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Ten
Thousand Things
Multicultural Webfinds
"Ten
Thousand Things" is a Buddhist expression representing the dynamic
interconnection and simultaneous unity and diversity of everything in
the universe.
Report
on the Global Article 9 Conference to Abolish War
Kimberly
Hughes, May 23, 2008
The Global
Article 9 Conference to Abolish War, a three-day extravaganza
of lectures, symposia, and workshops aimed at drawing the world’s
attention to the importance of protecting the peace-upholding Article
9 of Japan’s Constitution, concluded successfully on May 6th.  The
conference turnout far exceeded organizers’ expectations, drawing
over 30,000 participants in four locales across the country: more than
20,000 at the main conference venue of Makuhari Messe in Chiba (about
an hour’s train ride east of Tokyo), and just over 11,000 total
in the cities of Hiroshima, Osaka and Sendai. The attendees also included
over 200 overseas participants traveling from 31 countries.
In order to appeal to as many constituencies as possible, the conference
featured a creatively organized program offering something for all interests.
Following opening remarks by conference co-organizer Yoshioka Tatsuya
(right) from the longstanding peace advocacy/action NGO Peace
Boat, the gathering at the Chiba venue hosted a lineup of
speeches that were interspersed with dynamic musical performances from
a number of performers supporting the spirit of the conference.
The first keynote speaker was
Mairead Corrigan Maguire, a 1976 Nobel Peace Prize Laureate
for her work to end the conflict in Northern Ireland. She called on the
Japanese government to recognize that the “War on Terror”
was a failed strategy, and that the attempt to pursue it by dismantling
Article 9 would amount to nothing less than contempt for the memory of
past war victims (both Japanese and otherwise), as well as potentially
threaten the very survival of humanity and the environment alike by unleashing
the nuclear horrors that Japan should have already learned from. Citing
the case of her own country, she reiterated that engaging in dialogue
with one’s perceived enemies was the only possible road to peace—and
that this must occur at the level of ordinary citizens in addition to
national governments.
Cora Weiss,
UN Representative of the International Peace Bureau and President of the
Hague Appeal for Peace, delivered the second keynote speech, where she
gave an impassioned plea for the realization that wars leave behind a
path of destruction affecting generations to come. She also made the point
that the real enemies we must now face up to are those of poverty, disease
and ignorance—all ills that the use of weaponry will only inflame
rather than defeat.
Later in the program came a creatively designed discussion titled “Iraq,
the U.S., and Japan” that featured a lineup of several panelists.
When viewed together as a collective whole, the individual experience
of each speaker provided a startlingly integrated portrait of the culture
of militarism that now frames the issue of Japan’s Constitutional
Article 9.
To briefly
summarize:
- The
first speaker was Ann
Wright, who retired from the U.S. military as a colonel
and then worked as a diplomat for the U.S. State Department before resigning
in opposition to the war in Iraq. She offered a scathing criticism of
U.S. policy, particularly as regards the “War on Terror,”
and exhorted Japan not to head down the same dangerous road by following
U.S. demands that it remilitarize. She urged Japan to instead utilize
Article 9 as an opportunity to reject the military-industrial complex
in favor of a new style of economics, which could also set a powerful
example for other nations to follow.
- This
presentation was followed by Aidan
Delgado, a former soldier from the U.S. military who resigned
as a conscientious objector after being assigned to Abu Ghraib prison
in Iraq. “As a Buddhist, I had no choice but to quit the army
once I realized that war was not what I was taught it was while growing
up,” he recalled. “In reality, it’s nothing more than
legalized murder, oppression and destruction that only serves to increase
the level of suffering in the world.”
- Iraqi
humanitarian aid worker (and former soldier) Kasim
Turki then outlined his experience as a fighter who came
to realize that nonviolence was the only way forward—even after
seeing his city completely destroyed, experiencing direct mistreatment
from U.S. soldiers, and also losing his brother due in part to their
callous inaction following an accident. “I realized that revenge
would only bring more destruction, and so I decided to break the cycle
and become a peacemaker,” he explained.
- Japanese
novelist Amamiya
Karin spoke next, pointing out the obvious link between
militarism and poverty, and noting the dangerous trend whereby rising
numbers of jobless and homeless youth in Japan are increasingly being
targeted by recruitment agencies to join the Japanese Self Defense Forces.
She implored the Japanese government to redirect its budget away from
militarization and toward social services in order to avoid the vicious
spiral existing now in the U.S., whereby poor youth are drawn into the
military due to having few or no other options.
- Finally,
aid worker Takato
Nahoko, who was taken hostage in Iraq in 2004, credited
the existence of Article 9 for playing a large part in saving her life.
“The reason why our captors finally released us was due to our
peaceful activities and lack of association with any sort of military
policy, she explained. “I am a living example of someone who is
standing here before you today because of the principles of Article
9, and so I urge Japan to uphold this clause—as well as other
nations to implement something similar. Doing so just may save someone
else’s life in the future.”
