SPEECH BY THE CHAIRPERSON OF THE COUNCIL OF FEDERATION OF THE FEDERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE RUSSIAN FEDERATION MRS. VALENTINA MATVIYENKO
Dear Ladies and Gentlemen!
The authority of Baku International Humanitarian Forum held on the initiative and under the patronage of Presidents of Russia and Azerbaijan is indisputably growing from year to year. It is already being unofficially called “the intellectual Davos”. I think that the value of the humanitarian forum, especially in the current international situation, is of no lesser significance than the value of some greater and more important economic forums. This result has a consistent character. It reflects a true humanistic, unifying nature of the forum and a unanimous endeavor of its participants to deepen the close cooperation in the sphere of science, education, culture and art.
It is worth emphasizing that humanism that emerged in the ancient times still remains a basic value of our time as well. It embodies the desire to affirm human dignity, strengthen moral values in the everyday life, as well as in politics. Man is the measure of all things. This classic maxim of the ancient Greek philosopher Protagoras was and still remains urgent at all times. Beginning from the epoch of Renaissance humanism has been indispensable from great creators, men of letter and art. Francesca Petrarch said: “A truly noble person is not born with the great soul; he makes himself great by his deeds”.
Anyway, the humanistic belief is not only the result of the efforts of the geniuses of antiquity and Renaissance, as well as the following epochs, rather, it is a life experience of many generations of common people belonging to various cultures and various religions.
Sometimes our era is called the postmodern epoch and humanism is believed to be changing, namely, targeting exclusively at the strengthening and elevation of every person’s dignity. Without denying such an approach, however I see our common goal in the idea that in the pursuit of the supermodern form of humanism in the era of globalization, we, so to say, shall not throw the infant away with water and not sacrifice our traditional national values.
It is important to preserve and to multiply our basic fundamental values of humanism, shape it in compliance with the challenges of modern time. Modern humanism stands out, first of all by its social orientation. Its content is indispensably linked with the solution of major problems of humanity, fulfillment of its physical and spiritual capacities. Such humanism reflects the interests of all strata of society striving to social justice.
Along with it, rooting of ideas of humanism into the life of earthly society is a complicated and far from being a gradually rising process. History is a witness of various forms and scales of dehumanization recurrence strengthening at different times and under different conditions. It was and is generated by the lack of social well-being, crises, and ambitious claims of ruling circles which aspire not only to affect the course of history, but also to subjugate it. As a rule, it leads to the loss of spiritual and moral guidelines, to marginalization of society and other destructive processes. Once more, the events happening in various regions of the planet prove it.
On the other hand, it is quite obvious that in places where humanism reigns, concordance and mutual understanding also reign; there is no place for conflicts and wars. The Summit of Caspian states which was held in Astrakhan served a convincing and fresh example in this sense. Basing on the ideals of peace, mutual trust, observing the interests of each other, after many years of complicated negotiations, the heads of five countries came to agreement on the key issues of cooperation in the Caspian Sea.
Five documents have been signed, the central of which being the political statement fixing the major principles of operation in the sea, including the regulation on the water basin delimitation, as well as on the ban of the presence of military forces of the non-regional powers. As the result, a direct way to the conclusion of the convention on the legal status of the Caspian Sea already next year opens up.
According to the unanimous evaluation of the participants of the Summit, it is a real breakthrough which became possible due to the fact that the situation in the region is stable and free from conflicts. The level of trust and mutual understanding is high. All these factors collectively enabled the consensus in solution of the very difficult matters. If you will, it is humanism in action as the concordance reached there meets the inspirations and expectations of the peoples.
Dear participants of the Forum, the humanistic values and ideals throughout many centuries have acquired an insurmountable force. They have become an integral part of peoples’ life and have naturally fused with the international relations. In the international space the tools for their fulfillment have qualitatively expanded. The emergence of such authoritative institutes as UNO and UNESCO good will envoys, the organizations of refugees protection, provision of human rights and others –they all have been generated in our era and have been dictated by the inner logic of humanism development, one of the main vehicles of social development. It is noteworthy that many of the world-known scholars, figures of culture, education and art are among such envoys of humanism.
