Europe

I met Lucy at the Deutsche Welle Global Media Forum that took place in Bonn from 25 to 27/6/12. She was introducing some of her nonviolence work in Palestine and I was struck by the similarities of concepts and language with my own humanist take and work on active nonviolence, which is exactly how she put it. I wanted to know more about her work.

Reporters Without Borders welcomes yesterday’s joint declaration by four international experts calling on governments to treat “crimes against freedom of expression” as a special category under criminal law and thereby provide journalists and other news providers with better protection.

At the Global Media Forum, organised by Deutsche Welle and currently underway in Bonn, Germany, Pressenza director, Pia Figueroa was invited to participate on a panel on the theme of sustainability education. “We are convinced that until development is from all and for all human beings, violent conditions that put at risk social as well as personal life will persist.”

Joint press release by 41 European and International organisations to invite Members of the INTA committee to fully reject ACTA.

“If you are feeling helpless help someone”. Words of wisdom from Burma’s icon of the struggle for Democracy. Long years under house arrest and some prison, but she refused offers to leave, as her detention was the best nonviolent strategy to produce change. Now everybody wants their picture taken with her but not much is said about her chosen methodology.

Short of passionately pleading for a profound change in the military-oriented mind-sets of decision-makers, SIPRI Director has called for a “far greater focus on less militarized solutions” to the global security challenges ahead, and for “an innovative integration of preventive diplomacy, pre-emptive and early-warning technologies, and cooperative transnational partnerships.”

Around the world we are used to nonviolent protest being violently repressed. Those in a position of power have ruthlessly killed and tortured those who opposed them ever since human beings first learned to fight with sticks and rocks.

Are we in a pre-widespread war or pre-genocide(s) moment? Or both? In the 1930’s several nations – amongst them the USA and Germany – suffered economic collapse and with it some of the worst examples of racially motivated slaughters recorded in history. And then, WW2. There are lessons to be learned and urgent work to be done to stop history repeating itself.

When it becomes clear to everyone that the all-powerful economists have little to offer other than more cuts, more austerity measures, more insults (“go pay your taxes” or “you’re poor because you are lazy”), then people realise it’s up to them, and real human creativity takes over. That’s how a crisis becomes an opportunity.

The EU continues to be unable to solve its crises. The risk of a default of Greece on repayment of its debt in the next 3 months, or of the country leaving the Euro has increased considerably

Hopes that the situation would calm down after the second rescues package for Greece in March 2012, combined with a non-payment of part of the debt to banks have proved illusory