The notion of "human security" has gradually but steadily gained greater international currency. Canada and Japan, especially under former Canadian Foreign Minister Lloyd Axworthy and the late former Japanese Prime Minister Keizo Obuchi, respectively, were prominent early advocates of incorporating the concept of human security in their countries' foreign policies, in particular, and in international affairs in general.

Now, in a sign of the concept being further mainstreamed in the international policy discourse, it is being championed by the Bonn International Center for Conversion. This independent, nonprofit, world-class German organization is dedicated to promoting and facilitating the processes for shifting people, skills, technology, equipment, and financial and economic resources from the defense sector to alternative civilian uses. As such, it should be of great interest to the Japanese.

As part of its mandate, BICC (www.bicc.de) publishes a flagship annual report on the state of the world's conversion from defense to civilian activities. The Conversion Survey 2003 has just been published, and makes for interesting reading. We may be in danger of falling back into the classic security dilemma trap in which increased military security of one leads to greater military insecurity for others -- at the expense of human security for everyone.