In this light, I see the major task of today’s forum in the discussion of new opportunities of humanitarian collaboration in the capacity of the values of real humanism realization. I believe that the peculiarities of up-to-date situation in this sphere will be comprehensively discussed by the participants of the forum – the outstanding scholars. In a word, the highest level of the participants of the forum is the guarantee of its success.
The Russian-Azerbaijani relations serve as a remarkable example of the long-standing and broad humanitarian interaction.
Today this cooperation already has a steady legislative basis as well. The dialogue of the governments of Russia and Azerbaijan is the key factor of its dynamic development. The Presidents of our states has made their great personal contribution into the cause of strengthening relations between our countries.
Thus, during Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin’s visit to Baku last August the program of cooperation in humanitarian sphere between Russia and Azerbaijan was signed. Traditionally, friendly relations have been formed between the Federal Assembly of Russian federation and Milli Mejlis of Republic of Azerbaijan. Over 10 years, since 2003 the joint inter-Parliamentary Commission has been operating. It pays constant attention to the most urgent issues of the interaction between our Parliaments on the issues of development of the legislative-contractual basis in the humanitarian sphere.
The inter-regional Forums “Russia-Azerbaijan” make significant contribution into the dynamic development of humanitarian relations. Let me remind that the V-th Russian-Azerbaijani Forum “Inter-Regional Cooperation: New Opportunities of Growth” was successfully held in the town of Gabala in June this year. The prospective trends of cooperation in the humanitarian sphere was one of the central themes of the Forum.
The Russian-Azerbaijani relations in the sphere of education and culture are also developing progressively. We appreciate it highly. A great interest to obtaining higher education in Russia remains in Azerbaijan.
Possessing Russian diploma is considered prestigious in the Republic; likewise it is a good perspective for a young specialist. The Azerbaijanis readily go to study in Russia not only on the budget line but also at their own account. Today about 13 thousand students from Azerbaijan are studying at the universities of Russia.
We highly appreciate such an extremely positive fact: there are wide opportunities to get a comprehensive secondary and higher education in the Russian language in Azerbaijan. One of the prestigious universities of Azerbaijan is the Baku branch of Moscow State University named after Lomonosov which has been functioning since 2008. Nowadays over 400 students are obtaining education in five departments of the branch, and the leading professors and teachers of Moscow State University teach them. Our countries are actively cooperating for the purpose of supporting the Russian language in Azerbaijan and the Azerbaijani language in Russia.
It’s noteworthy that in 2014 which is announced “The Year of Culture” in Russia, the memorial plate dedicated to the great Azerbaijani composer Gara Garayev was solemnly opened in Moscow. It is not only a proof of strong friendship between our nations but also a remarkable event for the world musical culture, for everyone who knows and loves the creative activity of this outstanding composer.
Dear friends! Life proves that deepening of cooperation in humanitarian sphere can become the best and the most constructive response to many challenges of modern era.
The wise Azerbaijani proverb says: the one who has a soul has a concern as well. Let’s strive to the situation when our common concerns are directed to the implementation of the essence of humanism in life. The study, in the center of which there is the idea of a man as the highest value.
I heartily wish all the participants of Baku Forum successful work. I am sure that our and your new ideas and initiatives will find their practical realization in the real deeds and projects, will enable the consolidation of trust, mutual understanding and good neighborly relations between our nations.
Thank you for attention.
