Having Dashed without Looking Back, It`s Time for Asian Communities to Reflect on Basic Philosophies An Interview with Lalita Ramdas, the former Chairperson at Greenpeace International The Great Earthquake in Eastern Japan and the Fukushima accident have led us to a realization that a country`s issue is no longer of its own but of everyone in the world. Lalita Ramdas, the former Chairperson at Greenpeace International, believes that this realization will motivate Asia to reflect on its alternative values. Hankyoreh interviewed her at her house in Alibag, India, a three hour long drive from Mumbai. Due to a heavy rain, getting to her house was a struggle. She was wearing a traditional Indian costume. Her white hair gave off a strong impression. - Despite Fukushima accident, China and Korea plan to build more nuclear power plants in order to meet the increased demand for electricity. Do you think it is fair or justifiable to enforce these two countries to adjust energy consumption based on Western standards? - I think it is fair. Such enforcement should be applied to every country. There is no room for re-consideration or negotiation. They say that there is no other alternative to nuclear power because of its efficiency for having the demands met. But this is not true. Science loses freedom under the power of money. This problem should be contemplated in a bigger scale. More plants mean more pollution. Water, soil and environmental pollution will result in a great apocalypse for human species. Nuclear power is the most expensive energy source since it is the most dangerous one that threatens the very existence of human species. We need to convince the world to invest more in renewable energy sources. - Recently, Asian community has been one of the major topics for debate as Asian countries started to prosper economically. As the former Chairperson at Greenpeace International, what do you think the Asian community should consider, reflecting on your experience in standing up against or collaborating with EU? - In the beginning, European Union emerged in pursuit of economic collaboration. Asia Community should not focus on economic collaboration only. Its composition should be done within a deep breath. Asia has a longer history and richer mental heritage than the West. In fact, many problems that we encounter now stem from Western way of thinking and lifestyles. In order to turn the world back to the sustainable rhythm, we need a new philosophy. Personally, I wish people would include India in the Asian Community. If you look at the expansion of Buddhism, we can see how Korea, China and Japan had started trading with India early in the history. - Why does Asia need to provide a new philosophy and an alternative lifestyle? - Europe considers development as a straight line. Therefore, the direction of development is already determined for Europe. It puts the past behind and just move forward. However, the Asian way of thinking is circular. A circle has neither a start nor an end. Consequences of behaviors are bound to come back after some time. Therefore, stages or superiorities in development cannot be identified. Naturally, people see the consequences of their behaviors in the long-term. They make decisions with respect toward the nature, neighbors and someone far away. When people start thinking this way, development can take place in various forms, not like that of the US which has Consumerism lies in its core. - Do you not think that life is about moving forward, overcoming the encountering challenges? - Basically, the Western philosophy thinks that human history proceeds from the incomplete to the complete. However, before defining the straight-line proceeding as `progress`, we need to reflect on what we had had to pay for it. In the perspectives of human instinct, human relationships and the nature, have we made any progress at all? Advancement in technology has two faces: convenience and destruction. Weapons of mass destruction like nuclear bomb are also a product of technological advancement. We need to evaluate the general picture in a more comprehensive perspective. - Why do we need a new way of thinking now? - Despite two World Wars and the tragedies of Hiroshima and Chernobyl, we still have not earnestly reflected on our past and the future. What is growth? Toward which direction is our future headed? Rather than depending on certainties, `success-ism` and `science and technology-ism`, we need to share our questions and thoughts. We can`t afford not reflecting on the present. We are running out of time. - How should the Government and the civil society respond so that disasters like Japan`s Fukushima accident do not happen again? - Although we need to give it some more time for observation, Germany, Switzerland and Netherland Governments responded rapidly, asking the citizens` opinions. Meanwhile, the Japanese government showed an irresponsible attitude toward the disaster. Rather than solving the problem, they tried to cover up the problem. They closed the information and lied to the citizens. Their reaction will result in a bigger crisis. There are signs already: the Japanese, who rarely stage demonstrations, have started to come out to the streets to speak up. This is a positive sign. What we need to do is nothing big. It is communicating our beliefs through SNS, going out to the streets to meet people and sharing our thoughts with the neighbors that we need to start with. Soojeong Ha, Researcher at Hankyoreh Economic Research Institute soodal@hani.co.kr Who`s Lalita Ramdas? Lalita Ramdas is a renowned environmental activist from India. She was the first Asian to hold the chairperson`s position at Greenpeace International, from January 2007 until April 2011. She has been accredited for having brought Eastern philosophy to the America and Europe-oriented environment organization and contributed in the establishment of the culture of communication and solidarity. Together with her husband who became an environmental activist after resigning from a Navy commander`s position, she has been actively engaging in promotion of education for women and minorities, environmental activism and peace activism in her hometown, Alibag, Bimala. In 2005, she was listed on the `1000 Peace Women across the Globe` and also have been nominated for Nobel Peace Prize. Fukushima Accident`s Back Blasts in the West Germany, -The Prime Minister from the Green Party Elected in Conservative and Wealthy Regions- Liberal or Conservative, All Make a Consensus on Nuclear Phase-out Plan The world learned once again that nuclear power is not safe from Fukushima Accident. The correspondent, Japan, announced a plan for gradually phasing out of nuclear power by 2050. However, the plan did not reach nuclear-free society. Drastic changes were first made on the other side of the globe. On March 26th, 2011, right after the accident, about 250,000 people came out to the streets in Berlin to stage a demonstration against nuclear power. The next day, Stefan Mappus from the Green Party won the election in Baden-W�rttemberg to become the state prime minister. The citizens called for a nuclear-free society furiously. In the end, on May 30th, 2011, the German Parliament, led by Angela Merkel, the chancellor of Germany, announced that all nuclear power plants in Germany will be shut down by 2022. I had a chance to visit Germany`s major think-tanks and inquire the the German background for making such decision. Matthias Trenel, the president at Zebralog said, `The result of the election in such conservative and wealthy region like Baden-W�rttemberg indicated how much Germans were shocked by the nuclear accident.` Holger Heide, the president at Socio-economic Behavior Research Institute evaluated,` Fukushima nuclear accident was a motivation for many European countries to reconsider the nuclear policy that used to be a secondary issue more seriously and politically. George Katsiaficas who is well known for his research on social movement predicted that `If Germany`s nuclear phase-out plan works, other advanced industrialized countries will follow that path as well.` In fact, protests against nuclear power have been taking place in Germany since 1970. As results, Green Party was launched to write the history of growth. Chernobyl accident in 1986 heightened the German citizens` fear to the extreme. Dr. Michael Borchard from Konrad Adenauer Foundation of European Parliament said, `Nuclear phase-out is a matter of time. The decision cannot be changed.` He added that Fukushima disaster had a decisive effect on the direction and moving speed of German nuclear power policy. However, some remain skeptical about Germany`s nuclear phase-out plan. Klaus Meschkat, one of the leaders of German Student Movement said, `We still have to wait and see whether this would be the final decision.` Conservatives and financiers may resist, which would affect the phase-out plan. Il-pyo Hong, Research Fellow at Hankyoreh Economic Research Institute Iphong1732@hani.co.kr