Visions for the 21st Century - Abstract

 

Is the 21st Century going to be characterized by an increasing divide between haves and have-nots, competition between nations, further wars over resources and investments and an expansion of war fighting into space – the final frontier? Or is it going to be one of increasing cooperation, collaboration, communication and conflict resolution between peoples and nations and the development of a global order of justice and peace? Leadership from Aotearoa – New Zealand could play a vital role in building a peaceful and just world. We have led in the past - being the first country to secure the right to vote for women and to establish a social security system. And we were instrumental in the creation of the United Nations, the International Court of Justice and the recently established International Criminal Court. This article includes some of my visions for continued leadership from Aotearoa-New Zealand, based on what has already been accomplished.

Visions for the 21st century

 

The globalization of the world will continue with a widening between “haves” and “have-nots”…Space forces will emerge to protect military and commercial national interests… There will be a critical need to control the space medium to ensure US dominance on future battlefields… The two principal themes of the USSPACECOM Vision are dominating the space dimension of military operations to protect US national interests and investment, and integrating space forces into war-fighting capabilities across the full spectrum of conflict… US Space Command Vision 2020

 

We dip into the future, far as human eye can see See the vision of the world and all the wonder that shall be Hear the war-drum throb no longer, see the battle flags all furled In the parliament of man, the federation of the world. Alfred Lord Tennyson

 

Is the 21st Century going to be characterized by an increasing divide between haves and have-nots, competition between nations, further wars over resources and investments and an expansion of war fighting into space – the final frontier? Or is it going to be one of increasing cooperation, collaboration, communication and conflict resolution between peoples and nations and the development of a global order of justice and peace?

 

The US Space Command would have us believe that the former is the case and that we must develop military capabilities and a fortress mentality to protect ourselves. Alfred Lord Tennyson believes that the alternative future of world peace is possible and calls on us to build the mechanisms of global governance to create such a condition.

 

Which future evolves will not be decided by the configurations of the heavenly bodies, but by the actions of leaders and citizens here on earth. And it won’t happen by one big event, but by many actions and developments which each lay some of the building blocks for one type of world or other.

 

Leadership from Aotearoa – New Zealand could play a vital role in building a peaceful and just world. We have led in the past - being the first country to secure the right to vote for women and to establish a social security system. And we were instrumental in the creation of the United Nations, the International Court of Justice and the recently established International Criminal Court.

 

Below are some of my visions for continued leadership from Aotearoa-New Zealand, based on backgrounds of what has already occurred.

 

20 Visions for 2020:

 

1. Vision: Conflict resolution is taught in all schools thus providing youth with skills and a predilection to peacefully resolve their conflicts at home, school, and in the community. New Zealand’s experience inspires education systems in other countries to also implement peace education programs.

 

Background: The Ministry of Education developed Peace Studies Guidelines in 1988 and has integrated aspects into the Health and Social Studies Curriculum. In 2000 the government endorsed the Global Campaign for Peace Education to assist peace education develop worldwide.

 

2. Vision: New Zealand helps the South Pacific Forum establish a mediation service and multinational unarmed peacekeeping unit which can be used when conflicts erupt within countries or between countries. The unarmed peacekeeping unit becomes a model on which a United Nations unarmed peacekeeping brigades is established.

 

Background: The New Zealand government successfully mediated an end to the Bougainville civil war in 1998. New Zealand policed the ceasefire with an un-armed military force. Proposals for a United Nations unarmed peacekeeping brigade have so far floundered in the United Nations but could be stimulated by Pacific Island states based on the experiences of regional initiatives.

 

3. Vision: New Zealand hosts an international conference of countries from the southern hemisphere and adjacent areas which adopts a treaty prohibiting nuclear weapons from the entire region.

 

Background: There are currently five regional nuclear free zone treaties prohibiting nuclear weapons from the territories of all the countries in the southern hemisphere, but not prohibiting the transit of nuclear armed warships and submarines through the zone. In 1996 the International Court of Justice declared that the threat or use of nuclear weapons is generally illegal. This gives countries the authority to prohibit nuclear weapons in the oceans as well as on land. Brazil and New Zealand have introduced a resolution in the United Nations calling for the establishment of a nuclear weapons free southern hemisphere and adjacent areas, and this has been supported by most countries.

