International day for Tolerance and Peace – 16th November

Brig. K.G. Behl (Retd.)

President, All India Consumers Council &

SNS, Uttarakhand

International Day for Tolerance and Peace is celebrated worldwide every year on 16th of November. It was started by the UNESCO in the year 1995 with some principles related to the tolerance and peace. The year 1995 was chosen by the UNESCO to mark the year for tolerance as well as the 125th birthday anniversary of the Indian freedom fighter Mahatma Gandhi in order to promote the tolerance and non violence. The world wide campaign of the tolerance and non violence has been launched to make tolerance and peace effective for all groups of people of diverse communities.

Tolerance gets generated from the universal human rights as well as the fundamental freedoms for others. Since, the people worldwide have diverse colour, cast, creed and culture, only tolerance makes sure the combined living of the people from mixed communities all over the world. Tolerance is not just an ethical duty, it is the political and legal necessity for the individuals, groups, states and countries. According to this, an equal opportunity should be emphasized to all groups of people in every part of the world. Tolerance is the wonderful instrument which can lead people of diverse culture and religion to get their ultimate objectives of living together peacefully and harmoniously.

Peace is when people are able to resolve their conflicts without violence and can work together to improve the quality of their lives. During peace everyone lives in safety, without fear or threat of violence and all are equal before the law. The systems for justice are trusted, and fair and effective lawsprotect people’s rights. Peace enables everyone to participate in shaping political decisions where all have fair and equal access to the basic needs for their wellbeing – such as food, clean water, shelter, education, healthcare and a decent living environment. It involves equal opportunity to work and make a living, regardless of gender, ethnicity or any other aspect of identity.

Intolerances like injustice, violence, marginalize and discriminate need to be avoided to develop the tolerance. Education is the best way to promote tolerance by removing the fear and mentality of exclusion of others. Leaders of the world should be capable to take independent judgment with vital thinking as well as moral reasoning. Due to the diversity in the religions, cultures, languages, ethnicities of the people, tolerance is the only way to unite all people. Fighting intolerance requires access to law, education, information, individual awareness and some local solutions to prevent it from becoming global.

To effectively promote tolerance and peace there is need to educate youths of the world about human rights as well as their fundamental freedoms not only in the schools but also at home by parents, law-makers, offices and all other places. Variety of debates on tolerance and peace by people of all communities should take place worldwide.

The year 2018 has seen many ups and downs where many countries lost their tolerance to the extent that another world war was in the offing. Thanks to the leaders of those countries that peace negotiations started which made them come together and work for World Peace. In some parts of the world violence is still brewing and they need to become tolerant so that peace prevails in those areas too.

Luckily India has a history where they have never attacked any other country for extra territorial reasons but if some wars have been forced upon them they have given a befitting reply and tried to maintain peace with tolerance. India got back independence with a non-violent movement maintaining peace. This is where Mahatma Gandhi showed the way to the world to have tolerance and peace.

International Day for the Tolerance and the Peace is celebrated to make the people understand the importance of the Peace as well as Tolerance. Tolerance and peace are interrelated as peace comes to those who are tolerant. It is very easy for people to maintain peace by tolerating activities for the people’s welfare. When we think about the development of the people, peace and tolerance are needed in all activities connected with that. There are laid down rules and regulations and understandings on global development which have to be followed with peace and tolerance.

This day enhances the awareness about dangers of intolerance and its implications in maintaining the peace among people. To promote more tolerance and peace worldwide it is essential to prevent and mitigate conflicts.