October 2013 Issue 1.1
ISSN:2202‐9648 www.nonviolence.org.au Message
I am pleased to note the rapid progress being made by ICON Australia. The new initiative to set up a newsletter –Nonviolence news‐ is most encouraging. The need to propagate nonviolence is more urgent than ever now. In recent days the world has witnessed several acts of violence in Syria, Kenya in Peshawar, and continued instability and violence in many regions of the world where low intensity war continues to hamper the efforts to restore peace and security. This continuous violence shakes the very foundation of human existence. The lives of women and children are ruthlessly sacrificed at the altar of ideology and greed. Such acts and violence throughout the world have become a common occurrence and often draws little attention. A newsletter dedicated to nonviolence can be of great value. It is important to keep in mind some of the wise words uttered by Gandhiji who was one of the world’s most prolific writers, He said, “One of the objects of a newspaper is to understand popular feeling and to give expression to it; another is to arouse among the people certain desirable sentiments; and the third is fearlessly to expose popular defects.” This passage comes from his seminal book Hind Swaraj. Gandhiji did not underestimate the power of the media‐ the Fourth Estate. So it is indeed heartening to note that this on line newsletter is being initiated by ICON Australia to further the cause of nonviolence, and I take this opportunity to wish you success.
‐ Rev. Ela Gandhi Founder & Trustee, Gandhi Development Trust, South Africa 2 Nonviolence News I October 2013 3 Nonviolence News I October 2013 Message
“The real struggle of the 21st century will not be between civilizations, nor between religions. It will be between violence and nonviolence. It will be between barbarity and civilization in the truest sense of the word.” Daisakuikeda.org This insightful quote from Soka Gakkai International President Daisaku Ikeda resonates with the profound philosophy and action of the great leader Mahatma Gandhi. Clearly the need for the philosophy of peace and nonviolence to be propagated and expanded to all realms of society can only benefit humanity. In fact we must pursue these means at all costs to prevent the loss of humanity and ensure the advancement of humanity and not its destruction. I would like to wholeheartedly congratulate the International Centre for Nonviolence (ICON) on the launch of this magazine. I am certain it will become a great tool for the transmission of peaceful means of resolution and for the pursuit of harmony amongst people from different beliefs, backgrounds and experiences. Nonviolence has many and various expressions and is always active in its expression. ICON are to be congratulated on their efforts to promote nonviolence in education and allow young people the opportunity to learn different ways to resolve issues, perceive others and oppose injustice, bigotry and bullying. As expressed in this quote each of us is responsible for the advancement of nonviolence by first engaging this spirit within our own hearts. “’Nonviolence’ does not merely mean to refrain from violence. Violence erupts when one person blames another for a problem or conflict. Conversely, nonviolence is a way of life in which one resolves, ‘Let me be the one to change first.’ If this spirit were to be embraced, how much more at peace would our families and society itself be.” Ibid. Soka Gakkai International Australia is proud to be associated with this new contribution to the promotion of nonviolence and peaceful development and I wish the magazine a long and influential future. I offer Gandhi’s words by way of appreciation and encouragement for the great task ICON has undertaken. “A small body of determined spirits fired by an unquenchable faith in their mission can alter the course of history.” Greg Johns General Director Soka Gakkai International Australia 4 Nonviolence News I October 2013 Message
‘Inspired by Mahatma Gandhi and by those significant citizens – Martin Luther King Aung Sann Suu Kyi – whom he influenced, the creation of a magazine ‘Nonviolence News’ is very encouraging. It could also be inspiring. I say that because too many political leaders are familiar with the policies and language of violence but remain indifferent to the language and practice of nonviolence. Such leaders would benefit from reading about the life of Mahatma Gandhi and about who influenced him, such as Russian novelist Leo Tolstoy. Re‐discovering Gandhi could encourage these leaders to conjure the vision and courage to repeat the philosophy, language and practice of nonviolence. Those points about leaders’ ‘illiteracy about nonviolence’ would have a particular relevance to deliberations about the Syrian civil war and about the ongoing violence in the Congo. Nonviolent resolutions have direct bearing on the injustices which characterize the treatment of Palestinians; they will also apply in the aftermath of the latest gun related slaughters in the USA and in Kenya. I congratulate the creators of any magazine, journal or newsletter which encourages the public to revive their interest in and knowledge of nonviolent philosophies, theories and strategies. In Gandhi’s terms these represent not only a way of living but also a law for life.’ Best wishes, ‐EM. PROF. STUART REES | Chair Sydney Peace Foundation 5 Nonviolence News I October 2013 President Page
Non-violence