 

4. Vision: New Zealand’s Minister of Disarmament chairs United Nations negotiations on a treaty to abolish nuclear weapons, and successfully brings these to conclusion with adoption of such a treaty within five years.

 

Background: Since 1996 the United Nations has adopted resolutions with overwhelming support calling for a nuclear weapons convention (treaty). So far, only some of the nuclear weapon states agree. The others cite concerns of implementation and compliance. In 1997 the United Nations circulated a draft nuclear weapons convention to address these issues and help guide negotiations for a treaty. New Zealand, which has already banned nuclear weapons by legislation and is the only the country with a Minister of Disarmament, is in a prime position to promote and lead such negotiations. As it was a New Zealander who first split the atom – Lord Rutherford – it is fitting that New Zealand leads the way to control the atom’s destructive potential.

 

5. Vision: Aotearoa-New Zealand hosts the world’s first Cooperative Games Olympics.

 

Background: Competitive games create winners and losers and foster an us-them mentality. Cooperative games have been growing as a popular alternative. They are creative, challenging, inclusive, and can be played by people of mixed capabilities.

 

6. Vision: Postage stamps include the name Aotearoa-New Zealand to reflect the richness of and inclusiveness of both cultures and demonstrate this globally.

 

Background: The Waitangi Tribunal has concluded that Maori is an official language alongside English and that Maori place-names are official as well as the English ones. The government has accepted that Aotearoa and New Zealand are both official names for the country and can be used interchangeably. In 2000 the Post office produced a very popular stamp series with both names. By 2020 this should be common practice.

 

7. Vision: Seating in the New Zealand parliament is arranged alphabetically rather than on party basis so that parliament dispenses with the anachronistic split between government and opposition sides of the house. Debates thus focus more on positive ideas and proposals for the country rather than scoring points against the opposition.

 

Background: This actually happened once following the 2002 election when parliament resumed before the seating arrangements for the opposition parties had been confirmed. The precedent was accidental but could lead to a permanent change.

 

8. Vision: New Zealand foreign aid to the world’s poorest countries, increases to 1% of GNP increasing the positive image of the country and helping to stem the flow of economic refugees from these countries. The increase in aid is made possible through a 10% reduction in military spending.

 

Background: At the 2002 UN Conference on Financing and Development, New Zealand Minister of Disarmament Matt Robson criticized excessive military expenditure at the expense of funding for aid and development. However, the government has yet to put these words into practice.

 

9. Vision: New Zealand leads an international campaign to achieve universal adherence to the International Court of Justice so that by 2020 over 3/4s of the world accepts its jurisdiction.

 

Background: The International Court of Justice is one of the principal organs of the United Nations and has shown that it can solve disputes between countries that might otherwise lead to war. New Zealand has used the court effectively to help end French testing (1974 Nuclear Tests Case) and affirm the illegality of nuclear weapons (1996 Nuclear Weapons Case). However, jurisdiction by the court is based on countries accepting its jurisdiction and only 70 countries have done so. New Zealand is well respected internationally as a supporter of international law and could influence other countries to accept ICJ jurisdiction.

 

10.  Vision: New Zealand’s proposal for a new organ of the United Nations – an Environment Council – is adopted by the United Nations. The Environment Council has the authority to enact and enforce environmental protections globally, thus putting into effect the provisions agreed at the 1992 Rio Summit and the 2002 World Summit on Sustainable Development.

 

Background: The idea of creating a UN Environment Council has been floated by former Prime Minister Sir Geoffrey Palmer as a way of putting some enforcement power behind international environmental obligations.

 

11. Vision: New Zealand joins with Sri Lanka, Russia, China and others in promoting an amendment to the Outer Space Treaty to ban all weapons from space.

