priests, immans and rabbis and anyone else you can think of
Dear Sir/Madam I am writing to ask you to join in the call on the United Nations and on all National Governing Assemblies of UN member states to hold immediate talks on the use of the VETO in the United Nations General Assembly. Based on reports issued on November 17 2000, there is legal reason to believe that the use of the VETO is undemocratic, and as such hinders the democratic operation of the UN GA. The reasons, parameters and possibilities surrounding such a discussion are outlined below. What we are expecting is a truly honest and sincere (therefore unvetoed) discussion in the UN General Assembly and in our National Governing Assemblies reflecting on the way that many nation states UN representatives currently behave (i.e.: putting any one states' particular individual strategic economic, political and military interests before the well-fare and well-being of the world community), and in acknowledgment of the known consequences for those affected by such behavior, to come to a full awareness of the contractual and moral obligations inherent in membership of the UN. Such a discussion could lead us to three very potent and unprecedented opportunities. 1. In jointly accepting a shared responsibility for the way things are and by agreeing to a full commitment to the efforts to rectify the situation, without focusing on individual blame, we would demonstrate our strength together as humanity, and that would then underpin our continued commitment to working for world peace and the freedom from poverty, a effort that many billions of our brothers and sisters so desperately need. It would give the concept of a 'world community' the highest possible moral ground. 2. The Universal Declaration of Human Rights would need to be empowered, and therefore soundly funded, so as to be in fullest practice in all countries, thus giving the concept of a 'world community' real meaning and value in ordinary peoples lives, in the near future and for many years to come. By forming such a consensus, creating a genuinely shared sense of responsibility, we would empower every individual, as well as every governing body on the planet, to take part in the work of building a safe and secure world for all our children. We would form one diverse team, one goal. This is a massive task, one which will take time, perhaps lifetimes, as well as immense resources. Nonetheless it is the now ultimate task for responsible humanity. 3. We can then deal effectively with those responsible at local, national and international levels for coercion and violence, whomsoever they might turn out to be. This will automatically include all those who sponsor, incite or provide support in any way for acts of political violence or for other political crimes such as willful disinformation, corrupt lobbying, perverting the course of justice and so on. The International Crimes Tribunal exists to bring these people before their peers (the rest of us) to account for their actions, to atone for the consequences, and to offer some form of meaningful reparation or suffer the consequences. With this in place perhaps we can finally recognise the utter failure of violence as a means to creating and maintaining a truly lasting peace. I trust that as you are working in the best interests of all concerned that you will investigate this issue and take prompt and proper action. I await your response with interest, Yours in trust and hope for the future, |
PLEASE COPY THIS AND SEND IT TO MEDIA AND TO POLITICIANS
un o it make sense!