Nonviolence
Peace by peaceful means

To promote peace by peaceful means and help abolish war as a socially accepted institution - that's what we work for at TFF. It is in line with the UN Charter.

It is realism rather than utopianism. But M.K. Gandhi, Ghaffar Khan, Martin Luther King, Jr., etc should not become museum pieces. Their constructive ideas and methods must be adapted and applied to the problems of the contemporary world.

We present a collection of articles, analyses and reports which highlight the contemporary relevance of nonviolence. It also contains philosophical, conceptual and historical aspects on nonviolence and the role of leading proponents, activists and theoreticians in the field, M.K. Gandhi in particular.

This section contains pieces written by TFF Associates. In the right-hand Features section you will find articles by people who are not Associates. We publish them because they inspire us in our own work and we hope they will inspire you too.This section was launched in January 2001.

> When you access an older document below or in the archive, do not click on its top menu when you have read it. Return to this page and use the left menu.

 

TFF Video Channel on YouTube
Lots of videos about nonviolence


Articles 2008

David Krieger, April 4, 2008
Martin Luther King's legacy of peace

Jørgen Johansen, Sydsvenska Dagbladet, 21:a mars, 2008
En vår i våldets tecken
Kinas myndigheter klarar inte av att hantera oroligheterna i Tibet.

Francis A. Boyle, Baltimore Indymedia, March 6, 2008
Civil resistance in the age of Bush and Cheney
Civil Resistance to the wrongdoings of U.S. regimes has a long, and honorable, history. In his well documented tome, “Protesting Power: War, Resistance, and Law,” Professor Francis A. Boyle captures the essence of that story. He explains how “civil resistance” differs from “civil disobedience.” He also cites cases, where he was involved as an attorney and/or expert witness.

Martin Smedjeback, 4.e februari 2008
Ickevåld eller ickeexistens - vårt val, vår utmaning
Föreläsning av Martin Smedjeback, ickevåldssekretare, Kristna Fredsrörelsen och TFF Associate på Martin Luther King dagen.

 

Articles 2007

Neelakanta Radhakrishnan, December 5, 2007
The Satyagraha of Gandhi and Human Revolution of Ikeda. Some reflections
Text of speech at the Indo-Japan joint symposium arranged by the Oriental Institute of Philosophy, Tokyo on 3rd April 2007 to mark the Centenary of the Satyagraha movement under Gandhi
. We publish it as one TFF Associate's hommage to another, Daisaku Ikeda.

Glenn Paige, Johan Galtung a.o.
Center for Global Nonviolence - November 1-4, 2007
Nonkilling Leadership Forum - A Report and Declaration

David R. Loy, October 9, 2007
Why we love war
A profound, philosopical piece on
why war seems attractive to so many. It has to do with a deep civilisational feeling of lacking something in our lives, with our craving for identity and community. Here is a Buddhist perspective, eminently readable by anyone - and non-Buddhists will get an extra benefit from this professor and Buddhist teacher.

Kai Frithjof Brand-Jakobsen, October 9, 2007
What we can do to support genuine democratization and peaceful transition in Burma-Myanmar
The is the greatest opportunity for meaningful transformation in Burma-Myanmar in 10 years. It is a historic moment that should not be lost.

Jonathan Power, October 5, 2007
Non-violent resistance in Burma has history - but not all of it - on its side.

Jørgen Johansen, Sydsvenska Dagbladet, 4:e oktober 2007
Tiden talar emot regimen i Burma
Jag saknar den starka röst som en gång kom från de alliansfria staternas organisation under kalla kriget. Personer som Julius Nyerere, Indira Gandhi och även Palme kunde kritisera med så mycket starkare moralisk och politisk tyngd än de röster som dessa dagar dominerar mediedebatten om Burma.

Johan Galtung, at the UN, October 2, 2007
Gandhi's struggle against imperialism: Five points
Point 1: Never fear dialogue
Point 2: Never fear conflict: more opportunity than danger
Point 3: Know History or you are doomed to repeat it (Burke)
Point 4: Image the future or you will never get there
Point 5: While fighting occupation clean up your own house!
One of the most enlightening speeches at the UN for years...

