A CONFERENCE on the Dialogue of Asian Civilizations (CDAC) was held this May in Beijing, China, focusing on ways and means to boost dialogue, prosperity, and peace for all in the world today. It was held just a month after the Belt and Road Initiative Forum for International Cooperation attended by 37 heads of state and other national leaders and some 5,000 other delegates.
The initiative to hold the Conference on the Dialogue of Civilizations in Asia “is a very important move to pave the way for the language of dialogue over the language of conflict,” former Egyptian Minister of Culture Helmy Al-Namnam said.
Our own President Duterte attended the Belt and Road forum last month and the Philippines is among many nations which have become part of this growing international group of nations, reminiscent of the ancient Silk Road that once joined several nations from Asia to Europe as trading partners.
The Philippines today is a special beneficiary of this “language of dialogue” as President Duterte has chosen to take up all contentious issues with China through dialogue. Today the Philippines has China as its top trading partner and source of investment.
The Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) has similarly chosen dialogue over confrontation, in facing the problem of conflicting claims in the South China Sea involving not only the Philippines but also Vietnam, Malaysia, and Brunei.
Elsewhere in the world today, there are disputes between nations that threaten economic stability along with world peace. The United States (US) trade war with China has affected many companies hit by the tariffs imposed by the US on Chinese goods and the counter-tariffs imposed by China on US goods. Global media has reported growing worldwide anxiety over the adverse impact of the exchange of threats and the resulting roller-coaster movements of financial markets.
We hope this confrontation will soon end as it has begun to worry so many countries, including Germany and other European nations along with Japan and other Asian nations. This dispute that would benefit immensely from the language of dialogue.
