Building a Better Post-COVID World 建設一個更美好的疫後世界
Mohamed ElBaradei 穆罕默德·巴拉迪
In a matter of months， the COVID-19 pandemic has transformed the world almost beyond recognition. And yet the international cooperation that is so essential to confront a shared threat has been nowhere to be found. This should not be a surprise: our failure to respond effectively to the COVID-19 crisis reflects deeply entrenched – and severely skewed – values and priorities.
In 1952， the American statesman Adlai Stevenson declared: 「The great enemies of man are war， poverty， and tyranny， and their assaults on human dignity， which are the most grievous consequences of each.」 Nearly seven decades later， those enemies remain as powerful as ever.
As war， poverty， and tyranny proliferate， the need for international cooperation is only growing. Today， the most significant threats the world faces – such as climate change， infectious disease， terrorism， and cybercrime – do not respect borders. The only way to mitigate them is to work together.
And yet critical platforms for international cooperation， such as the UN， have been steadily eroded in recent years， as increasing polarization and paralysis， together with dwindling resources， have undermined their authority. Tellingly， it took more than a month for the UN Security Council to convene after the COVID-19 crisis erupted. Two months later， its members have not agreed on a plan for a coordinated response.
Some might argue that repression， competition， violence， discrimination， and exclusion are unavoidable features of the human condition. If so， attempting to build a world based on principles like freedom， equity， and inclusiveness would be tantamount to attempting to change our very nature.
But this argument is facile， at best. After all， we now roundly reject many atrocities – such as slavery and torture – that were once considered natural and unavoidable. While we still have far to go， great strides have been made in addressing discrimination based on factors like gender and ethnicity.
The message is clear: our mindsets are far from immutable. On the contrary， the recalibration of values is an inescapable feature of human evolution.
Such a recalibration is badly needed today， in order to establish a new paradigm for global cooperation based on principles like human dignity， equality， inclusiveness， diversity， and solidarity. For such a system to work， there must be zero tolerance for tyranny， and geopolitical competition must give way to dialogue.
Moreover， the concept of security must be radically rethought. Dependence on nuclear weapons and displays of military power should give way to trust-building by addressing shared problems （such as cyber threats）.
More broadly， the concept of security should be extended far beyond the physical， to include a focus on ensuring that basic human needs – such as food， health， education， and employment – are reliably met. Policies like universal basic incomes and wealth taxes could go a long way toward advancing these goals.
All of this will require a new approach to governance. In many democracies， citizens have lost trust in the political class and become increasingly suspicious of the influence of money over their leaders and institutions. The protests in the United States highlight the extent to which many people feel that their voices are not being heard. Reversing this trend will require not only targeted policies to protect democratic processes， but also efforts to improve the balance between direct and representative democracy.
If the pandemic has made one thing clear， it is that we are one human family. Only by recognizing this – by taking care of one another， as well as the planet on which we all depend – can any of us hope for a better future. In this sense， cooperation is not only an ethical imperative， but also an existential one.
短短幾個月之內，新冠疫情就把世界變得幾乎面目全非。然而，對於應對共同威脅至關重要的國際合作卻無處可尋。這不應令人感到意外：我們未能有效應對新冠危機，反映出根深蒂固——且嚴重扭曲——的價值觀和優先事項。
1952年，美國政治家艾德萊·史蒂文森宣稱：「人類最大的敵人是戰爭、貧窮和暴政，以及它們對人類尊嚴的侵犯，這是每一個敵人造成的最嚴重後果。」近70年過去了，這些敵人依然強大如初。
隨著戰爭、貧窮和暴政的擴散，對於國際合作的需求有增無減。今天，世界面臨的最重大威脅——比如氣候變化、傳染病、恐怖主義和網絡犯罪——全都不分國界。緩解這些威脅的唯一辦法是合作。
然而，近年來，聯合國等重要的國際合作平臺逐步被削弱，因為不斷加劇的兩極分化和癱瘓狀態以及日漸減少的資源損害了它們的權威。頗能說明問題的是，聯合國安理會在新冠危機爆發一個多月後才召開會議。兩個月過去了，它的成員仍未商定一項協調應對的計劃。
有人可能會說，壓迫、競爭、暴力、歧視和排外是不可避免的人性特徵。如果是這樣，那麼試圖建立一個基於自由、公平和包容等原則的世界就無異於試圖改變我們的本性。
但這種觀點充其量也只是流於表面。畢竟，我們現在強烈反對許多曾經被認為是天性使然和不可避免的暴行——比如奴役和酷刑。雖然我們仍有很長的路要走，但在解決基於性別和種族等因素的歧視方面已經取得了巨大進展。
結論很清楚：我們的觀念決非無法改變。相反，價值觀的重新調整是人類進化的一個不可避免的特徵。
今天迫切需要這樣一種調整，以建立一種基於人類尊嚴、平等、包容、多元和團結等原則的全球合作新模式。要讓這樣一套體系發揮作用，就必須對暴政採取零容忍的態度，而地緣政治競爭也必須讓位於對話。
此外，必須從根本上反思安全的概念。依賴核武器和展示軍事實力應該讓位於通過解決共同問題（比如網絡威脅）來建立信任。
更廣義地來講，安全的概念應該被擴展到遠超出人身安全範疇，要包含重視確保人類基本需求——比如食物、健康、教育和就業——以可靠的方式得到滿足。全民基本收入和財富稅等政策對於推進這些目標可能大有幫助。
所有這些都需要採取新的治理方式。在許多民主國家，公民對政治階層失去信任，變得越來越懷疑金錢對其領導人和機構具有影響力。美國的抗議活動凸顯出許多人覺得自己的聲音得不到傾聽的程度。扭轉這一趨勢不僅需要有針對性的政策來保護民主進程，而且還需要努力改善直接民主與代議制民主之間的平衡。
如果說疫情說明了什麼，那就是：我們是一個人類大家庭。只有認識到這一點——通過照顧彼此以及我們所有人賴以生存的地球——我們才能期待一個更美好的未來。從這個意義上說，合作不僅是道德上的需要，也是生存的需要。（作者為諾貝爾和平獎得主，王雷譯自世界報業辛迪加網站6月12日文章）
【來源：參考消息】
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