　90 %, the percentage of those supporting the U.S. President, who immediately declared “vengeance”, was actually a threatening figure.　It was the phenomenon of people falling into a homogeneous state of mind in their fury, losing their control of themselves for a while.　We had seen such a phenomenon in the past, too.　We should recall Germany or Japan the night before World War II.　We should ask ourselves what was the outcome.　

These words would be suitable for cowboy movies; they are not the words of reason.　They are the words of anger, the words of revenge.　And nothing is further removed from the spirit of Christianity than “revenge or vengeance”.　 Vengeance invites vengeance.　Hatred creates hatred.　

Revenge war has already started against Afghanistan, a country of extreme poverty, which has already run out of food because of the three-year drought and winter is now close at hand too.　 More than two million refugees are going to flee over the mountains with nothing but clothes on their backs.　However, the most miserable are the people of abject poverty, who cannot even become refugees.　Five million innocent people are already on the verge of starvation.　Most of them are mothers and children.　When Mr. Bush blockaded the border and cried out saying, “We will cut off the supply of food to the Taliban,” didn’t the image of those people, the victims of the warfare continuing for twenty years, cross his mind?　Is the world that shed tears for six thousand irreplaceable lives lost in the World Trade Center going to do nothing but watch several hundred times as many lives in imminent danger of being taken?　If so, is it because they are heathens?　Or is it because they are poor?

Fortunately, reason seems to have revived in the United States ten days after that atrocity.　“Imagine” by John Lennon is again on air, and there are more people taking part in peace meetings every day.　People are now discussing why the United States is hated.　One of the reasons they have pointed out is “its failed policy towards the Middle East”, which, I believe, is certainly correct.　The focus of this incident is not on Afghanistan but on Palestine.　In the endless struggle for the Holy Land ”Jerusalem”, the United States, in the minds of the Arabs, has overlapped with Israel.　The discussion, however, must be thorough enough to reconsider the 1,300- year history of civilization.　Mr. Bush carelessly mentioned a taboo word, “Crusade”.　That symbolizes a biased view of the history of civilization on the part of Westerners in general.　In the eyes of Muslims the Crusades were the invaders who assaulted them in the eleventh century.　The very war against those invaders was Jihad, the holy war.

In the past three hundred years the West has looked down on Islam as if they were secondary human beings.　In fact, if it had not been for the twelfth-century renaissance in Arabia, there would not have been modern Europe.　Their contribution, however, has been erased from history books.　Islam’s resentment against the West for having treated them unfairly is deep-seated.　Terrorism does not arise from poverty but from “unfairness”.　The United States, who takes pride in being the leader of the world, should realize that.　And it should, first of all, change its self-righteous attitude of considering globalization as Americanization, American justice as the world’s justice.

The Bush administration that has ignored the international society, defending solely its own country with nuclear armaments, withdrawing from the Kyoto Protocol, pulling out of the World Conference against racism, is now asking for cooperation from the international society.　The magnitude of the shock was that great.　Now the United States needs the United Nations that it has slighted.　In the arena of the United Nations, through discussions between countries of different cultures and different civilizations, reason will certainly be brought back.

Needless to say, we must not approve terrorism.　And we must not identify terrorism with Islam.　If there are worldwide underworld networks, we must resolutely fight against them.　The attitude Prime Minister Koizumi took can be appreciated to a certain extent for the reason that he made Japan’s line of international cooperation in that context clear.　We must, however, make further consideration.　We must realize that this is a new type of war - that the terrorists are risking their lives, advocating one cause.　They showed us that they could shake a big nuclear power with one swing of a knife.　

The Taliban will collapse, and Osama bin Laden’s last moment will come before long.　However, if revenge attacks take many guiltless lives, he will be looked on as a martyr.　While terrorism is an invisible vengeance, vengeance war is an act of terrorism by visible nations.　What is threatening is that it can create innumerable potential terrorists.

Now is the time we should sever the chain of hatred. I recall people who got together in London that was being bombed by the German Forces in the middle of World War II.　 They asked themselves why such a miserable war had taken place, and they came to the following introspective conclusion.　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　

“ existence” recognized.　As the only country among the advanced nations, who neither belongs to Hebraic-Christian nations nor to Islamic nations, who, as such, can keep the same distance from either side, Japan should work as an intermediary to promote “dialogue between civilizations”, explaining to both sides the importance of cultural diversity as well as respect for different cultures.　That, combined with its devotion to humanitarian support for refugees inside and outside Afghanistan, is the way this country can really contribute to the world.　　

　Prof. Noguchi emphasized that the one of the activities of UNESCO is to protect the World Heritage, showing, through a fiber scope, the figure of Suzaku (a bird appeared in Japanese legends) discovered inside the ancient tomb of KITORA and pointing out that its archetype is found in the mural paintings of the ancient tomb of Koukuri in North Korea. He was the head of the Beijing office of UNESCO and was engaged in various activities for education, science and communications in five East Asian countries: China, Mongolia, North Korea, South Korea and Japan. He explained to us some of their activities, including the East Asia Child Art Festival, the Juvenile Painting Contest of the Year of Peace in Macao, opening UNESCO lectures about engineering at Seika University, protection of the ecosystem of Jiuzhaigou in Sichuan, the restoration and maintenance of the World Heritage (i.e. Haming Palace in Changan, ruins of Turfan, Thousand-Buddha Grottoes, Longmen Grottoes) and so on.

　At the end of his speech, he introduced to us a movement to collect and protect works of art brought from Afghanistan and to be returned when peace is reestablished. He emphasized that the UNESCO activities of protecting each country's cultural property as a World Heritage will contribute to achieving peace.

　The second　gathering since the "RETREAT" was held for the occasion of SHOKUYOKU-NO AKI-TAKENAWA (a good appetite for the full autumn). It started at one o'clock in the afternoon at the Meguro Citizens' Centre, and food was classified into four groups; Yemen, Korea, Japan and Dessert. Yemeni dish is like a curry made from chicken. "Takkimuchi", five hot Korean dishes, made from chicken, vegetables and "toubanjya", and the Japanese group contained "niku-jyaga" and "inari-zushi". The group in charge of dessert made crepes. We enjoyed a buffet along with an explanation about the dishes from a representative of each country. At the end, each member was 'obliged' to have one pettit chou a la creme. This was however in the form of 'Russian roulette'! Japanese hot mustard 'wasabi' was hidden in five of the pettit chou a la creme. A tough outcome for some unlucky people! With everybody helping out, we finished the gathering by clearing up and putting things in order. Thirty people had attended, including foreign students, and we had a really enjoyable time. The next session is scheduled to be a study about peace. The continued participation by the young members is very much appreciated.

　　　　　　（Reporter: Kimi Imahata from Youth Activity Committee)
　　　　　　 *The next meeting is to be held on Dec. 1 (Sat.) from 2:00 at Nakameguro Seishounen Plaza.　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　