Non‐violence is the practice of being harmless to self and others under every condition. It comes from the belief that hurting people, animals or the environment is unnecessary to achieve an outcome and refers to a general philosophy of abstention from violence based on moral, religious or spiritual principles. Nonviolence also has 'active' or 'activist' elements, in that believers accept the need for nonviolence as a means to achieve political and social change. Thus, for example, the Gandhian ahimsa is a philosophy and strategy for social change that rejects the use of violence, but at the same time sees nonviolent action (also called civil resistance) as an alternative to passive acceptance of oppression or armed struggle against it. In general, advocates of an activist philosophy of nonviolence use diverse methods in their campaigns for social change, including critical forms of education and persuasion, mass noncooperation civil disobedience and nonviolent direct action and social, political, cultural and economic forms of intervention. The term "nonviolence" is often linked with or even used as a synonym for peace, passivity and pacifism. Non‐violence (with a hyphen) refers more specifically to the absence of violence and is always the choice to do no harm or the least harm, and passivity is the choice to do nothing. Sometimes non‐violence is the same as being passive, and other times it isn't. So for example, if a house is burning down, the most harmless appropriate action is to put the fire out, not to sit by and passively let the fire burn. There is considerable confusion and contradiction written about non‐
violence, harmlessness and passivity. A person may advocate nonviolence in a specific context while advocating violence in other contexts. For example, someone who passionately opposes abortion as a life‐saving practice may concurrently advocate violence to kill an abortionist. Love of the enemy, or the realization of the humanity of all people, is a fundamental concept of philosophical nonviolence. The goal of this type of nonviolence is not to defeat the enemy, but to develop tolerance for all by understanding and loving all beings. According to Mark Kurlansky, "all religions discuss the power of nonviolence and the evil of violence." Such principles or tenets can be found in each of the major Indian religious traditions (Hinduism, Buddhism, Jainism) as well as in the major Abrahamic religious traditions (Judaism, Christianity, Islam. The Chandogya Upanishad, which is part of the Upanishads, one of the principal scriptures of Hinduism that dates to the 8th or 7th century BCE, bars violence against "all creatures" (sarva‐
bhuta) and establishes nonviolence as a code of conduct for Hindus. [Jainism preaches the mantra "Ahimsa Parmo‐Dharam" which means non‐violence is the supreme religion and has very comprehensively defined non‐violence to not just mean abstaining from violence but also means to have a deep reverence for life, for it believes that all life howsoever small is sacred and should be given the freedom to live. 6 Nonviolence News I October 2013 Examples of nonviolence found in religion and spirituality include the Sermon on the Mount in which Jesus urges his followers, "love your enemies," in the Taoist concept of wu‐wei, or effortless action, in the philosophy of the martial art Aikido, in the Buddhist principle of metta, or loving‐
kindness towards all beings, in the principle of ahimsa, or nonviolence toward any being, shared by Buddhism, Jainism and Hinduism. Nonviolence is also part of modern pagan traditions. American author Henry David Thoreau (1817–
1862) had a major impact on the philosophy of nonviolence. Leo Tolstoy, Mohandas Gandhi and Martin Luther King Jr. were influenced by Thoreau. Of primary significance is the notion that just means are the most likely to lead to just ends. When Gandhi said that "the means may be likened to the seed, the end to a tree," he expressed the philosophical kernel of what some refer to as prefigurative politics. Martin Luther King, a student of Gandhian nonviolent resistance, concurred with this tenet, concluding that "nonviolence demands that the means we use must be as pure as the ends we seek." Proponents of nonviolence reason that the actions taken in the present inevitably re‐shape the social order in like form. They would argue, for instance, that it is fundamentally irrational to use violence to achieve a peaceful society. Nonviolence, for many, involves a respect and reverence for all sentient and non‐sentient beings. This might include abolitionism, the practice of not eating animal flesh (vegetarianism or veganism), spiritual practices of non‐harm to all beings and caring for the rights of all beings. Mohandas Gandhi, James Bevel, and other nonviolent proponents advocated vegetarianism as part of their nonviolent philosophy. Buddhists extend this respect for life to animals, plants, and even minerals, while Jains extend this respect for life to animals, plants and even micro‐organisms. "We have to make truth and nonviolence not matters for mere individual practice but for practice by groups and communities and nations," Gandhi once said. "That at any rate is my dream. I shall live and die in trying to realize it." Through our magazine Non‐violence News we will endeavour to present the scholarly contributions towards explaining and developing the concept, philosophy and practice of Non‐violence in action from the ancient to the current times. Gambhir Watts OAM President, International Centre of Nonviolence Australia "In 1989, thirteen nations comprising 1,695,000,000 people experienced nonviolent revolutions that succeeded beyond anyone's wildest expectations ... If we add all the countries touched by major nonviolent actions in our century (the Philippines, South Africa ... the independence movement in India ...), the figure reaches 3,337,400,000, a staggering 65% of humanity! All this in the teeth of the assertion, endlessly repeated that nonviolence doesn't work in the 'real' world." — Walter Wink, Christian theologian 7 Nonviolence News I October 2013 Contents
Gandhi Development Trust, South Africa…………. International Centre of Nonviolence, Zambia…… Worldwide International Day of Nonviolence Celebrations……………………………………………………… Gandhi and Nonviolence………………………………….. 9 Nonviolence: An Introduction…………………………… 10 Martin Luther King, Jr.’s……………………………………. 11