Resistance Studies, September 30, 2007
Theory says the Burma Regime is falling?
My prediction, built on contemporary revolution theories, is that the regime of Burma will fall and/or accept democratisation during October. I speculate but build my thinking on John Foran (1997, Theorising Revolutions) and Jörgen Johansen (2007, forthcoming). Foran builds a theory of revolution on about 35 cases from the last 100 years and Johansen show the pattern of a “wave” of “nonviolent revolutions”built on a study of all irregular regime changes the latest 20 years. Burma seems to fit all criteria. Thus a “nonviolent revolution” is approaching!

Martin Smedjeback, Göteborgs Fria Tidning, 30:e augusti 2007
Fredligt mod i imperiets hjärta
Krig, tortyr, kärnvapen och militärbaser. Bushregimen har fördjupat USA-imperiets avtryck på jorden. Men presidentens ord står inte oemotsagt. Ickevåldstränaren och aktivisten Martin Smedjeback har i sommar besökt några av kontinentens mest radikala fredsivrare.

Martin Smedjeback, 13 augusti 2007
Rättegång som början på avslut av USA-vistelse
Jag måste erkänna att innan jag åkte till USA var jag orolig för att jag snabbt skulle tröttna på dryga, arroganta och högljudda amerikanare. Jag kunde inte ha haft mer fel. Sällan har jag träffat så genomtrevliga, lyssnande, omtänksamma, självkritiska, passionerade och toleranta människor som under denna USA-resa.

Dagens Nyheter, 24:e juli 2007
Svensk gripen hos senator i USA
TFF Associerade Martin Smedjeback har gripits på en amerikansk senators kontor i samband med en protest mot politikerns stöd till finansieringen av USA:s Irakpolitik.

Thomas Weber, July 12, 2007
Gandhian nonviolence and its critics
I attempt to show from were some of the major criticisms of satyagraha have come, criticisms that in many cases need to be taken seriously if the, as Gandhi called it, “science of satyagraha” is to develop.Satyagraha is one of the Mahatma’s great gifts to the future and it deserves to be articulated effectively, and this in turn means seriously considering valuable criticisms and being able to answer less valuable ones.

Martin Smedjeback, May 29, 2007
Nonviolence tour in a warrior nation
During the summer of 2007 I will travel around in the United States examining the American nonviolence and peace movement. I will blog on the road and send out my thoughts to anyone who cares to follow along on my nonviolence tour.

Jørgen Johansen, May 27, 2007
Welcome to Resistance Studies Network of Gothenburg University
A new field is opening its network to the world with a fascinating, multi-facetted weblog with lots of articles.
"Resistance to war is probably one of the oldest social movements," writes Jørgen Johansen.

Martin Smedjeback, 10:e maj 2007
Ickevåldsresa i en krigsnation
"Den 20 maj 2007 sätter jag åter fötterna på amerikansk mark. Under tre månader ska jag resa i ickevåldets spår och känna den amerikanska freds/ickevåldsrörelsen på pulsen. Jag börjar i Tucson, Arizona genom en delegation med CPT (Christian Peacemakers Teams)...Under min resa kommer jag att delge dig mina tankar och alla som har lust att följa med i mina fotspår på denna ickevåldsresa i en krigsnation. Hoppas att du vill följa med! Ser fram att höra från dig."
Läs Martins unika rapporter på hans nya blog.

Johan Galtung, March 22, 2007
Learning from Gandhi - Towards a nonviolent world order
Presented at the Satyagraha Centenary in New Delhi, the author presents a fascinating vision of the world atructured around regions and with a fading West. Two important Appendices about Kashmir and about why Gandhi did not receive the Nobel Peace Prize (like a few others).

The Danish Peace Academy, March 8, 2007
The book, Friends of Gandhi.
Correspondence of Mahatma Gandhi with Esther Færing (Menon), Anne Marie Petersen and Ellen Hørup.

