Former President of the International Committee for the Red Cross; presently serving as President of Caux - Initiatives of Change and Initiatives of Change International. This speech was delivered at the Valedictory Session of the conference “Globalization: Embracing Opportunity, Creating Synergy”, Asia Plateau, Panchgani, India.

Cornelio Sommaruga

Former President of the International Committee for the Red Cross; presently serving as President of Caux - Initiatives of Change and Initiatives of Change International. This speech was delivered at the Valedictory Session of the conference “Globalization: Embracing Opportunity, Creating Synergy”, Asia Plateau, Panchgani, India.

Grüss Gott, dear Friends,

In a Theatre Play of 1985 of Prugh & England, under the title Solferino, you find an affirmation of Henry Dunant – the founder of the Red Cross - saying “One man alone…one voice, so weak … and yet if my heart is touched cannot I reach others? Would not my brother’s conscience also stir? I am here. This is my place: one man can make a difference!”

I believe, my friends, that the objective of this Globalization Conference Embracing Opportunity is just indicating where and how a man or a firm can make a difference. And for me, who has during years promoted the concept of Globalizing Responsibility, it is a particular satisfaction that in Panchgani so many personalities of India and the Region, but also from elsewhere have concentrated their thoughts on the best way of Creating Synergy.

This is why I would like not only to thank the Organizers of the Conference for inviting me to attend and to talk at this Valedictory Session, but also to congratulate them for the excellent program prepared for these days of work in the Panchgani campus of the famed Asia Plateau. A wonderful place, where indeed I should have come earlier! Because it is really a place of inspiration and hope!

Our discussions have been successful by many measures: the energy and intelligence of the interventions, the quality of the participants, from outside and inside the Region and indeed the generous hospitality of this unique venue! Prayers and songs have helped us to progress and to understand each other.

The first question I would like to raise is to know if Globalization is the best thing that has happened to human kind or a major threat to society. Let me repeat what has been said here and many times elsewhere Globalization is not new. It has been part of world history for hundreds of years from the time of trade between ancient China and Egypt . Countries that were open to others and that engaged in commerce, shared ideas and got access to other cultures but also to the most advanced technology available at the time in their world. Opening up, trading, sharing ideas, reflections and technology has been a part of human history! Generations of our ancestors have positively profited of this development.

But why is the anti globalization movement growing both in density and intensity? Why is Ignatio Ramonet, already quoted in this hall, the Chief Editor of Le Monde Diplomatique, publishing a book (Wars of the 21st Century), where, besides a strong critic to the United States as Superpower (being the absolute first in politics, economics, military, technology and culture), where he condemns all what has brought to the present stand of Globalization? Main responsible are, in his view, the Bretton Woods Institutions, the OECD and the WTO, that are fostering a dictatorship of the market, by creating a supranational State without democratic elected Government. Wars and acts of terror, famine and epidemics, missing fresh water, environment degradation all these would be sins of Globalization.

I am not able to follow the argumentation of Ignatio Ramonet, while confirming that the world is confronted with the major issues he mentions, which are largely the root causes of violence, conflicts and terrorism, and also casting a number of questions as to the functioning of the IMF and World Bank system. But they are not – let me state it – the mere consequence of globalization.

It is here the place to recall that the world is missing a clear commitment to Human Security. The security that encompasses not only the territorial state and the protection through arms, but the security for the individual citizen, that has to be protected in all aspects of his life, namely in his human dignity and in his worth as human being. These are the most legitimate concerns of ordinary people regarding security in their daily lives. Human security has also to address the enormous amounts of national wealth and human resources diverted into armaments and armed forces, while countries fail to protect their citizens from chronic insecurities of hunger, thirst, disease, inadequate shelter, crime, unemployment, social conflict and environmental hazard. When rape is used as instrument of war and ethnic cleansing, when thousands are killed by floods resulting from a ravaged countryside and when citizens are killed by their own security forces, then it is just insufficient to think of security in terms of national or territorial security alone.

Human security, embracing such diverse circumstances, calls for an urgent and determined integrated approach for coping with the real problems of today: poverty, environment, and their symptoms as transfers of small arms and landmines, as well as armed conflicts. All these problems and many more – let me just mention trafficking of women and children, the drug smuggling, the sex industry – are creating tremendous insecurities. In such a situation violence is shaping up rapidly and the step to terrorism is light to be made.

