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Report on the 7th World Conference on Sport, Education and Culture
Related to country: South Africa


 

Contents

 

 

Number

Content

Page

1

Introduction

3

2

Background

3

3

Participants

4

4

Sessions

4

5

Conference Venue

5

6

Accommodation and Transportation

5

7

Experience

5,6

8

Conclusion

6

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Introduction

 

The 7th World Conference on Sport, Education and Culture was held by the International Olympic Committee (the IOC) in partnership with the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO), during the 5-7December 2010 in Durban, South Africa. Over 600 delegates from 130 countries were in attendance. The conference was themed “Giving a Voice to Youth” and sessions were held and presentations made in plenary and specialised (parallel) dialogue sessions.The feedback contained in this report is based on my personal experience and encounters throughout the event.

 

Background

 

Young people represent 18% of the current world global population. Thus, their development and inclusion in major decision making is crucial. The United Nations ‘2010/2011 International Year of Youth’ promotes the vital role of youth in advancing intercultural understanding and the importance of engaging young people transversally across society through sport, education and culture.

 

As noted by study conducted by the United Nations, there is an inseparable link between sport, education and culture. Sport is viewed as a fundamental framework that can be used to ensuring value-based education, youth empowerment, integration and developing a culture of healthy lifestyles.

There is widespread evidence of the fact that formal education systems do not ensure equal opportunities for girls and boys with different socioeconomic and cultural backgrounds. In the developing world these contrasts are even greater. Sport and physical activity can be used to close the gap by imparting skills and values to young people. Against this backdrop, sport has the potential to strengthen young people's wellbeing, self-esteem, confidence and motivating the youth to improve their employment opportunities.

 

The IOC in partnership with UNESCO had decided to host the 7thworld conference on sport, education and culture with the aim of discovering, sharing and developing effective ways to use sport to aid in youth development. They invited world leading sports organisations, personalities and youth development organisations to participate at the event in order to gain a diverse array of views and suss out the most efficient way forward for youth development and inclusion.

 

 

 

Participants

 

Over 600 delegates from 130 countries belonging to various National Olympic Committees, International Federations,

Organising Committees for the Olympic Games, educational and cultural institutions, United Nations specialised organisations, governmental and non-governmental organisations participated in

the conference.

 

Among the delegates and speakers present was IOC President Dr Jacques Rogge, President of the South African Sports Confederation and Olympic Committee Mr Gideon Sam, Minister of Sport and Recreation of the Republic of South Africa Mr Fikile Mbalula, Paralympics Swimmer Ms Natalie Du Toit and Olympic medallist Ms Kristy Coventry.

 

The World Organisation of the World Scout Movement was invited by the IOC together with executive board member Mr Sam Ramsamy to send a representative to attend the conference both as a participate (delegate) and a speaker.

 

Sessions

 

Presentations were organised in to an interactive and engaging format. They were made in one of two categories: Plenary or parallel sessions.

 

Plenary sessions consisted of a caucus of all delegates at the conference.

 

Parallel sessions consisted of two sessions which ran parallel to each other, delegates could decide on which of the two sessions to attend.

 

The World Organisation of the World Scout Movement was invited to make a presentation at Parallel session F, entitled ‘Young People speak’.

 

The parallel session was themed around ‘Learning experiences from sport, education, culture and society. How the outcomes of the Olympic Congress Recommendations and the Millennium Development Goals unite to move the global agenda forward’.

 

(A copy of my speech will be printed in the Final Declaration Document of the 7thWorld Conference on Sport, Education and Culture. I will send this through as soon as it is made available.)

 

 

 

 

Conference Venue

 

The conference was held at the International Convention Centre (ICC), Durban.

 

Accommodation and Transportation

 

Delegates were based at the Hilton Hotel and the Royal Hotel for the duration of the conference.

 

Transportation to and from the conference venue was organised by the city (Durban) municipality by means of a shuttle service.

 

 

Experience

 

At the opening ceremony of the conference, in his opening address, IOC President Dr Jacques Rogge acknowledged the presence and attendance of the World Organisation of the World Scout Movement; he mentioned the outstanding work of the Scout Movement in ensuring Youth development throughout the world and also its impact as the largest youth organisation in the world.

 

This set the stage and highlighted the presence of scouting.

