SAFE STRUGGLES IN AN INSECURE WORLD
	22 August 2003

Mr. Peter Ryan’s explanations and his dismay over how journalists distorted his words are excessive. The best response to those who play with the security of the Olympic Games came from the report of a British institute on terrorism, where Greece ranks seventy-first in the global ranking, not even among the countries with medium risk. On the contrary, in the top ten, as easy targets for terrorist attacks, are the countries that hosted the articles and interviews that engage in alarmism, obviously “preventively,” according to the “preventive war” of the new military doctrine of the era.

It is a fact that the organization of the games under secure conditions has been a constant headache for the organizers since ancient times. For this reason, the truce was the most serious part of the preparation, so that athletes and spectators could arrive in Olympia safe and sound. Therefore, the concern for the safety of the games is rightly occupying the organizing committee of 2004, and Mr. Ryan’s salary is well deserved. However, promoting the idea of the truce in the modern era and educating people in peaceful coexistence would have more lasting results than strengthening repressive forces. For Greece, the 2004 Olympics represent a golden opportunity to revive and promote on a global scale the value of the truce, that is, the ideals of peace, cooperation, dialogue, and the rejection of violence as a means of resolving conflicts. Already, promoting these ideals through our foreign policy enhances the country’s prestige in the international arena while simultaneously advancing a new perception of global security. Greece can, drawing from its inexhaustible source of culture, be competitive on the level of ideas and human values. These gold medals are worth more than any others.

However, the reality of the modern world speaks of an intensification of blind violence, hatred, and terrorism, as expressed by the attack on the UN offices in Baghdad and as we experience it daily with the events unfolding in the Middle East, Africa, and elsewhere. Nearly two years after the attack on the Twin Towers and the American Pentagon, terrorism has not only not been dismantled but seems to be reorganizing and preparing for a new show of strength. In Afghanistan, Bin Laden’s followers are ubiquitous, and the spirit of the Taliban is pervasive. Saddam Hussein, ever-resilient, also remains at large, while fanatic Islamists, wherever they are, earn paradise by turning the lives of innocent people, even children, into hell.

In the midst of this horror, in such an insecure world, we are called to organize secure Olympic Games. Will the message of the truce reach receptive ears? Will the powerful of the earth realize that a different strategy is needed to address terrorism and strengthen global security? Will they reflect on the resounding failure of the doctrine of countering violence with even more violence, with aggressive policies and preventive wars? Will they accept the views of the UN for a new security strategy that places the human being at the center, not the states? Fortunately, these ideas find fertile ground in Europe, especially in the realm of social democracy. The Socialist Group of the European Parliament, immediately after the holidays, will prioritize discussions on the “security strategy” and will highlight its new dimensions in a world torn apart by violence.

Certainly, an effective strategy for sustainable collective security cannot be achieved through military means alone. The European Union must offer an alternative proposal, a new vision. Modern social democracy must present ideas and solutions to the problems. Can there be security on a planet with vast inequalities in economic and social development and in the distribution of the goods of science and technology? Should the eradication of poverty be a priority of the Common European Foreign and Security Policy? Of course, national and religious conflicts, terrorism arising from nationalism and fundamentalism, organized crime, drug trafficking, human trafficking, environmental destruction, and the deficit of democracy cannot be underestimated as risk factors. For a safer world, we certainly need fresh ideas, policies, and strategies of a non-military nature, as well as strengthening the role of citizens, especially women, in preventing and resolving crises. When will we have an Olympic Games of ideas?

Anna Karamanou

PASOK MEP

Member of the Presidium of the Socialist Group

www.karamanou.gr