Real Peace, Real Security: The Challenges of Global Citizenship

by Sharon D. Welch

While just-war theorists hold that war is the last resort, many are now focusing on what is the first resort- what are the multiple tasks that can prevent war and resolve longstanding conflicts. Although there has been a fundamental shift in debates over military policy, these debates are not widely known, even among those within religious communities who are committed to nonviolence and peacemaking. Real Peace, Real Security is a brief introduction to these debates that is vivid, compelling, and accessible to people across the poliltical spectrum - conservatives, moderates, liberals, and pacifists. Welch invites people to enter a timely and compelling ethical and political reframing of the nature of enduring security and sustainable peace. Includes a foreword by William F. Schulz, former Executive Director of Amnesty International, USA.

Genres: Politics

128 pages, Paperback

First published September 1, 2008

Reviews

[Robert D. Cornwall · Rating 3 out of 5]

Real Peace, Real Security offers a sober and practical vision for achieving true security. Such security will come, not at the point of the sword, nor will it come from marches or rallies. It will come as we take the difficult steps toward keeping, making, and building peace. It comes when we recognize our own limits and fragility, that on both sides of the debate on the use of force there can be unintended consequences. It will require honesty and hope, along with what Welch calls “aesthetic pragmatism.” We must begin the move toward true peace, but recognizing that we must deal with the world as it is. This is a book deeply rooted in a commitment to nonviolence, but it is also deeply rooted in a pragmatic sense of what can be done and what must be done. As one who struggles with this issue, and has been unable to move toward pacifism, this book offers a helpful middle way, that in the end might lead to security without violence.

[Amy · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read this book while returning from a trip to South Africa to learn about apartheid and nonviolence. Two things in particular caught my eye and were related to what I had just learned in South Africa. First, "if the international community stays disengaged there is a risk of becoming complicit bystanders in massacre, ethnic cleansing, and even genocide." We cannot be bystanders to the world's conflicts, simply caught in our anguish and unwilling to help because we don't know what else to do. We cannot be bystanders because our inaction ends up helping the perpetrator far more than the victim.

"The most effective check on unethical behavior is the resolute humanization of those who could be perceived as other." What can we do? We can see all interactions with people as an opportunity to explore our common humanity. We can remember that nothing/no one is other.