- welcoming the creation of the Baku International Centre of Multiculturalism;
- taking into account the growing significance of international humanitarian cooperation and effective partnership in this sphere in ensuring harmonious, sustainable development and the elimination and prevention of political and military conflicts proliferating throughout the world;
- considering as part of a broad exchange of opinions, such problems as:
- drawing attention to the fact that stimulating the economy by constantly increasing demand contradicts the principles of sustainable development and is already coming up against serious resource, ethical and humanitarian restrictions and leading to irreversible global ecological consequences;
- seeking to make our contribution to ensuring long-term sustainable development, founded on contemporary knowledge, human potential and the principles of ecological civilization;
- recognizing that in conditions of globalization our common future can be shaped through the effective, scientifically based mobilization, in accordance with humanitarian ethical principles, of the whole intellectual, cultural, social human potential and natural diversity existing on our planet;
- taking into account that effective responses to the challenges of the 21st century require the broad integration of contemporary scientific and traditional knowledge with information technology and for them to be made universally accessible on the global and national level;
- underlining the special role of civil society and the mass media in raising the information level in society and expanding participation in the planning and achievement of objectives in the sphere of humanitarian development;
- calling upon political, cultural and academic elites, international organizations and representatives of civil society and the mass media to strengthen further humanitarian cooperation in order to ensure the sustainability of development;
- realizing that under conditions of limited resources, their best use on the principles of sustainable development and humanitarian ethics should be built on achievements already made;
- realizing that under conditions of limited resources, their best use on the principles of sustainable development and humanitarian ethics should be built on achievements already made;
- considering as part of a broad exchange of opinions, such problems as:
- Comparative research into multiculturalism: from theory to humanitarian practice
- Media transformation in the digital age: new development trends
- The role of interdisciplinary integration in innovative development
- Sustainable development and ecological civilization
- Challenges of globalization: between tradition and transformation
- Molecular biology and biotechnology in the 21st century: theory, practice, prospects
- Converging technologies and outlines of the future: landmark challenges of the 21st century
- Humanism as a basic value in the postmodern era
- we note that the expansion and further development of international humanitarian cooperation is the key factor in an effective response to contemporary challenges and threats and enables the accessibility and expanded application of contemporary management and production technologies, ensuring the well-being of present and future generations;
- we recognize that the Baku Humanitarian Forum, traditionally held on the initiative of the Republic of Azerbaijan, constitutes an important contribution to the development of multiculturalism, based on humanitarian practice as the basic value of the post-modern era;
- we bear witness that a range of countries, including the Republic of Azerbaijan, have achieved significant progress in recent years in the planning and management of sustainable development which has been reflected in the figures and reports of international organizations;
- we pay special attention to the need for further development of international cooperation to transform society from a society of consumption into a humanitarian society of consumption on the basis of sensible sufficiency, as well as to achieve a way of life that meets the demands of ecological civilization;
- we recognize the importance of the application of nano- and bio-technologies, based on the latest scientific achievements, and the convergence of contemporary and traditional technologies to ensure food and medicinal security, raise the quality of life and achieve the human potential for longevity;
- we acknowledge that the development of human potential through the integration of the latest knowledge and skills, including interdisciplinary, in a programme of continuing education, as well as the expansion of cooperation in this sphere, are the key humanitarian components of sustainable development;
- we note the ever growing role of the mass media and civil society in achieving the goals of humanitarian development through increased awareness and expanded participation in the humanization of development;
- we call on the various international and national structures specializing in humanitarian development systematically to hold forums, conferences and round tables aimed at creating an atmosphere of tolerance, mutual respect and resolving contemporary global and local challenges;
- we note the need for such forums to be held annually and express our profound gratitude to the President and government of the Republic of Azerbaijan, the Heydar Aliyev Foundation and all the organizers of the Baku International Humanitarian Forum for holding this major, productive event;
- we consider it necessary to pass this declaration and to make use of it to strengthen cooperation in humanitarian development.
Summary of speeches by participants of the plenary session
IV Baku International Humanitarian Forum proceeded with plenary session after official opening ceremony on October 2.
