En fredligare värld

Det blir många olästa mejl, tips och rapporter på två veckors IT-frånvaro. I högen hittade jag denna oerhört glada nyhet:

Antalet konflikter i världen minskar.

The wars that dominated the headlines of the 1990s were real — and brutal — enough. But the global media have largely ignored the 100-odd conflicts that have quietly ended since 1988. During this period, more wars stopped than started.

Kan vara värt att hålla i minnet nästa gång någon säger att utvecklingen går åt fel håll.

Några punkter från rapporten:
- The number of armed conflicts around the world has
declined by more than 40% since the early 1990s
- Between 1991 (the high point for the post–World War II
period) and 2004, 28 armed struggles for self-determination
started or restarted, while 43 were contained or
ended. There were just 25 armed secessionist conflicts
under way in 2004, the lowest number since 1976.
- Notwithstanding the horrors of Rwanda, Srebrenica
and elsewhere, the number of genocides and politicides
plummeted by 80% between the 1988 high point
and 2001.
- International crises, often harbingers of war, declined
by more than 70% between 1981 and 2001.
- The dollar value of major international arms transfers
fell by 33% between 1990 and 2003).
Global military expenditure and troop numbers declined
sharply in the 1990s as well.
- The number of refugees dropped by some 45% between
1992 and 2003, as more and more wars came to
an end.

Länkar:
Human Security Centre
Rapporten (pdf)
Uppsala Conflict Data Program
Nyhetsinslag i Studio Ett

Uppdatering: Kommentar hos Nicklas Lundblad, med ytterligare en bra länk.