Edited by E.S. Reddy and Holger Terp and published in co-operation with Gandhi-Informations-Zentrum in Berlin.
This book with all of Gandhi's correspondence with three Danish women, beginning with their visit in 1917, makes a very important contribution to the research on and understanding of Gandhi. It's also an example of how much single individuals can contribute to international solidarity, says Jan Oberg.
(PDF 1.2 MB, 433 pages).

Martin Smedjeback, 25. februari, 2007
Kärlekens evolution i vår värld
Tal på Martin Luther King's 78:e födelsedag om det kärleksfulla samhället, The Beloved Community.

Jørgen Johansen, 25. februar, 2007
Tenk om det ble krig - og ingen kom

Daisaku Ikeda, February 21, 2007
Dag Hammarskjöld's commitment to dialogue
I believe there is much we can learn from the life and example of Dag Hammarskjöld, the second Secretary-General of the organization. His achievements shine in the annals of UN history, and his moral force and integrity as the "conscience of the United Nations" command wide respect to this day.

Vicky Rossi, January 31, 2007
Interview with Arun Gandhi
Vicky Rossi has travelled in the footpath of Gandhi in India. Her guide was Arun Gandhi, the "Mahatma's" grandson. In this interview they touch the fundamental aspects of the legacy as well as the contemporary relevance of Gandhi and nonviolence.

Martin Smedjeback, Amazon.com, January 8, 2007
Review of David Cortright's book "Gandhi and Beyond. Nonviolence for an Age of Terrorism."

Martin Smedjeback, 4 januari 2007
Fyra steg mot en värld utan våld

 

Articles 2006

Martin Smedjeback, BBC, October 17, 2006
Dozens arrested at base protest
A total of 42 peace protesters from Sweden and Finland have been arrested after blockading an entrance to Faslane.

Martin Smedjeback, Sydsvenskan, 17:e oktober, 2006
Malmöbor gripna efter protest i Skottland
Smedjeback är från Malmö och för sin kamp mot kärnvapen genom organisationen Ofog som bildades 2002 med en kärnvapenfri värld som mål. Se bilderna här på Ofog.

Martin Smedjeback, TFF Asssociate, October 4, 2006
Muslims and Christians united for nonviolence in Sudan
A nonviolence movement comprised of Muslims and Christians, from the North and the South, women and men, armed with a common goal, nonviolent principles and a will to act for a better Sudan, would indeed be a strong force in Sudan. From what I have seen and heard from the participants of this workshop I believe that it can happen in Sudan.

Martin Smedjeback, TFF Associate, October 4, 2006
Nonviolence in Sudan
"Bitterness, hatred and misery…this was what I expected to find in Sudan before I came there in April 2005 for the first time in my life. What else can you expect after 21 years of civil war and when Sudan is one of the poorest countries in Africa? Instead I was met by an incredible hopefulness and belief in peace, nonviolence and reconciliation."

Martin Smedjeback, TFF Associate, August 13, 2006
Vadå vända andra kinden till?
Lyssna på Smedjebacks föredrag om Jesus, Martin Luther King och ickevåldet (mp3 fil).

M. K. Gandhi in "Satyagraha in South Africa," June 30, 2006
Satyagraha turns 100 on September 11, 2006
This is the most important story about September the 11th. On that day the idea of Truth Force, of Love and Nonviolent Action - "peace by peaceful means" in the UN Charter was born. Read Gandhi's own account of the event and how the term came into being.

Martin Smedjeback, TFF Associate, 26:e juni 2006
Ickevåldsstrategi efterfrågas i ColumbiaI Colombia kan du gå in på ett kontor, betala en avgift och tala om vem du vill ha mördad. Livet är billigt här. Kristna Fredsrörelsen har samarbetat i fl era år med organisationen Justapaz, vars namn betyder "rättvis fred" och drivs av mennonitkyrkan i Colombia. I ett gemensamt projekt organiserar vi ickevåldsutbildningar för kyrkligt aktiva.

