Looking beyond the health crisis in the Kurdistan region of Iraq

Looking beyond the health crisis in the Kurdistan region of Iraq

ERBIL, Iraq, 3 May 2020, (BWNS) — Online forums, now a common feature of life in many places, have become a venue for promising conversations in the Kurdistan region of Iraq. The Baha’is of the region have been organizing weekly forums where academics, social actors, faith leaders, and government officials are examining spiritual principles that have drawn people together in this time of crisis and exploring how these principles can help shape public life in the future.

A running theme has been the oneness of humanity and how society suffers when any one group considers its own needs without thought for others.

“These conversations are allowing us to sincerely and genuinely learn from each other,” said Tahireh Abaychi, representative of the Baha’is of the Kurdistan region. “It’s not that any one of us has the answers. We’re seeing one another through a new lens with the interests of all at heart.”

New perspectives are allowing participants to challenge assumptions that underlie prevalent modes of thought, questioning the idea that self-interest drives prosperity and that progress depends on its expression through unrestrained competition.

The current circumstances, participants noted, are showing just the opposite—an outpouring of generosity that transcends differences is what contributes to the progress of all. Such expressions of good-will, some participants observed, have had their most profound affect in small geographic areas, where people can come to know one another, understand each other’s needs, and take action for the benefit of their fellow citizens.

“What is happiness? What are needs? What is prosperity? These terms can now be redefined,” said another participant. “A culture of consumption promotes the value that our worth is based on how much we can consume and accumulate. But we are now seeing that giving selflessly needs to be an organizing principle."

Officials from the Ministry of Religious Affairs, including the director of the ministry’s department of coexistence, noted that these discussions are proving helpful in formulating plans for promoting societal values.

“The government is actively looking at policies that can help our society to come through this crisis more resilient and more attentive to needs. These conversations will help with that process,” said one of the officials from the ministry.

Reflecting on the discussions to date, Mrs. Abaychi says: “The question is how can we ensure that principles which have for so long been at the margins of thought or viewed as idealistic be brought to the center of the public consciousness and policy making?

“This will require a recognition of our essential oneness and many acts of true and selfless generosity—meaning, that the left hand doesn’t know what the right hand has given.” 

BIC Brussels: Finding ways to stay in touch

BRUSSELS, 6 May 2020, (BWNS) — During this unique period, when online communications are being used more than ever by social actors to exchange ideas, the Brussels Office of the Baha’i International Community (BIC) has launched a quarterly newsletter to share more widely insights emerging from its efforts to contribute to contemporary discourses in Europe. 

“Establishing a newsletter seemed timely in the context of limitations to social interaction,” says Rachel Bayani of the Brussels Office. “It serves to synthesize key insights and questions that are emerging in prevalent discourses and seeks to connect our collaborators with the breadth of topics being addressed. The newsletter is one way to include more people in conversations and to build joint understanding with them.”

Over the past ten years, the Brussels Office has been coordinating the efforts of Baha’is to work with the European Union, Council of Europe, and other European organizations.

The Office’s approaches and contributions are based on Baha’i principles, explains Mrs. Bayani. “They not only inform the ideas that our Office contributes to discussions, but also our posture in consultations on vital questions. We are here to jointly explore with others how concepts related to global prosperity, justice, and our interdependence can be applied to social issues in the European context.”

The Brussels Office of the BIC is participating in several discourses, including on 

It also hosts gatherings of its own on broad themes such as the role of religion in European society and on other issues of pressing concern in Europe, such as the use of inclusive language and even the development of artificial intelligence. These gatherings are being increasingly noted as forums where new approaches and new thinking can emerge. 

In the first issue of the newsletter, the Brussels office offers initial reflections on the global health crisis. “Within the span of a few months,” the Office writes, “our global society and systems have been tested in new and profound ways. A widespread discourse is emerging regarding the next stage of our collective lives. … it is necessary to revisit and assess the fundamental principles guiding our current system of global governance. This will require a profound reexamination of the attitudes and assumptions which currently underlie it.”

Community banks in Nicaragua take early precautions

Community banks in Nicaragua take early precautions

MANAGUA, Nicaragua, 1 May 2020, (BWNS) — Before concerns about the global coronavirus outbreak were in the public consciousness, a Baha’i-inspired community banking program in Nicaragua took initiative to implement safety measures for the handling of money and made arrangements for transactions to take place online and by telephone.

“These banks are founded on the Baha’i principles of service and care for the well-being of all,” says the program’s national coordinator. “So, with the economic challenges and the evolving health crisis, we have not only been conscious of continuing vital services that support the economic life of the community but also of ensuring that our operations do not put people at risk.”

The way the program works is by offering training to groups of 10 to 30 people, who then begin to save small sums and make modest loans available to bank members at a reasonable rate. The banks are managed entirely by the members themselves and interest earned is divided proportionally according to the amount each person holds in savings. As a bank grows, it is also able to provide financial support for social and economic development initiatives in the community.

Over the last 15 years, the program has grown in Nicaragua to serve several localities and is recognized in the country for its distinctive approach.

“The banks’ experience and underlying principles have informed their response to the global health crisis,” says the national coordinator. “We recognize that we are not just businesses looking to our own affairs but are here to serve the common welfare. We have the responsibility to be an example of sound and safe business practices during these times.”