TOLERANCE IN AN AGE OF TURBULENCE
As local has become global and global become local in what has become a dizzying but sometimes sickening collision and intersection of diversity, it has become easier to pick out the flash points of human existence.
People are different. With different cultures and different orientation, people have different demands, even if the age-old thread of common humanity unites them all.
As the world has continued to encounter diverse and infinite possibilities, the need for tolerance has become even more urgent. People will not always agree on everything because apparently people are different. But there is a need for people to tolerate one another, even if they won’t always accept one another.
It is the recognition of difference that can become quickly dangerous if poorly managed that informs the need for tolerance the world over.
This need has a huge historical context.
During apartheid in South Africa, when black people were denied their basic human and political rights, discrimination was the order of the day. Between the colonialists and the natives, distinction became a weapon, as was discrimination.
In 1996, the UN General Assembly (by resolution 51/95) invited UN Member States to observe the International Day for Tolerance on 16 November, with activities directed towards both educational establishments and the wider public.
What is the need for tolerance today? Written into the identity of the United Nation over 70 years ago, the need to practice tolerance has never been more apt. Today, in a world buffeted by turbulence and change, tolerance remains a critical balancing act.
All over the world, people are more connected thanks to technology. But this does not mean there is more understanding. In fact, the advent and proliferation of technology means that people are increasingly more disconnected and more disillusioned with one another.
This disconnect, this disillusionment, has increasingly become more dangerous.
Societies are ever more diverse – but intolerance is growing in many places. Sectarian tensions can be found at the heart of many conflicts, with the rise of violent extremism, massive human rights violations, and cultural cleansing. And the biggest crisis of forced displacement since the Second World War has spawned hatred and xenophobia against refugees and others.
Tolerance is much more than passively accepting the other. It brings obligations to act, and must be taught, nurtured and defended. Tolerance requires investment by States in people, and in the fulfillment of their full potential through education, inclusion, and opportunities. This means building societies founded on respect for human rights, where fear, distrust, and marginalization are supplanted by pluralism, participation, and respect for differences.
This is the message of the International Day of Tolerance – reflected in the UNESCO Declaration of Principles on Tolerance, adopted in 1995. Last year brought to an end the International Decade for the Rapprochement of Cultures (2013-2022), which was led and promoted by UNESCO across the world to promote tolerance.
Every November 16 presents a priceless opportunity to reflect on the gift that tolerance is in a world that is increasingly on the edge.
Every November 16 also presents an opportunity to nurture and promote tolerance as if it were a very delicate flower, and in the process combat the actions of those who promote hate and intolerance to achieve their aims.
Building tolerance means recognizing the mounting threat posed by those who strive to divide. At the root of the spiraling conflicts which uproots lives and turns communities upside down is intolerance which promotes the superiority of one people over another, shrinking critical space in the process.
Promoting tolerance in Nigeria means bringing people from different ethnic groups and religions together and fostering peace and harmony between them, so they can always be able to resist those who sow chaos and death.
That is the only way to lasting peace and security.
Ike Willie-Nwobu,