 

Background: The Outer Space Treaty currently bans the stationing – but not the transit – of weapons of mass destruction in space. Other weapons are permitted. Sri Lanka, Russia and China have called for negotiations to preserve space entirely for peaceful purposes, but a few key countries disagree.

 

12. Vision: New Zealand initiates two new taxes – a 0.5% tax on international air travel and a 0.05% tax on international financial transactions. The money raised is given to the United Nations to fund sustainable development goals identified at the Rio Summit on the Environment and the World Summit on Sustainable Development. New Zealand’s example stimulates other countries to follow suit.

 

Background: The idea of independent funding for UN programs was suggested by UN Secretary-General Boutros-Boutros Ghali, but floundered when major countries would not agree. However, there is nothing to stop it starting from the ground up on a country by country basis until the momentum is too much to stop it.

 

13. Vision: Aotearoa-New Zealand participates in a case in the International Court of Justice on the status of treaties between nation states and indigenous peoples. New Zealand’s experience with the Waitangi Tribunal and Treaty of Waitangi settlements process is used as a model for the ICJ to determine appropriate remedies processes for grievances. The UN Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues publishes a report on the case which is used internationally in negotiations between nations and indigenous populations.

 

Background: Following a UN Study on the status of treaties between States and indigenous peoples, a number of indigenous nations are preparing to take a case to the ICJ on this issue. The Waitangi Tribunal and the Waitangi Treaty settlements process has aimed for a conflict resolution model for addressing grievances rather than an adversary model. There is thus considerable interest internationally in our experience and how it may be applicable elsewhere.

 

14. Vision: Violence in movies and TV programs is reduced by 50%. News services increase coverage of effective conflict resolution stories as they occur. Media Peace Awards are televised nationally.

 

Background. Excessive violence in media generates a perception that violence is normal and can increase its occurrence. The Peace Foundation annually awards positive media coverage that reports on conflict resolution examples and encourages peace. These should be known more widely.

 

15. Vision: Zealand adopts a “Cool Corp” corporate responsibility label. Corporations which meet a high standard in a number of social, economic and environment categories are able to use the Cool Corp label in advertising and promotion. Cool Corp corporations are exempt from environment taxes (such as the Climate Change tax) and are eligible for employment creation programs and other assistance with corporate development beneficial to the New Zealand economy, workforce and environment. Corporations which do not meet minimum environmental, labour or human rights standards are prohibited from trading within New Zealand.

 

16. Vision: The government launches a new flag for Aotearoa-New Zealand which symbolizes its rich cultural heritage and place in the Pacific. The launch of the flag also includes promotion of two other flags alongside it – the United Nations flag representing New Zealand’s involvement in the international body, and the Earth Flag, representing the one earth and one-humanity without nation-state borders.

 

17. Vision: A high-speed train service between Wellington and Auckland is opened in 2015. Upgraded tracks allow trains to travel up to 280 km/hr. The high-speed train makes limited stops with intermediate points serviced by smaller feeder trains. This cuts the trip by train to 3½ hours. There are four scheduled services each way per day. Now that the train trip is half the time of traveling by car, many travelers switch from car to train.

 

18. Vision: Most primary school children learn three languages at school – English, Maori and one foreign language (most common are Chinese, Japanese and French).

 

19. Vision: New Zealand leads negotiations in the World Trade Organisation, International Labour Organisation, World Bank and newly established UN Environment Council for the establishment of international minimum labour, environment and human rights standards to which all corporations must conform. In labour law, this includes a provision that no worker of a corporation should be paid less than 1/20th of the salary of the highest paid worker in that corporation.

 

20. Vision: The government invites world leaders to New Zealand for a Global Retreat on World Management, which aims to help world leaders appreciate that our planet is like a spaceship – an interdependent mix of peoples living on a small self-contained sphere in space with a limited and precious supply of water and air. Background: Buckminster Fuller, creator of geodesic domes, coined the term Spaceship Earth. He created a world game, played on a huge map of the earth and designed to move the consciousness from a nationalistic-competitive perspective, to an internationalistic problem-solving perspective. His vision that world leaders would play the game has not yet been fulfilled.