Hans Köchler

GLOBAL DIALOGUE EXPEDITION 1974

5 March - 1 May 1974

In September 1972, in the course of the foundation of the International Progress Organization, Hans Köchler suggested to the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) the holding of an international conference on a dialogue entre les différentes civilisations ("dialogue between different civilizations"). He further worked out the notion in a position paper on Cultural Self-comprehension and Co-existence: Preconditions of a Fundamental Dialogue, which he delivered at the University of Innsbruck (19 October 1972). Less than two years after this initiative, Hans Köchler embarked on a trip around the globe to promote the idea of cultural dialogue as basis of peaceful co-existence among nations, and to discuss the International Progress Organization's forthcoming conference on The Cultural Self-comprehension of Nations (which was to be held in Innsbruck, Austria, in July 1974  ). In the course of his consultations with academics, politicians, diplomats, NGO representatives and journalists, he visited 28 cities in 26 countries in a period of less than two months. He met, among others, with the President of Senegal, the Minister of Culture of Egypt, the Minister of Education and Social Welfare of India, and the Foreign Ministers of Thailand and the United Arab Emirates. In a lecture on Cultural-philosophical Aspects of International Co-operation at Jordan's Royal Scientific Society in Amman (9 March 1974) he outlined his theory of cultural dialogue, an idea which more than two decades later was to be discussed under the label, initially introduced by Köchler, of "dialogue among civilizations."

Interactive map

Detailed itinerary

Al-Goumhouria, Cairo, Egypt

Le Soleil, Dakar, Senegal

Abendzeitung, Munich, Germany

The documentation below provides a brief overview of Hans Köchler's meetings and interviews in selected countries.

 

6 - 10 March: Amman, Jordan

 

6 March 19:15 hrs, arrival from Vienna via Athens, OS 871 / RJ 132
7 March Dr. M. Marto, Director of the Royal Scientific Society
Mr. Maurice B. Issi, Royal Scientific Society
9 March Dr. Kamel Abu Jaber, Dean of the School of Economics and Commerce, Jordan University, former Minister of National Economy
  Lecture at the Royal Scientific Society: "Cultural-philosophical Aspects of International Co-operation"
10 March Prof. Dr. Abdul Salam Al-Majali, President, Jordan University
Consultations at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Ministry of Education, and Ministry of Information
Luncheon hosted by the President of Jordan University 
  • Text of speech at Royal Scientific Society


12 - 15 March: Cairo, Egypt

 

12 March 13:00 hrs, arrival from Beirut, MS 709
13 March Mr. Kemal El-Malach, Senior Editorial Writer, Al-Ahram newspaper
Dr. Moustapha Mounir, Under-Secretary, Ministry of Culture
Prof. Dr. Gamal El-Din, Youth Directorate, Arab Socialist Union
Mr. Hassan El-Tuhami, Asst. Secretary-General, League of Arab States
Mr. Alaa El-Dib, Ros El-Youssef magazine
14 March Mr. Badr El-Dib, Editor-in-Chief, Al-Massah newspaper
H.E. Youssef El-Sebai
, Minister of Culture
Mr. Mursi Saad El-Din, Under-Secretary, Ministry of Culture
Interview for Al-Goumhouria newspaper
  • Al-Goumhouria ("Cairo and the world")

  • Al-Ahram


15 - 18 March: Kuwait

 

15 March 17:45 hrs, arrival from Cairo, KU 542
16 March Mr. Saleh Shihab, Under-Secretary, Ministry of Guidance and Information
Interviews for the newspapers Al-Qabas and Daily News
Mr. Raúf Shahori, Editor-in-Chief, Al-Qabas Newspaper
17 March Mr. Jacques Léger, United Nations Resident Representative in Kuwait
Mr. Mohamed Atigi
, Ministry of Foreign Affairs
H.E. Sheikh Duaij Salman Al-Sabah
  • Kuwait Times ("Austrian professor here to promote int'l progress")

 

19 March: Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates

 

19 March 02:30 hrs, arrival from Kuwait, KU 260
H.E. Saif Ghobash, Minister of State for Foreign Affairs
Dr. Ibrahim Ibrahim, Under-Secretary, Ministry of Foreign Affairs

 


20 - 22 March: Bombay, India

 

20 March

04:05 hrs, arrival from Abu Dhabi, AI 802

21 March

Mr. V. K. Narasimhan, Editor-in-Chief, Indian Express
Prof. Mulk Raj Anand

22 March

Information visit, Raj Kapoor Studios
Mr. Rao
, Times of India

22 - 26 March: New Delhi, India

 

22 March 21:45 hrs, arrival from Bombay, IC 406
25 March Interviews for Hindustan Times, Times of India, Indian Express
Mrs. S. Kochar
, Indian Council for Cultural Relations
26 March Prof. Gopalaswami Parthasarathy, Vice-Chancellor, Jawaharlal Nehru University
Interview for The Hindu newspaper
Dr. A. Rahman, Chief (Planning), Council for Scientific and Industrial Research
H.E. Prof. Nurul Hassan, Minister of Education and Social Welfare
  • Indian Express


26 - 27 March: Dhaka, Bangladesh

 

