Will the World Ever Get Rid of War and Conflicts ?

by N.S.Venkataraman    

                                                     

( October 9, 2016, Chennai, Sri Lanka Guardian) The announcement of Nobel Peace Prize to Colombian President Juan Manuel Santos for his  efforts to end more than five decades of war in Colombia has ,once again  ,brought  to focus the question as to whether the peace activists who are honoured with  Nobel prizes and  several other awards ,have really been successful in bringing visible change for the better  towards  peace and harmony in the world.

Many peace prizes have  been awarded to  people who are eloquent speakers, profound thinkers  and advocates of the cause for peace  such as The Dalai Lama, Barrack Obama and others .   No doubt, these activists have strived in their own way and in their regions to bring an element of harmony and peace or rise in revolt against violence and exploitation.

However, do such peace prizes give hope that the efforts of the peace activists would bring about world peace?

Is the world peace a mirage ?

In spite of the efforts of the peace activists,, world peace appears to remain as a mirage. It appears that the ground reality is  that the world without  war are unlikely to happen in the foreseeable future.

During the first and the second world war and several other wars and conflicts thereafter, millions of  people have suffered injuries, displacement and loss of lives. After the second world war, the world appeared to  have realized  for sometime that the war should be avoided,  which paved the way for the formation of United Nations Organisation. But, nothing really has changed  thereafter and wars and conflicts continue.

 Has UNO experiment failed ?

Secretary General of United Nations  is in an unique position,  where he can really lecture to the world on the need to force peace and stir the world conscience . He can make the voice of United Nations as a rallying point for the world citizens,  who can think beyond borders and  commit themselves to a world that can get rid of war and conflict .

Unfortunately, in the past , the Secretary Generals of UNO have been functioning more like administrators in  bureaucratic style and have not been able to lift the organization to a higher pedestal for world peace.

It appears that the experiment of forming United Nations organisation has really failed , in that UNO has never been able to effectively stop war or resolve any conflict. Obviously, the world has not moved an inch towards peace after the end of the second world war.

Who is responsible for the situation?

The question arises as to who is responsible for such situation?

Today, we find that people of different countries do not  dislike each other and  they readily  interact in business  and cultural exchange activities across the nations, irrespective of any conflict between the nations.

Therefore, it is clear that the wars do not happen because  mass of people want war. On the other hand , people  really do not want war. Wars happen because of some hot headed political and military leaders who manage to get into power and lead  the governments of various countries and who lack the wisdom to see the need and importance for peace for the growth of the global welfare.

Take for example the conflicts between India and Pakistan. Even though there is conflict between both the countries today, there are many instances of citizens of India and Pakistan interacting with each other in variety of forums. Many Pakistanis have been visiting India for medical treatment and there is healthy trade relationships between both the countries.  Indian cinemas continue to remain very popular in Pakistan.  There are several Pakistani cricketers who are admired in India.

Still, India and Pakistan are unable to resolve the conflict and forge ahead, though the conflicts are causing huge diversion of funds towards military expenses for both the countries , which can be very well spent for the implementation of  much needed economic and industrial projects  and welfare programmes .

Several other similar examples can be readily pointed out such as the relation between the people of Taiwan and China , inspite of the long standing conflict between both the countries.

Mahatma Gandhi’s advocacy :

Mahatma Gandhi, one of the apostles of peace, not only propagated peace at the world level but also understood fully  the essential requirement for world peace. Since all plans of wars begin in the human mind, Mahatma Gandhi said that it has  become absolutely necessary to make  human minds to be the  abode of peace.

Without inner peace and growth of spirituality at the individual level, there can’t be any peace and tranquility at the global level. For this to happen, individuals and civil societies would have to play a proactive role towards world peace. The world  peace activists  do not seem to be successful in achieving such objective.

Is world peace  an Utopian expectation?

The Nobel peace prize awarded this year and several peace prizes awarded earlier remind us more about the  absence of peace and implying that the world peace is a distant dream , though it provides a ray of hope by recognizing the efforts of the peace activists.

Battle for the peace has to be  fought and sustained in the minds of the citizens across the countries , who should be able to  bring pressure on their respective governments to avoid conflicts and war and forge cooperation. Is this suggestion possible or is it an Utopian expectation?