The century that just ended is one of the most violent and deadliest in the history of Humanity. It also saw the appearance and the growth of nonviolent resistances and fights for human rights. We can of course mention Gandhi, Martin Luther King, and also Lanza del Vasto, Solidarnosc, the Mothers of the Plaza de Mayo, and the Larzac farmers. Those resistances often rising from the people against colonization, racism, dictatorships and authoritarianism left a deep mark on the XXth century. The analysis of these nonviolent conflicts led to a better understanding of the concept : it’s a philosophical exigence, a spiritual wisdom, a strategy of struggle and resistance and a method of conflict resolution. Coherence between aims and means enables to conciliate the efficiency of the action and the ethical demand of respecting the others.
Developing a culture of nonviolence means learning how to regulate unavoidable conflicts at school, at work, in the neighbourhoods and also on the international scale, with nonviolent means. As we enter the 21st century, a huge gap remains between the declarations for the promotion of a culture of nonviolence made by those in power and the very insufficient means available for the actors on the field. In order to reduce this gap and create the conditions necessary to the development of a culture of nonviolence, movements and organizations that have been working on this issue for years, with the help of people famous for embracing nonviolent approaches, have decided to found a new organisation exclusively dedicated to financing the culture of nonviolence : Non-violence XXI.
For more information, visit www.nonviolence21.com
Comité ICP c/o MAN | 114 rue de Vaugirard | 75006 Paris | Tél/fax : 01 45 44 48 25