The message from the award of the 2016 Peace Nobel to Colombian President Juan Manuel Santos is that it is wrong to assume that rebels don’t yearn for peace. Perhaps they were never encouraged to rejoin the mainstream. The choice and subject this year has implications for India also as far as the Naxal movement is concerned. The political class must understand the problems of the downtrodden better.
B. Vinutna,
Ongole, Andhra Pradesh
Gandhi’s South African phase
The decision by the University of Ghana to remove Gandhiji’s statue is a major diplomatic embarrassment. It raises questions on whether Africa wants to rid itself of the outsider influence and rewrite its history. It could also be a backlash against alleged racism that African students face in India.
It was Gandhiji’s experiences in South Africa that enabled him to firm up his methods of practising non-violence and the truth. His mistakes were also a product of the times and it is to his credit that he tried to correct them. While he was unable to ensure an alliance between oppressed groups, it is indisputable that he laid the groundwork for it. The controversy in Ghana also raises questions about the infallibility of our freedom fighters. Gandhiji’s life work is seen to be unquestionable because of the sheer goodwill that came with it (“Before he became Mahatma”, Oct.8).
Akshay Viswanathan,
Thiruvananthapuram
