| Contributions
Anonymous
supplementary comments to the Questionnaire on the Future of Europe
– Spiritual Values and Citizenship Received in September.
Comments
on ‘Do you think that the EU contributes to international
peace and stability’ and ‘in which areas of public policy
do you think Quakers have a particular message to bring to European
institutions?
•
Do
you think that the EU contributes to international peace and stability?
Yes,
but much more could be done. The EU is in a position, if it wished
to offer a greater variety of measures to address conflict and instability,
ranging from the continuing development of a (small) highly professional
rapid reaction force, to a (much larger) range of non-military conflict
resolution and dialogue-promoting organisations. This could be done
easily by giving a higher profile to organisations, which already
exist – eg Oxford Research Group, International Alert, Peaceworkers
UK. OSCE is a brilliant idea but grossly under-resourced –
if funded and used earlier and more frequently, its performance
and results could be monitored and publicised.
Research
into the economic causes of inter-state conflicts and work for a
fairer distribution of resources exist now in a number of centres;
EU overview and support could encourage their application and use.
The
current American policy in Iraq illustrates the importance of dialogue
between nations, particularly in expressing opposition and dissention
in a way that enables it to be heard. The time is ripe for a sea
change in the accepted ways of responding to international conflict,
and the EU could play a very significant role in bringing about
this change.
•
In
which areas of public policy do you think that Quakers have a particular
message to bring to European institutions?
The
specifically Quaker message relates to the nature of our worship
– ie that guidance in how we live comes directly through an
inner conviction reached in stillness and discernment, and not from
an outward authority, and the way in which this is expressed in
our Meetings for Worship for Business. This mode of conducting business
is relevant and effective in general, and can be widely adopted
for discussion and decision-making in the secular field.
The
belief in the intrinsic value of the individual, the equitable sharing
of resources and the seeking of constructive responses to conflict
arise from it and are important, but not exclusively Quaker.
QCEA,
which has access to the experience of individual Friends and groups
of Friends with particular knowledge and expertise can act as a
nexus and focus at times when debate and decision-making on specific
issues are taking place. It can act as a working model of how Discernment
is translated into action
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QCEA
gratefully acknowledges the financial support of the European Commission
for this project. This publication reflects the author’s views.
The Commission is not liable for any use that may be made of the
information contained in this publication. |
