Peace Activism

Wed, 22 Dec 2010 16:50:47 +0000

Peace Activism

Om Mani Peme Hum

Om Manifestacion

Mantra of Avalokiteshvara, Buddha of Multiversal Compassion

There are certain concrete practices that generate peace at an individual level. These include Yoga, T’ai Chi, Meditation, Anna Panna, Prana Yama, Mudra, Bandha, Capoiera, Chi Gong, Acupuncture, Feng Shui, and the other spiritual activities that can be used to create Peace, Happiness and Bliss that is termed Nirvana in Sanskrit, or complete absence of any type of suffering. A good way of developing this is the practice of Sila, Samadhi and Panna, Moral Discipline, Concentration and Wisdom, that are paths that succeed in reaching this destination. These pacifist practices can generate peace as a sensation on a daily basis. Furthermore they are disciplines which can bring peace, harmony and wellbeing at the individual, interpersonal, social, cultural, intercultural and environmental levels. Most of these come from ancient traditions in Oriental, African and South American cultures, which share holistic visions much more ample than those found in the “Western Mind” (As described by Carl Gustav Jung in his autobiography “Memories, Dreams, Reflections”), and that see the universe (multiverse) in (its) entirety, that phenomena are not separate as they appear to the human mind, but rather united and unique in their union. These themes seem to be supported by modern cuantum physics, as Gary Zukav exposes in his book “The Dancing Wu-Li Masters – An Overview of the New Physics”.

Karma is a Sanskrit word that means action, although it can also be translated as cause and effect, or intention. From this point of view it can be understood that it is the mental factor of intention that generates action, and therefore actions function as causes and the experiences of living beings as their effects. Therefore a connection is implied between the quality of actions, and the quality of the experiences that we have.

The word Activist is also a word etymologically akin to action. This means that activism is a karmic choice that we can make, to improve the social, environmental, cultural, political economic and circumstantial conditions in which we find ourselves. This is the true meaning of pacifist empowerment, and direct action is its practical expression. When this is executed in a conscious way, prioritizing the exigencies, (basic) needs and (virtuous) desires of the (largest possible number of) people, a dynamic equilibrium can be found that can benefit the masses. The important point is that everyone has the right to practice it.

The collective Visiondance[1] says that we can use Direct Action, e.g. strike, occupation, hunger strike (fast) rajagriha , protest, and boycott as a tool of social Acupuncture in order to redirect energies, social dynamics and relationships (including financial ones), in order to increase wellbeing, co-operation and happiness of beings in the multiverse. For example the occupation of the Mexican military bases by the Zapatista indigenous people, has drawn attention to the Human Rights abuses by the Mexican government by means of the army. This is an extremely important step for the redistribution of resources from the intentions of military aims (oppressive and abusive, and that let’s not forget coincide with the “Neoliberal” economic theories) to the needs, requirements and interests of the indigenous peoples, for example their human rights, land rights (Pachamama[2]), and sovereignty.

Social Fora

The first World Social Forum in Porto Alegre, Brasil, 2001, Took place as a “countersumit” or Altermundialist (Other Worldist) Summit. In order to propose alternatives to the so called “neoliberalist globalisation”, which could also be defined as the expropriation of the earth’s resources by the already unimaginably affluent[3]. We are talking about an inequality without precedent in the history of life on this planet, and as such is being contested not only by the protests against the G8, G20, WTO IMF and World Bank summits or the so called “international financial institutions” such as the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland. Whilst these protests are opposing the politics of war and death, the Social Fora are proposing alternative ways of managing human activities with sustainable, co-operative and pacifist ends. The Social For a act as the organizational hub of the social movements, where activists can network, organizations can represent themselves, and movements can protest (manifest). Recognized proponents of radical, progressive and collectivist changes include Rigoberta Menchu (Guatemala), Vandana Shiva (India), Subcomandante Marcos (Mexico), Jose Bove (Francia), Shirin Ebadi (Iran), Ken Saro Wiwa (PBUH Nigeria), George Monbiot (England), Antonio Negri (Italy), Howard Zinn (US), Naomi Klein (Canada).

