IGBO CULTURE AND GLOBAL RECONCILIATION

In the world bedeviled with outbreak of war, sickness, social vices, religious intolerance, racial discrimination, political killings and hostility, there is need for sanity and reconciliation as a way of creating enabling environment for peaceful co-existence and development. Reconciliation is an initiative that encourages dialogue and practical engagement across cultural, political, racial, religious, national and other differences. Culture, a generality of people’s way of life, has the ability to foster global reconciliation, unfortunately, the world powers; peace keepers and international humanitarian agencies have not explored and harnessed the potentialities in different cultures of the world, as panacea to global disharmony. It is the position of this paper that Igbo culture, with is rich norms and values, has all it takes to promote global peace and reconciliation. This paper looked into those aspects of Igbo culture that promote harmony and peaceful co-existence, like marriage in Igbo culture, hospitality in Igbo culture, Igbo taboo system, Igbo hand work, Igbo family system and every other aspect of Igbo life. If these rich Igbo norms and values are projected and embraced by the entire globe through acculturation definitely there will be relative peace and global reconciliation to a greater extent