AN INTERNATIONAL conference to map a way forward for peaceful resolution of conflict in current turbulent times began in Pietermaritzburg on Tuesday.
The inaugural Gandhi, Mandela, King International Conference was launched to unpack the thought, values, practices and histories of Mahatma Gandhi, Nelson Mandela and Martin Luther King Jr, with the aim of finding non-violent solutions to problems today. These include wars and conflicts in Africa and across the globe.
The event has been jointly organised by the Humanities Institute at the University of KwaZulu-Natal and the Pietermaritzburg Gandhi Foundation.
This has been done in collaboration with the Gandhi Development Trust (Durban); the Centre on Democracy, Development, and the Rule of Law, Freeman Spogli Institute, Stanford University (USA); the Nelson Mandela Foundation (South Africa); the Gandhi - King Foundation (India); and the Gandhi Memorial Foundation, (Chicago, USA).
David Gengan, the chairperson of Pietermaritzburg Gandhi Foundation, noted that the conference was being hosted during the 130th anniversary of the eviction of Gandhi from a train.
On June 7, 1893, Gandhi was forcibly removed from a whites-only carriage on a train in Pietermaritzburg for not obeying laws that segregated carriages according to race.
“Wednesday, June 7, would mark the 130th anniversary of that incident," said Gengan.
"When we put this conference together, we said it had to straddle that day because that's the reason we are here, because of the manner in which Gandhi influenced people. The evening of June 7 is referred to as the night that changed the world because that incident turned his life towards socialism and the action towards non-violence. It planted the seed for Satyagraha.
"This also marks the 30th anniversary of diplomatic relations between India and South Africa. India restored diplomatic relations with South Africa in 1993 after Mandela was released from prison. So before we had our democracy in 1994, India had already re-established relations with South Africa and we are commemorating that as well.”
Gengan said the conference was a follow-up to one that was held in California in 2019.
“One of the decisions taken at that conference, and the action committees that were established after that conference, was that the next event should be in Africa; in South Africa and in Pietermaritzburg in particular.
"This was because of the incident of Gandhi's eviction, which influenced both Mandela in our country and Dr King in the United States. So all three of the political struggles in the three countries were influenced by Gandhi, and the whole philosophy of Satyagraha which is truth force.
“The significance of this is that for the first time, we are bringing three of the greatest icons of the 20th century under one roof. We will be looking at their philosophies and the ethos that they bring, and how does it relate to present-day conditions in the world.
“We are looking at the conflicts that are happening, not just locally here in South Africa, but also in Africa, in the Middle East, and so on. The question is, how relevant are these philosophies of peace and non-violence for the current day situation? And what kind of action do we take on the ground to bring attention to these things, to make it better, and to put an end to all the strife and conflict,” said Gengan.
He said by the end of this conference they hoped to have a strategy for the different continents.
“Delegates will take back these kinds of messages and be the change wherever they are. As we know, Gandhi said ‘Be the change you want to see in the world’. So now that we will have gotten the message, we hope the individuals will be this change when they return home; to be able to influence the communities they serve and to take this message of peace and non-violence through to those communities.”
The conference will end on Friday. It will also be live-streamed. For more information and for the live links, visit www.gandhifoundation.co.za and Facebook: Pietermaritzburg Gandhi Foundation
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