Ambassador Anwarul K. Chowdhury, has been an advocate for promoting peace and diplomacy, with a particular emphasis on the Culture of Peace. Ambassador Chowdhury served as the Under-Secretary-General of the United Nations and the UN High Representative for the Least Developed Countries, Landlocked Developing Countries, and Small Island Developing States.
Ambassador Anwarul K. Chowdhury has been a career diplomat, Permanent Representative of Bangladesh to the United Nations, President of the UN Security Council, President of UNICEF Executive Board, UN Under-Secretary-General, Senior Special Advisor to UN General Assembly President, and recipient of the U Thant Peace Award, UNESCO Gandhi Gold Medal for Culture of Peace, inaugural Spirit of the UN Award in 2007 and University of Massachusetts Boston Chancellor’s Medal for Global Leadership for Peacein2012, 2015 Gandhi-King-Ikeda Community Builders Prize, 2018 Global Women’s Peace Award, 2020 Robert Muller Global Peace Prize, recipient of the inaugural Global Citizen Award in 2021 and Visionary Leadership Award presented by civil society organizations also in 2021. (PDF of biography)
His legacy and leadership in the service of global community are boldly imprinted in his pioneering initiatives,
– in March 2000 as the President of the Security Council for the political and conceptual breakthrough leading to the groundbreaking UN Security Council Resolution 1325 on women and peace and security; and
– in September 1999 for adoption of the landmark declaration and programme of action on the Culture of Peace by the UN General Assembly.
In March 2003, the Soka University of Tokyo, Japan conferred to Ambassador Chowdhury an Honorary Doctorate for his work on women’s issues, child rights and culture of peace as well as for the strengthening of the United Nations. In May 2012, he received a Doctor of Humane Letters honoris causa degree from the Saint Peter’s University of New Jersey, United States. In May 2021, the University of La Verne, California, USA conferred on him an Honorary Doctorate for his work on global peace and development.
Ambassador Chowdhury is the Founder of the New York-based civil society coalition, “The Global Movement for The Culture of Peace” (GMCoP).
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The Culture of Peace introduction and concept:
Introduction:
The United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) adopted, by consensus and without reservation, its pioneering and norm-setting resolution A/Res/53/243 on the Declaration and Programme of Action on a Culture of Peace in 1999. Since 2012, the President of the General Assembly has been convening in the month of September a day-long annual UN High-Level Forum on The Culture of Peace, as mandated by resolutions of the Assembly, underlining the importance the world body attaches to full and effective implementation of these forward-looking decisions which are universally applicable. As mandated by UN General Assembly, Ambassador Anwarul K. Chowdhury of Bangladesh was the Chair of the nine-month-long negotiations resulting in the consensus, and presenter of the agreed text of this resolution for adoption by the Assembly. It is considered as one of the most significant legacies of the United Nations that would endure generations. Through this landmark adoption, the General Assembly laid down humanity’s charter for the new approaching millennium.
Background:
As we were coming out of the Cold War towards the end of the last Millenium, it dawned on us to see how best to take advantage of the end of that era of bitter rivalry and proxy wars and to make peace sustainable. The Constitution of UNESCO says, “Since wars begin in the minds of men, it is in the minds of men that the defences of peace must be constructed.” The concept of the culture of peace started evolving in this spirit, to promote a change of values and behaviour. The International Congress on Peace in the Minds of Men held in Yamoussoukro, Côte d’Ivoire in 1989, organized by UNESCO under the wise leadership of the much-respected global peace activist, its Director-General Federico Mayor Zaragosa, was a landmark gathering to give a boost and a profile to the concept.
In 1996, as the new Permanent Representative of Bangladesh to the United Nations in New York, Ambassador Chowdhury mobilized a support group of Ambassadors at the UN emphasizing that the culture of peace is a marvellous concept that humanity needs to embrace and be recognized at the highest level of the United Nations. He took the lead in proposing in July 1997 along with some other Ambassadors in a letter to UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan to include a specific, self-standing agenda item of the UN General Assembly (UNGA) on culture of peace. A new agenda item on the culture of peace was thus agreed upon after considerable negotiating hurdles and the new item was allocated to the plenary of the General Assembly for discussion on an annual basis.
Under this item, the UNGA adopted in 1997 a resolution to declare the year 2000 the “International Year for the Culture of Peace”, and in 1998, a resolution to declare the period from 2001 to 2010 as the “International Decade for the Culture of Peace and Nonviolence for the Children of the World”.
On 13 September 1999, the United Nations adopted the Declaration and Programme of Action on the Culture of Peace, a monumental document that transcends boundaries, cultures, societies and nations.
