Give Peace a Chance

马尔蒂·阿赫蒂萨里/Martti Ahtisaari

马尔蒂·阿赫蒂萨里（1937—），社民党人。1994年3月任芬兰总统，2008年获得诺贝尔和平奖。阿赫蒂萨里出生于芬兰维普里（Viipuri，今俄罗斯维堡）。其曾祖父为挪威移民，其父亲奥伊瓦（Oiva）是一名军士。奥伊瓦·阿赫蒂萨里1929年加入芬兰国籍，1935年将姓由“阿多尔夫森”（Adolfsen）改为“阿赫蒂萨里”（Ahtisaari）。

国王陛下、王储殿下、各位阁下、尊敬的挪威诺贝尔委员会成员、来自世界各地的亲爱的朋友们和同事们：

今天，我满怀谦卑和感激之情接受今年的诺贝尔和平奖。我深知，这个奖是对工作在这一领域的人们所取得成绩的最大认可与褒奖。

我现在的心情充溢着无比的喜悦，这种喜悦之情只有当我亲眼看见了和平为人类的生活带来的巨大变化时才能体会得到，只有当我看到惨遭战争与危机的人们在一种和平的氛围中开始建立自己的新生活时才能体会得到，只有当我们的信念在不久的将来得到回报时才能体会得到！

当我还是孩童时，也亲历过残酷的战争。那时，我只有两岁大，希特勒统治的德国与斯大林统治的苏联两国之间因利益方面的条款引发了战争。战争的爆发迫使我的家人不久便离开了家乡——维普里镇。像几十万卡累利亚同胞一样，我们成了自己国家的难民，强国政策要求重新规划芬兰版图，而我的家乡却成了苏联的一部分。童年的经历促使我下定决心致力于解决冲突的事业。

不是调解员选择曾经卷入的冲突，而是冲突各方选择调解员。调解员要想成功参与调解冲突，他必须得到涉及冲突的各方对他的信任。调解员的任务是帮助冲突各方解决那些棘手的问题，并引导他们向和平的方向努力。冲突调解员这个角色有点类似于咨询医生、助产人员或教师。

但是，人们越来越关注调解员的作用。在这种情况下，我们正在剥夺冲突各方自己解决冲突的权力，并在制造一种错误的印象，即和平来自外部的力量。殊不知，唯一能够创造和平的人就是冲突各方。因为他们要对冲突以及冲突带来的结果负全责，所以，他们对和平负有不可推卸的责任，他们对和平的贡献应该得到人们的认可与赞赏。

纳米比亚的独立之路艰辛而漫长，这个过程需要纳米比亚人强有力的支持和决心。纳米比亚也为联合国及其各个成员国如何做到最佳状态提供了一个很好的榜样。今天，当我们回顾那些已经失去的岁月时，令人感觉难以置信的是我们竟然成功获得了所有的关键角色，西方五国（美国、英国、法国、德国和加拿大），苏联，非洲共同体（由非洲几个前线国家代表），南非政府及纳米比亚的各个政党，来努力实现一个共同的目标。它还告诉我们，只有我们准备和政治对手进行和平讨论时，才能找到持续有效的解决办法。我相信，纳米比亚的实践经验定会鼓励南非政府，并启动民主变革的进程。

通过亚齐追求和平的进程，我们会发现，一个国家的政治领导层寻找解决内部冲突方面的努力是多么的重要。在印度尼西亚和自由亚齐政治领导人的共同努力下，一份和平协议书最终产生。然而，这仅仅是一个开始，只有谈判双方以及广大人民群众长期致力于和平事业，社会和经济的变革才会取得进展。亚齐仍需要做的努力是制定国家制度来保护、维持和改善亚齐人民的生活质量。

