Gandhi Interview

Gandhi Interview [Your Name] [Professors Name]

Gandhi Interview (IV = interviewer; GJ = Gandhiji)

IV: Gandhiji, it is such an honor to have you here, I hope you have enjoyed your meal. GJ: The honor is all mine. Thank you for the meal. It was refreshing and the chai is very good. IV: Gandhiji, please, help me understand this Salt March. How does it contribute to our independence? GJ: Ah, thats a very good question. You know, next to air and water, salt may be the most important thing, especially in our hot Indian climate. It is needed by all, rich and poor alike. It can be produced by anyone with access to sea water, and that is what we are doing, producing salt without paying the tax on it and by breaking the British monopoly on it. I believe it is an important and significant choice. We will march to gain support for our independence, it shows the British we are serious. IV: Thank you, Gandhiji. But isnt this illegal? Is breaking the law the right thing to do? GJ: Yes, but as we are now independent, we do not consider the law to be valid. Please understand the notion of satyagraha. That means the force of truth-but note that it is the force of truth, not the force of violence. IV: Gandhiji, what if you are arrested? GJ: I fully expect to be arrested. I understand what I am doing. But they cannot arrest the entire nation. Some have already been arrested. I expect yet more will be arrested as time goes on. It wont change a single thing. What has started, has started, and it will finish. IV: Gandhiji, if you support disobedience, why not something more drastic? GJ: Do you mean a violent rebellion? That will not work and I would not support it. If we engage in violent rebellion, the British will respond with oppression leading to more

Gandhi Interview 3 violence. We cannot engage in violence, even if fired upon. You must know we cannot violate the doctrine of ahimsa. We cannot do harm. This is a basic tenet of three of our religions here in India, Hinduism, Buddhism, and Jainism. IV: Gandhiji, you mention religions, but you did not mention the Muslims. Do you have their support as well, even though some of them consider Hindus to be heretics who worship many gods? GJ: We are all Indians here. We have many languages, many cultures, many religions. We are all oppressed. Do you know the name Ghaffar Khan? Please do me the courtesy of remembering it if you do not. He is my friend and brother, a Pashtun Muslim from Peshawar, and he embraces satyagraha. IV: And what, Gandhiji, of the Sikhs? With their martial traditions, will they also embrace satyagraha? GJ: Yes, they are certainly with us, and please understand that they are not abandoning their martial tradition. They are just learning a new way to fight. Remember, first and foremost, we are all Indians. I do not deny our differences, and I embrace our diversity, but now is the time to set them aside, temporarily, to achieve our current common purpose. If we are divided, we cannot hope to succeed in our common objective of independence, our divisions will set us against one another, and the British will undoubtedly take advantage of that to our ultimate detriment. IV: Gandhiji, what is your vision for the future of India? GJ: I must speak with some modesty here. I believe the Indian National Congress Party, which draws on all of the groups in Indian society, will eventually assume leadership and control of the nation. In its early days, the Indian National Congress Party was not opposed to British rule. Times have caused that opinion to change. The Indian National Congress Party will most likely be the organization to lead India into its era of independence. IV: Thank you so much, Gandhiji, before you leave, is there anything else I might do for you?

Gandhi Interview 4 GJ: Yes! Please join us as we march, even if only for a brief time. Our unity is our source of strength.