I Remember
Fewer Wars, says the UN?
Christian Science Monitor: A welcome surprise: war waning globally---
Very interesting. Who would expect this from the UN? We'll see how much the MSM informs the public on this.
(Curtsy to K-Lo, who says "If I were introducing that report at a U.N. forum I might begin, 'Despite George Bush and the Zionists...' ")
WASHINGTON – After a 20th century that was perhaps mankind's most violent, all indicators point to a 21st century that will be as bad or worse. Civil wars and new ideological conflicts will multiply. The effectiveness of international forces for peace will wane. And the security of mankind will be the victim caught in the middle. Right?Read the rest here.
Wrong, says a report based on a three-year study by a group of international researchers. Contrary to widespread public perception, they find that the world is witnessing fewer wars - and those wars that do occur are killing fewer people.
The study, released Monday at the UN, also concludes that global conflict-prevention and postconflict peacebuilding efforts are becoming more numerous and more effective.
"We knew the number of wars was coming down, because that has been around in academic circles for a while, but particularly surprising is how the decline in wars is reflected right across the board in all forms of political conflict and violence," says Andrew Mack, head of the Human Security Center at the University of British Columbia. He directed the team that delivered the report.
That means that not only are interstate wars down, but so are civil conflicts, as well as other forms of political violence like human-rights abuses.
The report finds that the total number of conflicts declined by 40 percent since the cold war ended. The average number of deaths per conflict has also declined dramatically, from 37,000 in 1950 to 600 in 2002. The study found 25 civil conflicts last year - the lowest number since 1976.
Why the vast improvement? The report credits an "explosion of efforts" in conflict prevention and peacebuilding. The number of UN "preventive diplomacy" missions and government-based "contact groups" aimed at resolving conflicts has risen sharply in the last decade.
Other specialists note that the number of democracies in the world is growing. And democracies, recent history suggests, do not go to war against each other.
Very interesting. Who would expect this from the UN? We'll see how much the MSM informs the public on this.
(Curtsy to K-Lo, who says "If I were introducing that report at a U.N. forum I might begin, 'Despite George Bush and the Zionists...' ")
posted by Lady Jane | 7:08 PM
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