26 March 17:10 hrs, arrival from New Delhi, TG 304
27 March Interview for Bangladesh Radio
Mr. Abdul Ahsan
, Director-General, Ministry of Foreign Affairs
Prof. DDr. A. M. Chaudhury, Vice-Chancellor, University of Dhaka
Prof. Dr. Syed Ali Ahsan, Vice-Chancellor, Jahangirnagar University
Mr. M. R. Akhtar, Director-General, Bangladesh Radio
Mr. A. Choudhury, The People newspaper (interview)
  • The People ("Bangladesh invited to IPO seminar")

 

29 March - 3 April: Bangkok, Thailand

 

29 March 11:10 hrs, arrival from Calcutta, SK 985
1 April Prof. Capt. Sompob Bhirom R.T.M., Director-General (Fine Arts Dept.), Ministry of Education
H. E. Charoonphan Israngkul Na Ayudhya
, Minister of Foreign Affairs
2 April HSH Prince M. C. Subhadradis Diskul, Professor of Archaeology, President, Silpakorn University (University of Fine Arts)
Press conference at Austrian Embassy
Interview for Bangkok Post

 

5 - 6 April: Jakarta, Indonesia

 

5 April 17:55 hrs, arrival from Singapore, SQ 208
6 April Prof. Ida Bagus Mantra, Director-General, Ministry of Education, Member of the Executive Board of UNESCO
Mr. Amir Sutaarga, Director of Museums, Ministry of Education

 

7 - 9 April: Canberra, Australia

 

7 April 21:10 hrs, arrival from Jakarta via Sydney, PA 812 / TN 497
8 April Prof. Frank L. Jones, Chairman, Dept. of Sociology, Australian National University
Prof. Kenichi Tominaga
, Visiting Professor (University of Tokyo, Japan)
Prof. A. L. Burns
, Dept. of Political Science, Australian National University
9 April High Commission of the Republic of Fiji
Mr. Harold Fry,
Foreign Editor, Canberra Times

 

17 - 19 April: Mexico City, Mexico

 

17 April 21:40 hrs, arrival from Los Angeles, WA 637
18 April Mrs. Gloria Caballero, Director-General (Cultural Affairs), Ministry of Foreign Affairs
Mr. Enrique Soto Izqierdo, Director-General, Instituto Nacional de la Juventud Mexicana (INJUVE)
Mr. Arrigo Coen Anítua, Deputy Director-General (Cultural Relations), Ministry of Public Education
19 April Dr. Arturo Azuela, President, Seminario de Cultura Mexicana

 

20 - 22 April: Caracas, Venezuela

 

20 April 19:25 hrs, arrival from Mexico City, VA 781
22 April Dr. Ramón Delgado, Director, Relaciones Culturales y Información Exterior, Ministry of Foreign Affairs
Dr. Eric Becker-Becker, Head of the Dept. of Unesco Affairs, Ministry of Foreign Affairs
Mrs. Lucila Velazquez, President, Instituto de Cultura y Bellas Artes (INCIBA)

 

22 - 24 April: Rio de Janeiro, Brazil

 

22 April 22:00 hrs, arrival from Caracas, PA 217
24 April Prof. Celso Kelly, Minister of Education (State of Rio de Janeiro)
Mr. Arnaldo Sant'Anna de Moura
, Ministry of Education
Mr. Jose Augusto Ribeiro, Editor-in-Chief, O Globo newspaper

 

25 - 26 April: Dakar, Senegal

 

25 April 09:05 hrs, arrival from Rio de Janeiro, SR 205
H.E. Léopold Sédar Senghor, President of the Republic of Senegal
26 April

Dr. Sheikh Anta Diop, Director, IFAN - Institut fondamental d'Afrique noire, University of Dakar

Mr. Bedara Fall, Chef de Cabinet, Ministry of Culture

Mr. Bakary Kamian, Director of the Regional Office of UNESCO

Mr. Malal N'Diaye, Le Soleil newspaper (interview)

  • Le Soleil ("L'Europe a beaucoup à apprendre")

 

27 - 30 April: Tripoli, Libya

 

27 April 16:30 hrs, arrival from Dakar via Rome, AZ 553 / LN 121
28 April Mr. Isa Babaa, Director, Dept. of International Organizations, Ministry of Foreign Affairs
Mr. I. Suleiman,
Head, United Nations Section, Ministry of Foreign Affairs
Mr. Ahmed Omar Bushaala, Dept. of Cultural Affairs, Ministry of Foreign Affairs
29 April Mr. Ibrahim Ibjad, Information Director, Ministry of Information and Culture
Mr. Sedik Shelak, Director, Ministry of Information and Culture
Mr. Mameda Zlitni, Secretary-General, Libyan National Commission for Unesco
30 April

Mr. Nemri, Director-General of Antiquities, National Museum
Mr. Ahmed Shahati, Director, Foreign Relations Dept., Arab Socialist Union (ASU)

Luncheon hosted by the Libyan National Commission for Unesco

 

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION

  • Hans Köchler, Cultural Self-comprehension and Co-existence: Preconditions for a Fundamental Dialogue (1972 / German)

  • Hans Köchler's lecture at the Royal Scientific Society of Jordan (9 March 1974)

  • Hans Köchler with Senegal's Minister of Culture, Alioune Sene (Innsbruck, Austria, 27 July 1974)

  • Conference on "The Cultural Self-comprehension of Nations," panelists of Session I 

  • Proceedings of the conference on The Cultural Self-comprehension of Nations

  • Hans Köchler and Gudrun Grabher (eds.), Civilizations: Conflict or Dialogue? (1999)

  • I.P.O. activities in the field of civilizational dialogue

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