When we heard the revelations of unspeakable atrocities committed during the apartheid era we were appalled at how low we human beings can sink, that we had this horrendous capacity for evil, all of us.
Then we heard the moving stories of the victims of those and other atrocities relating how despite all they had suffered they were willing to forgive their tormentors, revealing a breathtaking magnanimity and generosity of spirit, then we realised that we have a wonderful capacity for good.
Yes people are fundamentally good. They, we, are made for love, generosity, sharing, compassion - for transcendence.
We are made to reach for the stars.
Desmond Tutu.
[Source: Courtesy "Tutu's handwritten message of wisdom" Hands That Shape Humanity]
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'WOMEN SHOULD RULE THE WORLD' -
Desmond Tutu suggests a "feminine revolution" takes place
Women should rule the world said Desmond Tutu speaking at a signing ceremony between the Desmond Tutu Peace Trust and the City of Cape Town.
Former Anglican archbishop of Cape Town Desmond Tutu on Tuesday waxed lyrical about women, suggesting that a "feminine revolution" take place so that the fairer sex can rule the world.
Tutu was speaking at a signing ceremony between the Desmond Tutu Peace Trust and the City of Cape Town which brought a step closer the erection of a building bearing his name in the city CBD.
"Some of the best initiatives are those that occur because women are involved... It is almost a tacit acknowledgement of the crucial role that women play in nurturing, nurturing life," said Tutu in his tribute to women a day after Women's Day.
Tutu, who was seemingly mentally spurred on by Cape Town's sobriquet "Mother City", said that men had been given centuries to rule the world, but "have made a heck of a mess of things".
Tutu said the revolution he referred was one of women who were not afraid to be feminine, and who did not ape men in, for example, the stereotypical aggression.
"This revolution... is the last, best chance for making this globe hospitable to peace, to make this globe hospitable to compassion, hospitable to generosity and caring," he said. [More]
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Here's a snippet found on the internet:
" ... A billionaire media baron has taken a step to demonstrate his belief that women should run the world because men have "mucked it up" with too much warfare and military spending.
The United Nations Foundation Ted Turner established six years ago to distribute the £1 billion he pledged to UN causes has a new female-dominated board of directors.
"I've said for years and I'm really serious about it, I think men should be barred from holding public office for 100 years. The men have been running the world for too long and they've made a mess of it. ..."
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A WORLD OF WOMEN FOR WORLD PEACE-
PeaceWatch: U.S. Institute of Peace
Interesting to note there is a PeaceWatch U.S. Institute of Peace.
Top, left to right: Congresswoman Eddie Bernice Johnson, Harriet Hentges, and Gay McDougall of the International Human Rights Law Group. Bottom, left to right: Sanam Naraghi-Anderlini of Women Waging Peace, Deepa Ollapally, and Congresswoman Nancy Pelosi.
It'd be good to see more women peace advocates seeking a greater voice in preventing and resolving international conflict.
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WHILE MEN MAKE WAR, WOMEN WAGE PEACE
By Swanee Hunt and Cristina Posa
Here is "While men make war, women wage peace" report dated December 2, 2001, reprinted from the Toronto Star.
Swanee Hunt is director of the Women and Public Policy Program at Harvard University's John F. Kennedy School of Government and a former U.S. ambassador to Austria (1993-97). Cristina Posa, a former judicial clerk at the U.N. International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia, is an attorney in New York. Adapted from a longer piece in the May/June edition of Foreign Policy Magazine. December 2, 2001 reprinted from the Toronto Star:
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SUDAN'S FM OPTIMISTIC ABOUT STRIKING PEACE DEAL ...
... within 3 months
Today, Sudan's foreign minister said Monday he was optimistic about striking a peace deal within three months to end atrocities in Darfur and again rejected US charges of genocide in the region. On a visit to South Korea, said his government and rebel groups would "very soon" resume the African Union-brokered peace talks.
"Hopefully, before the end of this year, we will sign a final peace agreement," he told a news conference in Seoul. "Hopefully, by next year the whole of Sudan will be in peace."
MEANWHILE...
... Darfur rebels may quit talks ...ONE of two rebel groups in Darfur today threatened to walk out of peace talks unless the Sudanese Government quickly presented a viable plan to end the conflict in the region.
'The negotiations are at a crossroads,' said Mahgub Hussein, a spokesman for the Sudan Liberation Movement (SLM).
'They could collapse at any moment if the Sudanese Government is incapable of presenting a positive vision for a political solution.'
Asked if that meant the SLM was threatening to pull out of the African Union-sponsored talks currently under way in the Nigerian capital Abuja, he replied: 'Yes."
