About 12 years ago, I gave up my career in banking to try to make the world a safer place. This involved a journey into national and global advocacy and meeting some of the most extraordinary people in the world. In the process, I became a civil society diplomat.
Pre oko 12 godina, napustila sam svoju karijeru u bankarstvu kako bih pokušala da učinim svet bezbednijim mestom. To je podrazumevalo put u nacionalnu i globalnu advokaturu i susretanje sa nekim od najizuzetnijih ljudi na svetu. U tom procesu, postala sam diplomata građanskog društva.
Civil society diplomats do three things: They voice the concerns of the people, are not pinned down by national interests, and influence change through citizen networks, not only state ones. And if you want to change the world, we need more of them.
Diplomate građanskog društva obavljaju tri stvari: izražavaju zabrinutost ljudi, nisu prikovani nacionalnim interesima, i utiču na promenu kroz građanske mreže, a ne samo državne. Ako želite da menjate svet, treba nam više njih.
But many people still ask, "Can civil society really make a big difference? Can citizens influence and shape national and global policy?" I never thought I would ask myself these questions, but here I am to share some lessons about two powerful civil society movements that I've been involved in. They are in issues that I'm passionate about: gun control and drug policy. And these are issues that matter here. Latin America is ground zero for both of them.
Ali mnogi još uvek postavljaju pitanje: "Može li građansko društvo zaista doneti velike promene? Mogu li građani uticati i oblikovati nacionalnu i globalnu politiku?" Nikada nisam pomislila da ću postavljati sebi ova pitanja, ali eto mene, došla sam da podelim neke lekcije o dva moćna pokreta građanskog društva u kojima sam bila uključena. Vezani su za probleme kojima se ja vatreno bavim: kontroli oružja i propisima o drogama. To su problemi koji su značajni ovde. Latinska Amerika je mesto njihovog ukrštanja.
For example, Brazil -- this beautiful country hosting TEDGlobal has the world's ugliest record. We are the number one champion in homicidal violence. One in every 10 people killed around the world is a Brazilian. This translates into over 56,000 people dying violently each year. Most of them are young, black boys dying by guns. Brazil is also one of the world's largest consumers of drugs, and the War on Drugs has been especially painful here. Around 50 percent of the homicides in the streets in Brazil are related to the War on Drugs. The same is true for about 25 percent of people in jail. And it's not just Brazil that is affected by the twin problems of guns and drugs. Virtually every country and city across Central and South America is in trouble. Latin America has nine percent of the world's population, but 25 percent of its global violent deaths.
Na primer, Brazil - ova prelepa zemlja, domaćin TEDGlobal-a, ima najružniji svetski rekord. Prvi smo po broju ubistava. Jedan od desetoro ubijenih ljudi na svetu je Brazilac. To znači 56 000 ljudi koji umiru nasilnom smrću svake godine. Većina njih su mladi, crni dečaci koji ginu zbog oružja. Brazil je takođe jedan od najvećih potrošača droge na svetu, i rat protiv droge je ovde bio naročito težak. Oko 50 procenata ubistava na ulicama Brazila u vezi su sa ratom protiv droga. Isto važi i za oko 25 posto ljudi u zatvoru. A nije samo Brazil pogođen kombinovanim problemom oružja i droga. Bukvalno svaka zemlja i grad u Centralnoj i Južnoj Americi je u problemu. Latinska Amerika obuhvata devet posto svetske populacije, ali 25 posto globalnih nasilnih smrti.
These are not problems we can run away from. I certainly could not. So the first campaign I got involved with started here in 2003 to change Brazil's gun law and to create a program to buy back weapons. In just a few years, we not only changed national legislation that made it much more difficult for civilians to buy a gun, but we collected and destroyed almost half a million weapons. This was one of the biggest buyback programs in history -- (Applause) -- but we also suffered some setbacks. We lost a referendum to ban gun sales to civilians in 2005.
Ovo nisu problemi od kojih možemo da pobegnemo. Ja svakako nisam mogla. Prva kampanja kojoj sam se priključila započeta je ovde 2003. godine kako bi promenila brazilske zakone o oružju i stvorila program za otkup oružja. Za samo nekoliko godina, ne samo da smo promenili nacionalne zakone koji su građanima učinili mnogo težim kupovinu oružja, već smo i sakupili i uništili skoro pola miliona oružja. Ovo je bio jedan od najvećih programa otkupa u istoriji - (Aplauz) - ali smo takođe pretrpeli i nekoliko neuspeha. Izgubili smo na referendumu 2005. godine za zabranu prodaje oružja građanima.
