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P.
Robert Guruswamy P. Robert Guruswamy is the director of the Institute for Development Education, Chennai, India. He read this paper at ACISCA’s (Association of Christian Institutes for Social Concerns in Asia) Directors’ Conference, in Bangkok, Thailand, held from 15-20 October 2000. Introduction Violence is not new in the long history of human kind. For centuries upon centuries, there have been sporadic cases of violence here and there. But in recent times, there has been a culture of violence, mostly initiated and strengthened by groups of people, governments (dictatorial, military and even the democratic), hijackers, terrorist organizations, at almost every level — local, national and international. It is spreading like wildfire threatening the very survival of humanity. This paper tries to analyse the causes and types of violence, and of the steps being taken to solve the problem, from the point of view of the NGOs; that too from the religious perspective. Sources of violence Conflict is the starting point towards violence. What is the content of ‘conflict’? It may be a serious disagreement or a struggle or a fight. If the conflict is not settled, it develops into violence — a physical force, causing hurt or even death to the people. If violence is not contained, terrorism creeps in. It is like a flood that sweeps away the people including those who are innocent or have no direct involvement e.g., a bomb that explodes in public places like a railway station, market, worship centre or while travelling on a bus, train or plane that may injure or kill people at random. Among the causes for violence, the following are common in Asia: Violence arising from human rights violations The affirmation of the sacredness, dignity and worth of all human beings who are created free and equal is at the root of all human rights i.e., the right to be human. This was incorporated into the ‘Universal Declaration of Human Rights’ and was adopted by the General Assembly of the United Nations on 10 December 1948. It declares in Article 1: ‘All human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights. They are endowed with reason and conscience and should act towards one another in a spirit of brotherhood’. Again Article 3 proclaims: ‘Everyone has the right to life, liberty and security of person’. Article 21 affirms: ‘No person shall be deprived of his life or personal liberty except according to the procedures established by law’. In spite of the above provisions in the Constitutions of Asian countries, there are deliberate and constant violations, imposing different types of violence on the people by the anti-social elements, the dictatorial and corrupt governments, the law enforcing authorities and even by the government, police, army, political leaders and parties, etc. Some of the common acts of violence are: - Dehumanizing the already marginalized and oppressed people like dalits, aboriginals, tribals, etc. - Deliberate or subtle domineering of the majority community over the minority community — religious, linguistic, ethnic, nationality, regional, sub-regional within the country. - Atrocities to women — rape, wife-battering, flesh trade, dowry, death, etc. - Attacks by one religious community against another religious community — damaging the places of worship and destroying the Scriptures, beating and killing priests and other religious leaders. - Child abuse in the form of child labour and child prostitution. - Poverty, unemployment, bonded labour, economic disparities, oppressive social structure, illiteracy, ignorance and such like are breeding grounds for violence. Manufacturing and marketing of arms and weapons Some of the developed countries have large industries that manufacture and sell arms and weapons, both light and heavy. In the name of the ‘basic right of citizens’, the people of these countries possess and use light arms and weapons for self defence or for pleasure in hunting animals and birds. But these are being more and more misused by youths, especially those addicted to drugs and alcoholic drinks. The situation is worse in Asia when these industries market their goods with a view to earning huge profits. The availability of arms and weapons among the people of Asian countries causes social, political and ethnic conflicts and violence, denying people the tradition of settling problems by non-violent methods, and disturbing peace in the community. Apart from heavy human casualties, illicit trading of these materials encourages anti-social elements and criminal activities, money-laundering, trafficking of drugs, various black-market commodities and other illegal activities. It is evident that these industries, with the support of some corrupt politicians, sell arms and weapons to dictatorial and military governments. In certain cases such industries supply to both the ruling and opposition (political) parties or to the two groups fighting against each other. Consequently, the Asian countries spend a large percentage of the national budget on the acquisition and use of these items. Asia is becoming increasingly a continent of violence. It is gratifying to note that there are NGOs dealing with this problem through awareness activities, organising public opinion against it and bringing pressure upon the governments to fight against the culture of violence. Inter-communal conflict Conflict implies a state of incompatibility between the values and goals of different groups and committees. This state includes also the means of achieving them. Conflict promotes social process in turmoil by bringing in new values and goals which consequently cause internal dynamics. The oppressed and marginalized groups gain awareness of their lowly status and gather the courage to turn their dreams into reality. The dynamism of the conflict results in the overthrow of the old élites — the high caste, the rich, the people with vested interests — political, social, economic, cultural, religious, linguistic, ethnic — who experience shock as they lose their power, social status and all such possessions. The dynamics of conflict cause suffering and even death. But it also takes the old society out of its rut and enables to initiate a new course in the hope of achieving social justice and economic equality. Conflict leads to violence wherever societies are more rigidly stratified, and people from the lower strata are not allowed to move up, as with the caste system in India. As long as the upper class or the ruling class, as in the case of almost every country in South Asia, is powerful — politically, socio-culturally, there may be communal or class conflict. Positive response to violence Efforts are being made to deal with the problem of violence. Prophetic faith and institutional faith support harmony and conflict The prophetic vision of a new society is based on justice, equality