Throughout the conference I was treated with warmth and kindness by the fellow delegates and organisers. I found the conference to be intriguing; it opened my eyes to the power of sports and psychical activity. It was refreshing to find that the vast majority of delegates present where pasted Scouts and Boy scouts. This showed the capacity that can be gained from the Scout Movement and also took much stress off with regards to relating to others.

 

I did my best to uphold the outstanding universal image of scouting. I attended all sessions in Scout uniform and I was approached by various organisations that were impressed by the work performed by scout movement throughout the world.

 

I attended the following sessions:

Sunday, 5 December 2010

 

Opening Ceremony

 

Monday, 6 December 2010

 

Plenary one

Education, Sport and Culture: The Inseparable Trio

 

Parallel session B

Empowerment through Sport Engagement

 

Plenary two

The role of youth in promoting inter-cultural dialogue through sport

 

Parallel session C

Developing a culture of healthy lifestyles

 

Tuesday, 7 December 2010  

Plenary three

Local realities in a global perspective: Education for sustainable development

 

Parallel session F

Young People Speak

 

Parallel session G

Legacy and Regeneration: The healing powers of sport

 

Plenary 4

Closing Ceremony – Youth Caucus

 

 

Conclusion

 

I would like to formally thank the World Organisation of the World Scout Movement, the South African Scout Association, the Kwa-Zulu Natal Scout Association and the Shallcross Scout Group for providing me with the opportunity to represent the movement, which was indeed a privilege and honour. The power of scouting is immense, with our continued efforts in the development of the youth we are ensuring the creation of better individuals, communities, countries and a planet at large.

 

  


January 1, 2011 | 8:12 AM Comments  0 comments

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“Globalization is bad as it undermines state sovereignty”.

“Globalization is bad as it undermines state sovereignty”.

Humanity is sitting on a time bomb! If the vast majority of the world’s political researchers and theorists are correct then we have just a few years to advert a major catastrophe that could bring and end to individual independence, freedom from external forces, traditions and ultimately state sovereignty. Globalization!

Globalisation as defined by Dr Martin Singh refers to the way in which “the economical, social, political and cultural activities of the world are interconnected” Singh (2008). State sovereignty on the other hand, as defined by popular Chinese attorney Guigo Wang refers to “the three-fold capacity of a state, which is to have – absolute supremacy over internal affairs within its territory, absolute right to govern its people, and freedom from any external interference in the above matters” Wang (2004). Theses two definitions are direct contradictions of each other and can therefore not exist simultaneously or cooperatively.

A state is viewed as the most important unit of politics. Sovereignty is seen as the foundational pillar in order for a state to maintain existence and democratic power. Through globalization, events and decisions in one part of the world have a bearing and affect events and decisions in another part of the world. Thus, undermining the very essence of state sovereignty.

Globalization has several characteristic including: the promotion of a western (American) culture, which entails values of consumerism that overrides the local traditions and cultures. This is seen, for example in fashion trends and youth culture. Individuals tend to forget their native roots in order to fit in with the crowd and to be seen a trendy and popular according to global standards, there is an ever growing importance of multinational corporations, a shift in production from country to country, and an increase in foreign capital flow and foreign direct investments.

Steven D. Krasner, a world renowned theorist, agrees with evidence that state sovereignty is collapsing. However, he disagrees with the notion that globalization is the detrimental trigger to sovereignty. He argues “Those who proclaim the death of sovereignty misread the history. The nation state has a keen instinct for survival and has so far adapted to new challenges, even the challenge of globalization” (Krasner, 2001: 20). His theory is based on the fact that globalization is not a new phenomenon and is often said to have existed since the beginning of time. However, contemporary globalization distinguishes itself from that of the past, in terms of “rapid communication, market liberalization and the global integration of goods, services and production” Badakhshani (2007). Thus proving that globalization of today will impact differently on state sovereignty as compared to globalization of the past.

In our today’s world it is vital for states to build relations with each other in order to develop and grow their economies through the selling of goods, services, resources, commodities and trade. For example there is interdependency between China and South Africa. While China relies on South Africa for resources, South Africa relies on China for goods. This interdependency of trade between states thus undermines the first of the three-fold capacities of a sovereign state, “the absolute freedom from any external force”, which influences the conduct of the state. De jure states are not compelled to develop relations with each other, but de facto it is in their best economic, social and political interests to do so.

