"Young Diplomats and Human Security Issues"

24-26, November 2000, Amman – Jordan  

Narrative Report

Held at the Jordan Institute of Diplomacy over a period of three days, this workshop aimed at:

• Introducing young diplomats to the concept of human security and the various issues that can fall under a human security concern.

• Giving the participants background information on the Human Security Network, its accomplishments and its past and future activities.

• Giving the participants background information on the Regional Human Security Center and its goals.

• Discussing the foreign policy implications of a country adopting a human security agenda.

The participants included young diplomats from various Arab Countries. While invitations were extended to the Ministries of Foreign Affairs of all the Arab Countries, representatives from the following countries attended: Algeria, Jordan, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Sudan, Tunisia, Yemen and Syria

Both Morocco and Egypt had initially said they would attend but canceled at the last minute.

Dr. Kamel Abu Jaber, President of the Jordan Institute of Diplomacy; H.E. Bell, Canadian Ambassador; H.E. Austrian Ambassador attended some of the sessions.

The workshop was also attended by staff members of the Jordan Institute of Diplomacy, the Canadian Embassy, the office of Prince Talal ben Mohamad, and the Jordan Public Safety Directorate. Attached you will find a list of the workshop attendees.

Workshop Highlights

Attached you will find a copy of the workshop programme.

November 24, 2000

The first day of the workshop was aimed at providing the participants with the following information: First, a definition of human security; secondly, historical background about the Human Security Network; finally, background information about the Regional Human Security Center.

Ms. Donnica Pottie, head of the Political Section at the Canadian Embassy, gave a presentation through which she told the participants about Canada’s leading role in focusing international efforts on tackling human security issues. She also defined the concept of human security, and gave the participants detailed information about the Human Security Network, its member countries, its goals, and its past and future activities.

Dr. Walter Lichem, former Austrian Ambassador to Canada, then gave a presentation through which he defined the concept of human security in great detail. He maintained that human security cannot be viewed in isolation but as part of a triangle which also includes human dignity and human development.

The floor was then open for questions and the participants were very actively engaged. They asked many pertinent questions about the Network, and its official status. A few expressed concern about the ramifications of adopting a human security agenda on national sovereignty: Does the protection of human security in a given country give other countries the right to intervene in the former’s national affairs?

Dr. Zina Haj-Hasan, Director of the Regional Human Security Center, then gave a presentation about the Center, its goals, and its activities.

The participants were then split into two groups and were given the following questions for discussion:

• Do you think that adopting a human security agenda will have an effect on a country’s foreign policy? In what way?

• What problems do you see with the concept of human security?

• What problems/advantages do you see with a country adopting a human security agenda?

The working group discussions focused on three aspects:

• The problem of reconciling national sovereignty, and hence, security, with human security; there was a fear of human security being used as a "pretext" to intervene in a country’s national affairs. The participants expressed the need to draw clear lines between national and human security.

• The close relationship between human security and national security in the Middle East: The Arab-Israeli conflict was viewed as undermining the human security of people in the countries of the Middle East.

• All the participants expressed great optimism about a new world agenda in which people’s right to live free from fear and from want, irrespective of where they live, is respected and acknowledged. As a consequence, they believed that this would result in more financial aid to those parts of the world where human security is in jeopardy.

November 25, 2000

H.E. Ambassador Bell, who attended this session, gave a short talk telling the participants how Foreign Minister Axworthy first came up with the idea of human security, and how far we have come since then.

H.E. Abul-Ilah Al-Khatib gave a short talk in which he emphasized the importance of human security and discussed various issues which threaten the human security of people in the Middle East. He also emphasized the important role played by Ministries of Foreign Affairs in raising those issues on the international scene.

H.E. Ma’rouf Bakhit then gave a presentation about the use of small arms and small weapons, both in Jordan and internationally.

Dr. Atef O’deibat gave a paper about issues which threaten the human security of children in the region. He was followed by Mr. Nasser Mo’eini who talked about children rights and the UN conventions to protect those rights.

November 26, 2000

The day began with field visits to the Jordan Public Safety Directorate, and UNICEF. The aim was to give the participants a concrete view of how some human security issues are tackled on the ground. The visit to the Jordan Public Safety Directorate included a presentation by the Head of the Narcotics Department about the problem of drug trafficking and addiction in Jordan, and the methods through which it is tackled.  The visit to UNICEF included a presentation about UNICEF programmes in Jordan.

Next, the participants returned to the Jordan Institute of Diplomacy for an open discussion. The participants were invited to write down a list of the most important human security issues in their countries. Below is a sample of their answers:

Sudan: The war in Southern Sudan which has resulted in the death and displacement of many, the loss of sources of income, the rise in child labour, and its concomitant deterioration in education.

Algeria: Terrorism. Lack of self-sufficiency. Poor economy.

Yemen: Unemployment, Poverty, particularly after the Gulf War, homelessness of children, and child labour.

Kuwait: social, political, environmental, and economic consequences of the Gulf War, drug addiction and trafficking.

Qatar: Scarcity of water. Scarcity of agricultural and food production. Pollution. Traffic accidents.

Oman: Scarcity of water. Poor education. Unemployment.

Tunis: Religious extremism. Traffic accidents. Rise in birth rates. Invasion of western culture.

Libya: External threats. Middle East security. The lack of global power balance with the United States as the lone super power. Diseases. The Green House effect. 

Jordan: Servicing the National Debt. Unemployment. Scarcity of water. Environmental threats in the South. Domestic and child abuse. Drug trafficking and addiction. The Arab-Israeli conflict.

Lessons learned

In as far as the aims, listed above, are concerned, this workshop can be considered a success. There was, however, a problem which should be avoided in future workshops: There was not enough emphasis on group discussions. Particularly on the second day, the participants seemed to be losing focus due to the "lecture" format of the session. Future workshops should have less presentations and more group activities and discussions.