September 11 has shown us that we have missed a lot before. These wanton murderous attacks – that have been a negation of all basic principles of humanity – have brought to all sort of reactions. To the many victims and their next of kin we owe compassion – in the real sense of the latin word cumpatire: to suffer with them – be they in the USA , in India in Sri Lanka , in the Middle-East, in Afghanistan , in Indonesia , in Moscow , in Kenya and elsewhere. Instead of war on terrorism and of retaliation what is requested from the international community is the revitalisation of Human Security, also through cultural dialogue. The Caux Dialogue among Muslims and between Muslims and non Muslims initiated in July 2002 by Rajmohan Gandhi has been in this respect a success. This particularly, I believe, because with a lot of tolerance, the more than 40 participants have listened to each other, loosing prejudices and entering in a sincere dialogue, that has even brought to the signature of a detailed joint statement.

Returning to Globalization let me, Ladies and Gentlemen, reiterate that it is not new, but its speed in our time is very new, working profound changes. Yes indeed we live in an era when the process of exchange is speeding up tremendously and people feel destabilized. With the end of the Cold War there is only one economic system, with one world global economy dominated by one superpower to which actors of economic life have not yet adapted everywhere. Furthermore the simple speed with which knowledge and ideas and capital can spread and integrate the world into one system is also completely new.

It is the information revolution that has brought us to the present status; the invention of the personal computer, the advent of the Internet and the exploration of cyberspace. The result is that Globalization based on these assets, means partly the unleashing of economics from the reins of politics. Cyberspace is the global village, where villagers travel where they want, when they want; exchange the information they want. Political entities exert little influence over these processes. There are no visas, no bureaucracies, nor passports in cyberspace. It allows global villagers to govern increasingly many of their affairs on a purely economic base, largely independently of local state controls. This is real opportunity to create synergies. At the same time it opens up a large dangerous door to market fundamentalism.

Let me at this juncture, interject that spiritual and human values have in this process not always been given even consideration. Human values should be maintained remain in the centre of preoccupations recalling that politics also implies ethics. Political systems give moral instructions indirectly through legislation and via civil instructions. A nation’s law reflect its underlying moral norms; a nation’s civics reflects its constitutional mores. It is therefore fundamental to recall the essential role of education that should insist on the individual responsibility and on the constant need to scrutinize the credibility of the mass of information.

Among the many crucial issues we have discussed, there have also been WTO issues. We know that many worldwide demonstrations are directed against these relatively new Organization created in the aftermath of GATT following the Uruguay Round. I believe that demonstrators are wrong when they criticize the missing democracy in WTO: they do not realize that decisions are taken by consensus – one country, one vote -; large trading nations have certainly a lot of say, but ¾ of the WTO members are developing countries, who often disagree among them and with protesting NGO’s. Furthermore the dispute settlement procedure of WTO – which is in last instance a legal one – is a strong tool for fairness and predictability in international trade. There is indeed the battle for more transparency at the WTO being waged from outside and inside. In this respect it is appropriate to recall that we had already made provisions in 1986 in Article V/2 of the Uruguay Round Agreement that the “General Council may make appropriate arrangements for consultation and cooperation with non-governmental org anisations concerned with matters related to those of the WTO.” This Article has lad the Council to issue directives on transparency and documents to be released as well on informal ad hoc contacts with NGO’s. It is important not to ignore that the instructions on policy issues are prepared and decided in capitals by Governments or in Brussels by the European Commission; as it is governmental responsibility, pressure by civil society as well as from political circles has to be carried out at home. I believe however that political leaders around the world cannot make the tough choices required if they and the public do only hear of the negative sides of WTO. The WTO on the other hand will have to continue to be transparent from Geneva to explain to interested citizens the role and value of a strong multilateral trading system and org anization, without ignoring the real challenge of the day that represents the decreasing of agricultural subsidies and a further definite opening of the markets of industrialized countries in favour of products of developing countries including textiles and farm products, as well as the needed concretization of the Doha agreement in the field of intellectual property of essential pharmaceuticals.

We also touched at Medias and their responsibility in the context of Globalization. We shouldn’t minimize their role in building a free, non corrupted and just society. Here too my slogan Globalizing Responsibility addresses the fact that journalists are not only media professionals but above all human beings speaking and writing to other human beings, engaging themselves in a person to person, conscience to conscience dialogue. In the 2000 Sarajevo Commitment of the International Communications Forum there is the powerful concluding sentence, that gives me a lot of hope “We shall combine freedom with responsibility, talent with humility, privilege with service.”

In our discussion on governance here in Panchgani we have touched on the concept of leadership. I am of the opinion that a sound individual leadership with a natural authority constructed on creativity, commitment, courage, integrity and ethical behaviour, is needed for realizing the best governance, be it in business, local, national or international level.

