Archive 1986 – 2017

In the Fall Issue of Development Outreach, World Bank president James D. Wolfensohn reflects on the consequences of September 11 and says that we must fight terrorism and poverty, with “and” in italics. It is one of these élitist articles that states what an unidentified global “we” must now do to make the world a better place. While I do not doubt his wish to see a better world, the lack of both causal analysis and strategy for change in this article raises concerns. There are already thousands of such statements and many more will be made when the World Economic Forum is held in New York from January 31. Wolfensohn’s exposé, in spite of all the seemingly idealistic words, makes it abundantly clear that we live in a time in which political power is inversely related to intellectual power and truth power. He starts out asserting that “we know...

I efterårsudgaven af Development Outreach tænker Verdensbankens præsident James D Wolfensohn over konsekvenserne af 11 september og konstaterer, at vi skal bekæmpe terrorisme og fattigdom; med ‘og’ i kursiv. Det er en af disse artikler fra eliten, som slår fast, hvad et eller andet globalt ‘vi’ nu må gøre for at gøre verden til et bedre sted at være. Selvom jeg ikke er i tvivl om hans ønske om at se en bedre verden, så giver manglen på analyse af årsagerne og på en strategi for forandring i artiklen anledning til bekymring. Der er allerede tusinder af den slags erklæringer, og der vil komme mange flere under det Verdensøkonomiske Forum (også kendt som Davos-mødet) som i år holdes i New York fra 31. Januar. Wolfensohns artikel gør det klart – trods alle de tilsyneladende idealistiske ord – at vi lever i en tid, hvor politisk magt er omvendt proportional med...

I höstens utgåva av Development Outreach, reflekterar Världsbankens president James D. Wolfensohn över följderna av den 11 september och säger att vi måste bekämpa terrorismen och fattigdomen, med kursiverat “och”. Det är en dessa elitistiska artiklar som kungör vad ett oidentifierat globalt “vi” nu måste göra för att världen skall bli bättre. Visserligen betvivlar jag inte hans önskan att få se en bättre värld, men bristen på såväl orsaksanalys som strategi för förändring i denna artikel väcker oro. Det finns redan tusentals sådana uttalanden och många fler gjordes när Världsekonomiskt forum (World Economic Forum) hölls i New York i januari. Wolfensohns exposé klargör övertygande, trots alla synbarligen idealistiska ord, att vi lever i en tid då den politiska makten står i omvänt förhållande till intellektets och sanningens makt. Han börjar med att hävda att “vi vet att på grund av terroristattackerna kommer tillväxten i utvecklingsländerna att svikta, vilket driver miljoner...

The Uncertain Political Futureof Globalization I. The Sudden Advent of Global War The events of September 11 alter fundamental calculations about the future of global governance, the role of the state, and the policy agenda that is likely to dominate debate in various national, regional, and global arenas. Whether the impact of mega-terror attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon initiate a civilizational war between the West and Islam is highly uncertain at this time, but what seems beyond doubt is that the substantive and symbolic harm inflicted on the United States by Osama Bin Laden’s al-Qaida network, a non-state enemy with visionary goals, forever changes our sense of historical context and of the nature of war and power. Before September 11 the preoccupations of the era seemed captured by the terminology of globalization, and the tensions produced by economistic emphasis on global economic growth as the foundation...

The Bush administration has conducted the first Nuclear Posture Review since 1994, and has released a classified version of the report to Congress. The report, which has not been made public, provides an updated strategic nuclear plan for the United States. It helps to clarify Bush’s promise to President Putin to reduce the deployed US strategic nuclear arsenal by two-thirds to between 2,200 and 1,700 over a ten-year period. The Bush nuclear posture stands on three legs. First, deactivated nuclear weapons will be kept in storage rather than destroyed. Second, the nuclear weapons that are deactivated will be replaced by powerful and accurate conventional weapons. Third, missile defenses will be deployed ostensibly to protect the US from attack by a rogue state or terrorist. Despite the planned reductions in the nuclear arsenal, the Bush administration intends to retain a flexible responsive capability by putting a portion (perhaps most) of the...

Rapport 1, 1 februari 2002 En annan värld är möjlig Bakgrunden I åratal har världens ledande företagare och politiker haft årliga sammankomster i Davos. Där har väldens utveckling diskuterats, planer lagts i informella möten och befolkningens inflytande reducerats till korta rapporter från presskonferenser. Makteliten har i stort sätt ostört kunnat besluta om framtiden utan att alla de som besluten angår har haft insikt eller inflytande. I fjol organiserade representanter för det civila samhället en motkonferens i Porto Alegre, Brasilien. (World Social Forum). Tiotusen deltagare diskuterade de samma frågor om globaliseringen och framtidens utformning som herrarna i Davos. Men denna gång var perspektivet underifrån. Debatterna fördes av de som var förlorarna i den globala utvecklingen. Det hela var så lyckad att man bestämde sig för att göre detta till en årlig företeelse. Nu gäller det alternativen & underifrån-perspektivet Nu samlas sextiotusen representanter i Porto Alegre. I dagarna fem skall globaliseringens många konsekvenser...

