Demands for justice have always been the most relevant demands, the struggles for justice have always been the noblest human endeavor. However one important aspect has been changing—in more recent times there has been increasing need for the demands and struggles for justice to find paths of peace and non-violence.
Perhaps the most important reason for this is that with the availability and proliferation of highly destructive weapons (which are generally always in much greater abundance with the forces of oppression) there is now the increasing danger of struggling people suffering unacceptably high harm within a short time in violent clashes. If their numbers are smaller and the oppressive forces are too strong, those struggling for justice may be almost wiped out in a violent confrontation within months. Hence as far as possible, paths of peace which can minimize the harm to those involved in the struggles for justice should be found, even if the struggle has to continue over a longer time.
To give an example, the struggle for a safe and justice-based future for the Palestinian people is one of the most relevant struggles which should be supported by all people who believe in justice. The question is more about how the demands should be raised and taken forward. At several solidarity gatherings on Palestine a slogan is raised that between the river and the sea all land should belong to the Palestinians. Now if you go back to 1948 and further back you can say that this is a justice-based demand and the struggle based on this is a struggle for justice for the Palestinian people. However it should be equally clear that in the present day world this will involve simply too much violence and instead there should be a struggle for peace based on peaceful methods and for durable solutions in which the objectives of justice and peace are achieved together. In fact if the Palestinians, with all their undoubted moral strength of urgently needing justice after suffering immense injustice, are to plan their movement on the basis of this demand of getting all land between the river and the sea, then there is likely to be so much destructive warfare that very few people in the region may be there to witness the dawn of such justice even if it comes.
What is more, even if such a demand is realized, where will the common people of Israel go? After all justice in the present conditions implies that they too must be able to lead secure life just as the Palestinians must be able to do so.
The broader issue is that those struggling for justice must also be aware of the wider implications for peace, safety and the welfare of all people. If a struggle is to be planned in such a way that most people may actually die then of course this should not be supported and instead alternative paths of more peaceful struggles and solutions should be explored. Unfortunately there has been a tendency by some leaders of struggles to try to get more support by suggesting more extreme solutions, while those advocating more workable solutions that are more likely to be achieved with less harm are pushed aside. This should be avoided, and efforts should be made instead to reconcile justice and peace objectives in a balanced way.
Fortunately one encouraging development in recent decades, compared to certain earlier historical times, is that it has become more possible to campaign at world level in favor of more peaceful paths or to create more conducive conditions for the success of peaceful struggles. This strength should be improved further so that more conducive conditions for the success of various peaceful struggles for justice can be created.
On the whole there is a strong case for saying that increasingly the struggles for justice should also be struggles for peace and based on peaceful methods. Simultaneously the peace movement should not be just a peace movement but instead should be a movement for peace and justice. The peace movement worldwide should give much more attention to ensuring that those struggles which take up peaceful paths for achieving important justice based aims can succeed and thereby the faith and trust in seeking peaceful solutions can be strengthened throughout the world. Then those suffering from various injustices will be much more inclined to adopt the path of peaceful struggles and to carefully choose their demands in such a way that can lead to the realization of the objectives of justice with peace and peace with justice in such a way that can be accepted by all reasonable people.
Bharat Dogra is Honorary Convener, Campaign to Save Earth Now. His recent books include When the Two Streams Met, Protecting Earth for Children, Man over Machine and A Day in 2071.