Our Conference under the ambitious title EMBRACING OPPORTUNITY AND CREATING SYNERGY has brought our discussion largely also on the individual responsibility of business leadership and of corporate governance. So much and so good has been said in this connection – and let me particularly commend the India Model. I am grateful for the opportunity to learn so much about India and her major economic and social – as well as structural – problems. Poverty has particularly attracted my attention. As to the internal Indian economy one aspect has worried me: the still missing Indian internal common market. I believe that in the time of rapid globalization, a worldwide phenomenon of which India is part, it is inconceivable to maintain inside the country barriers to trade between the States. As a federalist of the tiny Switzerland , I would like to say that it is free trade inside and outside that has largely contributed to the Swiss economic prosperity and cohesion. As to corporate governance let me tell you four principles to which enterprises and their leaders should, in my view, be committed worldwide. You will notice that they are recalling the Initiatives of Change fundamental principles of honesty, purity, unselfishness, love.

First Corporate Integrity. This means that, economy has not only to be governed by laws and others prescriptions – that are certainly needed – but also and in the forefront by moral values. Business leaders should constantly demonstrate that they are not only acting legally, but also that their activities are inspired by honesty and fairness. Trust and admiration for firm-managers and their associates depends largely from their behaviour integrated in a culture of enterprise integrity. And this culture can only be the consequence of the individual integrity culture of business operators.

Then Corporate Attractiveness. The business leader has to show attractiveness for the whole society. He has to justify his position in society. Businesses have a role to play in improving the lives of all their customers, employees, and shareholders by sharing with them the wealth they are creating. The attractiveness of the company to society and particularly to stakeholders will result in an advantage for shareholders. It is not the question “shareholder value contra stakeholder value”, but indeed the objective of the firm management for a long- or short term profit! A responsible management will lay weight to a long term profit strategy based on a market and socially oriented business. These principles seem to me also important in respect to the building of dynamic economies and stable societies. I admit that the construction of an attractive company is complex and will not be realized in a short time. It is a general problem to bring back economic activities to a sustained, long term and realistic pad.

Furthermore Corporate Citizenship. Business has to participate actively with all other components of society on the solution of problems of the present time. It is more than the traditional social oriented participation in society. Corporations should be seen as responsible citizens of our global open society and cooperate on the basis of their know how with Government and civil society for the solutions of fundamental problems as the one of poverty and of aids and more, particularly those problems that affect the personal dignity ad the human life as such. Today’s challenges cannot be solved by Governments, NGO’s, International Organizations, Politics or Business alone. The joint engagement of all forces is needed. Economic circles must look at their firms as world citizens and go further than being simply philanthropic: they must show their contribution for the whole society.

This allows the recognition of full partnership in society.

And finally Social Entrepreneurship. This goes mainly for business leaders of industrial countries that have to show initiatives to improve situations in the so called third world. This goes particularly in favour of people that are excluded from national, regional or international economic activities. There are a number of examples as for example the initiative to use the waste of Bangladesh cities and compost it to make fertilizers for the rural population. I believe that in a great country as India , where there are so large disparities in leaving standards of populations, many such examples would exist, where Indian companies have initiated projects of this kind. It is up to Governments and to the whole economy to support such Social Entrepreneurship: it can happen through financial assistance or trough delivery of the appropriate know how. The Social Entrepreneur will be viewed in society as the ideal businessman with sense of initiative, innovation and also ready to take risks.

Corporate integrity, corporate attractiveness, corporate citizenship, social entrepreneurship: these are the strengths of business also and particularly confronted with Globalization.

Let me conclude by recalling a preoccupation, which is certainly the one of most of you: our world is in a crisis of values: there is loss of confidence in business. We can overcome it by bringing back ethics to society. It could be called Globalization of integrity. It goes with the Globalization of Responsibility. It has to be brought back to politics and to business! For the further development of our global society the fundamental values of ethics are of crucial importance: each of us must feel concerned and act accordingly. Our efforts of these days must be sustained in the region as well as universally. Caux- Initiatives of Change and its Summer Conferences are the right place for the global follow up. This Panchgani exercise will be adding a lot to the CCBI 2003. Creating trust and building bridges.

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The same Solferino Grove Play of the Bohemian Club in San Francisco that I quoted at the beginning, brings a song by Dunant, which words will bring to an end my address:

One voice will start / This man will try / His head and heart apply / …

One man can make a difference / One man whose cause is just / Reason calls me to do it /

Humanity says I must /

I feel that if my conscience stirs / I can stir the minds of others / If grace and pity touch my heart /

I can touch the hearts of my brothers /

This man will make a difference / While guns are still / Reason tells me to do it /

For humanity I will !

Grazie per la loro pazienza ! A rivederci !

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© Caux Initiatives for Business 2003