Azad RAHIMOV, Minister of Youth and Sport of Azerbaijan was chairing the first part of the session which was attended by former presidents. He spoke about the measures taken towards the development of humanitarian field in the country during the years of independence. The Minister also mentioned that multicultural dialogue platform had already been established in Azerbaijan.
Arnold RÜÜTEL, former President of Estonia touched upon existing ecological problems in the world, emphasized the concern caused by the reduction of flora and fauna species. He also said that in recent years the number of poor countries in the world was increasing and that led to serious problems such as social inequality. Arnold Rüütel talked about actions implemented for achieving ecological balance and contributions made to global cultural diversity.
Stjepan MESIC, former President of Croatia spoke about the issue of restoring faith among nations. He added that terrorism actions occurring in the international community were unacceptable and restoration of relations based on faith became necessity. Stjepan Mesic condemned cases of violence and supported peaceful solutions of controversial issues.
Valdis ZATLERS, former President of Latvia drew attention to the achievement of goals defined in the previous Forum. As to him the ground of tension in the world is not a religion but other reasons and he added that wars were threat for peace. From this aspect, the guest emphasized the importance of peaceful settlement of Nagorno Karabagh conflict.
Vytautas LANDSBERGIS, former President of Lithuania highlighted the peace –as a basic idea of Baku Humanitarian Forum and said that although Azerbaijan faced fact of invasion, it still demonstrated ideas of establishing stable state.
Enrico LETTA, former President of the Council of Ministers of Italy talked about development of relations between countries and importance of Forum. Mentioning the relationships of EU with South Caucasian region Enrico Letto expressed his opinion that economic and social cooperation with Azerbaijan should be expanded. He expressed his certainty about holding the first European Games in high level in our country and said: “We are very delighted that Azerbaijan takes parts in European partnership.”
Sheikha Fariha Al Ahmad Al Jaber Al SABAH, President of the Kuwait Association for the Ideal Family noted that our country was in the center of attention of the world experiencing crisis and the formula of gaining accomplishments in such a world was being observed in Azerbaijan.
Hadil Fontes da Rocha VIANNA, Vice Minister for Cooperation, Culture and Trade Promotion, Ministry of External Relations of Brazil, expressed his gratitude for the invitation to the Forum. Vice Minister spoke about the work carried out in the field of cultural diversity and accentuated the essence of cultural pluralism for each country.
Gabriela CUEVAS, Senator, President of the Foreign Affairs Committee of the Senate, touching upon the importance of debated issues stated that world union should strive for solution of existing conflicts through negotiations; norms and principles of international law should be preserved. He particularly noted the necessity of unifying efforts against terrorism.
H.E. Mr. Mohamed Sameh AMR, Chairperson of the Executive Board of UNESCO, expressed his gratitude to President Ilham Aliyev for the high-level organization of Forum. He mentioned that UNESCO had pursued ideas of humanism since its establishment and appreciated maintenance of world cultural diversity as a profound criterion. He emphasized that aims of Baku Forum overlapped with those of UNESCO.
Akif ALIZADE, Academician and President of the Azerbaijan National Academy of Sciences was chairing the 2nd part of the session and said that it was a great platform in terms of bringing well-known scientists, politicians from all parts of the world together.
Erwin NEHER, Nobel Prize Winner in Physiology and Medicine noted that by accomplishing profound achievements in the fields of chemistry, biotechnology, and physiology in recent years great results were obtained towards the elimination of regenerative diseases. He emphasized that serious researches were conducted during last decade and China, USA, and Japan held enormous projects associated with the investigation of human brain.
Rudolph Arthur MARCUS, Nobel Prize Winner in Chemistry drew attention to the fact that because of inequality in welfare of people in the world our modern community suffered from different adversities. He added that for eliminating this problem, great projects in the field of science, education, and medicine should be carried out in relatively less developed countries.
