HUMAN RIGHTS and

CULTURAL SUSTAINABILITY

Ivana Dragic

Peaceful School International – Initiative in Serbia & Montenegro

I STATE of

HUMAN RIGHTSand

CULTURAL SUSTAINABILITY In Yugoslavia

(now Serbia & Montenegro)

COMPLEX INFLUENCES AND HISTORY

MAJOR INFLUENCES IN ANCIENT HISTORY

1. Crossing border between Roman Empire and Byzantine Empire 2. Crossing border between Ottoman Empire and Austro-Hungarian Empire

RESULT:Strong religious influences of three major confessions: Islam, Orthodox and Catholic Christianity among people speaking the same language

HISTORICAL FACTS IN LAST 100 YEARS:

6 wars1. I Balkan War, 1912.2. II Balkan War, 1913.3. I World War, 1914. -1918.4. II World War, 1941. – 1945.5. Balkan Civil War 1992. – 1995.6. Kosovo war crisis and

bombing campaign on Serbia, 1999.

HISTORICAL FACTS IN LAST 100 YEARS:

6 times1. Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenians, 19152. Kingdom of Yugoslavia, 19183. Federative Peoples Republic of Yugoslavia, 19434. Socialistic Federative Republic of Yugoslavia, 19745. Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, 19926. State Union Serbia and Montenegro, 2003

change of the name of the State

HISTORICAL FACTS IN LAST 100 YEARS:

3 assassinations

1. King Aleksandar Obrenovic, 1903.

2. King Aleksandar Karadjordjevic, 1934.

3. Prime Minister Zoran Djindjic, 2003.

on Serbian leaders

HISTORICAL FACTS IN LAST 100 YEARS:

3 different

1. Kingdom (Monarchy)

2. Republic (Socialism since 1943.)

3. Republic (Society in transition since 2001.)

Social orders

EXPERIENCES IN LAST 30 YEARS

THE STATE I WAS BORN IN

Socialistic federative Republic of Yugoslavia

EXPERIENCES IN LAST 30 YEARS

Federal Republic of Yugoslavia

1992-2003

Civil warMilosevic dictatorshipSanctionsEconomic depression

EXPERIENCES IN LAST 30 YEARS

Bombing of my home town Pancevo, April 1999

EXPERIENCES IN LAST 30 YEARS

October 5th Revolution 2000 Leader with a real vision

In MemoriamDr. Zoran Djindjic 1952-2003

Sustainability can be defined as :“Meeting the needs of the present without compromising the needs of future generations”.Put these ideas together and we’ll have cultural sustainability – “developing, renewing and maintaining human cultures that create positive, enduring relationships with other peoples and the natural world”. In the words of Nelson Mandela, "Like truth, culture and creativity are enduring."

II VISION 1. Respecting Human Rights

2. Maintaining Cultural Sustainability

“Cultural sustainability” is a new term, and one not easily defined.

The word culture means many things to many people. We use it in the broadest sense to mean 'our values and aspirations, traditions and shared memories, the ways we develop, receive and transmit these, and the ways of life these processes produce'.

III PARTICULAR CHALLENGESADDRESSING MENTALITY OF SERBIAN PEOPLE

1. ADAPTED ON ABNORMAL LIVING CONDITIONS: - Always unstable surrounding

- Normal is to strive for the surviving (Zone of surviving vs. Zone of higher life quality)

- Becoming adapted on higher and higher amount on injustice and “ugliness” in media and everyday life.

Consequences: - Passivity, “learned helplessness”, lack of the “inner locus of control”- “Feelings are not important”- Becoming insensible on others misfortune, raising of egoism and selfishness

ADDRESSING MENTALITY OF SERBIAN PEOPLE

3. “MENTALITY OF DEFICIENCY”:

- Life and wealth are like limited cake – If someone takes bigger part, others will have less

Consequences:- “They will forgive you everything but success”

Consequences: - Put together five intelligent and capable persons in order to make a decision and you’ll get “dumb group” of five people

2. “FLAT SOCIETY” - Society without defined hierarchy and strong elite (vertical order):

- Collective unconscious based on Feudalism and Orthodox Christianity making good ground for the acceptance of Socialism

- No managers – no defined roles and tasks / No leaders – no vision and mission

ADDRESSING MENTALITY OF SERBIAN PEOPLE

4. DISTRUSTFUL ATTITUDES ABOUT WEST

- In terms of political and economical motivation or pretensions from the West ( not about “ordinary people” from abroad – which is often quit opposite)

- Fear of being exploited

Consequences: Popularity of conservative nationalistic political parties

CONSEQUENCES OF ALL 4. POINTS

- Passive or Aggressive life stiles – Assertiveness is not known even as a concept

- Passive majority is easily influenced/ruled by aggressive minority

IV MEETING CHALLENGES

MAIN GOAL

HELPING PEOPLE TO ORIENTATE AND ACTIVATE

THEMSELVES AND THEIR SURROUNDINGS

IN A MANNERS OF PEACE EDUCATION PRINCIPLES AND EXPERIENTIAL LEARNING

PARTICULAR PROJECTS

SUMMER SCHOOL “100 x Better!” (2000)

