Symposium on “Learning history to understand and experience cultural diversity today”

Strasbourg, 29-30 October 2007

Speech by Sue Bolam, Member of the Congress of Local and Regional Authorities Council of Europe

Mr Chairman,

Excellencies,

Ladies and Gentlemen,

Today, we often speak about a Europe united in cultural and linguistic diversity, on the basis of pluralism and democratic values. The European quilt of nations, torn throughout its history by conflicts and ethnic strife, is now a single piece. But it is still a quilt, beautiful in its diversity like an embroidered tapestry which, however, requires our constant effort to make sure that it remains intact.

We in the Council of Europe, whose Congress of Local and Regional Authorities I represent, know it all to well. With 47 countries as our member states, we bring together representatives of more than 200,000 territorial communities from the vast pan-European space, stretching from Reykjavik to Vladivostok and covering 14 time zones.

Our democratic unity today is of course based on culture, but it is also based on our common history. Europe can boast a very rich history, both peaceful and violent, history of destruction and rebuilding, history whose lessons made it possible to unite our continent under one democratic roof.

It is also clear that peace which we are enjoying today begins in people’s minds, begins with understanding of others and acceptance of difference. Peace begins at grassroots level, within our multiethnic and multilinguistic communities, in our cities and our regions. In other words, peace begins at home.

This is why the Congress attaches so much importance to the issue of intercultural and interreligious dialogue, a priority set by the Summit of Council of Europe Heads of State and Government in Warsaw in May 2005. Local and regional authorities are at the forefront in dealing with ethnic tensions within communities and their immediate consequences. They are also the first to respond to the need for integration and participation or for better access to social services, and they play an important role in coping with such phenomena as domestic violence or trafficking in human beings.

Best known to their voters because of their proximity to the citizen, territorial authorities are also best placed to ease potential tensions, provide mediation and improve understanding between people of different origin, thus fostering intercultural and interreligious dialogue.

The Congress is a unique forum for the exchange of views and experience and sharing of best practices between municipalities and regions at the pan-European level, and it is in this spirit that the Congress organised, in November 2006 in Montchanin, France, a colloquy on the role of local authorities in promoting intercultural and interreligious dialogue. The colloquy adopted in particular twelve principles for the local authorities, aimed at improving knowledge and understanding of the local religious situation, promoting understanding between participants in the dialogue, establishing partnerships, and evaluating the effectiveness of the measures taken.

The principles adopted in Montchanin place special importance on education. This comes as no surprise because people can get to know and understand each other better only through learning, in particular by learning traditions and culture of the Other. But culture itself, of course, is rooted in people’s history. Only by understanding history can we understand where the Other is coming from, learn about issues sensitive for him or her, and avoid potential conflict. In other words, only by learning can we stop looking at the Other as an intruder and a misfit who represents danger for our values and the way of life.

However, interpretation of historic events has always been a complicated issue, and more often than not a politicised one. Looking at history through the prism of ideology, be it political or religious, always ruins objectivity and leads to stereotypisation. This is why the current work of the Council of Europe on history teaching, including the re-writing of history manuals, is so important.

History teaching helps with understanding of others, and therefore contributes to the dialogue between and within communities. For our part, we in the Congress strongly believe that territorial authorities should be closely involved in the decision-making on history curricula in schools, not least because they have the full knowledge of the problems in their communities, and the background of these problems. I am convinced that this issue will also be discussed, and taken into account, during this symposium.

We in the Congress are therefore convinced that local authorities must contribute to the process of discovering other cultures and traditions, to learn more by observing cultural similarities and differences, understanding those whose outlook is different and at variance with local custom and practice and disseminating and sharing this information.

This should be achieved by encouraging the teaching of a broad variety of cultural and religious facts and knowledge, with a view to developing a broader cultural knowledge, opening up for a better understanding of the Other, not limited to specific aspects of some religious traditions and practices rooted in history. 

Such educational tools, like new curricula, provided both at school and through civic study centres, to be promoted by local authorities, could become a key factor in fostering greater openness and a quest for knowledge.

Openness to the Other, openness to more cultural diversity may also awaken a desire for a better understanding of one's own history and roots and one's own personal and social values, thus helping through greater cultural awareness to reduce the risk of radicalisation and possible confrontation within local communities. 

This why the Congress is fully supporting programmes and actions promoting the use of tools, such as proposed by history teaching, as an additional asset to promote understanding and dialogue within local communities and beyond.

Dialogue between cultures and within cultural communities of different background and origin can only make progress, if we are able to stimulate the interest and the willingness to know more about the history and the cultural background of the Other.

History teaching, access to knowledge, is an important tool to enable us all to open up our minds for the values and the traditions of the Other.

I wish us all that this symposium will bring us closer to this common goal of reducing the distance between us and the Other – in fact, of making the Other part of us.