Kary Banks MULLİS, Nobel Prize Winner in Chemistry said that precluding diseases, problems in the modern world was critical issue for scientists. He also mentioned that remaining of environmental problems, wars, hatred among people, violence and other crimes led world to the catastrophe gradually.
Rudolf Martin ZİNKERNAGEL, Nobel Prize Winner in Physiology or Medicine stated that human physiology should be learned deeply for perceiving problems occurring in the world. From this viewpoint, qualified primary education, educating young and well-educated teachers is intensely essential. It is overall necessary for the protection of human life.
Robert Betts LAUGHLIN, Nobel Prize Winner in Physics said that in our modern world computer technology prevailed over physical human features. He stressed that it was already time to contemplate about hazards of electronic revolution.
Kurt WÜTHRICH, Nobel Prize Winner in Chemistry expressed his proud to speak at the beautiful architectural monument Heyder Aliyev Center. He said that as a result of implementation of different scientific inventions of various centuries important achievements were obtained in the field of economy, medicine, technology, etc.
Finn KYDLAND, Nobel Prize Winner in Economics expressed his delight for being in Baku for the fourth time and spoke about the steps taken by the states to overcome crisis and its impacts. As to him world economic crisis made states encounter with the obligation of defining precise predictions related to economic development.
David Jonathan GROSS, Nobel Prize Winner in Physics stated that the problems that threaten humanity can only be resolved by joint efforts of the world community. Disputes should not be settled by force. History shows that all conflicts result in terrible human lost. The scientist mentioned that cases of chauvinism and violence have often been observed in recent years which cause big difficulties. We have to join our efforts to deal with such negative cases.
Theodor Wolfgang HÄNSCH, Nobel Prize Winner in Physics stressed that Azerbaijan attached great importance to humanitarian values. “I am glad that today we witness the transfer of “black gold” to human capital” – he said. He also mentioned about rapid development in the field of technology and appreciated the trends of scientific circles to direct their resources to this field.
George Fitzgerald SMOOT, Nobel Prize Winner in Physics said that we had to protect our planet both for ourselves and for future generations and should be aware of the impacts we had on environment. Sustainable development pursued by the governments in economy should be provided in the field of environmental protection.
Mrs. Ada YONATH, Nobel Prize Winner in Chemistry expressed her gratitude for invitation to the Forum and hospitality she witnessed in our country. In her speech, she talked about human longevity and mentioned about successes gained against various diseases due to development of medicine. She also stressed that serious researches were being conducted towards the gradual change of genetic code.
Peter Arthur DIAMOND, Nobel Prize Winner in Economic Sciences talked about employment. He stated that job made person feel internal satisfaction along with causing income. He stressed the importance of diversification of the employments policies by the governments to defend economy against crises. P.Diamond evaluated the transfer of manpower from one field to another and the large number of competent people with leadership skills in each sector as an important factor in the solution of employment problem.
Thomas Christian SUDHOF, Nobel Prize Winner in Physiology or Medicine appreciated contribution of multiculturalism to the development of science and stated that the role of science is to spread and promote human values. He stressed the importance of the roles of scohlars in pragmatic decision-making and reasoning process, espaecially trust of policy makers in scientific circles.
Arieh WARSHEL, Nobel Prize Winner in Chemistry talked about positive impact of scientific achievement on society. The scientist pointed out that human life would be better due to significant scientific achievements.
Akif Alizade mentioned the establishment of the Institute of Biophysics attached to the ANAS and thanked George Fitzgerald Smoot, Nobel Prize Winner in Physics for his cooperation with our country in this field.
At the end of the plenary session, Akif Alizade appreciated the importance of the participation of the renowned scientists and Nobel Prize Winners in the Forum and their speeches in terms of significant contribution to Azerbaijan and world science.
In the third part of the session, the reports of the chairpersons of the “round tables” to be held in the VI Baku International Humanitarian Forum.