What is The Culture of Peace:
Simply put, the Culture of Peace as a concept, as a motivation means that every one of us needs to consciously make peace and nonviolence a part of our daily existence. We should not isolate peace as something separate or distant. We should know how to relate to one another without being aggressive, without being violent, without being disrespectful, without neglect, without prejudice. It is important to realize that the absence of peace takes away the opportunities that we need to better ourselves, to prepare ourselves, to empower ourselves to face the challenges of our lives, individually and collectively. It is also a positive, dynamic participatory process wherein “dialogue is encouraged, and conflicts are solved in a spirit of mutual understanding and cooperation.”
Each and every individual is important to the process of transformation required to secure the culture of peace in our world. Each person must be convinced that nonviolent, cooperative action is possible. If a person succeeds in resolving a conflict in a nonviolent manner at any point in time, then this individual has made a big contribution to the world because this singular act has succeeded in transferring the spirit of nonviolence and cooperation to another individual. When repeated, such a spirit will grow exponentially, a practice that will become easier each time the choice is made to face a situation, resolve a conflict nonviolently.
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To advancing the Culture of Peace, which aims to foster peaceful coexistence, understanding, and cooperation among nations and cultures.
Fifty-fifth session
Agenda item 33
00 57607
Resolution adopted by the General Assembly[without reference to a Main Committee (A/55/L.95 and Add.1)] 55/282. International Day of Peace
The General Assembly,
Recalling its resolution 36/67 of 30 November 1981, by which it declared that
the third Tuesday of September, the opening day of the regular sessions of the
General Assembly, shall be officially proclaimed and observed as International Day
of Peace and shall be devoted to commemorating and strengthening the ideals of
peace both within and among all nations and peoples,
Recalling also its other relevant resolutions, including resolution 55/14 of 3 November 2000,
Reaffirming the contribution that the observance and celebration of the
International Day of Peace makes in strengthening the ideals of peace and
alleviating tensions and causes of conflict,
Considering the unique opportunity it offers for a cessation of violence and
conflict throughout the world, and the related importance of achieving the broadest
possible awareness and observance of the International Day of Peace among the
global community,
Desiring to draw attention to the objectives of the International Day of Peace,
and therefore to fix a date for its observance each year that is separate from the
opening day of the regular sessions of the General Assembly,
1. Decides that, with effect from the fifty-seventh session of the General
Assembly, the International Day of Peace shall be observed on 21 September each
year, with this date to be brought to the attention of all people for the celebration
and observance of peace;
2. Declares that the International Day of Peace shall henceforth be observed
as a day of global ceasefire and non-violence, an invitation to all nations and people
to honor a cessation of hostilities for the duration of the Day;
3. Invites all Member States, organizations of the United Nations system,
regional and non-governmental organizations and individuals to commemorate, in
an appropriate manner, the International Day of Peace, including through education
and public awareness, and to cooperate with the United Nations in the establishment
of the global ceasefire.
:::
111th plenary meeting
7 September 2001
- Education for Peace – Encouraging educational initiatives that promote respect, tolerance, and understanding.
- Non-violence – Advocating for conflict resolution through dialogue and diplomacy rather than through violence or war.
- Social Justice – Promoting human rights and social equity as essential components of lasting peace.
- Sustainability and Development – Linking peace with sustainable development, recognizing that poverty, inequality, and environmental degradation often fuel conflicts.
The Culture of Peace Talk 2009 with
Ambassador Chowdhury
PEACE EDUCATION
All educational institutions need to offer opportunities that prepare the students not only to live fulfilling lives but also to be responsible and productive citizens of the world. Indeed, such educating for peace should be more appropriately called “education for global citizenship”. Such learning cannot be achieved without well-intentioned, sustained, and systematic peace education that leads the way to the culture of peace.
Education for sustainable peace is the key. The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development of the United Nations in its sustainable development goal (SDGs) number 4 and target 7 includes, among others, “promotion of culture of peace and non-violence”, “women’s equality” as well as “global citizenship” as part of the knowledge and skills needed to promote sustainable development. It also calls on the international community to ensure that all learners acquire those by the year 2030.
Focus on children:
The early childhood affords a unique opportunity for us to sow the seeds of transition from the culture of war to the culture of peace. The events that a child experiences early in life, the education that this child receives, and the community activities and socio-cultural mindset in which a child is immersed all contribute to how values, attitudes, traditions, modes of behavior, and ways of life develop. We need to use this window of opportunity to instill the rudiments that each individual needs to become agents of peace and non-violence from an early life.
UNICEF has taken the lead by integrating many elements of the culture of peace into its work, including with the Early Childhood Peace Consortium (ECPC) formed in 2013. In response to this realization, the UN’s sixth High Level Forum on The Culture of Peace in September 2017 focused on the theme “Sowing the Seeds of the Culture of Peace: Early Childhood Development is the Beginning”. That attracted high profile attention from the UN community.
