Gandhi’s Satyagraha and its Legacy in the global Foot print

 In the midst of death,

life persists.

In the midst of untruth, truth persists.

In the midst of darkness, light persists.

––M. K. Gandhi

––M. K. Gandhi

The fact that Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi was a leading figure in India’s liberation process and thus responsible for the birth of one of the largest democracies in the world But Gandhi was much more than that.he rebelled against racism, against all kinds of injustice, defended the humble, making his satyagraha movement or ‘force of truth’ a permanent compass of his life. He associated truth with tolerance, developed philosophical ideas that guided him in defining non-violence as a method of struggle, understanding this form of resistance not as the passive acceptance of injustice but as the strongest weapon against the violence of colonialism, of imperialism and all forms of oppression.

There have been several successful experiences of Satyagraha in the past 50 years. Among the followers of Gandhi in the 20th century who successfully launched their own Satyagraha against racial, religious and economic injustice and struggled for human rights, one could mention names like Khan Abdul Ghaffar Khan, Martin Luther King, Jr., Nelson Mandela, Lech Walesa, Vaclav Havel, Benigno Aquino, Jr. and many others. 

Dr. Martin Luther King:

Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. recognized Mahatma Gandhi’s legacy of non-violence for the effectiveness of his own campaigns in areas such as integration and voting rights. King not only travelled to India, but also read Gandhi’s writings. He became Gandhi’s greatest disciple, by embracing Gandhi’s Satyagraha as a method of struggle for the emancipation of blacks in the US.

Nelson Mandela

Gandhian experience of non-violent action found its most authentic exemplification in the African continent with Nelson Mandela. “There is no easy walk to freedom anywhere, and many of us will have to pass through the valley of the shadow of death again and again before we reach the mountain top of our desires,"

As an institution of forgiveness, The Truth and Reconciliation Commission acted on behalf of the South African State in order to try to heal the wounds of many who suffered from violence. “We may never forget, but we must forgive," underlined Mandela. And he added: “To make peace with an enemy, one must work with that enemy, and that enemy becomes your partner." 

By practising Gandhian non-violence in South African politics, Mandela became one of the key models for global Gandhism in the 21st century. Mandela strengthened the institutional bases of the Gandhian moment by engaging his moral capital in the direction of civic participation and democratic deliberation in South Africa.

Arab Spring

Gandhi’s Satyagraha continues to represent the basis of all non-violent struggles against injustice.The non-violent democratic awakenings in West Asia from 2009 to 2012 demonstrated once again that Gandhian non-violence could help to provide the disobedient space that is needed. 

Egyptians, Tunisians and Iranians, freedom meant putting an end to the unjust accumulation of power and to demand their governments to be based on public accountability and popular sovereignty. Both in Iran and Egypt, non-violent resisters primarily targeted direct and visible institutions personified by their political leaders—Mahmoud Ahmadinejad and Hosni Mubarak—while criticizing the authoritarian nature of power in these two regimes.

Gandhian non-violence has been instrumental in political transitions from authoritarian or oppressive rule for many decades. Indeed, non-violent revolutions, characterized by civil society organization, mass mobilization, and negotiation, have revolutionized the very concept of revolution. Long gone are the days when the very concept of revolution was synonymous with violent struggle from below and armed efforts at state capture or overthrow.