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Scholars Emphasize Role of NGOs in Solving Conflicts -Global Policy Forum- NGOs Scholars Emphasize Role of NGOs in Solving Conflicts
Taiwan News
September 12, 2002
Local peace advocates yesterday urged the people of Taiwan to participate more in international affairs, saying non-governmental organizations play a crucial role in solving major conflicts in the world, including the strife across the Taiwan Strait.
The scholars also voiced their firm opposition to Washington's intention to attack Iraq and called for the Taiwan government to withhold its support for military proposal, despite the friendly relations between the two nations.
"War cannot solve any problems. Although the United States is a good ally of Taiwan, the island must not give up its insistence on human rights and support any military offensives," Chien Hsi-chieh (AuTHORN ), executive director of the Peacetime Foundation of Taiwan, said. On the first anniversary of the September 11 terrorist attacks on the United States yesterday, scholars of the foundation shared the experience of their visits to the battlefields of Israel and Palestine last month.
Joseph Wu ('dxAe), deputy secretary-general of the Presidential Office and an expert on mideast relations, stressed in the news conference that as a member of the global village, Taiwan should provide humanitarian assistance to the refugees in that region. Such aid, he said, can help wipe out terrorism and extremism. "If we think of the reasons behind the violence, we will know that it resulted from years of desperation and hopelessness, and desperation is the breeding ground for terrorism," he said yesterday morning.
"What Taiwan can do to aid peace in the Mideast is to provide humanitarian assistance. I think such support is an effective tool to eliminate terrorism." Hsu Szu-chien, a research fellow of National Chengchi University's Institute of International Relations, and Shih Cheng-feng, associate professor of public administration at Tamkang University, both urged Taiwan's people and NGOs to pay more attention to peace in the region. NGOs, Hsu noted, often play a strong influential role in the peace-making process in major international conflicts.
"The function of NGOs in most situations is to build a foundation for ultimate peace, which requires government's involvement," Hsu said.
"Regarding the confrontation across the strait, there are many things that the government cannot do because it has to hold on to the nation's stance. However, the problem is that there are actually no NGOs in China because the so-called NGOs there are in fact state-sponsored."
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