For a state to be regarded as sovereign it is essential that it as the ability to solve its own civil problems without external interference. However, problems and threats are now becoming more globalized and it has become virtually impossible for a state to act independently in finding solutions to various issues. For example, international crime, lets say there is a drug trade between two criminal organizations situated in two separate countries, namely Zimbabwe and Nigeria. In order to demolish this crime network, the Zimbabwean government is dependent on the assistance of the Nigerian government and vice versa. Thus, undermining the second notion of sovereignty, “absolute supremacy over internal affairs within its territory”.

Through globalization the world is viewed as a global village. The concept of a global village is based on the “Kantian philosophy that views the world as a community of free individuals; a community where nations and borders are no longer relevant or of any meaning” Badakhshani (2007). Through this view, powers of the government are reduced as governments become more dependent on each other. International bodies such as the World Bank and The United Nations influence the policies and choices that national governments can make. Through the introduction of Multinational corporations (“Large companies or branches that operate in several counties” Singh (2008)) around the world, individual’s loyalties and influence are shifting from their native counties to the international companies which skill them and provide them with jobs and an income. Thus undermining the final notion of sovereignty, which is the states, “absolute right to govern its people”.

With the reduction in state sovereignty due to globalization there is an ever looming possibility of imperialism by powerful countries on less powerful countries. Multinational companies are built. Developing counties are exploited by developed countries, in order to serve their own interests. Most jobs are low paying, there are poor working conditions, long hours, most profits are taken out by the parent country therefore reducing benefits to the host country, little money is spent on preventing environmental problems due to lenient environmental laws, resources are extracted with no value added, employment insecurity arises when the multinational corporations shed jobs arising from technological advancements.

Due to the increasing growth of interdependency between countries (states), emergence of multinational institutions and the integration of international laws, there has been a rapid deterioration in the three-fold capacity of a state. Thus, states no longer have absolute supremacy over internal affairs within its territory, absolute right to govern its people, and freedom from external interference in the above matters. Much of this is due to international influence. States are also faced with high rates of crime and terrorism. Since they can no longer provide for the absolute security of their citizens and cannot independently act in order to solve their civil problems, there is a lack of state sovereignty. Thus proving that not only does globalization undermine state sovereignty but it will also gradually lead to the demise of states and its governance.

In my personal view, the negatives effects of globalization on the sovereignty of our various states can no longer be viewed as a commercial or political issue – sovereignty is fundamental in order for us to maintain democracy and independence. Therefore this issue should be viewed as the biggest moral challenge facing our civilization today.


October 16, 2010 | 5:49 AM Comments  1 comments

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The International Criminal Court

The International Criminal Court (ICC) is an international criminal prosecution institution that investigates and prosecutes offenders of crimes, such as; genocide, crimes against humanity and war crimes. It acts on behalf of nation states, who have failed to fulfil their legal responsibilities. This essay will outline the structure, membership and implementation processes of the ICC. It will further argue points for and against the continued existence of the ICC and also provide possible solutions to the concerns surrounding its operation.

The term genocide refers to the systematic and deliberate destruction of a group or nation of people, on the grounds of race, religion or ethnic origin. Examples of genocide include the ethnic cleansing of Bosnian Muslims by Christian Serbs and the attempts by Hutus and Tutsis to annihilate and eliminate each other in Burundi and Rwanda. A crime committed against humanity refers to an offence that infringes on the dignity of, humiliates and degrades human beings. The most profound example of this is the apartheid system that once existed in South Africa. A war crime is a violation of one or more of the established rules of warfare. Examples include the Vietnam War, in which US soldiers were indicted on charges of killing civilians and Iraq's hostage taking and maltreatment of prisoners during its occupation of Kuwait.

The ICC is based in The Hague, Netherlands and is an independent entity, although it maintains a cooperative relationship with the United Nation. It is governed by an assembly of states parties and is composed of four organs i.e. The Presidency, office of the Prosecutor, Judicial Division and Registry. The Presidency is made up of three judges that are elected to serve for a period of three years, by their fellow ICC judges. They are responsible for the administration of the Court, with the exception of the Office of the Prosecutor, who is responsible for receiving referrals and information on criminal activity that fall under the courts jurisdiction, for examining them, conducting investigations and prosecutions before the Court. The Judicial Division is made up of eighteen judges and is sub-divided into three categories the Pre-Trial Division, the Trial Division and the Appeals Division. The judges of each sub-division sit in chambers which are responsible for conducting the proceedings of the Court at different stages. The Registry of the International criminal court is headed by the Registrar and is responsible for all the non-judicial aspects of administration of the Court. The Registrar is elected for a term of five years and exercises his/her functions under the authority of the President of the Court.
The International criminal court is composed of members from 113 countries, most of which form part of Europe, South America and African. In order for a state to become an active member of the ICC it as to sign and abide by the Rome statute. The ICC can generally exercise jurisdiction in cases where the accused belongs to a state party or the United Nations Security Council refers a matter to the court. The primary responsibility of dealing with crimes and criminal individuals is left to nation states. The ICC will only intervene when state court systems are unable or unwilling to investigate and/or prosecute criminal individuals.

