The Future of Peace: On the Front Lines with the World’s Great Peacemakers

Product Description

“From some of the most horrendous chapters in human history,” writes Scott A. Hunt, “these great leaders have emerged to show us a different path, proving not only that the cessation of war is possible, but that the removal of hatred and violence from our hearts is possible as well . . . they show us that the promise of peace remains intact. It is to these people that we can turn in order to replenish our encouragement, hope, and inspiration.”
What does it mean to fight for peace today? We all want lasting peace. But is it really possible, and how do we achieve it? Defying military intelligence officers in Burma, secret police in Vietnam, and combatants in the Occupied Territories of Palestine, Scott Hunt spent three years traveling across the globe — often under arduous conditions — to seek out the wisdom of the world’s leading peacemakers.
In intimate conversations with these remarkable leaders, recounting histories that are not taught in school and uncovering important lessons that are often brushed aside, Hunt skillfully coaxes out staggering stories, including those of Burma’s legendary pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi, Tibet’s moral authority the Dalai Lama, Vietnam’s leading dissident Thich Quang Do, famed primate specialist and humanitarian Dr. Jane Goodall, Cambodia’s Supreme Patriarch Maha Ghosananda, Costa Rica’s Nobel Peace Laureate Oscar Arias, and other great leaders who have battled to end the brutality against the people and causes they cherish. This extraordinary investigation offers far-ranging insights and invaluable lessons, changing the way we think about the world and our responsibility toward one another.
These heroic figures are unwilling to accept that our lives must consist of the tragedy of unremitting conflict and warfare. They explain not only the basis of the conflicts they are working to resolve, but what inspires them to stay resolute in their commitment to peace. Engaging, uplifting, and at times unexpectedly humorous, The Future of Peace conveys both a message of hope and a call to action, revealing what it means to hold an unwavering vision of compassion, to be a leader, and to preserve peace in our own day-to-day lives.

From Publishers Weekly

“It is much easier to see the problem than to find the answer!” declares the Dalai Lama while discussing the future of peace with first-time author Hunt, who has a degree in international law and teaches Buddhism at UC-Berkeley. The Dalai Lama, Dr. Jane Goodall and Burmese dissident Aung San Suu Kyi are some of the great peacemakers whose eloquent voices are captured by Hunt in this bold attempt to discover the causes of human suffering and the antidote to violence. While in Cambodia, Hunt denotes the historical forces that led to the Khmer Rouge genocide and unapologetically details America’s role in creating “one of the darkest episodes in human history.” He converses with the famed Buddhist monk Maha Ghosananda, “the Gandhi of Cambodia,” about the importance of compassion and forgiveness, even toward one’s enemy. The ability of Maha Ghosananda to forgive the Khmer Rouge, responsible for the murder of his entire family, is incomprehensible until Hunt invites the monk to explain his Buddhist philosophy. Hunt himself displays courage and persistence in gaining access to these minds. He details his discreet communications with underground operatives in Burma who helped him evade military intelligence officers hoping to block his access to Suu Kyi. Similarly, in Israel, Hunt defies cautionary warnings to cross into the Gaza Strip to show the oppressive conditions of Palestinian refugee camps. In the words of Maha Ghosananda, “you are who you associate with,” and through these accounts, Hunt hopes we all might become a little more peaceful. (Oct.)
Copyright 2002 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Review

“I really appreciate this work. This is a very important book.” (His Holiness the Dalai Lama)

“I know Mahatma Gandhi wou