After
more energetic musical performances topped off the day’s proceedings,
the second day of the conference featured a full program addressing a
multitude of peace-related issues represented by Article 9. For example,
six symposium sessions were offered on the topics of world conflict and
nonviolence, realizing the spirit of Article 9 in Asia, women’s
peace-building power, linking peace and the environment, crisis and the
future of Article 9, and Article 9 and the nuclear age. There were also
workshops held on the topics of disarmament and peace education, panel
discussions on the topics of demilitarization and globalization, and special
forums led by the Global Partnership
for the Prevention of Armed Conflict and an international
panel of lawyers.
In addition, the conference featured hundreds of workshops, films, artistic
performances, and much more, including sessions covering topics such as
Article 9 and the media, war and oppression, using Article 9 to build
a nuclear-free world, Article 9 and U.S. military bases in Okinawa, banning
depleted uranium (DU) weapons, and the practical use of Article 9 in conflict
regions. Additional offerings included a live performance/ discussion
workshop on the connections between peace
and music; a concert by musician and Chernobyl survivor Nataliya
Gudziy; a talk by 94 year-old former soldier Ryutaro Honda, who will travel
to Europe next year to share his experience and urge protection for Article
9; and a report on the Article
9 peace walk, whereby an international group of participants
spent 72 days walking from Hiroshima to the Chiba conference venue in
order to raise awareness about the importance of Article 9.
The conference venue itself was a virtual festival of activity, with hundreds
of peace organizations of all sizes offering literature and selling goods
at booths set up throughout the facility. These included several groups
calling for the U.S. military to relinquish its hold upon land and property
and return them to local people, such as the Azabu
Heliport in central Tokyo, and wildlife-rich areas in Okinawa
such as the Henoko
seaport and
Takae village [PDF file, via Hawa'i Okinawa Alliance[ in
the forested region of Yanbaru.
Some of the more creative peace campaigners in attendance included the
Kikanshi Media Center, which was selling packages of low-calorie, 8-grain
blend “Article 9 noodles” that promised to cultivate “peaceful
hearts” amongst its consumers; Fukuoka-based university lecturer
Yoshi Kuzume (below, right) , who regularly travels abroad handing out
T-shirts with the text of Article 9 in both Japanese and English in order
to help spread its message around the world; and Isao Hashimoto, an artist
who aimed to draw attention to the reality of the nuclear age with his
striking artwork featuring a succession of blinking lights
on a world map that indicate the history of nuclear testing around the
globe.
The conference wrapped up with a press conference whereby several official
documents were released, including a final
conference declaration and statements to be submitted to
the upcoming G8
Summit and NPT
(nuclear nonproliferation treaty) preparatory committee meetings
[links to PDF files]. In essence, the message of the conference was simple
and yet powerfully straightforward: utilize Article 9 as a practical model
to be implemented by all governments in order to ensure that the doctrine
of “peace through force” shall no longer be utilized as a
tool of the nation-state.
In addition to supporting Article 9, many attendees were motivated by
other various peace-related causes. Women’s shelter caseworker Akiko
Sugiyama, who came to the conference with her boyfriend, community developer
Naoki Kimura, carried around a backpack from which was conspicuously draped
a handmade T-shirt inscribed with the message ‘Free
Tibet.’
“I have been concerned about the situation in Tibet since volunteering
at a Tibetan freedom concert several years ago, and so after the recent
violence, I really felt that I had to try and do something,” Sugiyama
explained. “I carry this shirt with me everywhere I go, and people
are always coming up to me to talk about the situation in Tibet, which
I find really heartening. It’s only a small action, but I’m
hopeful that it will connect with something larger and help make a difference.”
Shuji Goto, a company employee from the city of Kawasaki near Tokyo who
also volunteers with a humanitarian NPO, felt compelled to come to the
conference after considering the real-life implications of war and militarism.
“When Japan conducted a ballistic
missile interceptor test last December, there was all sorts
of hype in the media about how amazing and wonderful it was,” he
recalled. “But after doing some simple calculations based upon figures
given by the UN Refugee Agency, I figured out that with the one-trillion
yen that’s estimated to be spent on the entire defense shield project,
meals could be provided to 82 million refugees for a full year. It makes
me angry that the Japanese government is spending its time trying to get
rid of Article 9 and pouring money into fighting the North Koreans, when
we could be helping to feed them instead.”
For detailed
information on the Global Article 9 Conference to Abolish War, see the
following links:
Full conference program listing:
http://www.whynot9.jp/_programme/
Initial conference report: http://whynot9.jp/doc/initial_report_en.pdf
Official conference statement downloads: http://www.whynot9.jp/sb/log/eid43.html
Gallery featuring Article 9
video messages from conference supporters:
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