ABBEY MAKOE
Seventy years ago, China launched “Five Principles of Peaceful coexistence” aimed at ameliorating the dangers and threats posed by growing unilateralism in the international world order. With a greater emphasis on mutuality and equality, the principles provide a set of basic norms for peaceful coexistence among countries across political, security, economic and diplomatic domains.
The five principles, which are consistent with the purposes and principles of the Charter of the UN, have become the cornerstone of China’s foreign policy. A “peaceful coexistence” is a formula for a “shared future” and “win-win” international relations architecture that the founding fathers and mothers of modern China have chosen as the fundamental building blocks in the country’s meteoric development through the latter part of the 21st century.
No wonder, therefore, that in the end, the conference issued the “Beijing Declaration”. The commemorative conference was held under the theme, “From the Five Principles of Peaceful Coexistence to Building a Community with a Shared Future for Mankind”. Through the international conference, China displayed an enduring desire and spirit to remain at the centre of mutually beneficial international development where no state is left behind for whatever reason.
Beneath the main conference, organisers added four revealing sub-forums that sought to build bridges across South-South relations. These were: (1) Contemporary value of Asian Wisdom, (2) The Vision and Mission of the Global South in a Shifting Landscape, (3) Contributing to Global Prosperity through Chinese Modernisation and (4) Promoting Global Governance Featuring Extensive Consultation and Joint Contribution for Shared Benefits.
All the themes are at the heart of China’s foreign policy, which serves as a catalyst in the modern-day development of the Global South in a post-colonial world order.
Chinese President Xi Jinping delivered a moving speech at the conference in Beijing. It was a hugely significant occasion during which the world’s second most populous nation of 1.4 million people was marking the 70th anniversary of the “Five Principles of Peaceful Coexistence”, with the requisite emphasis. How time flies! Also,how apt at this juncture in global affairs dominated by traits and trends of conflict, that China elected to invite the international community to celebrate the world’s most sacrosanct principle – living together in “peaceful coexistence”!
Geopolitical tension point to an avalanche of examples of a world at war with itself. The US-backed Israeli genocide in Gaza, the Nato-funded war in Ukraine, the 60-odd years blockade of Cuba and Venezuela, the Korean Peninsula tension between the South and the North, civil war in Sudan, Myanmar junta’s human rights violations, the West’s Russophopia and trade war on China are some examples in a litany of cases that have pitted the international community against itself.
In a true multilateral nature that has come to characterise China’s foreign policy, the world’s second biggest economy made sure not to mark the occasion in isolation. Scores of representatives from nations across the world attended the ceremony to hear President Xi speak. The more than 100 countries represented included South Africa, Egypt, Brazil, Japan, France, Vietnam, Sri Lanka, Italy, Indonesia, Thailand, Guyana and Croatia. Also in attendance were diplomatic envoys, representatives of international and regional organisations, world media and the business community.
Seventy years ago, participants were reminded, Chinese leaders laid down the five principles: (1) Mutual respect for sovereignty and territorial integrity, (2) Mutual non-aggression, (3) Mutual non-interference in each other’s internal affairs, (4) Equality and mutual benefit and (5) Peaceful coexistence.
These are the core values of Chinese foreign relations that have marked the nation’s rapid rise in global affairs. The five principles have also helped galvanise the international community around China’s progress and prosperity, benefiting for the spirit of a “shared future” and other humanitarian principles.
“Over the past years,” the conference heard, “the Five Principles of Peaceful Coexistence have shown everlasting relevance. Informed by Asian wisdom, they have become open, inclusive and universally applicable basic norms for international relations and fundamental principles of international law.”
President Xi’s remarks about the Global South were also telling. He said: “The Global South is a key force that advocates and practices the Five Principles of Peace Coexistence. It should be the staunch force for peace, the core driving force for open development, the construction team of global governance, and the advocates for exchange among civilisations.”
There could be no better way to reposition the Global South as a force to be reckoned with. The growing unity and co-operation across the Global South, marked by formations such as the strategic bloc BRICS+, give credence to China’s claims about the Global South as a “key force” in the reconfiguration of the international world order.
China resolved, as part of a take-away from the conference, “to establish a Global South research centre, providing 1 000 scholarships under the Five Principles and Peaceful Coexistence Scholarship of Excellence and 100 000 training opportunities to Global South countries in the next five years”. China also announced the launch of a Global South youth leadership programme in recognition of the critical role the youth play in innovation and technological development of the present era as well as the future.
President Xi’s vision of building an international community with a “shared future for mankind” is premised on the notion of the original five principles for a peaceful coexistence. “The overarching goal is to build a world of lasting peace, universal security and shared prosperity and one that is open, inclusive, clean and beautiful, which points the direction for all countries to work together on Earth, the planet we call home,” President Xi said.
The essence of the five principles of peaceful coexistence is “sovereign equality, which is the most important norm in state-to-state relations. All countries are equal,” President Xi said, “the big should not subdue the small, the strong should not bully the weak and the rich should not exploit the poor,” he added.
The participants spoke positively about China’s proposals for advancing the high-quality Belt and Road Initiative, the Global Development Initiative, the Global Security Initiative as well as the Global Civilization Initiative. They recognised the principles for their great significance for safeguarding international peace and security, promoting global sustainable development and contributing to human civilisation and progress.
The commemorative event was hugely successful in that it not only paused to reflect on a rich history dating 70 years, it took stock of the state of international relation, and thrashed out a common path to the future for the Global South and the rest of the internal community.
The economic success of China and its rise in geopolitics, therefore, has become a victory not only for Beijing but for the rest of the developing nations in particular and mankind in general. That is a true recipe for a shared future for all.
*Abbey Makoe is founder and editor-in-chief: Global South Media Network
The Star