10 days camp with 100 participants age 18-27 from Pančevo

Lectures about peace-building, human rights, ecology;

Workshops – identity, values, prejudices, team building

NGO “Pančevo Civil Reaction” – GruPa, Pancevo

SUMMER SCHOOL “100 x Better!” (2000)

SUMMER SCHOOL “100 x Better!” (2000)

PARTICULAR PROJECTS

HUMAN RIGHTS TIME MACHINE (2001)

Public performance

Costume ball

Public lectures

Seminar on violation of human rights for lawyers

Survey

NGO “Pančevo Civil Reaction” – GruPa, Pančevo

HUMAN RIGHTS TIME MACHINE (2001)

HUMAN RIGHTS TIME MACHINE (2001)

HUMAN RIGHTS TIME MACHINE (2001)

PARTICULAR PROJECTSPEACEFUL SCHOOLS INTERNATIONAL (since 2000)

MISSION

The mission of Peaceful Schools International is to provide support to schools that have declared a commitment to creating and maintaining a culture of peace.

FOUNDING PRINCIPLES

- Membership in PSI is voluntary

- PSI is non-prescriptive

GOALS- Facilitate networking among peaceful schools - Act as a clearinghouse for innovative ideas and programs - Encourage student-centered conflict resolution strategies - Reduce violence and punitive discipline measures - Support at-risk students - Promote an understanding and appreciation of diversity

Founded by Hetty Van Gurp with Headquarter in Nova Scotia, Canada

Schools that become members of Peaceful Schools International are encouraged to demonstrate a commitment to many of the following:

1. A collaborative approach to school-based decision making

2. Curricular and/or extracurricular peace education initiatives

3. Teaching methods that stress participation, cooperation, problem solving and respect for differences

4. Student and community centered conflict resolution strategies such as peer mediation

5. Community service projects

6. Opportunities for professional development of all staff focused on creating a positive school climate

"We can see the broad effects of this organization which, through activities in our schools, will also affect the local communities and society in general." - teacher, Serbia

AT THE BEGINNING

- PSI involved in one Belgrade school “Vasa Pelagic” 2000.

- New Ministry of Education in Serbia started serious education reform 2001.

-Hetty Van Gurp meets Deputy of Ministry of Education – Tunde Kovac –Cerovic

RESULT OF THEIR MEETING:- Ministry of Education choose 6 Elementary schools from different regions of Serbia for starting pilot project and 12 teachers went to the headquarter of PSI in Canada for the training and visiting schools in December 2002. - NGO “MOST” which runs “Peace studies” engaged for coordinating among six schools

PEACEFUL SCHOOLS INITIATIVE IN SERBIA (since 2002)

INITIATIVE IN PARTICULAR Elementary School “Isidora Sekulic” Pancevo

MAJOR ISSUE for the first year A collaborative approach to school-based decision making

- Starting point: All teachers went trough the workshops on non – violent communication with manuals for working with students- Conducted research on several major aspects of school life which included all staff, and 50 % of parents and students- School Development Plan (involving students, parents, community members) with major issue on discipline and atmosphere in school- Rethinking “Conduct of behavior” with clarifying all procedures and interventions(in each class, then students representatives with staff, and then all class parents representatives with staff) representatives-Changing the leadership in school - Electing three students for the summer camp in Canada

PEACEFUL SCHOOLS INITIATIVE IN SERBIA (since 2002)

PEACEFUL SCHOOLS INITIATIVE IN SERBIA (since 2002)

Ongoing support from PSI

Hetty visiting our school

January 2003

Students from Serbia and Canada on summer camp “Way to Peace”

2003

Following period in school development

- Starting Student Parliament

- Starting program of the Peer Mediation

- Encouraging teachers, students and parents in giving new initiatives

- Starting regular students parties organized by students

- Keeping records and celebrating each success and contribution

- Ongoing support from PSI, new visit, official membership and new summer camp

- Free excursion for the students who made some success

PEACEFUL SCHOOLS INITIATIVE IN SERBIA (since 2002)

PEACEFUL SCHOOLS INITIATIVE IN SERBIA (since 2002)

Various activities in school

Preparation for spreading the network in Serbia with a support of former Ministry of Education

- Conference “PEACE CULTURE IN SCHOOLS” in Belgrade, December, 2003;

- Developed adapted training for this region

- Translated and published three books by Hetty Van Gurp

- Titled PSI movie toolkit

- Award winning documentary by Teresa MacInnes “Teaching Peace in a Time of War”

- 6 schools more included

* March 2004. new Ministry of Education stopped reform of education

PEACEFUL SCHOOLS INITIATIVE IN SERBIA (since 2002)

PEACEFUL SCHOOLS INITIATIVE IN SERBIA (since 2002)

Students for Teaching Peace, March 2005

Visiting schools and co organized International “YOUTH TO YOUTH CONFERENCE”

HUMAN RIGHTS and

CULTURAL SUSTAINABILITY

Ivana Dragic

Peaceful School International – Initiative in Serbia & Montenegro