Martin Smedjeback, TFF Associate, February 28, 2006
The Vine and Fig Tree Trial
In the early hours of the 5th of August 2005 a group of planters entered AWE (Atomic Weapons Establishment) Aldermaston and planted vines and fig trees.
They were soon arrested for their conversion of a nuclear weapons research facility into a peace garden.
This is the story of the trial that followed in Newbury Magistrates Court the 7-9th of February 2006. The author who is a TFF Associate was sentenced to four weeks in prison, if...

Martin Smedjeback, TFF Associate, February 28, 2006
Martin Luther King och Jesus
Tal av Martin Smedjeback i Betelkyrkan, Örebro 2006-01-15, dagen före Martin Luther Kingdagen. King och Jesus råkar vara två av mina största inspirationskällor. Jag har upptäckt att man kan hitta en hel del likheter mellan King och Jesus, men det finns naturligtvis också många olikheter och jag vill inte på något sätt likställa dem. Jag funderar över tre frågor: Varför blev King och Jesus rörelser så framgångsrika? Varför dödades King och Jesus? Varför är King och Jesus rörelser inte längre framgångsrika?

Jørgen Johansen, i Fredstidningen Pax, 22 juni 2006
"Jag tror på humor och olydnad!"
Att få till en intervju med den ständigt resande Jørgen Johansen, 50 år, är svårare än att få intervjua en minister. Han har aldrig tagit någon paus i sitt engagemang för fred och miljö och har arbetat med fredsfrågor sedan 70-talet i hela världen.

 

 


@ Jan Oberg 2001



Archive

Everything published about nonviolence between 2001 and 2005

 

Features

Quality articles - thought-provoking, informative, or "different"- written by people who are not TFF Associates. We recommend and share them with our readers.

 

TFF Associates - experts on
Nonviolence


Evelin Lindner
Chaiwat Satha-Anand
Jørgen Johansen
Daisaku Ikeda
Martin Smedjeback
Else Hammerich
Neelakanta Radhakrishnan
Tom Weber
Glenn Paige
Johan Galtung
Richard Falk
Stellan Vinthagen
Peter Jarman
Giuliano Pontara
Stuart Rees
Adolphe Sururu
Tom Weber
Lotte Christy
Annette Schiffmann


Some useful links

 

TFFs nordiske Gandhi-
bibliografi -
Publiceret i oktober 2004

Bøger om og af Gandhi,
tidsskriftsartikler, videos
og lænker -
på norsk, dansk og svensk,
rækkende cirka 80 år
tilbage i tiden

 

Dalai Lama

Mahatma Gandhi Foundation, India

Civilian Peace Service

Gandhi Information Center, Berlin

Gandhi Today

Center for Global
Nonviolence

Mahatma Gandhi Research
and Media Service -
Gandhiserve

M. K. Gandhi Institute
for Nonviolence

 

 

M.K. Gandhi Sarvodaya - many links

Nonviolence and its many facets - Terapanth

Nonviolence Web

Nonviolence Web links

Norbert's Bookmarks - Nonviolence

Norbert's Bookmarks - Nonviolent Action

  


Mohandas K. Gandhi

"Non-violence in politics is a new weapon in the process of evolution. Its vast possibilities are yet unexplored."

 

The Blue Mountain Centre

Mark Shepard's Nonviolence Site

The Martin Luther King Jr. paper project

 

Many more links
to nonviolence

 

Links to reconciliation, truth and forgiveness

 

 

"Gandhi argued that the coward should take to violence because nonviolence requires a lot of courage. One could add that the intellectually lazy fellow chooses violence before even thinking of nonviolent options."

Jan Oberg, TFF

 

 

"History will have to record that the greatest tragedy of this period of social transition was not the strident clamor of the bad people, but the appalling silence of the good people."

Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

 

Travelogue
India- in the footsteps of Gandhi

Ten articles in English and Swedish
by Jan Oberg

 

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