Bandung Conference

General Studies Paper-2

Context: This year marks the 70th anniversary of the historic Bandung Conference held in Indonesia in 1955.

Bandung Conference

• The Bandung Conference brought together twenty-nine newly independent Asian and African countries.
• The objective of the conference was to deliberate on the common challenges faced by decolonized nations and to assert their collective voice in a world order dominated by the Cold War superpowers.
• The conference marked the emergence of the Global South as an influential grouping in international politics.
  • It aimed to promote Afro-Asian economic and cultural cooperation and strongly opposed colonialism, imperialism, and neocolonialism in all forms.
• The conference served as a precursor to the Non-Aligned Movement (NAM).

Bandung’s Ten Principles (Dasasila Bandung)

• Respect for fundamental human rights, and for the purposes and principles of the Charter of the United Nations,
• Respect for the sovereignty and territorial integrity of all nations,
• Recognition of the equality of all races and of the equality of all nations, large and small,
• Abstention from intervention or interference into the internal affairs of another country,
• Respect for the right of each nation to defend itself, singly or collectively, in conformity with the Charter of the United Nations,
• Abstention from the use of arrangement of collective defense to serve the particular interests of any of the big powers, and abstention by any country from exerting pressures on other countries,
• Refraining from acts or threats of aggression or the use of force against the territorial integrity or political independence of any country,
• Settlement of all international disputes by peaceful means, such as negotiation, conciliation, arbitration, or judicial settlement as well as other peaceful means of the parties’ own choice, in conformity with the Charter of the United Nations,
• Promotion of mutual interests and cooperation, and
• Respect for justice and international obligations.

Conclusion

• The Bandung Conference remains a powerful symbol of unity, dignity, and self-determination for the countries of the Global South.
• In an era of shifting geopolitical dynamics, the spirit of the Bandung Conference continues to hold immense relevance for efforts toward creating a more just and multipolar world order.