Combating violence 'starts from home'

Foto: CM bersama Mr. Tan Sri Lee Kim Yew (Malaysia).

Thu, 06/26/2008 10:33 AM | Headlines
Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia-based Cheng Ho Multi Culture Trust and Indonesia's second largest Islamic organization, Muhammadiyah, are co-hosting the second World Peace Forum in Jakarta. The three-day conference, which was opened by President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono on Tuesday, brings together some 200 prominent figures from across the globe to discuss ways to end violence. The Jakarta Post's Abdul Khalik spoke with Cheng Ho Multi Culture Trust chairman Tan Sri Lee Kim Yew on the sidelines of the event on his ideas for fostering peace.
Question: What is your motivation in taking the lead in organizing this forum?
Answer: My philosophy in life is that when people want to do good things then we should help and support them. If we can't give support, we give them compliments, and if we can't give compliments, at least we should stay in alignment.
I think what Muhammadiyah planned to do was noble, as it wanted to gather all the leaders to try to overcome one of the world's most serious problems. That's why we fully support the initiative.

How do you see the current situation with conflicts and violence in the region?
There's worry that the conflicts can escalate and create region-wide violence. But I think the conflicts and violence can still be repaired as far as the human conflicts and violence are concerned.
But more concern is placed on violence against the environment, with people expressing worry about global warming, food and energy shortages, while more frequent natural disasters, such as cyclones, earthquakes and tsunamis, are taking place.
We believe that both violence on humans and the environment must be addressed together because they create misery for people.
How we can address both of these problems?
Conflicts among human beings can be diminished when we think it's better to have friends than enemies. We should forgive people rather than taking revenge and we should support the truth and avoid manipulating.
Regionally, I am quite optimistic because we have Asian values, which mean family values. As long as we don't lose family values we have hope to avoid conflicts.
That's why I support the Indonesian initiative to foster dialogue to seek solutions to the problems.

What about ethnic and religious diversity among the Asian community? Will this be a problem?
I think people should begin to accept differences. They can freely practice their religion, but when it comes to others' different beliefs, they should show respect and tolerance.
I think, instead of exaggerating differences, we should focus on our similar values. For instance, we should emphasize the fact that every religion teaches to respects others.
You speak of the importance of family values. How can these values help stop conflict and violence?
You see, every individual comes from society and family. A noble or a violent person comes out of a family. If a person from a young age respects their parents, then he will at least be a good person within his or her society.
Family is the first place for education about values -- which is good or bad. As I think all Asian families teach peace and respect to each other, instead of violence and dishonoring others, then conflicts and violence can be avoided when we resort to true Asian values.

How can we reduce environmental damage resulting from violent human activities?
First, we must realize that we need the planet, but the planet doesn't need us. For me, capitalism is good but it has its bottleneck so adjustments must be made. For example, if we continue to produce cars then there will billions of cars on the streets.
Imagine, how much gas will be burned. We have no choice but to dig deeper in order to get more oil. But the question then is how human beings can change their behavior. In this case, how people can reduce the level of consumption by being thrifty, as scientists continue to find breakthroughs in finding replacements for fossil fuels.
Last but not least, we need support from businesspeople to continue to develop ideas into reality.
Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2008/06/26/combating-violence-039starts-home039.html

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