Principles of Nonviolence 17
18
18
13
18
Steps of Nonviolence International Centre of Non-Violence Australia
Office Bearers
President and National Coordinator: Gambhir Watts OAM
Publisher & General Editor
Patrons
 Rev. Dr. Ela Gandhi (Granddaughter Mahatma Gandhi) Founder & Trustee, Gandhi
Development Trust, South Africa,
 Libby Davies, CEO, White Ribbon Australia
 Emeritus Professor Magnus Haavelsrud, Department of Education, Faculty of Social Sciences
and Technology Management, Norwegian University
 Greg Johns (General Director, Soka Gakkai International Australia)
 Nick Kaldas APM (Deputy Commissioner of Police, NSW Police Force)  Dr Stepan Kerkyasharian AO (Chairperson, Community Relations Commissions for a
Multicultural NSW),
 Emeritus Professor Bernard LaFayette (Distinguished Senior Scholar-in-Residence Religion,
Conflict and Peacebuilding, Emory University)
 Dr Phil Lambert (General Manager, Curriculum, Australian Curriculum, Assessment and
Reporting Authority (ACARA),
 Rabbi Jeremy Lawrence (Senior Rabbi, the Great Synagogue Sydney),
 Hon. Clover Moore (The Lord Mayor of Sydney),
 Venerable Phra Mana Viriyarampo, (Abbot Sunnataram Forest Buddhist Monastery),
 Dr Ravindra Kumar, Coordinator International Affairs, Shridhar University, Rajasthan, India
 Emeritus Professor Stuart Rees AO (Chair, Sydney Peace Foundation),  Dr. Aden Ridgeway (Chairperson, NSW Government's Aboriginal Trust Fund Repayment
Scheme)
 Dr Neville Roach AO, Patron of Australia India Institute
 Nanik Rupani, Chairman Emeritus, Priyadarshni Academy, India
 Professor Abdullah Saeed (Foundation Chair of the Sultan of Oman Endowed Chair and
Director of the Asia Institute)
 Rosalind Strong AM, Chair, Sydney Community Foundation
 Stafford Watts (Vice President, Ramakrishna Sarda Vedanta Society, NSW (representing
Mataji) Pravrajika Gayatriprana
 Professor Thomas Weber (Reader and Associate Professor in Politics, La Trobe University).
8 Nonviolence News I October 2013 Gambhir Watts OAM
International Centre of Non-Violence Australia
Suite 100, Level 4, Maestri Towers
515 Kent Street Sydney 2000 Australia
Mail: GPO Box 4018 Sydney 2001 Australia
T: +61 2 9267 0953, [email protected]
The views of contributors to Nonviolence News
are not necessarily the views of ICON Australia
or the Editor. Nonviolence News reserves the
right to edit any contributed articles and letters
submitted for publication.
Copyright: all advertisements and original
editorial material appearing remain the property
of Nonviolence News and may not be
reproduced except with the written consent of
the owner of the copyright.
Nonviolence News: Issue 1.1, October 2013
ISSN: 2202-9648
Nonviolence in Australia
‘Hatred never ends by hatred By love only, hatred ends.’ ‐The Buddha Since the establishment of Sunnataram Forest Monastery in 1989, all teachings have been based on achieving Inner Peace, which will bring kindness and compassion to our Australian society. We all need to find inner peace for ourselves first before we can achieve a non‐violent and peaceful world. Buddhist teachings are based on self‐development, to control our negative thoughts and emotions and to master our own mind, which in turn can influence the nature of the society. ‐Venerable Phra Mana Viriyarampo Abbot, Sunnataram Forest Monastery Bundanoon NSW Australia www.sunnataram.org Message
I am delighted to learn from your communication dated September 18, 2013 that you propose to launch the inaugural issue of an online monthly magazine on October 2 titled ‘Nonviolence News’ for the International Centre of Nonviolence Australia. I note that the publication will have information about initiatives undertaken anywhere in the world to promote nonviolence. On behalf of Priyadarshni Academy, please accept our heartiest congratulations on this noble and highly laudable initiative. It is heartening that the launch is on a day when the entire world remembers the father of non‐violence and father of the Indian nation, Mahatma Gandhi. Your initiative is one that is most needed in the contemporary world which is so beset by terrorism and violence. I hope that your publication will play a strong role in containing this man‐made evil. We wish you the very best in making a dent with your most worthwhile venture. Nanik Rupani Chairman Emeritus Priyadarshni Academy, India www.priyadarshniacademy.com 9 Nonviolence News I October 2013 International Centre of Nonviolence, Durban, South Africa
Mission and Vision
ICON’s mission is to make strategic interventions in education that challenge structural violence. These
processes work to bring key changes in society – specifically supporting the creation of a culture of nonviolence.
ICON seeks to make non-violence real through analysis of the local and global context, through research and
through reflective practice. These inform its actions and strengthen its capacity in the field of nonviolence.
Its vision is that of a centre, based in the third world, that connects and sustains a global network of activists
with the skills and understandings needed to build peace, in particular through education.
Current Projects
Higher Education
ICON is a member of the General Education Task Team that is leading the
development of general education at Durban University of Technology (DUT).
Its specific work at present is to develop three modules: Conflict and peacebuilding, Diversity and justice, and Humanity in the environment.
The plan is to develop further teaching in the specific area of violence,
nonviolence and teaching, for Education students at DUT and other
universities.
Roots to Fruits: Nonviolence in Action and the Role of ICON
ICON played a pivotal role in the conference, held at DUT in July/August
2012, and has been assigned by delegates the task of co-ordinating an
international network of activists. This includes developing a depository of material related to peace-building
and nonviolence.