所有的冲突都可以解决

战争和冲突不是不可避免的。它们往往是由人类制造，人们总是会受利益的驱动而发动战争。因此，那些拥有强大的势力和影响力的国家也可以阻止战争的发生。

和平是一个意愿的问题。所有的冲突是能够得到解决的，并且我们没有任何理由使这些冲突变得永无止境。令人难以忍受的是，几十年来，暴力性冲突藐视和平的解决方式，给人类带来了难以估量的痛苦，阻碍了经济和社会的发展。国际社会的消极态度和无能为力使人们联手建立安全基础的信念变得更加困难。尽管我们面临着许多挑战，但是只要当事人和国际社会联起手来向着同一个目标共同努力，那么即使是最棘手的冲突也能得到解决。联合国为解决国际和平问题提供了一个正确的指导原则，然而，我们大家都知道联合国的一些限制，也知道其成员国的趋势，那就是：给它分配苛刻的任务，却不提供足够的资源和政策支持。非常重要的一点是，联合国的成员国们要做坚实的工作来加强这个国际性组织。我们不能失去联合国。

在冲突中，冲突的一方总是能够宣告胜利，但是要想建立和平，冲突的各方必须都要参与：强国和弱国，战胜国和战败国，男人和女人，幼者和长者等等。然而，和平谈判通常是由一小群精英人士进行。展望未来，我们一定能更好地实现在和平进程中更广泛的参与度。特别是，确保妇女参与和平进程中的各个阶段很有必要。

和平进程以及在这个进程中所产生的各项协议会结束暴力行为。但是，真正的工作只有在和平协议尘埃落定之后才算开始。所通过的和平协议必须得到贯彻实施。社会和政治变革不可能在一夜之间完成，同样，重构和确立民主也需要耐心。这需要一个综合的措施来建设和平，来支持文明社会。

不平等现象滋生冲突

国家内部以及地区之间日益增大的不平等加剧了现有的分裂状态。我们的任务是为那些经受危机的地区和国家创造未来和希望，使年青的下一代不再忍受失业的痛苦，并创造条件改善他们自己的生活。我们必须成功地应付这一挑战，否则，新的冲突将会爆发，我们将在战争中失去新的一代人。

今年，各界就金融危机展开了大量的讨论，这次金融危机使我们深刻地意识到维护国际社会与合作发展的重要性。这场金融风暴的影响可能暴露了发展中国家的另一个重要弊端：最贫穷的人正在经受着最严重的气候变化的影响，遭受食品价格上涨带来的困境，以及忍受对外贸易的低迷状态。国外援助和投资的减少对于急需发展经济的国家而言将是灾难性的打击。在这个艰难的时刻，我呼吁各国政府继续致力于消除贫穷的目标。

我们必须为我们的未来以及我们生活地区的未来做出努力。如果目前的趋势继续向下发展的话，我们将面临如下的境况：成千上万的年轻人将在国家的早期发展阶段没有工作可做。如果我们不采取任何措施，我们就相当于营造了一个有效的犯罪温床，带来社会的不稳定甚至引发战争，我们年轻的一代将会失去所有希望。从长远来看，我相信，与贫困的斗争是打击恐怖主义最有效的措施。

10天前，我怀着无比复杂的心情离开利比里亚。首先，战争留给利比里亚的破坏让我的心情很沉重，这些结果给该国政府和国际社会造成了很大的难题。第二，在一定程度上又感到很乐观，感觉我们所遇到的人可能从此将开始发生真正的变化，但前提是国际社会能够长期地保持对利比里亚的承诺。

冲突的有效解决需要乐观的心态，需要通过就业和各种经济机遇带给人们希望。否则，脆弱的一纸和平协议很难持续下去。从长远来看，私营部门有能力创造新的企业，创造投资机会，提供就业和持久的经济安全。但是，吸引私营部门向饱受战争**的地区投资是很不容易的。这需要创新，需要制定各种非经济的和经济的奖励措施。同样，私营部门参与制定战后恢复战略这一重大工作时，也需要创新思维。

