In 2011, I was honored to be given the chance to attend the School of Peace Studies and Conflict Transformation, Thailand. In its 7th installation, the course brought together participants from 15 Asian countries.
The term Humanistan was coined by a fellow participant, in exile from Iraq and currently a proud citizen of South Korea. Having been through the worst that one could experience for his country, he noted that geographical and cultural based identities seem to bring us more apart. For the lack of a better word to define a common ground for humanity, Humanistan became an informal quote of sorts. After all, no matter from which part of the world, from Kyrgyzstan to Pakistan to Iran and Nepal, we shared common threads that bound us in roots of conflicts as well as in aspirations for peace. Added to that fact is that most of our conflicts seem to be internal; that community identities are used to push personal agendas with degradation of society itself.
Ultimately, I have come to believe that we need to transcend in order to transform conflict and for that we need to look into the way we live our lives. And if we can transcend the need for us to have barriers in our minds that keep us apart, the roots of conflict may be addressed. With that, Humanistan presents itself as a common aspiration that we can work for.
Is a Humanistan possible as we leap into the next age of civilization? Can we transcend the borders that we hostilely create around ourselves?
There is much more to be done here and this region. The world is so much smaller now, and as we learn more about ourselves; God willing, our passions and aspirations will help us understand each other more and break the borders that we create, as well as the barriers we build in our minds.
-Subatra Jayaraj
International Movement For A Just World, Malaysia
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