Nonformal work
ICON undertakes workshops with a range of local groupings in the Durban
area. Currently it is working on a project with the Community Development
Association, based at the University of KwaZulu-Natal, to develop young peer
counsellors in schools on issues of HIV/AIDS.
Developing A Model of Peace-Building within Organisations
ICON jointly formulated a proposal with the Wildlife and Environment
Society of Southern Africa to address the social issues related to a new housing
project in the eThekwini Metro. This is part of a longer-term project of
developing a model for best practice in peace-building within development projects.
Internship
ICON recently ran a short internship programme for four young people on the environment and nonviolence,
in collaboration with the Wildlife and Environment Society of Southern Africa.
Writing
Crispin Hemson, ICON Director, writes regularly for The Mercury, the daily newspaper based in Durban.
10 Nonviolence News I October 2013 Gandhi Development Trust, South Africa
Introduction
The Gandhi Development Trust (GDT) was established in 2002. It is registered as a Charitable Trust, No. IT
890/02, registered as a Not for Profit Organization(NPO) with the National Department of Social Services, no.
022-195-NPO and with the South African Revenue Services as a Public Benefit Organization (PBO) no.
93001872. This report is in keeping with the founding articles of the Trust and covers the 12 months from 1
March 2011 to the last day of February 2012. The aim of the GDT is to promote Gandhian values nationally
and internationally in order to build a peaceful world underpinned by basic
human values and to work towards nation building in South Africa. Last year, from March until December 2011
the theme was Climate Change with nonviolence as an important element of conservation. This year the theme
is 100 years of the liberation struggle with particular emphasis on our legacy of nonviolence. These themes were
promoted through all our projects which are:

Networking and Partnership

The Annual Salt March

The annual Speech and Essay contest

Schools outreach programmes

Mandela Day voluntary service

Critical Forum Discussions

Women’s programmes

Day of Nonviolence

Annual presentation of Awards

Cop 17

Gandhi Memorial Lecture.
11 Nonviolence News I October 2013 Worldwide International Day of Nonviolence Celebrations
University of New South Wales (UNSW)
celebrates Mahatma Gandhi’s Birthday
Fiona Docherty, Pro-Vice-Chancellor International
and Mr Neville Roach AO, Patron of the Australia
India Institute at the University of New South
Wales (UNSW), invite people to attend the Annual
Gandhi Jayanti celebrations at UNSW on
Wednesday 2 October 2013. This is the birthday of
Mahatma Gandhi and an opportunity to reflect on
his life, his values and their meaning to people all
today.
This year’s event includes a ceremony on UNSW
library lawn in recognition of work by University of
New South Wales to advance Australia-India
relations and provide a welcoming environment for
Indian students. Consul-General of India to Sydney,
Arun Kumar Goel, will give an address at the
ceremony followed by a panel discussion on the
theme ‘What Gandhi means to young Indians and
Australians today’, held in partnership with the
Australia India Youth Dialogue.
Soka Gakkai International (SGI)
celebrates October 2 as World Peace Day
Soka Gakkai International (SGI), a lay Buddhist
movement linking more than 12 million people
around the world celebrates October 2 within the
SGI as World Peace Day, marking a key milestone
in the international development of Nichiren
Buddhism, with its goal of contributing to building
lasting peace throughout the world.
Sydney Peace Foundation
The Sydney Peace Foundation, a not-for-profit
organisation at the University of Sydney supported
by the City of Sydney was founded in 1998 in order
to promote public discussion about peace with
12 Nonviolence News I October 2013 justice and universal human rights to influence
public interest.
Sydney Peace Foundation awards City of Sydney
Peace Prize to the persons who have contributed
significantly to society and poor people through
their nonviolent and peaceful ways and organises
similar activities like establishing the Youth Peace
Initiative (YPI), scholarships and peace internships.
Gandhi Jayanti: Celebrating Mahatma
Gandhi's 143rd Birth Anniversary
Gandhi Jayanti or Mahatma Gandhi Jayanti is
observed every year as the Day to commemorate the
birth of Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi (October
2, 1869 - January 30, 1948). His non-violence or
Satyagraha continues to influence political leaders
and movements till date.
At Raj Ghat, New Delhi, and across India, people
gather to observe Gandhi Jayanti in innovative ways
that includes offering flowers on Gandhi's pictures,
statues and singing his favourite devotional song
Raghupati Raghava Raja Ram.
Gandhi Development Trust (GDT)
Salt March
The Salt March is an annual event when people
come to show their solidarity with the principles of
Ubuntu and nonviolence. This is not a competitive
walk. People walk at their own pace with ranges
from 5, 10, 15, or 22 Kms. The walk begins at the
Phoenix Settlement in Inanda and ends at the
Battery Beach. This walk celebrates the life of
Mahatma Gandhi and Chief Albert Luthuli, both of
who have been vocal in their support for the
development of a culture of nonviolence and
Ubuntu.
Satyagraha Awards for Outstanding
Community Work
Satyagraha Awards are presented to local people
who have played an exceptional role in the
community. These awards link us to our local
history and help to raise awareness of the nature of
work done by icons in our own communities and
neighbourhoods.