必须想方设法解决中东冲突

摆在我们面前的最具挑战性的和平建设项目，是要想方设法解决中东冲突，这方面的努力已经持续了几十年。由于该地区的紧张局势和战争已经持续了较长时间，所以很多人认为，中东之结是永远无法解开。

我不同意这种看法。所有的危机，当然包括中东危机，是可以得到妥善解决的。要想得到解决，卷入冲突的各方都要做出自己的努力，同时，整个国际社会也要付出努力。如果我们着眼于未来，想象我们各地区能够共同挖掘自己的经济潜力，建立交通运输网络，充分利用有用之才，并且占据在三大洲的接点处，并在不断收获优越区域所带来的各种利益时，我们付出努力来实现这个目标的决心将倍增。

我希望，下个月宣誓就任的美国新一届总统，会在他执政的第一年高度重视中东冲突。欧洲联盟、俄罗斯和联合国也必须庄严承诺，以便能找到办法解决以色列和巴勒斯坦及伊拉克和伊朗方面问题。如果我们想得到持久的和平，那么我们必须从整个区域全局考虑。

整个国际社会的信誉利害攸关。我们不能继续像往常一样，年复一年地做表面文章来帮助中东局势，我们的行动必须取得实际成果。

在很多人看来，宗教间的紧张关系为棘手的中东危机提供了一个很容易的解释，我不接受这种观点。在我的职业生涯中，我看到过许多危机中宗教确实常被用作一种武器或一种手段延长冲突。然而，宗教本身是向往和平的。宗教也可以成为和平进程中的一股建设性力量，这种力量同样也适用中东。

和平调解员不会单独行动

冲突各方在寻求和平解决方案和付诸实践的过程中都发挥着关键作用。同样道理，要想使和平进程取得成功，仅凭某一外部力量很难发挥应有的作用。

我在促进和平方面的经验是，和平进程在很大程度上是合作的问题和不同领域的人们的积极参与，包括冲突各方、和平调解员、各国政府、民间团体以及各个国际性组织等。

即使所有的目光集中在和平调解员身上，我们也要重视调解小组的作用以及其他没有直接参与谈判过程的关键角色的重要性。在我的工作中，我一直处在一个特权位置，可以建立自己的团队，我有机会与许多在不同和平进程中工作的优秀同事们进行合作。如果没有他们，今天我就不会站在这里。

我希望，所有那些为自己国家的和平而努力奋斗的勇敢人们，可以与我一起分享今天这个奖项所带来的荣誉。

然而，我最大的力量源泉是我的家人。我的妻子埃娃和我的儿子马尔科一直陪伴着我，他们为我提供了有力的支持，并提出了建设性的批评。我向他们表示衷心的感谢！

亲爱的朋友们，我希望授予我的这个杰出奖项能够鼓励那些个人和组织继续努力，争取和平。我还希望，他们在未来的工作能得到各方面的支持！

如果我们共同努力，我们就可以找到解决问题的办法。我们不应接受当权者的任何借口，和平是一个意愿问题，只要我们有这方面的意愿，我们便有望实现和平！

谢谢大家！

Your Majesties， Your Royal Highnesses， Excellencies， Distinguished members of the Norwegian Nobel Committee， Dear Friends and Colleagues around the world，

I feel both humility and gratitude at receiving this year's Nobel Peace Prize. It is the greatest recognition anybody working in this field can be given.

What I am feeling now can only be compared with the joy I have felt when seeing the changes that peace has brought to the lives of people. When people， who have endured wars and crises， begin to build their lives in an atmosphere of peace—When faith in the future returns.

I too was a child affected by a war. I was only two years old when， as a result of an agreement on spheres of interest between Hitler's Germany and Stalin's Soviet Union， war broke out， forcingmy family to leave soon thereafter the town of Viipuri.Like several hundred thousand fellow Karelians， we became refugees in our own country as great power politics caused the borders of Finland to be redrawn and left my home town as part of the Soviet Union.This childhood experience contributed to my commitment to working on the resolution of conflicts.

