Havel urges modesty at forum

Forum 2000, the annual conference that has taken place in Prague since 1997, kicked off for the 14th time Oct. 10.

In his opening speech at Prague's Crossroads Center, former President and Forum 2000 founder Václav Havel warned that "civilization is doomed unless mankind comes to its senses and is more humble."

"That is why [civilization] always gives priority to short-time profit over long-term profit," he continued. "It is important whether an investment returns within 10 or 15 years; it is less important how it will influence the life of our descendants in 100 years."

Forum 2000's stated mission is to "identify the key issues facing civilization and prevent escalation of conflicts that have religion, culture or ethnicity as their primary components."

The annual conference is meant to provide a platform to discuss such issues, along with smaller events put on by the foundation throughout the year. This year's conference takes place under the motto of "The World We Want to Live In." Among the most prestigious guests were leading political scientist and journalist Fareed Zakaria, Iranian Nobel Peace Prize Laureate Shirin Ebadi and the British journalist Misha Glenny, author of McMafia.

But not everyone looks favorably upon the three-day conference. Jan Černý, one of about 10 protesters to take to the streets Oct. 10, carrying banners that read "The world we do not want to live in," told the Czech News Agency (ČTK) he thinks the concept of Forum 2000 is "elitist" and that he disagreed with the participation of some guests, such as former Prime Minister Mirek Topolánek.

The Forum 2000 foundation was established in 1996 as part of a joint initiative of Havel, Japanese philanthropist Yohei Sasakawa and Nobel Peace Prize laureate Elie Wiesel. The annual conference has drawn a plethora of prominent figures from around the world to the Czech capital over the years, including the Dalai Lama, former U.S. President Bill Clinton and former U.S. Secretary of State Madeleine Albright.

This year, some of the invited guests were unable to attend for political reasons, among them Cuban dissident Osvaldo Paya Sardinas, who did not get permission to leave Cuba.

"Each year, some of our guests cannot attend for political reasons; often, they are dissidents living under totalitarian regimes," said Forum 2000 spokesman Filip Šebek. "But still, the conference has been a success so far. This year's atmosphere has been great; the Crossroads Center was bursting at its seams on opening night."

Sarah Borufka can be reached at
sborufka@praguepost.com