United Nations: International Day of
Nonviolence
The International Day of Non-Violence is marked
on 2 October, the birthday of Mahatma Gandhi,
leader of the Indian independence movement and
pioneer of the philosophy and strategy of nonviolence. The Day aims to disseminate his
philosophy, principle and believe in non-violence
through proper education and public awareness.
According to General Assembly resolution which
established the commemoration, the International
Day is an occasion to "disseminate the message of
non-violence, including through education and
public awareness". The resolution reaffirms "the
universal relevance of the principle of non-violence"
and the desire "to secure a culture of peace,
tolerance, understanding and non-violence".
"There are many causes that I am prepared to die for
but no causes that I am prepared to kill for."
-Mahatma Gandhi
The Story of My Experiments with Truth, 1927.
The M.K. Gandhi Institute for
Nonviolence presents the Nonviolent
Communication Series: What You Say
Next Can Change Your World
The M.K. Gandhi Institute for Nonviolence in
M.K. Gandhi Institute for Nonviolence in S.
Plymouth Ave. Rochester, New York presents the
Nonviolent Communication Series inviting people to
13 Nonviolence News I October 2013 join the Gandhi Institute Director Kit Miller for six
weeks of exploring the philosophy of nonviolence in
our thoughts, speech and action using the lens of
Nonviolent Communication. Through discussion,
exercises, games and role play, participants will learn
the basics of this process which is taught and used as
a means for communication and conflict resolution
around the world.
M.K. Gandhi Institute for Nonviolence
The M.K. Gandhi Institute for Nonviolence was
founded by Sunanda Gandhi and Arun Gandhi
(fifth grandson of Mohandas Karamachand Gandhi)
at Christian Brothers University in Memphis,
Tennessee in 1991. The Institute moved to the
Interfaith Chapel at the University of Rochester in
2007 and to its current home on 929 Plymouth
Avenue South in 2012. The Institute is a nonprofit
organization that works to realize the vision of its
historic namesake by helping individuals and
communities create public awareness of nonviolence
as knowledge critical to human thriving.
Arun Gandhi
Arun (real brother of • Rev.
Dr. Ela Gandhi) grew up
outside Durban, S. Africa
at Phoenix Ashram (the
first center for nonviolent
living that MK Gandhi
founded in 1903) and spent
almost two years as a youth
living with his grandparents in India to create public
awareness of nonviolence as knowledge critical for
human thriving and the well-being of the planet.
The Mission of M.K. Gandhi Institute
The M.K. Gandhi Institute for Nonviolence works
to realize the vision of its historic namesake by
helping individuals and communities create public
awareness of nonviolence as knowledge critical to
human thriving. The Institute collaborates with
local organizations, academic institutions, students
and committed peacemakers in the following areas:
nonviolence
education,
sustainability
and
environmental conservation, and the promotion of
restorative justice. It continuously offers groups and
individuals trainings in skills such as nonviolent
communication (NVC), self-reflection, meditation
and experiential interconnectedness, and fosters
sustainability practices in the Rochester area such as
community gardening, urban agriculture and
restorative approaches to conflict.
A New Movement Begins: Join
'Campaign Nonviolence'
The Campaign will take a stand against the
widespread violence and injustice we face today by
promoting and activating the power of nonviolence
in our lives, our communities, our nation, and our
world. At this critical moment, we are called to
become people of nonviolence working to transform
our world of violence into a new culture of
nonviolence. The long-term goal of Campaign
Nonviolence is a more just and peaceful world
where people everywhere practice nonviolence
toward themselves, one another, and the earth.
Source: www.gandhiinstitute.org, http://paceebene.org,
www.un.org, http://www.gdt.org.za,
www.johndear.org, www.ncronline.org
John Dear, Christian peace activist, author of ‘The
Nonviolent Life’ invites people to join his
Campaign Nonviolence.
Gandhi and Nonviolence
Gandhi did not claim to be a prophet or even a
philosopher. "There is no such thing as Gandhism,"
he warned, "and I do not want to leave any sect after
me." There was only one Gandhian, he said, an
imperfect one at that: himself.
The real significance of the Indian freedom
movement in Gandhi’s eyes was that it was waged
nonviolently. He would have had no interest in it if
the Indian National Congress had adopted
Satyagraha and subscribed to nonviolence. He
objected to violence not only because an unarmed
people had little chance of success in an armed
rebellion, but because he considered violence a
clumsy weapon which created more problems than
it solved, and left a trail of hatred and bitterness in
which genuine reconciliation was almost impossible.
This emphasis on nonviolence jarred alike on
Gandhi’s British and Indian critics, though for
different reasons. To the former, nonviolence was a
camouflage; to the latter, it was sheer
sentimentalism. To the British who tended to see
the Indian struggle through the prism of European
history, the professions of nonviolence rather than
14 Nonviolence News I October 2013 on the remarkably peaceful nature of Gandhi’s
campaigns. To the radical Indian politicians, who
had browsed on the history of the French and
Russian revolutions or the Italian and Irish
nationalist struggles, it was patent that force would
only yield to force, and that it was foolish to miss
opportunities and sacrifice tactical gains for reasons
more relevant to ethics than to politics.