Women’s role and contribution to peace:
A statement from the Fourth World Conference on Women, in Beijing in 1995 declared that “the dynamic movement towards a culture of peace derives inspiration and hope from women’s visions and actions”. It further underscored that full respect for the human rights of women; the release of women’s creative potential in all aspects of life; the equal participation of women in decision-making are all prerequisites to attaining the culture of peace.The core message of this 1995 statement continues to be equally relevant today.
Unless women – half of world’s seven plus billion people – are engaged in advancing the culture of peace at equal levels with men, sustainable peace would continue to elude us. Peace-loving people of the world believe wholeheartedly that women’s equality makes our planet safe and secure.
As Ambassador Chowdhury reiterates, “Without peace, development is impossible, and without development, peace is unachievable, but without women, neither peace nor development is even conceivable.”
Prioritization by the UN:
For the true implementation of the Programme of Action adopted by the General Assembly, the United Nations should own it fully and internalize its implementation throughout the UN system. Also, the Secretary-General should prioritize the culture of peace as a part of his leadership agenda. He should make good use of this workable tool that the UN possess to advance the objective of sustainable peace.
Major role of the Cities and the Communities:
At the 10th Quadrennial General Conference of Mayors for Peace in Hiroshima, Japan in October 2022, the title of Ambassador Chowdhury’s keynote speech was “Advancing the Culture of Peace to Create a Better World with Communities at the Centre”. He asserted “cities have the potential to shape the future of humankind and to win the battle for sustainable peace and development. In the last two decades, cities and urban communities have become the dominant driving force for human development. As such, the leadership role of mayors and city governments is of fundamental importance, as they and the communities they serve are at the frontline of all major challenges facing humanity. To face those challenges successfully, the culture of peace is an essential tool for the cities and their communities.
In September 2021, invited by the President of the UN General Assembly, President of Mayors for Peace Mayor Matsui in his virtual participation at the United Nations High Level Forum on The Culture of Peace announced that “On the 7th of July this year, Mayors for Peace adopted its new Vision, titled: “Vision for Peaceful Transformation to a Sustainable World”. One of the objectives set forth by the new Vision is to “Promote the culture of peace”, in addition to the other two ongoing objectives, “Realize a world without nuclear weapons,” and “Realize safe and resilient cities.” He added that “Under this new Vision, Mayors for Peace will continue making our utmost efforts toward our ultimate goal of realizing lasting world peace in solidarity with its 8,043 (now updated to 8213) member cities in 165 (now updated to 166) countries and regions.”
Conclusion:
It is worth repeating time and again what former Secretary-General of the United Nations and Nobel Peace laureate Kofi Annan had said, “Over the years we have come to realize that it is not enough to send peacekeeping forces to separate warring parties. It is not enough to engage in peace-building efforts after societies have been ravaged by conflict. It is not enough to conduct preventive diplomacy. All of this is essential work, but we want enduring results. We need, in short, the culture of peace.”
Let us remember that the work for peace is a continuous process. Each one of us can make a difference in that process.
-Peace cannot be imposed from outside; it must be realized from within.
-The Culture of Peace is not a quick fix. It is a movement, not a revolution!
Within the Culture of Peace framework, peace embraces far more than an absence of conflict. It encompasses tolerance, disarmament, sustainable economic and social development, democratic participation, gender equality, freedom of expression and respect for human rights. The transition from a culture of war to a Culture of Peace requires the transformation of individual behavior as well as institutional practices. Learning to live in peace and harmony is a long-term process, and begins with the development of inner peace, and nurturing attitudes that promote the expansion and integration of peaceful principles. Education and awareness-raising play a key roles in this process.
BUILDING “THE CULTURE OF PEACE”
Observances and activities for the U.N. International Day of Peace take place on and around September 21, yet Peace Day has an impact on people and communities both before and after this global day, contributing to a “The Culture of Peace.”
Keynote address by
Ambassador Anwarul K. Chowdhury,
Former Under-Secretary-General of the United Nations
and
Founder of the Global Movement for The Culture of Peace (GMCoP)
at the celebration of the
International Day of Peace 2024
on the theme “Cultivating a Culture of Peace”
organized by
The Brahma Kumaris
at Fordham University, Bronx, New York City
on
Saturday 21 September 2024
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I am delighted to convey to you all my warm celebratory greetings on the observance of International Day of Peace today and on the occasion of the 25th Anniversary of the Culture of Peace!
For all peace-loving people of the world, the month of September is particularly meaningful as it includes two dates of global significance for peace – the International Day of Peace on the 21st, preceded by the anniversary of the Culture of Peace on the 13th.
At the outset, let me proudly say that civil society has become the main motivator world-wide for the observance of the International Day of Peace – as showcased by this gathering.
This afternoon’s event is being offered by The Brahma Kumaris, a civil society organization globally admired for the centrality of the spiritual focus of their work. The Fordham University’s hosting of the event deserves our whole-hearted appreciation.
