THE IFLAC IPCTV PROJECT
A GLOBAL PEACE CULTURE TELEVISION
AND INTERNET CHANNEL

Today, we are in a period in history of the greatest danger to humankind through the threat of nuclear propagation, nuclear war and consequently, the destruction of humanity and the whole of our planet.

Nuclear weapons are becoming available worldwide and can be used by irresponsible governments, led by war-mongers, jealousy, greed and folly. The best way to prevent this is to eliminate the causes of violence, wars and terror, by spreading a powerful and effective Global Culture of Peace to counteract the Culture of Violence. It is imperative that Peace NGO’s, Governments and responsible Institutions, mobilize for a cultural, ethical and moral means that can overcome this dangerous crisis.

One of the most effective ways to counterbalance the culture of violence in our global village is with the creation of a powerful global Television by Satellite and Internet Peace Channel that would spread an influential culture of peace. In our past wars, we disregarded our common humanity and joined in efforts to kill our “enemy and opponents.” However, killing will not stop killing.

Nobel Peace Laureate, Elie Wiesel said: “The enemy is he whose story you have not heard.” Indeed, stories and narratives are the founding bricks of culture. Actions, good or bad, begin in the mind, in the stories we hear, tell and view.

Through the IPCTV we will explore and tell as objectively as possible, the stories and cultural backgrounds of both sides of a conflict. This knowledge of each other will lead to understanding and respect and would help in eliminating the causes of conflict, war and terror, and would promote reconciliation and peace.

The IPCTV will be an effective “Preventive Medicine.” It will function as an antidote to the poison of war and violence and spread instead, peace and harmony.

At IFLAC: THE INTERNATIONAL FORUM FOR THE LITERATURE AND CULTURE OF PEACE, we strive to eliminate the causes of violence that lead to destruction, misery and poverty. To help spread the culture of peace and prevent the horrific tragedy of war, we founded the IFLAC Digest daily Internet Newsletter for the promotion and the creation of Bridges of Culture, Understanding, and Communication among people and nations.

As children are the future, we have also created a new branch: IFLAC Kids. Children have made their own Facebook PEACE page through which they can communicate with children all over the world. They place posts about their thoughts on peace, pictures and peace train drawings which they made themselves, to show their compassion with others. However, to guide children in the paths of Peace Culture is not enough; we will also have programs for parents, teachers and students, on the IPCTV.

Wars have hindered the progress of humankind. The most powerful institutions in our world – such as governments, global corporations, and mass media – should help to create and establish the IPCTV. For no more September 11 to occur, responsible organizations should join together, in the saving of our planet and our democratic culture. This should be a primary subject on their agendas, and not put financial profit first, as they mostly do until now. The resulting tragic carnage have been disastrous, and the IPCTV can change all that.

It is imperative that the governments of the world, and global institutions such as: the UN, UNESCO, and the WORLD BANK, join hands to create together with IFLAC and other Peace NGO’s, this so urgently needed IPCTV. In addition, the whole human family should mobilize itself for an ethical and Cultural Revolution – from a culture of violence, as we get on daily TV – to a Culture of Peace that can help alleviate and solve the dangerous cultural crises we are drowning in today.

We must now all think and act as responsible caretakers and trustees of the global culture of peace, of democracy, and of our planet, and we should seek progress and fair benefits for all people. Killing will only trigger more acts of violence and terror by those who hate democracy and put it into jeopardy. Television, Press, Radio and Internet, play a vital role in our lives. The IPCTV will have a special obligation to influence all other media.

The values through which we would like to raise our children are values of progress, hope, creativeness, harmony, and peace. The IPCTV will promote these values and norms, through exciting films and documentaries, and interviews with those who are running our world, as well as with people of all walks of life in opposing camps and countries. This Peace TV will promote democratic and humane goals, such as the fostering of freedom and the elimination of hunger and famine in our world. It will also foster equality between the sexes and the progress of women in all aspects of life, as well as their promotion to be equal leaders of our global village. Our ailing world today needs the caressing and comforting hug of a mother’s embrace.

The Peace Culture TV by Satellite which will be available on Internet too, could start in Haifa, the city of harmony and peace where Jews, Muslims and Christians live and flourish together in harmony. It should then spread to the whole of the troubled Middle East, and it could function at its start in 3 languages: English, Hebrew and Arabic. It could gradually cover other major places of conflict, with the goal, in due time, to cover the whole global village. It will gradually become the most popular TV and Internet Channel because it will have the good of the people at heart, and will reflect what people want of life and will give them tools how to attain it. War is not democratic, because the great majority of the people in the world do not want wars.

The impact of the multitude of NGO’s can increase dramatically by uniting in a global Campaign for the creation of the IPCTV and the foundation of a “Sustainable Future.” The IPCTV will function according to the highest professional standards; it will take into consideration the various ethnic entities, and appeal to every major culture. IFLAC that was founded in 1999 has a long history of excellent materials and subjects it has developed over the years, in its various branches around the world, and it is ready to put them to use at the outset of the establishment of the IPCTV. We call for sponsors for this urgent and challenging project, for the creation of a better global village for our children, and for us, beyond war, violence and hunger.

CONCLUSION
The IPCTV will have a sacred obligation as the mouths, eyes and ears of the people to:
-- Feature not only problems, but also solutions to the problems.
-- Headline cases of peaceful development and harmonious progress in human endeavors that replace: violence, hate, fear, jealousy and greed, with: love of peace, harmony, honesty and care.
-- Give recognition and attention to people, institutions and projects that eliminate violence, terror, poverty and foster peace culture and understanding.

With the creation of the IPCTV we can change this present dangerous crisis into a new beginning of a better world beyond war.

Biographical note:
Dr. Ada Aharoni is a Writer, Poet and Sociologist. She believes that intercultural communication, peace literature and a peace media can substantially help in healing the urgent ailments of our global village. She has been awarded several International prizes, and was elected one of the best “Hundred Global Writer Heroines” (Rochester, New York, 1998).

Dr. Ada Aharoni was awarded the President Shimon Peres Award 2012 for her peace research, her books, and her peace work with IFLAC. She has also been nominated by Prof. E. Lindner of Oslo University for the Nobel Peace Prize 2013. The creation of the IPCTV would be the fulfillment of her major dream come true.