ONLY COWARDS CHOOSE VIOLENCE

There is never a week that passes without a news report about violence inflicted upon innocent people by terrorists and others demonstrating their support for a cause. Suicide bombers, men with guns attacking innocent children and teachers in schools and trained terrorists attacking people in shopping malls are just some examples of this ugly trend. Then there are reports of war, murder, torture, uprisings and revolutions. Included in the reports are descriptions of buildings destroyed, men, women and children killed, injured and emotionally shattered. As a result of this, factories, business organisations, shops and banks stop operations. Political and economic crisis results and life stagnates. The future for the people affected is bleak.

People who generate such chaos and mayhem are cowards. How can they believe that others will support their cause after they have caused such destruction? How can they think that killing someone will promote and glorify their cause? Why can’t they understand that killing someone is destroying a life? Religious people who kill others are not interested in peace and kindness.

These people use violence to promote their cause and to convert others to their way of thinking or to their religions. They use violence to change their present conditions and to make others accept them as the leaders. They see themselves as the preferred ones, the chaste and the pure and they view others as evil . Unfortunately for them, violence will not get others on to their side. Violence will not get them more supporters. Violence is a desperate act and it fails to promote causes or convert people to their ideology, religion or politics. Instead it has the opposite effect of making people dislike the cause that they support and feel revulsion for it.

Violence shows little respect for life. It humiliates and  degrades humanity.  Violence is immoral. It destroys everything that it touches. It ruins communities.  Violence generates hatred, creates mistrust and makes people feel insecure. The result of this is more violence.

People with violent tendencies band together. But why do individuals develop violent tendencies? Violence is often used when people are not able to communicate with each other. It is the preferred form of action of people who live in their own world, who are lonely and who have little contact with society.  They have no ties with the people in the community around them. They then develop aggressive instincts.  When people hate others and when their parents teach them to hate others, they will use violence on those they hate. When people are not given the truth about others and when they do not understand what they are really like, they are quick to use violence on these people.  They will also use violence indiscriminately on others when:

• they are ignorant of other cultures
• they are afraid of other people
• they are proud about who they are and what they are doing
• they are not rational and cannot think clearly about issues, life and anything else.

So what can we do to stop generating violence in people? We can start by encouraging them to socialize and be outgoing.  Opportunities should be provided for people to mix with each other easily.  Let your children mix with children of other races, cultures and social backgrounds. Teach them to appreciate the traditions and trends of different communities.  Boost the self-esteem of your children and do not let them withdraw from their friends and be lonely. Isolated people who have no ties with others are prone to aggression and violence. We should teach everyone to be tolerant of other religions, cultures and beliefs.Do not expose the young to hateful beliefs that will make them afraid of other groups. Do not allow our young to watch too many violent films.  When we watch much violence we desensitize ourselves to violence.

To enhance tolerance, we should teach our young to respect others. We can take this further and teach everyone to love each other. When we love each other, we will be kind and good to each other. When we love each other, we will work together as a group to promote each other. When we love each other we will not hurt one another. When we love each other, we will not want to exert power on the other. When we love each other, we will not think that we are the superior or better person. When we love each other, we will not think that our religion or culture is purer, better, more significant than others. We will instead, respect and honour each other.  When we love each other, we will not inflict violence on each other.

Both Gandhi and Martin Luther King Jr strongly advocated nonviolence. We should adopt Martin Luther King’s suggestion to use words and not violence to persuade people. This brings me back to the need for people to communicate more. People can learn a great deal from each other by just talking and sharing. People can overcome prejudice and fears by just talking and sharing. People can develop ties and bonds with each other by just talking and sharing. People can build communities and create harmony and unity by just talking and sharing.

The courageous person is the person who communicates, thinks and is peaceful. The courageous person wants a happy world where people work together to enjoy themselves. It is the coward who thinks only of himself or herself and his or her arrogant desires who destroys the world. It is the cowards of this world who resort to violence in the misguided belief that violence and destruction will help them promote their cause. Such cowards are irresponsible people who cannot think rationally and who are not able to make their own decisions.  Manipulated by others they will use violence to destroy peace and annihilate.