25 June 2024 : Daily Answer Writing
Q1) “Peace is not mere absence of war; it is presence of justice.”
(150 Words/10 Marks)
AN
Peace is a stress-free state of security and calmness that comes when there’s absence of violence, commotion and war, and everything coexists in perfect harmony and freedom.
Peace is seen as an absence of war due to following reasons:
- War is no solution: War is often considered as a solution to ongoing hostility and as a method to bring about long-term peace. But it leads to further disruption and deepening of conflict.
E.g., the ongoing Ukraine-Russia War.
- Pointless Irredentism: Obsession about natural or historical frontiers as in the lebensraum of Hitler create existential crisis for many, which puts nations on collision course.
E.g., World War II.
- Effectiveness of mediation: Ways to resolve disputes through various forms of mediation, keep hostilities in check.
E.g., Indus Water treaty between India and Pakistan has withstood many wars.
- International Organisation: International cooperation helps to keep peace among countries and lack of it causes wars.
E.g., the failure of League of Nations and relative success of UN.
- Differences often lead to suspicion and mistrust between the peoples of the world often breaking into war-like situations. On the other hand, dialogue across cultures and civilizations dispels the ignorance of each other’s ways and lives.
But peace also requires the presence of justice due to following reasons:
- Marginalisation: Inclusive policies ensure equal opportunities, equitable access to resources and preventing alienation of any section of population. While stark injustice for the deprived sections of society in comparison to mainstream society can result in violence.
E.g., Left Wing Extremism (LWE) in backward regions of Jharkhand, Chhattisgarh and Odisha.
- Protection of weak: Peace in society requires creation of a just and cooperative society where the weak is protected from being exploited.
E.g., linkage between gender attitudes and crime against women.
- Religious conflict: Unresolved issues of religious divide are often at roots of conflicts between communities, including notions of civilisational wars.
E.g., the Israel-Palestinian conflict, or the Gyanvapi mosque issue.
- Colonial legacy caused racial divisions and ethnic contests for economic resources among the newly decolonised countries.
E.g., Rawandan genocide.
- Climate Justice: Dithering attitude on issue of differentiated responsibilities for climate action by developed countries is creating issues like climate refugees, as mitigation and adaption strategies against climate change remain undermined.
Peace in a society can be achieved not merely by absence of conflict or war rather by ensuring safety of the people who find societal standards to be just for them. A society that has similar notion of justice for all its members despite the diverse ethnic, religious, caste identities will foster peace with subsequent economic and cultural prosperity