Subcomandante Marcos of the EZLN (Ejercito Zapatista de la Liberacion Nacional – Zapatista National Liberation Army) says that one can Orly lead by following the needs of the people. For this reason he proposes a movement of many leaders, and of course, in order to function efficiently, communities require that leadership roles be interchangeable. This can be done by encouraging initiative as the spontaneous expression of creativity (participatory democracy). If it is the appropriate thing to do, in the appropriate moment, it does not matter who proposed it, or shown how to do it, or inspired the rest of the people to act in the continued evolution of the many, social progress and increase in wellbeing. In fact, attachment to roles is in reality another facet of the ego and as such is a source of suffering. It means being conscious of the needs, requirements and priorities of others, and taking responsibility for our altruistic actions. In fact, leader is quite a chauvinist word, and a way could be found to unite it to it’s feminine equivalent in order to balance dynamic equilibriums. The reason why the emperor Obama is not going to change anything important is because the position of “leader” is a puppet (Marionette) position, and the nature of living beings is that of freedom. Whilst the intention of “governments” is to dominate and control, for impermanent contaminated (by attachment, another source of suffering) benefits for the minority (elites), in the short term, the intention of Bodhichitta or Enlightened Mind is to liberate, empower, inspire.

I would like to take this proposition one step forward, and propose a Movement of many prophets. The word comes from the greek prophetes that means “That speaketh beforehand”. In English the word Soothsayer or Truthsayer means “he who speaks the truth”. This practice would be applicable to the mass media, as John Pilger says in Freedom Next Time “(a Czeck journalist) said to me: here in the east we are more fortunate than you in the west for one reason: when we listen to the news, we know not to listen to it because we know that it is propaganda and lies”.

The social for a take place at the global, continental (regional) and local levels. This means that self determination (sovereignty), self-management, and freedom to choose are practices that can be realized collectively by means of assemblies of participatory democracy. As Noam Chomsky says in Social Politics in the XXI Century “The (so called – sic) authorities want the population to be relegated to the role of spectator within the political sphere”. Practicing in this way we really can contest the centralization of power, and all of the oppression and domination that this implies, and in so doing protect plurality, diversity and autonomy of multiform living beings.

Detainee breakout from Woomera detention centre, Australia

In this Direct Action the activists succeeded in their intention to benefit, liberate and protect the rights of the beings in question, that had been removed. Woomera was also the site of missile testing during the cold war. Here in this huge peaceful protest, the activists managed to break down the prison’s fences, and more than 00 “immigrants” (refugees, asylum seekers) escaped, and the activists managed to hide the majority within their social solidarity networks, thereby avoiding the so called “authorities” oppressive roundups.[4]

Occupation by Indigenous Mayan Zapatista peoples communities and Caracoles in Chiapas, Mexico

Here the communities organized by the EZLN Caracoles successfully occupied a Mexican “army” barracks in the context of a “low intensity war”. They achieved this using videocameras linked to the internet via livestreaming in order to highlight the danger in which they found themselves to the whole world also to avoid any atrocity on behalf of the “army”. Footage can be seen on youtube[5].

The Smash EDO Movement, Bristol, Brighton, UK

The activists succeeded in decommissioning the EDO arms factory in Brighton, England, that was illegally selling arms to the oppressive regimes of the “state of Israel” and the “United States of America”. Several activists broke in to the EDO MTT factory in Brighton, causing 6000 pounds worth of damage to equipment that they found there. They were subsequently interned in prison for this “crime”, although they were later found not guilty at court, where they attained a victory by saying that they had done this to prevent worse crimes and atrocity from being conducted by the Israeli “army”. This had the effect of publicizing these issues of human rights abuse of Phalastinian people to the British public, raising awareness of the issue.

No Cuts No Fees No Closures Campaign

In the University of Wales, Swansea, the activists organised protests that exposed the police abuse of students and illegally implemented closure process of 5 departments (Philosophy, Sociology, Anthropology, Development Studies and Chemistry). We sold the footage to the British television network BBC, that televised it on their current affairs programme, “Dragon’s Eye”.[6]

The “Battle of Seattle”

Where the activists of the DAN network (Direct Action Network) opposed the unjust neoliberal policies of the WTO (World Trade Organization), the NAFTA (North American Free Trade Agreement), TRIPS (Trade Related Intellectual Property Rights) etc. They succeeded in blocking the summits with an outcome of positive repercussions for millions of people, highlighted by the Altermundialismo of the Social For a (Global, Regional and Local).

Indymedia

The Indymedia network has the potential to give rise to protests, occupations and Direct Action in real time, rapidly, with the aim of protecting the wellbeing of the public. These can be nominated “Wild Fire Gatherings”, an example of which would be the Reclaim the Streets Strategy of FreePartying to further the agenda of a particular issue (disarmament, sustainable energy, ecology, human rights, labour rights etc.). In particular the “Criminal Justice Bil” (990).