The second initiative was also home-grown, but is today a global movement to reform the international drug control regime. I am the executive coordinator of something called the Global Commission on Drug Policy. The commission is a high-level group of global leaders brought together to identify more humane and effective approaches to the issue of drugs. Since we started in 2008, the taboo on drugs is broken. Across the Americas, from the US and Mexico to Colombia and Uruguay, change is in the air.
Druga inicijativa je bila takođe domaća, ali danas je globalni pokret reformisati međunarodni režim kontrole droga. Ja sam izvršni koordinator nečega što se zove Globalna komisija za politiku prema drogama. Komisija je visoko zvanična grupa globalnih vođa okupljena radi identifikovanja humanijih i efikasnijih pristupa problemu droga. Otkada smo započeli 2008. godine, tabu vezan za drogu je srušen. Kroz celu Ameriku, od SAD-a i Meksika do Kolumbije i Urugvaja, promena se oseća u vazduhu.
But rather than tell you the whole story about these two movements, I just want to share with you four key insights. I call them lessons to change the world. There are certainly many more, but these are the ones that stand out to me.
Ali umesto da vam ispričam celu priču o ova dva pokreta, želim samo da podelim sa vama četiri ključna uvida. Zovem ih lekcijama za menjanje sveta. Svakako ih ima mnogo više, ali ovo su one koje se ističu po meni.
So the first lesson is: Change and control the narrative. It may seem obvious, but a key ingredient to civil society diplomacy is first changing and then controlling the narrative. This is something that veteran politicians understand, but that civil society groups generally do not do very well. In the case of drug policy, our biggest success has been to change the discussion away from prosecuting a War on Drugs to putting people's health and safety first. In a cutting-edge report we just launched in New York, we also showed that the groups benefiting most from this $320 billion market are criminal gangs and cartels. So in order to undermine the power and profit of these groups, we need to change the conversation. We need to make illegal drugs legal. But before I get you too excited, I don't mean drugs should be a free-for-all. What I'm talking about, and what the Global Commission advocates for is creating a highly regulated market, where different drugs would have different degrees of regulation.
Prva lekcija je: promenite i kontrolišite narativ. Možda deluje očigledno, ali ključni sastojak diplomatije građanskog društva je najpre menjanje, a zatim kontrolisanje narativa. Ovo je nešto što političari veterani razumeju, ali što grupe građanskog društva uglavnom ne rade dobro. U slučaju politike prema drogama, naš najveći uspeh je bio preinačenje diskusije od vođenja rata protiv droga do postavljanja ljudskog zdravlja i bezbednosti na prvo mesto. U izvanrednom izveštaju koji smo upravo objavili u Njujorku, takođe smo pokazali da su grupe koje najviše imaju koristi od ovog tržišta od 320 milijardi dolara kriminalne bande i karteli. Dakle, da bismo oslabili moć i dobit ovih grupa, moramo da promenimo dijalog. Moramo da učinimo ilegalne droge legalnim. Ali pre nego što se previše uzbudite, ne mislim da droge treba da budu dostupne svima. Ono o čemu govorim i za šta se Globalna komisija zalaže je stvaranje visoko regulisanih tržišta, gde će različite droge imati različite stepene regulacije.
As for gun control, we were successful in changing, but not so much in controlling, the narrative. And this brings me to my next lesson: Never underestimate your opponents. If you want to succeed in changing the world, you need to know who you're up against. You need to learn their motivations and points of view. In the case of gun control, we really underestimated our opponents. After a very successful gun-collection program, we were elated. We had support from 80 percent of Brazilians, and thought that this could help us win the referendum to ban gun sales to civilians. But we were dead wrong. During a televised 20-day public debate, our opponent used our own arguments against us. We ended up losing the popular vote. It was really terrible. The National Rifle Association -- yes, the American NRA -- came to Brazil. They inundated our campaign with their propaganda, that as you know, links the right to own guns to ideas of freedom and democracy. They simply threw everything at us. They used our national flag, our independence anthem. They invoked women's rights and misused images of Mandela, Tiananmen Square, and even Hitler. They won by playing with people's fears. In fact, guns were almost completely ignored in their campaign. Their focus was on individual rights. But I ask you, which right is more important, the right to life or the right to have a gun that takes life away? (Applause)
Što se tiče kontrole oružja, bili smo uspešni u menjanju, ali ne naročito u kontrolisanju narativa. Ovo me dovodi do moje sledeće lekcije: nikada ne potcenjujte svoje protivnike. Ako želite da uspete u menjanju sveta, morate da znate sa kime se nadmećete. Morate da saznate kakva je njihova motivacija i sagledavanje stvari. U slučaju kontrole oružja, zaista smo potcenili naše protivnike. Nakon veoma uspešnog programa sakupljanja oružja, bili smo ushićeni. Imali smo podršku 80 posto Brazilaca, i mislili smo da bi nam to moglo pomoći da pobedimo na referendumu da zabranimo prodaju oružja civilima. Ali potpuno smo pogrešili. Tokom 20-odnevne televizijske javne debate, protivnik je upotrebio naš sopstveni argument protiv nas. Na kraju smo izgubili većinu glasova. Bilo je stvarno užasno. Nacionalna asocijacija za puške - da, američka NRA - došla je u Brazil. Utopili su našu kampanju svojom propagandom, koja kao što znate, povezuje pravo na sopstveno oružje sa idejama slobode i demokratije. Prosto su sve prosuli po nama. Iskoristili su našu nacionalnu zastavu, našu himnu nezavisnosti. Pozivali su se na prava žena i zloupotrebili slike Mandele, Trga Tjenanmen, čak i Hitlera. Pobedili su igrajući se sa ljudskim strahovima. U stvari, oružje je skoro potpuno ignorisano u njihovoj kampanji. Njihov fokus je bio na pravima pojedinaca. Ali pitam vas, koje pravo je važnije, pravo na život ili pravo da imate oružje koje oduzima život? (Aplauz)
We thought people would vote in defense of life, but in a country with a recent past of military dictatorship, the anti-government message of our opponents resonated, and we were not prepared to respond.
