Weekend Reflection: William Ury at TED— Third Side: Terrorism to Tourism?
Image via williamury.com
William Ury helps people “get to yes” through his skills as a mediator, writer, and speaker. He has wide-ranging experience working with conflicts, from family feuds to boardroom battles to ethnic wars. Listen to his recent TED Talk, where he discusses the simple but powerful idea of embodying a “third side” to transform conflict.
“The secret to peace is the third side. The third side is us, each of us, with a single step, can take the world…a step closer to peace. There’s an old African proverb that goes: “When spider webs unite, they can halt even the lion.” If we’re able to unite our third side webs of peace, we can even halt the lion of war.”
The Team wins at We the Peoples Film Festival!
Rahwa Kiros with Lawrence Kershen accepting the award for The Team
Last week The Team: Kenya was screened at the We the Peoples Film Festival in London.
We screened episode one from season one [which you can see here] and it won the award for the Best Film in the Human Security Category! The awards ceremony was held at the National Film Theater. Rahwa Kiros, the director of the Addis Film Festival presented the award and board member Lawrence Kershen accepted on behalf of Search.
Congratulations to the Team!
Have you watched The Team yet? What did you think?
Peace meets Human Rights – Nobel Laureate Liu Xiaobo
A man walks in front of a poster of Liu (Odd Andersen/AFP/Getty Images from npr.org)
In October the Nobel Prize Committee announced that it would honor Liu Xiaobo with the 2010 peace award. Today, appropriately International Human Rights Day, that award was given to the Chinese dissident in absentia as he is currently in prison.
Before placing Xiaobo’s prize an empty chair, the Chairman of the Nobel Committee, Thorbjoern Jagland said:
“We regret that the laureate is not present here today. He is in isolation in a prison in north-east China. Nor can the laureate’s wife, Liu Xia, or his closest relatives be here with us. No medal or diploma will therefore be presented here today. This fact alone shows that the award was necessary and appropriate. We congratulate Liu Xiaobo with this year’s peace prize.”
The prize has been awarded in absentia only once before: in 1936, when Nazi authorities prevented German journalist and pacifist Carl Von Ossietzky from travelling to Oslo.
We spoke previously on the connection between peace and human rights but in light of today’s ceremony and the importance of the subject, it’s worth returning to. Most notably it bears pointing out that human rights and peace do not necessarily go hand in hand—after all a dictatorship can maintain order and still violate basic freedoms. read more…
By Susan Koscis, SFCG Director of Communications
The meaning of that word changed forever for me, when John Lennon was murdered 30 years ago today. Lennon’s song, Imagine, is the finest and most poignant anthem for peace I know of.
Thirty years ago I lived in New York City, not far from the famed Dakota apartment building where John and Yoko lived and where he was killed. Working in the classical music business as head of Public Affairs for CBS Masterworks, I had no foresight that one day I would leave NYC and the music industry to work for peace. I’ve been with Search for Common Ground for fifteen years, and I believe more deeply in the mission with each passing year………”to help people change the way they deal with conflict.”
In his last interview (being published in Rolling Stone this week) John said, “I’m not claiming divinity. I’ve never claimed purity of soul. I’ve never claimed to have the answers to life. I only put out songs and answer questions as honestly as I can … But I still believe in peace, love and understanding.”
So for today I will Imagine. RIP John.
You may say that I’m a dreamer
But I’m not the only one
I hope someday you’ll join us
And the world will live as one
A new way forward for the US and Indonesia?
Image via duniaindonesia.com
By Brian D. Hanley, Search for Common Ground’s Asia Director based in Indonesia.
Jakarta – US President Barack Obama arrived in Indonesia last month for a historic visit. “Barry”, as he is affectionately known here, spent several of his formative years in Jakarta, Indonesia’s bustling capital.
Obama’s visit offers a unique opportunity for the United States to acknowledge Indonesia’s global civic, political, economic, social and cultural progress, and to encourage ongoing government and civil society attention to the herculean task of sustainable peacebuilding in Indonesia, across Southeast Asia and beyond.
Indonesia, which is a nascent democracy and has a long history of secular moderation, is the world’s fourth most populous country with more than 250 million inhabitants living across 17,000 islands. The country has enjoyed a remarkable period of peace and stability. However, much work is required to consolidate peace in Indonesia’s former and current conflict zones, and to counter violent extremism.
Obama’s visit – several times postponed – has stirred many emotions. read more…
Alassane Outtara: would be Cote d'Ivoire's first Muslim president (from www.ivoiremonde.tv)
Two candidates are claiming victory in Cote d’Ivoire’s recent presidential elections.After first announcing the election for opposition candidate Alassane Outtara, incumbent President Laurent Gbagbo was declared the winner. The Independent Electoral Commission holds Outtara as the elected president, while Gbagbo, supported by the results of the Constitutional council, has refused to concede.
Writing for the Peace and Development network, Firouzeh Afsharnia, was an international observer for the electoral process and offers a first-hand account of the lead up to the contested outcome:
“As the international community, Obama and Sarkozy extend their congratulations to Ouattara, Gbagbo is asking the United Nations to leave and denounces foreign intrigue behind the support for his rival.
Both men are sworn in as Presidents. So much for reconciliation.” read more…