It acts as much more than a news source (that even in this sense has several advantages over the “commercial” mass media, from the point of view that publication is completely open, anyone can publish articles), but also as a social/community organization tool[7]. For example the article that I had written was collected by the site’s volunteers and collated in the front page with links on how to occupy your university that we utilized in the organization of protests. Furthermore, now we have opportunities with Twitter that we can send messages to the internet to publish up to the minute developments in the duration, direct actions and directions of any protest.

VideoActivism

Now that the technology of the videocamera, and above all livestreaming and internet are available to the public we have the opportunity to utilize it in order to prevent human rights abuse. This is highlighted in the work of the Undercurrents collective, with whom I have worked personally to expose police abuse and institutional fraud in the University of Wales Swansea (We opposed the police, who brutally assaulted us, at the behest of the Vice Chancelor, Richard Davies), and I sold the footage to the BBC, that televised the footage in the current affairs programme “Dragon’s Eye”, 2004. Other very good works in this field are Thomas Harding’s “the Video Activist Handbook” and John Pilger’s “Freedom Next Time” and “Palestine is till the Issue”. As Paul Kingsnorth says, now we have an opportunity without precedent to redistribute the planet’s material resources in order to eradicate the causes of poverty, and create a more equal distribution (egalitarian), including food sovereignty rights (As the libertarian collective Food Not Bombs proposes)

Hacktivism

Cracktivism

Raptivism

This type of activism is a new style of rhyming, usually to Rap, Reggae, or Drum n’Bass music. Practitioners of this type of protest include Lowkey, Saul Williams Immortal Technique, and myself[8]. The effect of raising awareness about social, environmental and rights (including human) issues, in order to give accessibility of understanding to the largest amount of people possible. It is for this reason that in my song “NoBorder”, I rap in three different languages, in order to internationalize these issues. (of antimilitarism, mental health, resisting oppression), to raise consciousness at the global level, to increase the peace and to liberate rights.

Flicktivism

Atractivism

This is a term that can be applied to the fertility of the resistance to “capitalist” oppression. As was said at the protests against the II Gulf War when 20,000,000 people protested globally in order to oppose this unforgivable act in march 2003; Resistance is Fertile – this can also be seen in the flirtacious tactics of the Pink and silver bloc, that is to say to rebel revealing (revelling). It is also a manifestation of the evolutionary, creative and regenerative energy of sexuality, expressed through a politics of pleasure.

“Disobedience is, to the eyes of whatever scholar of history, (wo)man’s (-sic) original virtue”.

-Oscar Wilde

Meditation

Breathing is also an action. In fact it is an action that is at the root of the vital process of energy transformation in the body’s metabolism, that unfolds in this moment, evolutionarily. Furthermore, it is the action that connects the changes, both energetic and physical, in the universe in its holism, to the cellular body. Observing respiration one can purify, train and pacify the mind, manifest inner peace, realize the impermanent nature of the whole Multiverse, and liberate oneself from hatred, attachment and ignorance, that are the true causes of suffering. A sound way of practicing this is the technique of self observation known as Vipassana, see S.N.Goenka’s Dhamma tradition.

Yoga

Yoga means to unify (join), the direct translation from Sanskrit is yoke, (joke) but it is etymologically close to the Italian (latin) word gioco that means play (game Giocare means to play, also etymologically close to joke/(r) (juggler – player). It is therefore emblematic that within the global peace, rights and ecology movement protests are often manifested with juggling, clowns and carnival (see Clandestine Insurgent Rebel Clown Army[9], Pallazos sin Fronteras). So practicing yoga joy, happiness, peace, love and virtue can be generated. At times groups of meditators can be found at protests, manifesting the practice of Yoga, Chi Kung, T’ai Chi, Meditation, thereby balancing their minds, purifying their hearts and generating spiritual protection for themselves and loved ones and other participants of the protest (Synchronicity). This took place at the G8 protest in Rostock, Germany 2007, at the concentration against police violence in Granada 2008 and at the warehouse occupations of the synergy project, London, 2005. These beings are known as Bodhisattvas, and by means of the practice of the 6 perfections (Effort, Patience, Generosity, Moral Discipline, Concentration and Wisdom) – that are found gathered in the Tibetan Mahayana Teachings, succeed in their intention to liberate all beings from the chains of suffering, dhukka, sangsara.