Helsingborgs Dagblad, 31 januari 2001 Av en slump faller mina ögon på en liten notis i InternetWorld 1-2002: “Somalias enda internetleverantör, Somali Internet Company, tvingades stänga i december eftersom USA misstänker att företaget har kopplingar till terroristnätverket al-Qaida. Resultatet är att alla internetkaféer har tvingats slå igen. Stängningen drabbar inte bara somalier som vill hålla kontakt med släktingar utomlands, utan även näringslivet och alla internationella hjälporganisationer i landet.” Jag arbetade i Somalia 1977-81. Då skickade jag brev och telegram hem. Somalia var en samtalets kultur; ett skriftspråk hade just införts under Siad Barres första år av visionär (sedan sorgligt diktatorisk) statsledning. Somalierna träffades på marknaderna med sin boskap och sina kameler, berättade historier och nyheter och reciterade poesi medan de drack sött kanel-te och tuggade khat. På så sätt, och tack vare släkt- och klanstrukturer, visste alla 3,5 miljoner somalier allt om varandra. Och dygnet om lyssnade de på BBC:s Somalia-sektion ty...

Beskyttet fra Londons og hele verdens støj, mode, tant og flygtighed og langt fra ligegyldighed og forbrugerisme kommer jeg bag Tate Moderns tykke maskinrumsmure ind i et mørkegråt kapellignende rum med dæmpet belysning. Her vises Mark Rothkos kæmpestore, afrundede rektangler i rødbrune nuancer, mystisk vibrerende i brunt og sort og, aner man, i alle jordens andre farver. I kompositionen kan de minde om tibetanske mandalas, former man stiller øjnene ind på og som derpå begynder at bevæge sig. Ind i et mørklilla univers, som indgyder mig ro. Konturløse kuber, som er skabt af en udramatisk, og blød – tilsyneladende – anvendelse af farver. Men mandalans detaljerigdom savnes – eller måske er hvert et billede netop en detalje i universet, et hologram i olie? Dystre bevæger de sig ind og ud af hinanden, som vinduer i – eller ud mod – et grænseløst rum. Skønhed? Ubeskrivelighed? Hvile? Intensitet? Fred? I krop og sjæl...

The idea behind the EU Europe after the Second World War developed a strong culture of pacifism. Part of this was driven by internal motives. The movement towards European Union was undoubtedly stimulated by the felt need to eliminate tensions between France and Germany, and to make impossible new eruptions within the European continent. The establishment of the European Coal and Steel Community was, amongst other things, a deliberate attempt to fuse resources and overcome the national economic competition which could bring about a renewal of militarism. Of course, all this unwound within the context of the Cold War, which, as it became more and more dependent on nuclear confrontation, aroused our own peace movements, for nuclear disarmament. Whilst not wishing to sentimentalise these different pacifisms , they undoubtedly became part of a wider culture, which was only partially eclipsed by the end of the Cold War, as a result...

LONDON – Chris Patten, the European commissioner for foreign affairs, said the other day that America had to be careful that after winning the war it didn’t lose the peace. But who can say that America has won the war? It hasn’t “smoked out” Osama bin Laden, the supposed objective. As for losing the peace, yes, the indications are indeed worrying. No one in Washington with their hand over their heart could say that world opinion is now behind America. It may have been momentarily in the immediate aftermath of September 11th but over the months that support has been whittled away. The treatment of the prisoners in Guantanamo has brought it all to a head. Indeed, the very fact that this issue has become so hot, particularly in Europe, is an indication of the deep doubts and reservations in the chancelleries of Western Europe about America’s on-going call to arms....

During his first year in office, George W. Bush has engaged in three wars. His war against terrorism is widely known and discussed. His resolve to fight against evildoers with America’s military might is said to have defined his presidency. The president’s other two wars have received far less attention, but they may end up defining his presidency even more than his war against terrorism. These are his war against international law and his war against the international control of armaments. In the war against international law, the president has shown remarkable boldness in his disdain for the remainder of the international community. He has pulled out of the Kyoto Accords on Global Warming, perhaps the most critical environmental treaty of our time. He has also demonstrated his contempt for the creation of an International Criminal Court that would hold individuals accountable for the types of serious international crimes that...

Gandhi, Arun. Lord Richard Attenborough. Kasturba: a lifeNew Delhi: Penguin Books Ltd., 2000.315 pp, 295 Indian Rs, US $22.51 January 29, 2002 Arun Gandhi, grandson to Mohandas and Kasturba, has written a thorough account of Kasturba’s life. Arun begins with a description of Kasturba’s childhood in Porbandar in the late1800s, before she met Mohandas. By having chosen to embark on difficult research into his grandmother’s life, including her first years which are not well-documented, Arun ensures that the reader receives an intimate and life-long portrait of this amazing woman. Kasturba is presented as a lively woman &endash; obedient, yet with a mind of her own. As the relationship between Kasturba and Mohandas developed, Arun maintains that Kasturba’s influence over Mohandas in her own quiet way also grew, to which some of Mohandas’ writings also attest.  Arun paints a vivid picture of the beginnings of Mohandas’ non-violence movement in South Africa, a...