"We may have different religions, different languages, different colored skin, but we all belong to one human race."
"Can the state, which represents the whole of society and has the duty of protecting society, fulfill that duty by lowering itself to the level of the murderer, and treating him as he treated others? The forfeiture of life is too absolute, too irreversible, for one human being to inflict it on another, even when backed by legal process."
10 likes
Source: Honore de Balzac (2014). “Analytical Studies: Physiology of Marriage and Petty Troubles of Married Life”, p.89, The Floating Press
About the author
Same author
More quotes by Kofi Annan
"Knowledge is power. Information is liberating. Education is the premise of progress, in every society, in every family."
"To live is to choose. But to choose well, you must know who you are and what you stand for, where you want to go and why you want to get there."
"Young people should be at the forefront of global change and innovation. Empowered, they can be key agents for development and peace. If, however, they are left on society's margins, all of us will be impoverished. Let us ensure that all young people have every opportunity to participate fully in the lives of their societies."
"We need to promote greater tolerance and understanding among the peoples of the world. Nothing can be more dangerous to our efforts to build peace and development than a world divided along religious, ethnic or cultural lines. In each nation, and among all nations, we must work to promote unity based on our shared humanity."
"Education is a human right with immense power to transform. On its foundation rest the cornerstones of freedom, democracy and sustainable human development."