Mislili smo da će ljudi glasati za odbranu života, ali u zemlji sa bliskom prošlošću vojne diktature, imale su odjeka poruke naših protivnika usmerene protiv vlade, a mi nismo bili spremni da odgovorimo.
Lesson learned. We've been more successful in the case of drug policy. If you asked most people 10 years ago if an end to the War on Drugs was possible, they would have laughed. After all, there are huge military police prisons and financial establishments benefiting from this war. But today, the international drug control regime is starting to crumble. Governments and civil societies are experimenting with new approaches. The Global Commission on Drug Policy really knew its opposition, and rather than fighting them, our chair -- former Brazilian President Fernando Henrique Cardoso -- reached out to leaders from across the political spectrum, from liberals to conservatives. This high level group agreed to honestly discuss the merits and flaws of drug policies. It was this reasoned, informed and strategic discussion that revealed the sad truth about the War on Drugs. The War on Drugs has simply failed across every metric. Drugs are cheaper and more available than ever, and consumption has risen globally. But even worse, it also generated massive negative unintended consequences. It is true that some people have made these arguments before, but we've made a difference by anticipating the arguments of our opponents and by leveraging powerful voices that a few years ago would probably have resisted change.
Lekcija naučena. Bili smo uspešniji u slučaju politika prema drogama. Da ste pre deset godina pitali većinu da li je moguć kraj rata protiv droga, smejali bi se. Na kraju krajeva, tu su ogromni zatvori vojne policije i finansijske ustanove koje izvlače korist iz ovog rata. Ali danas, međunarodni režim kontrole droga počinje da propada. Vlade i građanska društva eksperimentišu sa novim pristupima. Globalna komisija za politiku prema drogama je zaista poznavala svoju opoziciju, i umesto da se bori protiv nje, naš predsednik - bivši predsednik Brazila Fernando Enrike Kardozo - prišao je liderima čitavog političkog spektruma, od liberala do konzervativaca. Ova grupa visokih zvaničnika složila se da otvoreno priča o prednostima i nedostacima zakona o drogama. Upravo je ova obrazložena, informativna i strateška diskusija otkrila tužnu istinu o ratu protiv droga. Rat protiv droga je jednostavno bio neuspešan po svim merama. Droge su jeftinije i dostupnije nego ikada, a njihova potrošnja se globalno povećala. Ali još gore, takođe je proizveo i ogromne negativne nenamerne posledice. Istina je da su pojedini ljudi i ranije iznosili ove tvrdnje, ali mi smo doneli promenu predvidevši argumente naših protivnika i koristeći moćne glasove koji bi se pre nekoliko godina verovatno opirali promeni.
Third lesson: Use data to drive your argument. Guns and drugs are emotive issues, and as we've painfully learned in the gun referendum campaign in Brazil, sometimes it's impossible to cut through the emotions and get to the facts. But this doesn't mean that we shouldn't try. Until quite recently, we simply didn't know how many Brazilians were killed by guns. Amazingly, it was a local soap opera called "Mulheres Apaixonadas" -- or "Women in Love" -- that kicked off Brazil's national gun control campaign. In one highly viewed episode, a soap opera lead actress was killed by a stray bullet. Brazilian grannies and housewives were outraged, and in a case of art imitating life, this episode also included footage of a real gun control march that we had organized right here, outside in Copacabana Beach. The televised death and march had a huge impact on public opinion. Within weeks, our national congress approved the disarmament bill that had been languishing for years. We were then able to mobilize data to show the successful outcomes of the change in the law and gun collection program. Here is what I mean: We could prove that in just one year, we saved more than 5,000 lives.
