Dr. Sohail offers readers a fascinating exploration of ideas concerning freedom and non-violence as represented by prominent twentieth century leaders who he selects in his stimulating book Prophets of Violence, Prophets of Peace.
Can humans love God or live according to moral values and yet kill to achieve their version of heaven on earth is a basic question Dr. Sohail asks. He presents Nelson Mandela as a stark example of a leader who accepted the necessity of violence to free black South Africans from the tyranny of apartheid and then earned worldwide respect and admiration later in his life for negotiating peace without violence both with the white government leaders of the country and also with Zulu Chief Butheleze to ensure that South Africa would not be partitioned.
The Dalai Lama is offered as an intriguing contrast because he is a respected leader who also embodies his own firm belief in living life in complete peace, inner peace as well as acting without violence in society Yet Dr. Sohail points out that he may not achieve the free Tibet which Tibetans hope for and have struggled for over so many decades. He hopes that the Dalai Lama will succeed, but asks the difficult question whether it is realistic for a nation to achieve freedom without armed struggle.
Dr. Sohail states his own support for harmonious multicultural and multi-religious societies, but he does not simply illustrate leaders' beliefs in order to conclude with a plan of how to build an ideal society where people respect one another in peace. He discusses the ironies shown by Mohandas Gandhi winning support and renown for leading a peaceful salt march to provide a dramatic example of how non-violence can confront an empire to win freedom from colonialism, and yet how this peaceful icon was unable to resolve his differences with Muhammad Ali Jinnah so that their success in spurring the independence of India and the creation of Pakistan also resulted in the loss of millions of lives.
Martin Luther King serves as a clearer advocate of peace since Dr. Sohail observes that he learned to fight unfair and unjust policies, but that he distinguished those policies from the people who argued for them. Indeed, Dr. Sohail makes clear that he believes that people should be taught not only to empathize with a victim of violence but to be able to go beyond that and to feel compassion for a person who commits violent acts.
I have picked just a few amazing examples of the leaders who Dr Sohail presents to illustrate the crucial dilemma posed by their belief in peace and yet who consider or even accept violence to achieve the goals they believe are worthwhile. Hopefully, a person inspired by Dr. Sohail's ideas will be able to write a book where peace will have been achieved without violence. Hopefully, that will be the kind of world where women will also be among the leaders to inspire and lead people to peace.
_John Argue, Amnesty International
Ontario Coalition for Social justice