The United Nations has invited all nations and peoples to observe the International Day of Peace as a day of global ceasefire and non-violence, and to honor a cessation of hostilities for the duration of the Day. It also urged all to commemorate the Day through education and public awareness.
This year’s observances assume a special importance as the Culture of Peace marks its milestone 25th anniversary and the IDP2024 honors that by choosing “Cultivating a Culture of Peace” as its theme. I believe this offers us the opportunity to make International Day of Peace meaningful through building the Culture of Peace.
The UN Declaration and Programme of Action on a Culture of Peace emerged a quarter century ago in the aftermath of the long-drawn Cold War. That inspirational act took place on 13 September 1999. As Bangladesh’s Ambassador to the UN, it was an honor for me to Chair the nine-month long negotiations that led to the adoption of this historic landmark document by consensus by the United Nations General Assembly.
Simply put, the Culture of Peace as a concept, as a motivation means that every one of us needs to consciously make peace and nonviolence a part of our daily existence. We should know how to relate to one another without being aggressive, without being violent, without being disrespectful, without neglect, without prejudice.
Though the Declaration and Programme of Action is an agreement among nations, governments, civil society, media, and individuals are all identified in this document as key actors.
The culture of peace begins with each one of us. We always say emphatically “Let There Be Peace on Earth, and Let It Begin with Me”. Unless we are ready to integrate peace and non-violence as part of our daily existence, we cannot expect our communities, our nations, our planet to be peaceful. We should be prepared for and confident in resolving the challenges of our lives in a non-aggressive manner. In today’s world, more so, the humanity’s creed should be based on inner oneness and outer diversity.
For that, one of the things we can do on a daily basis is to embrace the oneness of humanity and connect with the global community to show love, respect, care, and appreciation for each other.
To paraphrase Mother Theresa who lamented saying that the greatest disease today is not cancer, it is being unwanted, unloved, and uncared for. She said that we can cure physical diseases with medicine, but the only cure for despair and hopelessness, hatred and prejudice, violence and conflict is love and compassion. Drawing attention to a different kind of poverty – poverty of spirituality, she said “there are many in the world who are dying for a piece of bread but there are many more dying for a little love”. What a profound pronouncement!
Often, I am asked how the UN is doing in the implementation of the Programme of Action adopted by the General Assembly in 1999. I believe that the Organization should own this norm-setting document adopted by its General Assembly and fully internalize its implementation throughout the UN system. Also, the Secretary-General should prioritize the culture of peace as a part of his leadership agenda. He – or she, as we campaign for his successor would be a woman – should make good use of this workable tool that the UN possess to advance the objective of sustainable peace.
In addition to the role of the UN leadership, let me end by outlining the four integrated mainstream action for the coming years bolstering the global movement for the culture of peace.
Number one is of course education – Education for global citizenship.
If our minds could be likened to a computer, then education provides the software with which to “reboot” our priorities and actions for transition from force to reason, from conflict to dialogue.
Number two: meaningful equality and participation of women.
As I always say emphatically –
“Without peace, development cannot be realized, without development, peace is not achievable, but without women, neither peace nor development is conceivable.”
Number three: youth and children.
It is essential to recognize the empowerment of young people as a major element in building the culture of peace. Young people of today should embrace the culture of peace in a way that can not only shape their lives but can also shape the future of the world. For this, I believe that early childhood affords a window of opportunity for us to sow the seeds of transition to the culture of peace from an early life.
And Number Four: Key role of the Cities and the Communities.
I believe very strongly that cities have the potential to shape the future of humankind and to win the battle for sustainable peace and development. And the culture of peace is a handy and useful tool for that.
Way forward
I continue to emphasize that The Culture of Peace is not a quick fix. It is a movement, not a revolution! Peace is not just the end of war or conflict. Real peace means also the end of discrimination, prejudice, injustice, and inequality.
My life’s experience has taught me to value peace and equality as the essential components of our existence. They unleash the positive forces of good that are so needed for human progress.
Let us remember that the work for peace is a continuous process. Peace cannot be imposed from outside; it must be realized from within.
Let us embrace the Culture of Peace for the good of humanity, for the sustainability of our planet and for making our world a better place to live for all.
One voice creates a ripple – many ripples make a wave – collectively, our voices for the Culture of Peace can transform the world.
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Keynote address by
Ambassador Anwarul K. Chowdhury
(PDF)
“Culture of Peace” is a “set of values, attitudes, modes of behavior and ways of life that reject violence and prevent conflicts by tackling their root causes to solve problems through dialogue and negotiation among individuals groups and nations.” Since its founding over 60 years ago, UNESCO (United Nations Educational Scientific and Cultural Organization) asserted that, “since wars begin in the minds of men, it is in the minds of men that the defenses of peace must be constructed.”
For the “8 Action Areas for a Culture of Peace,” CLICK HERE
