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As voices for peace were generally low and could not be heard everywhere, peace activists decided to launch well-organised movements against war to mobilise people in favour of peace.
There were two approaches to these movements: the first was made to convince people to abandon arms; the second argued that the main causes of war should be analysed and removed, and a way out should be sought in which conflicts and disputes should be resolved by diplomatic means. It was also decided that movements should be well-organised to create awareness against the horrors of war.
The Napoleonic wars in Europe and the American wars with Cuba, Puerto Rico and the Philippines urged political activists as well as intellectuals to launch movements for peace and raise their voice against war. It resulted in the emergence of the New York Peace Society in 1815, the British Peace Society in 1816, and the American Peace Society in 1828. From 1848 to 1851 these organisations held peace conferences regularly and discussed how world peace should be implemented. They proposed that for maintaining peace negotiation and mutual talks were essential. Those nations who had conflicts with each other should resolve their problems with the help of diplomacy rather than going to war for a solution. More importantly an armament race was the cause for tensions; therefore, production of armament should be curtailed, and finally, attempts should be made to eliminate them.
The peace movements were further spread to other countries and in 1867 a League of Peace was founded in France. In 1891, Germany and Austria organised groups for peace. Bertha von Suttner published her book “Die Waffen Nieder” (Lay down your arms) in 1889 that soon became the Bible for peace-lovers. In 1905 the National Council for Peace was formed which represented various groups. This clearly indicates how people were concerned about peace.
In the United States in 1866 the Universal Peace Union was followed by the World Peace Foundation, the Church Peace Union and in 1899 the Anti-Imperialist League. Mark Twain was its active member and extensively propagated against war in his writings. In one of his essays, he wrote: “War divided a nation into two groups: patriots and traitors”. In another article he asserted that nations should decide their problems and disputes themselves without any external interference. He openly declared that he was anti-imperialist and opposed any invasion and occupation of another country.
Peace movements opposed the theory that man was inherently prone to jealousy, hatred and terrorism and argued that man always wanted to live in peace and harmony. Therefore, to prevent conflicts, the best method was to promote sentiments of love and brotherhood. People were exhausted as a result of wars being held for centuries and wanted to maintain sustainable peace in the world to enjoy worldly pleasures. To them, education was the best medium to promote these ideas. They also believed that people should be aware that wars were fought for political and economic interests of ruling classes and not for their welfare. So they should not be trapped by the slogans of nationalism, patriotism and racism.
In the 19th century, Europe as a result of colonisation and exploitation of colonial resources advanced rapidly and it was generally believed that their progress would remain unhindered. Interestingly, in the peace movements, question of colonial wars was not raised; neither occupation of colonies was condemned. These peace movements concentrated on Europe and America for prevention and possible elimination of all conflicts peacefully. However, despite their efforts and the emergence of democratic institutions, they failed to stop the First World War which broke out in 1914. The outcome of the war was horrendous and shattered the dream of progress and the conception of utopia. Immediately after the war the League of Nations was founded to resolve all disputes among nations with diplomacy. In the 1930s peace conferences were held in the Hague and Geneva. Einstein, the scientist, also attended one such conference and was shocked to observe that delegates of different countries discussed which weapons should be used and which not. They favoured war fought on principles. Disgusted by their discussion, Einstein called a separate press conference and said that there was no such thing as humanised war. War was always inhuman, and, therefore, should be abolished altogether.
However, the peace movement could not prevent the Second World War that was more catastrophic than the First because atom bombs were dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki which destroyed the cities and their populations. The Americans prohibited the Japanese from disclosing the horror of dropping of bombs.
The peace movements, after the war, were subdued and could not raise their voice loudly. Only during the Algerian War of Independence, the French public demonstrated against their government and forced to recognise Algerian independence. The movement again emerged forcefully against the Vietnam War. During the first and second Gulf wars there were demonstrations. Especially in the recent war huge demonstrations exposed the ulterior motives of the USA and Britain and pressurised their government not to invade Iraq.
In democratic societies there is space for people to demonstrate and express their views, but it is argued that decisions are made in parliaments and not in the streets. In spite of people’s opposition Iraq was invaded and occupied, which raises the question that can people’s voice be heard only at the time of election and be ignored in deciding serious issues as war and occupation. It is depressing that protests and voices of the people are drowned in the noises of tanks, bombardments and machineguns.
Warren E. Keuhl, writing on ‘International Peace’ observes: “Man, therefore, stands at the same threshold he approached centuries ago. Despite improved means of communication, an ominous threat to his survival, an increased awareness of danger and the experiences and machinery of his past to aid him, peace still remains a dream. The idea of peace, however, has survived innumerable wars and still motivates men to hope and work for the millennium.”
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