`Sighing Mountain` Cannot Be Neglected

`2002 is the International Year of the Mountain`

On December 11, the UN officially announced 2002 as the `Year of the Mountain` in order to raise awareness about the importance of mountains as the habitat of countless animals and the source of fresh water.

After he officially announced the `Year of the Mountain`, UN Secretary-General Kofi Anan said, "Satellite photographs show that many mountain forests have been destroyed over the past ten years. Preserving mountains that will provide future generations with abundant resources is a task for the whole world."

Director-General Jacques Diouf of the Food and Agricultural Organization (FAO) of the UN, which oversaw the ceremony for the Year of the Mountain, stated, "People living in mountainous areas are among the poorest in the world. Factional struggles in mountainous regions is the greatest obstacle to alleviating the poverty of these people."

"Mountains are used as battle fields because it is hard for enemies to approach them and there are many places to encamp, but the wars are destroying the environment and delaying economic development. Without peace, it is not possible to protect the environment or to eliminate poverty." added Mr. Diouf.

Of some 6 billion people in the world, around 1/10th of the population live in mountainous areas and around 3 billion people get fresh water from mountains.

Of the 27 factional wars currently being waged, 23 are taking place in the mountains. The Chechen, Balkan, and Kashmiri wars all took place in the mountains, and the present war in Afghanistan is a representative mountain war.

Furthermore, ongoing development, agricultural land clearing, and urbanization worldwide threaten to destroy the mountains continually. People are destroying the mountains, the source of life.

The FAO, which is preparing a committee for the `International Year of the Mountain`, various forums, and events, urged its member nations to develop diverse policies for ongoing preservation of mountains.

Sun Dae-In eodls@donga.com