and liberty, challenging the established stratified society. It calls for the dismantling of the old social structures, and supports revolt against the vested interests of the upper classes. It encourages the oppressed and the marginalized to unite and demand social justice, economic equality and political power, whereas the institutionalized religion goes to the defence of the status quo in the name of tradition, discipline and order in the society. Thus religion is itself the source of conflict. It is also evident that the institutionalized faith, especially the fundamentalists in each religion, also causes the conflict. This happens when each religion insists that it is the only true faith and salvation is only through that faith. This has created and continues to create violence, terrorism and death on a mass scale. It is equally true that the prophetic faith supports violence to get rid of the dictatorial leadership for e.g., the then direct support of the World Council of Churches to the South African people against the racist government. Religion as a promoter of communal harmony as well as conflict Religion contains both divine and human elements. The divine element functions through the prophetic faith to usher in social justice, equality and liberty, whereas the human element institutionalizes the faith as a social institution with its inherent characteristics of endorsing the status quo and identifying itself with the ruling and upper classes. But underneath, the unrest of the lower groups will simmer and wait for an opportunity to strike at the roots of exploitation. Wherever the social stratification is flexible as in the case of some developed countries, people from the lower stratum are allowed to enter the upper stratum. Also the upper stratum shares power and advantages with those who remain in the lower stratum. Such a situation is observed in some countries of South Asia, especially between the middle and lower groups — caste and class. Since the people in Asia are basically religious, the solution of any problem — social, economic, political — will have to be through the united action of the religions. Inter-faith understanding and action is an instrument to promote such united actions. Inter-faith dialogue, as an aspect of that instrument, aims at promoting national/Asian integration and human solidarity irrespective of political and economic factors. It implies that religion, on the one hand, is a powerful uniting force between fellow believers, more than any other emotional bond. But on the other hand, it works as a divisive power polarizing its own believers of other religions. The challenging task of inter-faith dialogue is to bring about a united emotional force which will not only unite its own followers but also unite the followers of different faiths which are culturally as well as theologically far different or even opposed to each other. This is indeed a difficult task but it is worth undertaking, not only for human solidarity but for human survival itself. Basic assumptions for human solidarity Certain basic assumptions are imperative for practicing and experiencing human solidarity. These are: Human diversity All religions are not the same, nor do they have the same objectives. They are different and are based upon a different understanding of God, human person, nature and the purpose of creation, depending upon the religious and cultural background of the people and their personal interests. Religion means different things to different people, and the need for religion must be fulfilled at different levels for different people. Since people are different, their emotional and psychological needs are different. Each individual member seeks satisfaction of his or her own needs, which may be found in a religion other than the one in which the person is raised. Respect for other religions While believing in one’s own religion of his/her choice, it is also important to have respect for other religious faiths, to understand their special features and appreciate something new that faith may have in strengthening his/her own beliefs. It is important that we accept the validity of each other’s personal religious experience. Mahatma Gandhi says: ‘My religion is Hinduism, which for me, is religion of humanity and includes the best of all religious known to me !’ 1 Freedom of choice of religion Every person should be free to adopt the religious faith that he or she likes most, and that the choice must be honoured. It should be regarded as a matter of conviction, not a matter of birth or the dictates of an institution. Solution to human problems In the defence of human rights and in the service of people’s needs, all religions find areas of mutual understanding and collaboration. Religions are together engaged in their common struggle against materialistic and atheistic attitudes to life. In an Asia filled with poverty, disease, ignorance and suffering, genuine spirituality as an aspect of human solidarity could change the mind of man/woman, and change the whole of Asia/the world for the better. True spirituality is deeply concerned with bringing relief to all those who are suffering or in want. Human solidarity is an inner attitude of mind and heart with emphasis on the inner-person and inward transformation of the human life. Human solidarity is thus the fruit of union between people and union of people with God.
Conclusion Hope of arresting the trends of violence There is a sign of hope with concrete efforts being taken to tackle the problem of violence at the local, national, regional and global levels. The fact that the United Nations realized that ‘World Peace’ is feasible not just with globalisation and liberalisation through the World Bank, the International Monetary Fund or the World Trade Organization, but also in mobilizing the religious and spiritual resources of the people in the world — is a right step in this direction. A new and dramatic action in the new millennium was that the United Nations conducted the Millennium World Peace Summit of Religious and Spiritual Leaders, the first of its kind, at the United Nations, New York, USA, 28-31 August 2000. This summit strengthens the efforts made by the centenary celebration of the Parliament of Religions in Chicago in the year 1997, in initiating a global ethical code for human living with justice and peace. The statement issued by the Summit in August 2000 entitled ‘Commitment to Global Peace’ is an effective source of healing humanity from the cancer of violence. May ACISCA pledge itself to arrest the trends of violence, and to eliminate it from Asia.
Notes: 1 M.K. Ghandhi, reply to S. Radhakrishan in Contemporary Indian Philosophy, eds. S. Radhakrishnan and J.H. Muirhead, London: George Allen and Unwin, 1936, p. 21. Ref.: al-mushir (The Counselor), vol. 42, n. 4, 2000.
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