…
Soon after Gandhi’s death in 1948, a delegate
speaking at the United Nations predicted that "the
greatest achievements of the Indian sage were yet to
come" "Gandhi’s times," said Vinoba Bhave, "were
the first pale dawn of the sun of Satyagraha." Forty
years after Gandhi’s death, this optimism would
seem to have been too high-pitched. The manner in
which Gandhi’s techniques have sometimes been
invoked even in the land of his birth in recent years
would appear to be a travesty of his principles. And
the world has been in the grip of a series of crises in
Korea, the Congo, the Vietnam, the Middle East,
and South Africa with a never-ending trail of blood
and bitterness. The shadow of a thermo-nuclear war
with its incalculable hazards continues to hang over
mankind. From this predicament, Gandhi’s ideas
and techniques may suggest a way out.
Unfortunately, his motives and methods are often
misunderstood, and not only by mobs in the street,
not long ago, Arthur Koestler described Gandhi’s
attitude as one "of passive submission to
bayonetting and raping, to villages without sewage,
septic childhood's and trachoma." Such a
judgement is of course completely with the same
tenacity with which he battled with the British Raj.
He advocated nonviolence not because it offered an
easy way out, but because he considered violence a
crude and in the long run, an ineffective weapon.
His rejection of violence stemmed from choice, not
from necessity.
Horace Alexander, who knew Gandhi and saw him
in action, graphically describes the attitude of the
nonviolent resister to his opponent: "On your side
you have all the mighty forces of the modern State,
arms, money, a controlled press, and all the rest. On
my side, I have nothing but my conviction of right
and truth, the unquenchable spirit of man, who is
prepared to die for his convictions than submit to
your brute force. I have my comrades in armlessness.
Here we stand; and here if need be, we fall." Far
from being a craven retreat from difficulty and
danger, nonviolent resistance demands courage of a
high order, the courage to resist injustice without
rancour, to unite the utmost firmness with the
utmost gentleness, to invite suffering but not to
inflict it, to die but not to kill.
The Mahatma on the Atom Bomb (A page from
the Harijan)
Gandhi did not make the facile division of mankind
into "good" and "bad" He was convinced that every
human being—even the "enemy"—had a kernel of
decency: there were only evil acts, no wholly evil
men. His technique of Satyagraha was designed not
to coerce the opponent, but to set into motion
forces which could lead to his conversion. Relying as
it did on persuasion and compromise, Gandhi’s
method was not always quick in producing results,
but the results were likely to be the more durable for
15 Nonviolence News I October 2013 having been brought about peacefully. "It is my firm
conviction," Gandhi affirmed, "that nothing
enduring can be built upon violence.” The rate of
social change through the nonviolent technique was
not in fact likely to be much slower than that
achieved by violent methods; it was definitely faster
than that expected from the normal functioning of
institutions which tended to fossilize and preserve
the status quo.
…
Though he may have appeared a starry-eyed idealist
to some, Gandhi’s attitude to social and political
problems was severely practical. There was a deep
mystical streak in him, but even his mysticism
seemed to have little of the ethereal about it. He did
not dream heavenly dreams nor see things
unutterable in trance; when "the still small voice"
spoke to him, it was often to tell how he could fight
a social evil or heal a rift between two warring
communities. Far from distracting him from his role
in public affairs, Gandhi’s religious quest gave him
the stamina to play it more effectively. To him true
religion was not merely the reading of scriptures, the
dissection of ancient texts, or even the practice of
cloistered virtue: it had to be lived in the challenging
context of political and social life.
Gandhi used his non-violent technique on behalf of
his fellow-countrymen in South Africa and India,
but he did not conceive it only as a weapon in the
armoury of Indian nationalism. On the other hand,
he fashioned it as an instrument for righting wrongs
and resolving conflicts between opposing groups,
races and nations. It is a strange paradox that
though the stoutest and perhaps the most successful
champion of the revolt against colonialism in our
time, Gandhi was frees from the taint of narrow
nationalism. As early as 1924, he had declared that
"the better mind of the world desires today, not
absolutely independent states, warring one against
another, but a federation of independent, of friendly
interdependent states".
Gandhi's Prayer Ground At Sevagram Ashram,
Wardha
Even before the First World War had revealed the
disastrous results of the combination of
industrialism and nationalism, he had become a
convert to the idea that violence between nationstates must be completely abjured.
In 1931 during his visit to England, a cartoon in the
Star depicted him in a loin cloth besides Mussolini,
Hitler, de Valera and Stalin, who were clad in black,
brown, green and red shirts respectively. The
caption, "And he isn't wearing any blooming’ shirt
at all" was not only literally but figuratively true. For
a man of nonviolence, who believed in the
brotherhood of man, there was no superficial
division of nations into good and bad, allies and
adversaries. This did not, however, mean that
Gandhi did not distinguish between the countries
which inflicted and the countries which suffered
violence. His own life had been one struggle against
the forces of violence, and Satyagraha was designed
at once to eschew violence and to fight injustice.
