EDUCATION FOR PEACE .
Un blog de Ernesto Amézquita en Cronica del Quindio (translated by CPNN)
According to law 1732, adopted in 2014, the national government has issued the decree “by which the teaching of Peace is regulated in all educational institutions of the country”.
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It is foreseen in article number 2 that “to meet the constitutional mandate enshrined in the articles 22 and 41 of the Constitution, the teaching of Peace is compulsory.” It is so decreed that “the teaching will aim to create and consolidate a space for learning, reflection and dialogue on culture of peace and sustainable development which should contribute to the general welfare and improve the quality of life of the population.”
Historically it has been shown that it is much more productive, civilized and proactive to invest in peace instead of the criminal business of arms dealers, mercenaries and beneficiaries of war.
For Colombia, more than 60 years of violence, about 300,000 dead, millions displaced, thousands missing, wounded and false positives, massacres, millions of orphans; should be more than enough to say enough to the ignorance of death, the peace of the grave and yes to life, to peaceful coexistence, the rule of justice, concord and respect for difference.
As such, these new standards are a good contribution to teaching in the school, family, college; accompanied by administrative bodies, judicial, ecclesiastical, military, police, social, business, etc., to begin to fully implement the rejection of the warmongering, bullying, and all violent, aggressive or armed way of solving problems. Today we have alternative means, justice, both formal and informal, as specific mechanisms for he solution of conflicts.
The central of this law are the culture of peace and sustainable development to be implemented in the academic syllabus that must be incorporated before December 31, 2015, in the areas of social sciences, history, geography, politics and democracy constitution, life sciences, environmental education, ethics, human values and principles.
It is clear that the teachers responsible for this initiative must be qualified, skilled and experienced in those academic areas, because otherwise the effort would be counterproductive. We don’t ask Satan to teach the Bible.
So, we must ask: When will the schools of Quindio and the rest of the country, both public and private, begin to incorporate into their academic programs, this officially mandated teaching? When will we Colombians begin to disarm our own spirits, and when will the communication media become truly objective, truthful and impartial?
With this in mind, let us welcome the teaching of peace, principles and values that we have missed in these 60 years of war and fratricidal violence between brother and brother.
(click here for the original Spanish version of this article)