NGOs as facilitators and products of democracy

[The Outsider]

NGOs play a very important role in the global village today. They venture to solve social issues which are rooted in idealism rather than expediency, offering the society solutions which the government might not be able to provide for one reason or the other. On one hand, the success of NGOs requires a political and social structure where they are given the freedom to go about their business and on the other hand, equally significantly, they offer a communion for people to come together for a cause and an alternative vehicle for democracy in the modern world. NGOs are such a loosely defined concept that their origins can perhaps be traced to social actions taken for the greater good of the society since humans started living as a community, but it's only very recently that their social impact has been recognized with organizations like Amnesty International and Doctors without Borders being awarded the Nobel Peace Prize for their efforts in preventing human carnage and defending human rights and dignity. They are now viewed as important instruments to help conflict resolution and promote human security. The United Nations has recently been a strong promoter of NGOs in South Asia and Africa, so that countries can make the transition from a representative democracy to a participatory democracy. The modern concept of NGOs can perhaps be traced back to the movement against slavery which began in the eighteenth century after Eurpoean imperialistic policies had been at work for over three centuries wherein the local population in many countries was enslaved according to the European definition of progress and in the guise of introducing civilization as Europe saw it, to the rest of the world. Behind this, was invariably some precious economic commodity whether it was the spices in India or the gold of the Incas. The organized and coordinated movement to abolish slavery going against the policy of their governments was a catalyst for other popular citizen groups to come together as well like the women's suffrage movement and the labor movement. From being distinctly anti establishment in their origins, modern NGOs provide a helping hand to democratic governments of the world today to address issues which were solely in the government domain earlier. The role and challenges of NGOs are very different in authoritarian states and young democracies where a call for a social change is seen as a challenge to the establishment leading to their harassment. In a single party state, a NGO will inevitably be viewed as a political threat and on a similar note a NGO thriving on the financial/political support of one major donor, will always be obliged to not act against its funder. Moreover, NGOs from outside the country of its activities are seen as vehicles of imperialistic subversion. NGOs are attractive to liberal thinkers because they can serve as an effective mechanism to idealism rather than compromises. NGOs are typically seen as defenders of the poor and marginalized and while their goal is to empower these sections of the society, their effectiveness if controlled by the free actions allowed in the society in the first place. The bulk of their fundings arise from the rich hands in the western world and their goal of making the society more equitable make them an interesting social structure. Legal protection is a must for NGOs to be effective and the laws are ironically made by the government where they are trying to bring about a change, on many occasions in the laws themselves. Despite such intricacies and complexities they must not become extensions of the government and their success in the recent years has ultimately been a slow but a very sure and secure triumph of the people around the world and the concept of social justice.

[The Outsider]

Compiled a list of NGO/NGO like organizations who have been awarded the Nobel Peace Prize :

1904 - Institut de Droit International 1910 - International Peace Bureau 1917 - International Committee of the Red Cross 1938 - Nansen International Office For Refugees 1944 - International Committee of the Red Cross 1947 - Friends Service Council American Friends Service Committee 1963 - International Committee of the Red Cross League of Red Cross societies 1977 - Amnesty International 1985 - International Physicians for the Prevention of Nuclear War 1995 - Pugwash Conferences on Science and World Affairs 1997 - International Campaign to Ban Landmines 1999 - Médecins Sans Frontières

Amazing breadth of social activities!

[Dhondy]

What about Intergovernmental Agency for Climate Control last year, Shwetabh?

[Dhondy]

OK, so that's not an NGO obviously, from your stormy silence.:haha: The most interesting thing about that list is that Red Cross has won it on three occasions, during the two world wars, and then in '63. Quite amazing. Several individuals have won the prize twice of course- Marie and Pierre Curie for Physics in 1903 and in 1911 for Chemistry(!), Linus Carl Pauling for Chemistry in 1952, and for Peace in 1962, for his stand against nuclear experiments (wonder if he would have got it today, when many countries are turning to nuclear power to run their national grid), John Bardeen for Physics in 1956 and '72 and Frederick Ranger for Chemistry in 1958 and after fully 22 years again, in 1980.

[The Outsider]

Difficult to classify a United Nations agency as a NGO, Dhondy. Not doubting some of the excellent work that the UN has done and continues to do, but the challenges facing NGOs are at a different level compared to the agencies supported and funded by top countries. Aaah yes, Bardeen for his research on transistors and then later the BCS theory! He remains one of the more talked about personalities in Physics departments the world over. Never had too much interest in Solid State Physics, so his BCS theory is relegated to some unknown corners of my brain now after taking the exam!:P