SDGs- Series: Lecture by Distinguished Visiting Professor KANEHARA of Doshisha University
On Wednesday, November 30, 2022, we invited Distinguished Visiting Professor KANEHARA Nobukatsu of Doshisha University to give special lectures titled “United Nations and Peacebuilding in the Ukraine War”.
He was born in Yamaguchi Prefecture, after joining the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, he served as Minister at the Embassy of Japan in the United States, Councilor at the Foreign Policy Bureau (Ambassador to the United Nations), Minister at the Embassy of Japan in Korea, Director of the International Legal Affairs Bureau, and Assistant Chief Cabinet Secretary and Deputy Chief of National Security Secretariat.
In his speech, he explained the circumstance that Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022, based on the historical background of the two countries, and pointed out that there is a danger that Russia does not fully understand the sense of values (freedom and equality, respect for human rights, parliamentarism, etc.) of developed Western countries (including Japan, South Korea, Australia, etc.) and once enormous power is concentrated in one person, nobody will be able to criticize and the person in power would take the wrong path.
He also stated that it is extremely unfortunate that the United Nations is unable to function since that Russia is a permanent member of its Security Council.
As to what we should do then, he emphasized the importance of “following our human conscience, cooperating with each other, and talking to each other on the basis of free and democratic institutions”.
After the lecture, a student asked, “Is the concept of borders and territory that important in light of Russia’s refusal to recognize Ukraine’s independence and acting as if it were part of its own country?”. He answered, “The most important thing is to respect the free will of the people living there”.
The respond to the question, “Why is it that autocratic leaders are not eliminated in some countries?”, he answered “In pre-modern societies, the social structure was simple, with a “king and other powerful class” and “other subordinate classes”, and it was relatively easy to eliminate powerful kings, etc. However, today’s societies have a complex organizational structure, and the power structure surrounding dictatorships is not easily eliminated. Also, the citizens of these countries tend to retain a submissive attitude as long as their own lives are stable and the country does not intervene too much in the lives of individuals.”
For the students who attended the lecture, it was a very valuable opportunity to hear directly from a diplomat from Yamaguchi Prefecture who has been active in the United Nations and diplomacy for many years.
Yamaguchi University (YU) plans to continue planning such opportunities in the future.
In conjunction with the lecture, an exhibition titled “SDGs and JICA” was held for three weeks on the first floor of the YU General Library.