Treća lekcija: koristite činjenice kao argumente. Oružje i droga su emotivne teme, i kao što smo na bolan način naučili iz kampanje referenduma o oružju u Brazilu, ponekad je nemoguće odbaciti emocije i pristupiti činjenicama. Ali to ne znači da ne treba da pokušamo. Do nedavno, prosto nismo znali koliko je Brazilaca ubijeno oružjem. Iznenađujuće, domaća sapunica po imenu "Muleres Apašionadas" - ili "Zaljubljene žene" - je bila ta koja je otpočela brazilsku nacionalnu kampanju kontrole oružja. U jednoj visoko gledanoj epizodi, glavnu glumicu sapunice je ubio zalutali metak. Brazilske bake i domaćice su bile besne, i kao umetnost koja oponaša život, ova epizoda je sadržala i snimak stvarnog marša za kontrolu oružja koji smo organizovali ovde, na plaži Kopakabana. Smrt i marš prikazani na televiziji imali su veliki uticaj na javno mišljenje. U roku od nekoliko nedelja, naš nacionalni kongres je odobrio zakon o razoružanju koji je čamio godinama. Zatim smo mogli da pripemimo dokaze kako bismo pokazali uspešne rezultate promena u zakonu i programa sakupljanja oružja. Evo na šta mislim: mogli smo da dokažemo da smo za samo godinu dana
(Applause)
spasili više od 5 000 života.
And in the case of drugs, in order to undermine this fear and prejudice that surrounds the issue, we managed to gather and present data that shows that today's drug policies cause much more harm than drug use per se, and people are starting to get it.
(Aplauz) A u slučaju droga, kako bismo oslabili strahove i predrasude koji okružuju ovu temu, uspeli smo da prikupimo i prikažemo činjenice koje pokazuju da današnji zakoni o drogama stvaraju mnogo više štete nego korišćenje droga samo po sebi,
My fourth insight is: Don't be afraid to bring together odd bedfellows. What we've learned in Brazil -- and this doesn't only apply to my country -- is the importance of bringing diverse and eclectic folks together. If you want to change the world, it helps to have a good cross-section of society on your side. In both the case of guns and drugs, we brought together a wonderful mix of people. We mobilized the elite and got huge support from the media. We gathered the victims, human rights champions, cultural icons. We also assembled the professional classes -- doctors, lawyers, academia and more.
i ljudi počinju to da shvataju. Moj četvrti uvid je: ne plašite se da spojite čudne saveznike. Ono što sam naučila u Brazilu - a to se ne odnosi samo na moju zemlju - jeste važnost okupljanja različitih i eklektičnih ljudi. Ako hoćete da promenite svet, od pomoći je imati uz sebe dobar prikaz društva. I u slučaju oružja i droga, okupili smo sjajnu grupu ljudi. Mobilisali smo elitu i dobili ogromnu podršku medija. Okupili smo žrtve, zaštitnike ljudskih prava, ikone kulture. Takođe smo pozvali i klase stručnjaka -
What I've learned over the last years is that you need coalitions of the willing and of the unwilling to make change. In the case of drugs, we needed libertarians, anti-prohibitionists, legalizers, and liberal politicians. They may not agree on everything; in fact, they disagree on almost everything. But the legitimacy of the campaign is based on their diverse points of view.
doktore, advokate, akademce i mnoge druge. Naučila sam poslednjih godina da vam je potrebna koalicija voljnih i nevoljnih za donošenje promena. U slučaju droga, bili su nam potrebni libertarijanci, antiprohibicionisti, legalizatori i liberalni političari. Možda se neće složiti oko svega, u stvari, neće se složiti gotovo ni oko čega. Ali legitimitet kampanje se zasniva na njihovim različitim gledištima.
Over a decade ago, I had a comfortable future working for an investment bank. I was as far removed from the world of civil society diplomacy as you can imagine. But I took a chance. I changed course, and on the way, I helped to create social movements that I believe have made some parts of the world safer. Each and every one of us has the power to change the world. No matter what the issue, and no matter how hard the fight, civil society is central to the blueprint for change.
Pre više od decenije, imala sam mirnu budućnost radeći za investicionu banku. Bila sam daleko od sveta diplomatije građanskog društva koliko možete zamisliti. Ali sam rizikovala. Promenila sam pravac, i na tom putu, pomogla sam u stvaranju društvenih pokreta za koje smatram da su učinili neke delove sveta bezbednijim. Svako od nas ima moć da promeni svet. Bez obzira na to koji je problem u pitanju i koliko je teška ta borba, građansko društvo je suštinsko u projektu promene.
Thank you.
Hvala vam.
(Applause)
(Aplauz)