Sovereignty as defined by Chinese attorney and author Guigo Wang refers to “the three-fold capacity of a state, which is to have – absolute supremacy over internal affairs within its territory, absolute right to govern its people, and freedom from any external interference in the above matters” Wang (2004). The necessity of sovereignty in our today’s society is a widely debated issue with various views and no mutual conclusion. It is the focal argumentative point that states and individuals use to critic the ICC. How much of power does the ICC take away from nation state? Does it infringe upon the governance of nation states? The outlined operation of the ICC is a clear and direct contradiction of the given definition of sovereignty. The ICC as become an unavoidable participant in national state legal processes, as states are forced to adapt to the precedents of the ICC or risk having its cases called up before the international court. However, this infringement may be implied (allowed) through the signing of the Rome statute and may be said to be necessary in certain instances for the benefit of the people.
The ICC was established with the aim to end impunity by making criminal individuals answerable to crimes they have committed. Many of these individuals often have influence within their national state court systems and many states lack a functional court system. In this manner individuals are able to avoid state prosecution. As noted, the ICC will take over when national criminal justice institutions are unwilling or unable to act. It is an international entity, made up of individuals from various countries and therefore no particular state influence or affiliation as the various individuals making up the ICC act as a ‘check and balance system’ on each other. With the prosecution or removal of criminal individuals from everyday society there is an ease on conflict, and future ‘would be’ war criminals are deterred as they will come to realise the threat of prosecution is eminent, in that, even if they do manage to avoid state prosecution they would still be answerable to an external body i.e. the ICC.
However, as argued by critics the exercising of judicial review and setting of precedents, defining what is an effective and ineffective court system by the ICC undermines the very essence of state sovereignty. The jurisdiction of the ICC is expansive, it can prosecute individuals from countries who are not signed members of the ICC and who may not necessarily want outside interference. The ICC is funded by states parties and voluntary contributions. It is argued that the ‘larger’ contributors have a persuasive voice and connection with the ICC, who are in turn compelled towards them; which may lead to the ever looming fear of imperialism by powerful countries on less powerful countries and the exploitation of smaller countries.

During December 2003, the national government of Uganda referred to the Prosecutor of the ICC, a situation concerning a rebel-militant group, namely the Lord’s Resistance Army. The militant army has been accused of war crimes, genocide and crimes against humanity. They have avoided state prosecution, by bribery, intimidation and influence. The state government as asked the ICC to intervene on the matter as they have international resources and power. The ICC as issued warrants of arrest for the rebel Army leader Joseph Kony, his deputy Vincent Otti, and commanders Okot Odiambo and Dominic Ongwen. It will investigate and probe the matter, receive evidence from all sides and prosecute if necessary. The objective is to uncover the facts in order to safeguard the citizens of Uganda.

There are many fears, doubts and concerns surrounding the operation of the ICC. These may be addressed by; Informative campaigns - in which, nation state are educated in the operations and processes of the ICC, the summation of a detailed report by the ICC to states- listing its jurisdictions and capabilities, by involving states in the operation of the ICC, by developing and sharing a mutualistic relationship with states- in which they do not infringe upon the boundaries set out by states and their national criminal systems, by having an open and direct line of communication with states and developing a safeguard mechanism- in order to protect state sovereignty.

Although there may be negative implications surrounding the continued existence of the ICC, I personally view its operations as beneficial to our global civilization. It was developed with the vision of peace and accountability. Most perpetrators of genocide, war crimes and crimes against humanity have throughout history gone unpunished; the message which is implied through the existence of the ICC is that, the international community will no longer tolerate monstrous, criminal acts on, or against citizens of the world, without assigning responsibility and appropriate punishment to the offenders. It aim is to achieve justice for all, to end impunity and conflicts, to remedy the deficiencies of past international ‘selective justice’ systems, to take over when national criminal justice entities are unwilling or unable to act and most importantly to ensure effective deterrence of future war criminals.