Mediators do not choose the conflicts they became involved in but the parties to the conflict choose the mediator. Their participation as intermediaries is based on the trust of all the conflicting parties.The task of the mediator is to help the parties to open difficult issues and nudge them forward in the peace process.The mediator's role combines those of a ship's pilot， consulting medical doctor， midwife and teacher.

However， there tends to be too much focus on the mediators. With that we are disempowering the parties to the conflict and creating the wrong impression that peace comes from the outside.The only people that can make peace are the parties to the conflict， and just as they are responsible for the conflict and its consequences， so should they be given responsibility and recognition for the peace.

The process leading to Namibian independence was long and required strong commitment and determination from the Namibians. Namibia is also an excellent example of what the UN and its member states can achieve at their best.Today， lookingback to those years， it feels almost unbelievable that we managed to get all the key actors， the Western five (US， UK， France， Germany and Canada)， the Soviet Union， the Organisation of African Unity， (represented by the African front-line states)， the South-African government and all the political parties in Namibia， including SWAPO， to work towards a shared goal.It also taught that a durable solution can only be found if one is also prepared to engage in discussions with your political opponents.I do believe that the experience from the Namibia operation encouraged the government of South Africa to begin the process of democratic change.

The peace process in Aceh showed how important it is that a country's political leadership is committed to finding a solution to an internal conflict. Joint efforts by the political leadership in Indonesia and the Free Aceh Movement resulted in a peace agreement.However， it was only a start.Social and economic reforms can only progress if both negotiating parties and the population at large are committed to them in the long term.Work remains to be done in developing a national system that protects， sustains and improves the quality of life in Aceh.

All Conflicts Can Be Resolved

Wars and conflicts are not inevitable. They are caused byhuman beings.There are always interests that are furthered by war.Therefore those who have power and influence can also stop them.

Peace is a question of will. All conflicts can be settled， and there are no excuses for allowing them to become eternal.It is simply intolerable that violent conflicts defy resolution for decades causing immeasurable human suffering， and preventing economic and social development.The passivity and impotence of the international community make it more difficult for us to place our faith in jointly built security structures.Despite the many challenges， even the most intractable conflicts can be resolved if the parties involved and the international community join forces and work together for a common aim.The United Nations provides the right framework for international peace efforts and solutions to global problems.However， we are all aware of the constraints of the United Nations and of the tendency of the member states to give it demanding assignments without providing adequate resources and political support.It is important that the UN member states work resolutely to strengthen the world organization.We cannot afford to lose the UN.

In a conflict， one party can always claim victory， but building peace must involve everybody：the weak and the powerful， the victors and the vanquished， men and women， young and old. However， peace negotiations are often conducted by a smallelite.In the future we must be better able to achieve a broader participation in peace processes.Particularly， there is a need to ensure the engagement of women in all stages of a peace process.

Peace processes and the agreements resulting from them end the violence. But the real work only starts after a peace agreement has been concluded.The agreements reached have to be implemented.Social and political change does not happen overnight， and the reconstruction and establishment of democracy demand patience.That requires a comprehensive approach to peace-building， and support for civil society.

Inequality Breeds Conflict

Growing inequality within countries and between regions deepens the existing cleavages. It is our task to create a future and hope for regions and countries in crisis where young people suffer from unemployment and have little prospects of improving their lives.Unless we can meet this challenge， new conflicts will flare up and we will lose another generation to war.

There has been a great deal of talk this year about the financial crisis. This financial crisis also highlights the importance of maintaining the commitment of the international community to development cooperation.The effects of this crisis may prove another major setback for the developing world.The very poorestpeople are already being hit hardest by the impact of climate change， rising food prices and lower levels of foreign trade.A reduction in foreign assistance and investment would be disastrous for badly needed economic growth.At this difficult time， I call on all governments to remain committed to their stated goals of eradicating poverty.