Chairperson Mikayil JABBAROV, Ministry of Education welcomed the guests and spoke about the importance of the Forum held in Baku for the fourth time. The Minister said that statements made both in the official part and plenary meeting of the Forum would constitute key topics of the “round tables” to be held on October 3. Speaking about important measures taken in the fields of science and education in our country in recent years Minister Mikayil Jabbarov stressed that substantial reforms had been carried out in this direction in Azerbaijan and state strategy on the development of education had been adopted in the previous year.
Antonio VILLARAIGOSA, Former Speaker of the California State Assembly, former Mayor of Los Angeles spoke about issues to be discussed in the round table “Comparative Research into Multiculturalism: from Theory to Humanitarian Practice” chaired by him. He emphasized that multiculturalism affected a great number of life processes and crisis appeared in this field caused very complicated problems. A. Villaraigosa stated that humanitarian issues, particularly those relating to multiculturalism were current issues of our time. Azerbaijan is a multinational, multicultural country. The positive atmosphere here is sought in many parts of world.
Mikhail GUSMAN, First Deputy Director General of ITAR- TASS Russia News Agency, chairperson of the round table “Media Transformation in the Digital Age: New Development Trends” in his speech stated that Azerbaijan was his native country and he felt very happy of being there: “I have attended the first Forum as well. The Forum has obviously improved and enriched thenceforth. I am sure that Baku International Humanitarian Forum will exceed Davos Economic Forum in future for its significance”. M. Gusman pointed out the issues to be discussed in the round table, including problems of the modern media, the role of mass media in the digital era, and some other current issues.
Eden MAMUT, Secretary General of the Black Sea Universities Network in Romania will chair the round table “The Role of Interdisciplinary Integration in Innovative Development”. He stressed the importance of the measures taken towards the development of modern science and expanding the educational opportunities all over the world. He mentioned that 21 reports of the specialists from various countries would be heard in the round table and a number of issues on the topic would be highlighted.
John LAWRENCE, Adjunct Professor of Columbia University informed about the issues to be discussed in the round table “Sustainable Development and Ecological Civilization” chaired by him. Speaking about the importance of the ecological civilization American scholar pointed out that human development index was very important in the modern world: “This index is in fact regarded very simple. Some countries, including Azerbaijan has changed its standards on the basis of this.
Hikmet KOÇAK, Rector of Ataturk University, Turkey, Professor stated that the round table “Challenges of Globalization: between Tradition and Transformation” to be chaired by him would deal with rather philosophical debates. He mentioned that the model of human being and society appeared in the process of globalization and every individual should contribute to the development of society.
Karol SIKORA, Chief Medical Officer of the Cancer Partners UK pointed out that the round table “Molecular Biology and Biotechnology in the 21st Century: Theory, Practice, Prospects” would cover the recent achievements, future and problems of the medical science. He said that revolutionary breakthrough was being observed in technology. “If we can study the direction of movement of the molecules causing cancer, we will be able to diagnose at the initial stage”- he stated.
Ivan VIDENOVICH Program Management Officer, Department of Technical Cooperation of International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), chairperson of the round table “Converging Technologies and Outlines of the Future: Landmark Challenges of the 21st Century” stated that development of educational sector was closely connected with that of communication and high information technologies. Approximately 60 representatives from 19 countries, including three Nobel Prize Winners would participate in our round table. “Azerbaijan is the country interested in the use of nuclear energy for peaceful purposes. Azerbaijani scientists will touch upon this issue in their speeches”.
Walter SCHWIMMER, Former Secretary General of the Council of Europe emphasized that the round table “Humanism as a Basic Value in the Postmodern Era” chaired by him would be devoted to a very important and urgent topic. He stated that the round table would consider the increasing need for the shift of values in the postmodern era. “Azerbaijan also suffers from the long-standing conflict. Sustainable peace in the Caucasus is of the greatest importance for the region”.
At the end of the session, Minister M. Jabbarov expressed his gratitude to the participants and wished them good luck.