This essay as sort out to explain the structure, membership and implementation processes of the International Criminal Court. It has argued points for and against the continued existence of the ICC and also provided possible solutions to the concerns surrounding its operation. I have found the information contained in the essay to be insightful and eye-opening. Justice for all is a fundamental international human right and should be viewed as the biggest moral challenge facing our global civilization today.


October 15, 2010 | 2:48 PM Comments  0 comments

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150 minutes of service
Related to country: South Africa


To commemorate the arrival of the indentured labourers from India in 1860, which sowed the seeds for the South Africans that we are, we invite you to join in our project to fittingly pay tribute to our ancestors.

Many of the early pioneers in the face of adverse conditions established schools, social upliftment institutes and promoted self - reliance. We know that many of you still follow these ideas today. Giving time is the most precious gift one can make. Time is the material of which life is composed.

As a special TRIBUTE, we call upon you to devote 150 minutes (2 hours 30 minutes) to voluntary work for a community organisation or charity of your choice, be it a child welfare society, a hospice, an HIV-AIDS prevention organisation, improving schools, assistance to hospitals, organisations for the elderly, assisting the handicapped, etc...

An organisation of your choice will suffice in keeping with our THEME 150 MINUTES of social Upliftment Action. We are calling this period of service "TRURO TIME". If you do not have the time, then perhaps you can donate R150,00 to a charity, in lieu of the 150 minutes.

The invitation is extended to all. You can log on to our website wwww.150years.110mb.com and register yourself or your organisation can affiliate with us in this project. There are no fees payable, the charity or service you render is entirely your choice. However, you can post comments on our website and stories of your good deeds.

Please, if possible, obtain letters of acknowledgement or receipt of the "TRURO TIME" services you have done and post it on our website. You perform real charity if you give freely without expecting anything in return. Here by giving, we are honouring our ancestors for the brave sacrifices they made, venturing across the strange seas to a new country, which we call home.

You can give material things: food for the hungry, money and clothes for the poor. You can also give your knowledge, skill, time, energy or effort to projects that can benefit others. You can devote special dedication "TRURO TIME" at any time up to the anniversary of the arrival of the Truro that is the 16th November 2010.

They came from across the seas, in many instances they were treated as slaves, brutalised, humiliated and forced to plead for mercy. Even with dint of hard work, when they acquired land, this land was forcibly taken away from them. They utilised poorly funded educational opportunities supplemented there with thei own meagre incomes and caused a substantial portion of their off spring to be educated. Today the seeds that they have sown are contributing to all facets of South African community life. But, there is a sad side as well. Social ills like drug- addiction, alcoholism, gambling and domestic violence are besetting the populace which would cause the hard working ancestors to shed a tear or two. Moreover the ravages of unemployment and poverty are also taking its toll on the populace.

We call upon all descendents and all well - wishers to join us in paying homage to our ancestors and contribute towards the upliftment of society by giving "TRURO TIME".

May 27, 2010 | 3:58 AM Comments  0 comments

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The Diversity of South Africa
Related to country: South Africa

Translations available in: English (original) | French | Spanish | Italian | German | Portuguese | Swedish | Russian | Dutch | Arabic

South Africa my beautiful home,
I cannot praise you enough in this poem,
Your first children of the sun were the San,
Then followed many a colour of man.

Mingling freely,melting pot of culture,
Blessed with glorious flora and faunathe lion,
the rhino and even the vulture.

Emerging safely from a harsh,damaging past
into a miraculous,violence-free future
that is sure to last.

Wonderful rhythmic music,colourful art
From your lustrous shores Iwill not part.

Whatever our past origins, as long as we
honour the country,the flag,
We are true South Africans,and will not lag,
Away with racism; in our heritage,
such vileness does not belong,
Peace,justice, tolerance that is our song.

The world is a village,
a so called foreigner is a friend,
We offer sanctuary and justice,
we will not bend,
challenges there are a plenty,
may no stomach go empty.

South Africa my land,
my hope and glory,
Emblazoned in gold will be your story.

November 26, 2008 | 8:06 PM Comments  0 comments

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