In the years immediately preceding the Second
Word war, when the tide of Nazi and Fascist
aggression was relentlessly rolling forward, Gandhi
had reasserted his faith in nonviolence and
commended it to the smaller nation which were
living in daily dread of being overwhelmed by
superior force. Through the pages of his weekly
paper the Harijan, he expounded the nonviolent
approach to military aggression and political
tyranny. He advised the weaker nations to defend
themselves not by increasing their fighting potential,
but by non-violent resistance to the aggressor. When
Czechoslovakia was black-mailed into submission in
September 1938, Gandhi suggested to the
unfortunate Czechs: "There is no bravery greater
than a resolute refusal
To bend the knee to an earthly power, no matter
how great, and that without bitterness of spirit, and
in the fullness of faith that the spirit alone lives,
nothing else does."
16 Nonviolence News I October 2013 …
Nonviolence, as Gandhi expounded it, has ceased to
be a pious exhortation, and become a necessity. The
advice he gave to the unfortunate Abyssinians and
Czechs during the twilight years before the Second
Word War, may have seemed utopian thirty years
ago. Today, it sounds commonsense. Even some
hardheaded military strategists such as Sir Stephen
King-Hall have begun to see in Gandhi’s method a
possible alternative to suicidal violence.
Gandhi would have been the first to deny that his
method offered an instant or universal panacea for
world peace. His method is capable of almost
infinite evolution to suit new situations in a
changing world. It is possible that "applied
nonviolence" is at present at the same.
Stage of development "as the invention of electricity
was in the days of Edison and Marconi." The livesand deaths-of Chief Lithuli and Dr. Martin Luther
King have proved that there is nothing esoteric
about nonviolence, limiting it to a particular
country or a particular period. Indeed Tagore, the
great contemporary and friend of Gandhi,
prophesies that the West would accept Gandhi
before the East "for the West has gone through the
cycle of dependence on force and material things of
life and has become disillusioned. They want a
return to the spirit. The East has not yet gone
through materialism and hence has not become so
disillusioned."
- B.R. Nanda, former Director, Nehru Memorial
Museum and Library, New Delhi. His full-scale
biography of Mahatma Gandhi has been published
in India, Britain and the U.S.A. and translated into
French, Spanish, Italian and several other
languages).
Source: www.mkgandhi.org
Martin Luther King, Jr.’s
Principles of Nonviolence
1.
Nonviolence is a way of life for courageous
people.
• It is active
nonviolent resistance
to evil.
• It is assertive
spiritually, mentally,
and emotionally.
• It is always
persuading the
opponent of the
justice of your cause.
2. Nonviolence seeks to win
friendship and
understanding.
• The end result of
nonviolence is
redemption and
reconciliation.
• The purpose of
nonviolence is the creation of the Beloved
Community.
3. Nonviolence seeks to defeat injustice, not
people.
• Nonviolence holds that evildoers are also
victims.
4. Nonviolence holds that voluntary suffering can
educate and transform.
•
•
•
•
Nonviolence willingly accepts the
consequences of its acts.
Nonviolence accepts suffering without
retaliation.
Nonviolence accepts violence if necessary,
but will never inflict it.
Unearned suffering is redemptive and has
tremendous educational and transforming
possibilities.
17 Nonviolence News I October 2013 •
Suffering can have the power to convert the
enemy when reason fails.
5.
Nonviolence
chooses love instead of
hate.
• Nonviolence
resists violence
of the spirit as
well as of the
body.
• Nonviolent
love gives
willingly,
knowing that
the return
might be
hostility.
• Nonviolent
love is active, not
passive.
• Nonviolent love does not sink to the level of
the hater.
• Love for the enemy is how we demonstrate
love for ourselves.
• Love restores community and resists
injustice.
• Nonviolence recognizes the fact that all life
is interrelated.
6. Nonviolence believes that the universe is on the
side of justice.
• The nonviolent resister has deep faith that
justice will eventually win.
Source: www.cpt.org
Steps of Nonviolence
Step 1: Gather Information
Learn all you can about the problems you see in
your community through the media, social and civic
organizations, and by talking to the people involved.
Step 2: Educate Others
Armed with your new knowledge, it is your duty to
help those around you, such as your neighbors,
relatives, friends and co-workers, better understand
the problems facing society. Build a team of people
devoted to finding solutions. Be sure to include
those who will be directly affected by your work.
Step 3: Remain Committed
Accept that you will face many obstacles and
challenges as you and your team try to change
society. Agree to encourage and inspire one another
along the journey.
hurt by society’s ills. Also go to those people who
are contributing to the breakdown of a peaceful
society. Use humor, intelligence and grace to lead to
solutions that benefit the greater good.
Step 5: Take Action Peacefully
This step is often used when negotiation fails to
produce results, or when people need to draw
broader attention to a problem. It can include
tactics such as peaceful demonstrations, letterwriting and petition campaign.
Step 6: Reconcile
Keep all actions and negotiations peaceful and
constructive. Agree to disagree with some people
and with some groups as you work to improve
society. Show all involved the benefits of changing,
not what they will give up by changing.
Step 4: Peacefully Negotiate
Talk with both sides. Go to the people in your
community who are in trouble and who are deeply
Nonviolence: An Introduction
"People try nonviolence for a week, and when it
'doesn't work' they go back to violence, which hasn't
worked for centuries."
