LAW
AND LAWLESSNESS
Today humanity is standing at crossroads. One path leads to
unity, peace and prosperity and the other leads to disunity,
chaos and uncertainty. After the end of so called 'Cold War'
the United States tried to act as an international policeman
and maintain law and order, but its actions lacked legitimacy
and have often been criticised sometimes even by the traditional
US allies. However, since the 11th of September 2001, international
terrorism has emerged as the biggest threat to civilized living
and the modern nation states. In India, cross-border terrorism
in Jammu and Kashmir and attacks by suicide squads on Indian
Parliament and on places of worship has taken a
heavy toll of innocent lives during the last fifteen years.
International Terrorism is a result of international lawlessness,
a grim scenario where people opt for violent destructive acts
to draw attention to their grievances, real or imaginary,
for which they feel the system does not offer any remedy or
solution.
Some people mistakenly believe that there are some international
laws but in reality there is no enforceable international
law which would be universally applicable on all the countries
and peoples of the world. A law that has no legal sanctity,
is not legally enforceable and if it does not carry a penalty
for its violation it cannot be called a law at all. In that
sense, today there is indeed no international law in the world,
in the absence of which there is total lawlessness in the
world reflected in the increased instances of international
terrorism. Today, international terrorism demands enforceable
international law because international terrorism can be curbed
only through enforceable international law and not by war,
whether between two or more countries or even a World War.
Ineffectiveness of the United
Nations
Like its unmourned predecessor, the League of Nations, the
United Nations has also failed to fulfil the objectives for
which it was formed. In the five and a half decades of its
existence, the UNO has seen more people die in numerous wars
all over the world, than had died in both the world wars combined.
The UNO also saw the nuclear countries build up massive stockpiles
of nuclear weapons, said to be over 36,000 warheads strong.
Moreover, 80 countries have also stockpiled chemical and biological
weapons. The UNO has been a silent spectator to all this and
more. In its over half a century of existence, it has merely
watched as three fourths of the earth's tropical forest cover
disappeared. Even though the UNO has many achievements to
its credit, in the ultimate analysis, one has to admit that
it has fallen far short of the expectations of its founding
fathers. One is reminded of what Jan Tinbergen, the 1969 Noble
Laureate in Economics, said, "World's problems can no
longer be solved by national governments. What is needed is
a World Government. This can best be achieved by strengthening
the United Nations system."
Need of the hour
With the rapid developments in science, technology and communications,
the world today has become a global village where people from
all the countries have to live in close cooperation for mutual
progress, development and survival. In this changed scenario,
the old mindset has become redundant and a new mindset is
needed for the new millennium. The crying need of the new
age is for unity of humankind and peace in the world. There
is thus an urgent need for a legally-constituted law making
body i.e. World Parliament, for enacting enforceable International
Laws that are applicable on all the countries and the peoples
of the world. Only a legally-constituted World Parliament
can ensure unity of humankind and preserve world peace by
banning the teaching of hatred in schools and emphasizing
teaching world unity, world peace and co-existence of mankind.
Education for World Peace
In order to successfully meet the deadly threat of international
terrorism, unprecedented levels of international cooperation
and global efforts are needed. International problems cannot
be solved by national governments. Also, it has to be realized
that the vehicle of war cannot take humanity very far. If
ever there is to be effective international cooperation, such
as was hoped for by the League of Nations and the United Nations,
then there has to be a very widespread effort at inculcating
globalism in children all over the world and shaping their
mindset towards globalism. Only then will a true generation
of world citizens arise. But for this to happen, schools will
have to teach their children love of the Creator and love
for His creation.
Terrorism, like war, begins in the minds of men and it is
in the mind of man where the defences of peace have to be
constructed. This can best be done in the schools when children
are young and impressionable.
True education releases capacities, develops analytical abilities,
confidence in oneself, will power and goal setting competencies,
and instills the vision that enables one to become a self-motivated
agent of social change, serving the best interests of the
community. At certain moment in history, education must also
act as a powerful instrument for profound social transformation.
Such a moment has now arrived.
World Parliament for world peace
New revolutionary changes in the technology of transport and
communications have reduced the world to a global village.
People living on the opposite sides of the globe have become
virtual neighbours, thanks to the internet and supersonic
jets. In such a close-knit world, the emergence or formation
of a world government is only a matter of time. The mute question
is whether the unification of humankind will happen after
unimaginable horrors precipitated by humanity's stubborn clinging
to old patterns of behaviour, or is to be embraced now by
an act of consultative will. However, there can be little
doubt that only a World Parliament can ensure world peace,
implement global steps to conserve the environment and outlaw
and eliminate all weapons of mass destruction, thus safeguarding
the future of world's children, born and yet-to-be-born. |
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