We also have to be cautious of the materialist oppressive interests of the so called “global (neoliberal) capitalism”, that in the same way as feudal and imperial systems of the past, is also trying to deprive us of our rights to practice these techniques; the fact that the CIA has Yoga in its blacklist of subversive activities, is really equivalent to the widely criticized oppression by the Chinese government of the practice of Falun Dafa/Falun Gong (another oriental practice of self improvement with intention to generate peace, develop positive virtuous interior qualities Positude, for ones own happiness and the happiness of all other beings.)

Om Manifestacion

Manifestation (Manifestacion) is the Latin (Spanish, Italian, Portuguese) word for protest (people manifesting their desire to challenge institutional actions) at also the legislational level. This has effect of influencing public opinion and at times works to change laws, as the feminist movement achieved when they won the rights to female suffrage in the 1930’s[10]. It also acts as a type of social ritual, as Starhawk tells us in her book “Webs of Power”, in which she describes various protests against the G8, G20 etc., and how they can function to direct, channel and transform social dynamics. It is interesting for the following definition also her critical comparison of the spiritual practices of Yoga, meditation, ritual, and their application to international social movements[11].

To manifest also means to materialize and this can be done understanding thet the material world is a projection of the mind (understood in the oriental sense of the word, that also means vital energy – that does not exist separately from the physical world). Therefore understanding this could also be a good method to escape from the recent concept of “Crisis”, mantra repeated daily now that the west perceives a threat to its luxurious and predatory (to the whole of the rest of the world - holistically) lifestyle.

This is the Anti-Crisis

Don’t Cry Sis

We saw the Anti Christ

Stand up and get dissed

-OWL (BUHO; GUFO)

We can manifest our needs, requirements and desires by ourselves and for all other beings by training the mind in meditation, visualization, neuro-linguistic programming (prayer).

Human beings also have the ability of taking the suffering of other beings upon themselves on the breath. This practice that the Tibetan Lamas call Tonglen, or Taking and Giving. This functions to purify the mind from unconscious conditioned reactive thought processes known as Sankharas. This works because whilst conditioning is caused by attachment to pleasurable sensations and aversion to disagreeable ones, the true nature of these sensations, like all phenomena in the multiverses, are impermanent anicca. In these times of modern technology, it is not only possible to globalize resistance, but better still, to multiversalize compassion, as Tich Quang Duc has done, the Buddhist monk that immolated himself in opposition to the war in Vietnam, immortalized due to the images of the music album of Rage Against the Machine, Zach de la Rocha being another vociferous proponent of the pacifist, altermundialist and liberation movements.

Manifesto means several other things. At the institutional level, it means the agenda of any given political party, to give priority to their actions, for example the so called “neoliberal agenda” of privitization, (or exclusion)[12]. There are also agendas for the implementation of Peace, that are highlighted for example in what the UN designates “Peace Zones”; the Antarctic, the Indian Ocean, the Pacific, and in the altermundialist summits of the Social For a.

Manifiesto also means to manifest (in latin) conjugated in the first person singular. This is what is meant when we oppose the submissive affirmation “what can I do about it” with the self empowereing mantra “What CAN I do?!”, and we become conscious and take on the responsibility for our own actions and the wellbeing of all other beings, and we do what is possible in order to promote the progressive social change that we need for the united survival of this planet’s (pacamama, the Earth, our home) spieces. Anyone can utilize it, to manifest their own destiny, realizing their own choice about the quality of their own actions.

Interestingly, the chackra (energetic wheel that functions as an energetic organ) that equates with power is called the Manipura in Sanskrit. The connection can be seen with the Mantra of Avalokiteshvara. Furthermore, as the oriental geomantic art of Feng Shui (Pronounced Fung Shuey) tells us, there are Terrestrial Chackras where the vital energy (Chi, Prana, Orgone) is particularly strong. Examples of such are the animal ground paintings on the floor of the Peruvian Amazon jungle that can be seen from space, Stonehenge in England and the forests of stones found in China. It would be interesting to make protests (manifestation) at these sites, as the Rainbow Serpent Project has done, and the solstice festivals in England, in order to manifest peace at the multiversal level.