In recent years there has been a dramatic increase in
the number of people around the world who have
taken part in nonviolent political action. It is clear,
however, that there is considerable debate about the
precise meaning of nonviolence. For some,
nonviolent action is an expedient technique for
dealing with conflict or bringing about social
change; for others, nonviolence is a moral
imperative or even a way of life.
2. Reasons for Nonviolence
At first glance, violence may appear to be a superior
technique for resolving conflicts or achieving desired
18 Nonviolence News I October 2013 ends because it has obvious and tangible strategies
and weapons. Nonviolent techniques are often more
difficult to visualise and there is no shortage of
moral and practical dilemmas that sceptics are able
to raise as impediments to taking nonviolence
seriously.
Yet many reasons can be offered for the
employment of nonviolence: it is a 'weapon'
available to all, it is least likely to alienate opponents
and third parties, it breaks the cycle of violence and
counter-violence. it leaves open the possibility of
conversion, it ensures that the media focus on the
issue at hand rather than some tangential act of
violence and it is the surest way of achieving public
sympathy. Further, it is more likely to produce a
constructive rather than a destructive outcome, it is
a method of conflict resolution that may aim to
arrive at the truth of a given situation (rather than
mere victory for one side) and it is the only method
of struggle that is consistent with the teachings of
the major religions.
In addition there are reasons for the employment of
nonviolence that go beyond the conviction that is a
useful, or even the only 'correct' method of conflict
resolution. Nonviolence can also the basis for a way
of life: it is consistent with a belief in the underlying
unity of humankind and it is the only method of
action, interpersonal or political, that does not block
that path to what has often been called 'selfrealisation'.
3. Types of Nonviolence
'Nonviolence' is an umbrella term for describing a
range of methods for dealing with conflict which
share the common principle that physical violence,
at least against other people, is not used. Gene
Sharp, the best known writer on nonviolent action,
has compiled the most comprehensive typology of
nonviolence.
While this typology illustrates the various
approaches to nonviolence, the criteria which
underpin them are still not clear. These criteria may
be identified by examining the two major
dimensions of nonviolent action.
The first dimension (the tactical-strategic) indicates
the depth of analysis, the ultimate aim and the
operational time-frame which activists use. The
second dimension (the pragmatic-ideological)
indicates the nature of the commitment to
nonviolence and the approach to conflict which
activists utilise: this includes the importance
attached to the relationship between means and
ends and the attitude towards the opponent.
Tactical exponents of nonviolent action use short to
medium term campaigns in order to achieve a
particular goal within an existing social framework;
their aim is reform. Strategic exponents of
nonviolent action are guided by a structural analysis
19 Nonviolence News I October 2013 of social relationships and are mainly concerned
about the fundamental transformation of society;
particular campaigns are thus conducted within the
context of a long-term revolutionary strategy.
Pragmatic exponents use nonviolent action because
they believe it to be the most effective method
available in the circumstances. They view conflict as
a
relationship
between
antagonists
with
incompatible interests; their goal is to defeat the
opponent. Ideological exponents choose nonviolent
action for ethical reasons and believe in the unity of
means and ends. They view the opponent as a
partner in the struggle to satisfy the needs of all.
More fundamentally, they may view nonviolence as
a way of life.
-
Thomas Weber and Robert J. Burrowes
Thomas Weber is Associate
Professor
of
Politics
and
International Relations at La
Trobe University. His books
include Going Native: Gandhi’s
Relationship with Western Women, published in 2011,
Gandhi, Gandhism and the Gandhians (2006) and
Gandhi as Disciple and Mentor (2004) etc.
-Robert J. Burrowes has been a member of the
Australian Nonviolence Network since 1981 and has
been involved in many nonviolent action campaigns.
He is best known for his war tax
resistance, his involvement in the
campaign of the Melbourne
Rainforest Action Group, and his
membership in the Gulf Peace
Team. He now devotes all of his time
to nonviolent activism, education, and research.
For Complete article Visit:
http://www.nonviolenceinternational.net/
Nonviolence Wisdom
An unjust law is itself a species of violence. Arrest for its breach is more so.
Now the law of nonviolence says that violence should be resisted not by
counter-violence but by nonviolence. This I do by breaking the law and by
peacefully submitting to arrest and imprisonment.
― Mahatma Gandhi, Non-violence in Peace and War 1942-49
At the center of non-violence stands the principle of love.
― Martin Luther King Jr.
To make peace with an enemy one must work with that
enemy and that enemy becomes one’s partner. – Nelson Mandela
We do not need guns and bombs to bring peace, we need
love and compassion.
― Mother Teresa, The Joy in Loving: A Guide to Daily Living
Nonviolence is the highest form of humility; it is supreme
courage. ― Daisaku Ikeda
I do not hold to non-violence for moral reasons, but for political
and practical reasons. ― Aung San Suu Kyi
Non-violence means dialogue, using our language, the human
language. Dialogue means compromise; respecting each other’s rights;
in the spirit of reconciliation there is a real solution to conflict and disagreement.
There is no hundred percent winner, no hundred percent loser—not that way but
half-and-half. That is the practical way, the only way. ― Dalai Lama