Human security is complex. The ability for 8 billion people to live in peace and prosperity requires active cooperation, strong institutions and solid safeguards. The aggression against Ukraine, with its heartbreaking consequences, has forced a rethink on what security is going to take. As always, the necessary question is (or should be): What’s the right thing to do? In the long run, that’s our only source of safety.
Bahá’u’lláh, the founder of the Bahá’í Faith, wrote over a hundred years ago that a secure and long-lasting peace could only be safeguarded by an international agreement to which every nation is party.
“Such a peace demandeth that the Great Powers should resolve, for the sake of the tranquility of the peoples of the earth, to be fully reconciled among themselves. Should any king take up arms against another, all should unitedly arise and prevent him.”
In that passage and many others, the Bahá’í Writings counsel the nations of the world to unite for the good of all humanity, and for our own good. Currently, the nations of the world spend almost two trillion dollars every year on military expenses. This enormous accumulation of resources and armaments (including nuclear weapons) produces instability, widespread corruption and corrosive distrust. All have intended and unintended consequences.
The most ironic consequence is the denial of desperately needed funds from areas that would provide true security, such as clean energy systems, education, and social safety nets. Adding to this are the massive amounts of greenhouse gases emitted by the world’s militaries, unincluded in national tallies, that surreptitiously harm environmental security.
The only real alternative is to strengthen the rule of law. In the 100 years before the 1928 Paris Peace Pact outlawed war for national gain, war and territorial acquisitions averaged eleven per year. Annexation through force has since become so rare that we’re outraged and horrified – rightly – when it does occur.
What the Paris Peace Pact and succeeding efforts failed to do was to create a workable system for dealing with conflict, leaving us with half-built international institutions. Given present-day security threats and the lack of good alternatives, it’s increasingly urgent to complete that work.
The war in Ukraine has a direct link to one of the most needed international reforms. At the end of WWII, the proposal to create a UN Security Council was brought to the war’s victors. Joseph Stalin’s acceptance was conditioned on veto power, a concession granted to all five permanent members of the Security Council. Plans for a Charter review conference to address this serious flaw were thwarted by the Cold War. Unsurprisingly, Russia recently vetoed Security Council action on the war in Ukraine.
A genuine system of collective security will involve many interlocking administrative mechanisms, pieces of which are already in place. Proposals for reforms such as democratization of the UN system are being championed by a growing number of civil society organizations, although such efforts are not well-known.
I would know nothing of them if not for a personal interest stemming from the above passage written by Bahá’u’lláh. It makes an enormous difference, seeing these political challenges as the protracted birthing process of a future age of peace and prosperity. It’s a drama still being written.
Those with an interest in learning about initiatives for lasting peace can register at any time for the free online course on NextGenU.org, by Mary-Wynne Ashford (under Personal Development). Or register for the in-person course starting 22 April on Cook St. Information: [email protected]
Sheila Flood is the E.D. of the Victoria Multifaith Society and member of the Bahá’í community.
You can read more articles on our interfaith blog, Spiritually Speaking, HERE /blogs/spiritually-speaking
This article was published in the print edition of the sa国际传媒 on Saturday, March 26th 2022