Up to 10,000 Dying a Month in Darfur Camps
Today, BBC reports New alarm over Darfur crisis toll and Reuters reports up to 10,000 people, many of them children, are dying each month from disease and the effects of violence in Darfur camps despite a big international aid effort, the World Health Organization said Monday.
A study of settlements in the west and the north of the conflict ridden region, carried out by the United Nations health agency and the Sudanese government, pointed to a monthly toll of 6,000-10,000 out of a displaced population of 1.2 million.
"Thousands of these are children," said David Nabarro, who heads the WHO's health crisis action group.
"These mortality figures are of considerable concern ... What is disturbing is that we are already six months into this crisis," he said, adding that the rate was up to six times that of an African country facing no humanitarian crisis.
Diarrhea was the leading cause of death, particularly among children, but violence was also a "significant cause," although the survey, which was based on interviews, did not go into detail on the nature of the violence, he added.
"You should not be seeing these sort of figures six months into an emergency and they reflect the fact that we still have a huge humanitarian challenge ahead of us," he said.
But the mortality rate was in line with the 50,000 dead which the U.N. and other international bodies have been using as the likely toll since the crisis erupted, Nabarro said.
Around a quarter of those surveyed in the camps said they had no access to safe drinking water and between a third and a half had no latrines.
Insecurity and logistical problems brought on by the rainy season were hampering the relief effort, but humanitarian agencies also suffered from a continued cash shortage.
"The fact is that our relief operation for a number of reasons is not doing the job," Nabarro said.
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SUDAN ARRESTS EDITOR, CRACKS DOWN ON PRESS
Khartoum, Sudan, Sep. 12 (UPI) -- Sudanese authorities Sunday arrested an editor and cracked down on the press, confiscating newspapers and censoring articles.
Sources at Alwan daily newspaper said its chief editor, Hussein Khoujli, was arrested Saturday night, while its front-page main story was censored by authorities and replaced with a non-political article.
Editors at al-Sahafa daily newspaper also tens of thousands of that paper's copies were confiscated after it was printed Saturday night, allowing it to go to the press only after having removed an article.
They did not say what the article contained.
All Sudan's 12 newspapers Sunday refrained from mentioning the news conference held by the opposition Popular Congress Party, which accused authorities of fabricating accusations against the party and saying was trying to obtain weapons from Eritrea to overthrow the regime.
Direct news media censorship was imposed for the first time in 2000, but President Omar Bashir lifted the censorship last year.
Journalists said state censorship seemed to have returned during the weekend.
Further news: Sudanese prisoner dies while in custody
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SUDAN WANTS TO EXPAND ECONOMIC TIES WITH S KOREA
SOUTH KOREA: Visiting Sudanese Foreign Affairs Minister Mustafa Osman Ismail has called for further economic cooperation with South Korea in sectors such as electronics, textiles, cars and the oil industry.
After signing an agreement to avoid double taxation with his South Korean counterpart Friday, Ismail said this agreement and his visit to Seoul will help boost the economic relationship of the two countries,
"I have met with some chairmen of important companies here, and also invited President Roh Moo-hyun and Foreign Minister Ban Ki-moon to our country. Maybe business groups will come with them,'' Ismail said in an interview with The Korea Times Sunday.
"Unfortunately, South Korean National Oil Corporation (KNOC) came in second after a Malaysian national company in a competition for an oil contract in our country recently,'' he said, citing KNOC's lack of specific knowledge on the international oil market and scarce government-level exchanges between the two countries as some of the reasons for the failure.
The minister, however, stressed that his country still has a lot of opportunities to offer investors, especially those from Asian countries, unlike other African nations where European companies tend to be dominant." "Our biggest trading partner is China. France is second, Malaysia third and India is following close behind,'' he said.
"Those countries in alliance with the U.S., like Japan and South Korea, have been reluctant to invest because of political interests. China, however, pursues an independent policy, as does Malaysia, India and Iran. China approached us first, so they became our number one partner,'' he added, explaining how China came to play such a big role in their economy, especially in the oil sector, since the Sudanese government has a ``sometimes difficult'' relationship with the U.S.
South Korea, with no crude oil produced on its territory, has been stepping up energy diplomacy, including projects involving trans-Siberian pipelines as well as direct imports from resource-rich countries.
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MUSICIANS GATHER FOR SUDAN APPEAL
Gorillaz, SOAD, Yoko Ono
Musicians, including Yoko Ono, have united to voice their disgust and create a global awareness of situation in the Sudan. Gorillaz, SOAD, Yorko Ono gather for Sudan appeal.
For more information: waxploitation.com/genocide
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