We must all be able to contribute to our own future and to the future of our communities. If the present trend continues， we will be faced with a situation where hundreds of millions of young people will be out of work in countries that are in early stages of development.If nothing is done， we will be creating an effective breeding ground for crime， instability and war as young people lose all hope.I believe that the fight against poverty is also the most effective measure of countering terrorism in the long term.

I returned ten days ago from Liberia I came away with mixed feelings. First， a feeling of sadness at the scale of destruction that the war left in Liberia and the size of the challenge for the Government and the international community.Second， a degree of optimism that the people we met， can begin to make a real difference—but only if the international community can retain its commitment to Liberia over the long term.

Conflict settlement requires the injection of optimism and hope born from employment and economic opportunities. Otherwise， fragile peace agreements can rarely be sustained.Over the long term， only the private sector is capable of growing new enterprises， creating investment opportunities which provide employment and enduring economic security.Attracting private-sector investment into war-torn areas is not easy.It requires innovation.A mix of non-economic and economic incentives will have to be devised.Similarly， involvement of the private sector in the larger work of formulating strategies for post-war recovery will require innovative thinking.

A Solution Must Be Found to the Middle East Conflict

The most challenging peace-building project ahead of us is finding a solution to the conflicts in the Middle East， which have continued for decades. The tensions and wars in the region have been going on for so long that many have come to believe that the Middle East knot can never be untied.

I do not share this belief. All crises， including the one in the Middle East， can be resolved.The solution would require a contribution from all the parties involved as well as the international community as a whole.We might be strengthened in our resolve if we set our sights on the future and imagine what the world could look like if the countries in the region could jointly begin to develop their economic potential， build transport links， make full use of their educated population and begin to reap thebenefits of an advantageous location in the crossroads of three continents.

I hope that the new President of the United States， who will be sworn in next month， will give high priority to the Middle East conflict during his first year in office. The European Union， Russia and the UN must also be seriously committed so that a solution can be found to the crises stretching from Israel and Palestine to Iraq and Iran.If we want to achieve lasting results， we must lookat the whole region.

The credibility of the whole international community is at stake. We cannot go on， year after year， simply pretending to do something to help the situation in the Middle East.We must also get results.

For many people， tensions between religions have provided an easy explanation for the intractability of the Middle East crisis. I cannot accept this view.During my career I have seen many crises in which religion has been used as a weapon or as an instrument for prolonging the conflict.Religions themselves are， however， peace-loving.They can also be a constructive force in peace-building， and this also applies to the Middle East.

Peace mediators do not work alone

All parties to the conflict play a key role in finding a peaceful solution and putting it into practice. Likewise， a single outside party is rarely able to play all the roles that are required for a peace process to succeed.

All my peace assignments have taught me that a peace process is largely a matter of cooperation and partnership between different actors， parties to a conflict， peace mediators， governments， the civic society and international organizations.

Even though all eyes are often on the peace mediators， it isimportant to emphasize the role of the mediation teams and the other important actors outside the direct negotiation process itself. In my work I have always been in a privileged position to build up my own team， including my colleagues at the organization I founded after my Finnish Presidency， Crisis Management Initiative.I have had the opportunity to work with many highly qualified colleagues in different peace processes.Without them I would not be here today.

I hope that all those brave women and men that have worked for the peace in their country would feel that they can share this prize with me.

However， my biggest source of strength is my family. My wife Eeva and my son Marko have always been at my side.They have provided me with both support and constructive criticism.I offer them my heartfelt thanks.

Dear friends， I hope that this distinguished prize awarded to me will encourage individuals and organizations to continue their efforts for peace. I also hope that they will receive full support for their work in the future.

If we work together， we can find solutions. We should not accept any excuses from those in power.Peace is a question of will.

Thank you！