By Muslim Mirror Special Correspondent,
New Delhi: Intellectuals, peace activists and scholars were unanimous in their opinion that globalization is encouraging extreme form of consumerism. Speaking at a two-day National Seminar on “Globalization, Multiculturalism and Peace-building in the XXI Century: Prospects and Challenges” held here at Convention Center of JNU, they stressed that globalization should be as open to the active participation of civil organizations on a world wide scale as it is to various religions, beliefs, cultures and nations.
Globalization should not be a one-dimensional or centralized process. For this purpose, there is a need for international institutions, beginning with the United Nations, to restructure in a democratic way and to develop new institutions compatible with the new situation, taking into consideration their purpose and legal sovereignty.
They emphasized that it is imperative to study and promote intercultural values, interfaith dialogue and peace-building initiatives to lay the foundation for peaceful coexistence, harmony and brotherhood.
They said one of man’s basic rights is to pursue life in an environment that is peaceful and in harmony with nature. It should be one of globalization’s main goals to protect the environment for the present and future generations. Globalization should not cause the already scarce natural resources to disappear as a result of encouraging extreme consumerism.
During the process of globalization, the ability for transformation in the economic, cultural and political structures of the societies can make a great difference among countries. In addition, during this process developed markets can harm lesser developed markets, which can create the effect of deepening the inequalities in their standards of living. In this respect, necessary structural precautions should be taken to protect and strengthen sectors that are becoming poorer as a result of negative effects on the distribution of income.
There is a need for broad acceptance of a global understanding of morality that is tied to the historical and cultural dynamics of societies, unites with universal values, and provides responsibility and solidarity among people and takes into consideration others’ dignity and right to live regardless of differences in identity.
The seminar, organized by the Indialogue Foundation in collaboration with the Interfaith Foundation India and Center for the Study of Social Systems, Jawaharlal Nehru University, received more than 200 abstracts. It was uphill task upon Seminar team to select among such an overwhelming response. In two day technical sessions the 66 authors presented their papers. Many delegates came from abroad including Turkey and Sri Lanka to enrich the seminar.
Indian Council for Cultural Relations’ president Dr. Karan Singh, National Foundation for Communal Harmony’s secretary Amb. Ashok Sajjanhar, Secretary General of Journalists and Writers Foundation, Istanbul Dr. Ahmet Muharrem Atlig, and Swami Shantatmananda, Head of the Ramakrishna Mission New Delhi were the lead speakers of seminars. Besides them, delegates also came from Hyderabad, Varanasi, Mumbai, Chandigarh, Rewari, Aligarh, Srinagar, Pune, Kolhapur, Chennai, Tirupati, Gandhinagar, Nagpur and Mallapuram.
It is to be mentioned here that the Indialogue Foundation is an action-oriented international organization for education, peace and development. It was founded in 2005 in New Delhi, by the imagination and fortune of a group of Turkish and Indian people inspired by sensible and spiritual thoughts of the eminent scholars and spiritual leaders of the world, to promote and to encourage international, intercultural and interfaith dialogue and cooperation. Through its initiatives Indialogue envisions to eliminate illiteracy, poverty and polarization which are prime causes of all social problems. Indialogue Foundation contributes to information exchange and networking on current issues and peace building initiatives through its programs, projects and proactive studies, as well as meetings and conferences.