There are many ways of practicing peace, at the personal level, at the social level and at the intercultural level. Given that, as Gandhi said in his Ahimsa doctrine (moral discipline – sila); “be the change you want to see”, there are many routes that can realize peace on a daily basis, for the benefit of all other living beings. Actually this is what pacifist empowerment means, in that it deals with resovling “problems” (obstacles, challenges) proactively creating situations of harmony in as many ways as possible, as Paul Kingsnorth says in his book “One No, Many Yeses,- a guide to the global anti-capitalist movement”. Here we see many branches of the movement for global social justice are united in their rejection of the inherently violent systems of so called “capitalism”, and that they are working proactively to construct a more balanced world with the slogan “Another World is Possible”.

Also some political parties have the intention to implement “smear campaigns” to reduce the credibility of activists in particular and activism in general. This can be seen in the recent medialens publication “Newspeak”, In a similar way that they have tried with George Galloway (youtube), David Icke, and with me personally[13], that I have filed a case at the Malaga Court, 4^th November, 2010.

Mediacion, Medicacion, Meditacion

The act of mediating in conflicts can be seen as an important factor in their resolution. This can be seen in the internationalist activism of the ISM (International Solidarity Movement) that act as human shields before the Israeli “army” to prevent their atrocities against the Palestinian People. This works to maintain situations of peace within the occupied territories (Tanya Reinhart, Palestine/Israel, how to end the war of 948). Interestingly now that we are entering the age of Aquarius, that the pentagon has projected their “Water Wars” in the Amazon Baisin and Niger Delta[14]. This can be said beforehand, in truth, with the intention to oppose it.

A good Idea would be to see these remedies as a medication, that leaves the (Dharma) door open to meditation Samadhi, that together with Sila and Panna is a path that leads to eternal happiness, completely free from any form of suffering. Si vis pacem para pacem. This is what activism, pacifist empowerment, karma, intention means.

Bibliografia

Pilger, J, Freedom Next Time

Curtis, M., Unpeople

Edwards, D., Cromwell, D., Newspeak, in the 21^st Century

Klein N. No Logo, Shock Doctrine

We Are Everywhere, Notes from Nowhere

Hanh,T.,N. Construir la Paz

StarHawk, Webs of Power

Zukav, G. The dancing Wu Li Masters

Kingnorth, P. One No, Many yeses, a guide to the globl Anticapitalist Movement

Tolle, E., The Power of Now, A New Earth

Goenka G., Vipassana handbook

Reinhart, T., Palestine/Israel, how to end the war of 1948

Jung, C. G., Memorias, sueños, reflecciones

Vandana Shiva, Las Guerras del Agua

www.indymedia.org

www.undercurrents.org

www.medialens.org

http://www.smashedo.org.uk/

www.activeremedy.org

www.youtube.com

http://fsm2011.org/

http://www.globalissues.org/article/46/wto-protests-in-seattle-1999

http://palsolidarity.org/

http://artactivism.gn.apc.org/allpdfs/430-We%20are%20Human%20Beings.pdf

http://www.rhproductions.com.au/woomera0.htm

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LeR39ddbD2k

http://estrecho.indymedia.org/granada/noticia/plan-bologna

http://mexico.indymedia.org/

http://www.mst.org.br/

Dragon’s Eye, BBC, March 2004

Avlokiteshvara

[1] (http://www.infinitepossibility.org/)

[2] See Rigoberta Menchu.

[3] See Chomsky, Profit over People

[4] See WE ARE EVERYWHERE/Notes from Nowhere.

[5] http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lTp1c7bUf-k

[6] http://estrecho.indymedia.org/granada/noticia/plan-bologna

[7] As I have done here. http://www.indymedia.org.uk/en/2004/02/286120.html

http://www.indymedia.org.uk/en/2004/02/286079.html

http://www.indymedia.org.uk/en/regions/cambridge/2004/02/284943.html

[8]www.myspace.com/owllyrical

http://www.youtube.com/verify_age?next_url=http%3A//www.youtube.com/watch%3Fv%3DGO5Cay6GUkM

[9]http://www.clownarmy.org/, http://www.clowns.org/

[10] Direct action tactics of property destruction were also used. Furthermore Wild Fire Gatherings could be used to challenge the so called “criminal justice bill”, England, 1990.

[11] See also Tich Nath Hanh, “Building Peace”

[12] That the Rockerfellers, Rothschilds etc. want to implement.

[13] See my indymedia article

http://estrecho.indymedia.org/sevilla/noticia/oppression-repression-supression-5

and my forthcoming book “Homage to George Orwell”.

[14] See active remedy, Reforesting Earth’s Mountains Earth Development Yoga.

Indymedia Estrecho / Madiaq - Peace Activism

Peace Activism