Lebanon: Justice at the Price of Peace?
Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah, left, met with Druse leader Walid Jumblatt in Beirut, Lebanon. (Hezbollah Media Office via AP)
by Maria-Rita Kassis
Beirut – In Lebanon, the assassination of former Prime Minister Rafik Hariri on 14 February 2005 remains a mystery. Many expect it to be solved by the UN-sponsored Special Tribunal for Lebanon [STL] in the coming weeks.
The nation’s anticipation of the upcoming indictment has been overwhelming in past months as the country faced a fragile political “stability” that many believe was imposed from outside powers. Although some hoped that a Saudi-Syrian alliance would sustain the so-called political stability, the resignation last week of 11 ministers from Hizbullah’s political alliance – the March 8 bloc – toppled the government.
The resignation came after a failed compromise to avoid the STL’s indictment. The compromise failed and the government fell. Can the country now avoid internal strife? read more…
From the Responsibility Project on December 7, 2010 by Laura Fraser
In Cote d’Ivoire, a soccer player tells his coach he’s been fired from his job for no good reason. Another player, angry, says that that boss always fires people who aren’t from his tribe – so they should teach him a lesson. The coach calms the riled young men and insists they solve the problem without violence, by talking to the boss instead. So the players arrange to meet with him.
The Team on the Field
“Our country is like the national team,” the first young man tells the boss. “You like soccer, right?”
“Bien sur,” says the boss, who eventually decides, over the disapproval of others in his tribe, to rehire the soccer players from the other tribe.
Like everyone around the world, the boss loves soccer, which is what makes The Team, a soap opera based on a soccer team, a hit in the countries where it runs. The soap opera isn’t just popular entertainment — though it is that — but a metaphor for ethnic relations and a message promoting conflict resolution between warring tribes. John Marks, president and founder of Search for Common Ground, which produces the soap operas, says the core message of the soap operas is simple: “If they don’t cooperate, they don’t score goals, and they lose.” read more…
“Life’s most persistent and urgent question…”
(from africawithin.com)
42 years ago, one of America’s greatest champions for peace and social justice was cut down too early. Martin Luther King Jr.’s philosophy of nonviolent struggle for social change is one that has resonated around the world and his dream of a better world lives on, though too often unfulfilled, decades after his death.
In a climate of heated rhetoric, when the idea that words matter is increasingly clear, King’s oratorical gifts are sorely missed. He is mostly remembered as the voice of the Civil Rights movement in America, although towards the end of his life he’d begun to turn to other concerns as well, such as workers’ rights, opportunities for the disenfranchised and, despite criticism from other civil rights leaders, the Vietnam War. He gave his first antiwar speech on April 4th, 1967, denouncing violent action in favor of peaceful processes. Although that war is over, his words on the subject remain relevant and pointed.
“We still have a choice today: nonviolent coexistence or violent co-annihilation. We must move past indecision to action. We must find new ways to speak for peace in Vietnam and justice throughout the developing world, a world that borders on our doors. If we do not act, we shall surely be dragged down the long, dark, and shameful corridors of time reserved for those who possess power without compassion, might without morality, and strength without sight. Now let us begin. Now let us rededicate ourselves to the long and bitter, but beautiful, struggle for a new world.”
Today marks the 25th anniversary of Martin Luther King Jr. Day. Dr. King’s legacy continues to inspire and bring hope.
This courageous leader dedicated and ultimately lost his life to his passion for equality and commitment to serving others. Martin Luther King Jr. Day is widely celebrated as a day of community service, a time to give back. At MLKDay.gov there are many resources to help plan a day of service. What are you doing for others on Martin Luther King Jr. Day?
“Life’s most persistent and urgent question is: ‘What are you doing for others?'”
–Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.
We leave you with the voice of a man who is best represented by his own words. His speech “I have a Dream” shows how far we have come and how much further we still have to go until his words are realized.
When would you stand and help?
Obama shakes hands with Mark Kelly, husban of Rep. Gabrielle Giffords. To the left is Daniel Hernandez, the Giffords intern whose quick actions likely saved her life. (J. Scott Applewhite / AP)
President Obama’s speech in response to Saturday’s shooting was one of unity and coming together. He highlighted the brave acts of community members whose swift actions stopped the gunman and saved lives.
Rather than ask why this happened or who to blame, the speech asked that we “do everything we can to make sure this country lives up to our children’s expectations.
Salon editor-at large wrote:
There it was, folks, Saturday morning and again Wednesday night: our country, as good as it gets. Remember how great it looked and felt and sounded, when things inevitably get ugly again…
Like it or not, that’s American history: we are imperfect, descended from people who took land from Indians and Mexicans and who held slaves, but also from people who fought for equal rights for everyone, and who, over time, managed to create laws and values and customs that (mostly) do that. Daniel Hernandez began his speech with the words “e pluribus unum” — out of many, one — and even if it’s not an ideal we always live up to, it’s the best idea we’ve ever had as a nation.
Robert Shelton, president of the University of Arizona where the event took place, said:
“The president made a clear point that this wasn’t about politics — this was really about this community and how it shares values and how it can come together and support itself,” Shelton said. “Although we are a large metropolitan area… this is really a small town where we draw strength from the diversity that we have, all the different ethic groups, all the different political views, if you will, all the different backgrounds — and we can all come together.”
In the mineral-rich Katangan provincial capital of Lubumbashi, as in many other places throughout the DRC, children often do not have access to education. The costs of supplies, uniforms and other necessities often exceed the limited means of parents who must make decisions about what to prioritize on a daily basis. In some cases, parents feel work is a better way out of poverty than school or that the benefits of education do not merit the investment.
The SFCG-sponsored participatory theater troupe began preparing its performance in Lubumbashi, speaking to community members of the ‘Zambia’ neighborhood in the Rwashi commune about the issues and challenges they face. Through these conversations they learned about the fraught education choices from children both in and out of school. They probed and listened carefully, trying to discover the underlying interests behind these parents’ decisions, and what might spark a change. In their show that afternoon, the actors brought to life the opportunities a child can seize, once he or she has been given the chance to get an education and has a diploma in their hands. read more…
