Gandhi and Globalization

- By Margaret Fernandes Joseph*

Abstract

This paper will attempt to show how HIND SWARAJ written by M.K. Gandhi in 1908 has relevance even today. Gandhi’s critique of the forces that drive the ‘modern civilisation’ i.e. European colonialism, has a lesson for us as we plunge deeper into the turmoil engendered by the demagogue of globalization.

Globalization is the domination of a uni-polar economic system facilitating the free movement of capital and trade. In an unequal situation, it works in favour of the rich. Globalization threatens national economies. In the consumeristic and technological culture promoted by globalization, people are subordinated to material forces and become expendable. The short-term benefits of the global economy create an illusion of lasting betterment but if we see social security, justice and democracy as the factors by which we measure a healthy society, then, globalization needs to be questioned as a positive force.

Gandhi in HIND SWARAJ critiqued the two principles which are at the core of globalization-‘might is right’ and ‘survival of the fittest.’ Gandhi believed that greed and want which were the decisive dynamics of ‘modern civilisation’ corroded our moral being. Gandhi said,”…to bring about the highest intellectual, economic and political, and moral development…there should be equal rights and equal opportunity for all.” This is possible only in a human economy based on ‘social affection’ not on impersonal competitive individualism as eschewed by globalization. This paper will attempt to analyse how Gandhi’s observations on colonialism in HIND SWARAJ are a lesson for the neo-colonial global agenda that we in India are witnessing today.

“There are many human needs which find no place in the market” - Rober A. Senser

Globalization is the domination of a uni-polar economic system, facilitating the free movement of capital and trade. In an unequal situation it works in favour of the rich. Capital itself is is used more for profitable speculation than for useful production. Globalization revitalizes and threatens national economies and deprives people of a say in what happens to them. People are no longer respected as persons but become cheap labour. In a consumeristic and technological culture, people are subordinated to the material forces and become expendable. International debt and structural adjustment programmes trap people into economic, political and social dependence. Rising individualism encouraged by the profit motive goes hand in hand with lack of social responsibility and solidarity. A practical atheistic and materialistic attitude sets up Mammon as an idol. Violence and corruption become rampant everywhere and at all levels. The short term benefits of globalization to developing nations such as employment, trade collaborations, new technical skills, electronic advance, create an illusion of lasting betterment. But, if we see social security, justice and democracy as the factors by which we examine a healthy society, most of the available empirical data shows that from the moral point of view, the negative implications of economic globalization are for the third world overwhelmingly stronger than the positive.

Mahatma Gandhi believed that ‘exploitation is the essence of violence’ and that the extension of the law of non-violence in the domain of economics meant nothing less than the introduction of moral laws to be used in guiding international commerce.

The arguments put forth by Gandhiji, as far back as 1908 in HIND SWARAJ are relevant even today. HIND SWARAJ though deeply rooted in its time, has a universality beyond its specific context and historicity because the context of the dialogue in HIND SWARAJ is philosophical. It is therefore necessary for us to seize on its relevance for our times by entering into a meaningful dialogue with Gandhiji and his works.

Gandhiji’s HIND SWARAJ is a critique directed not so much at the British people but at their ‘modern civilization’. Anthony Parel has reprinted a letter which Gandhiji wrote in London just before his departure from England, to his friend and contemporary, Lord Oliver Ampthill, former Governor of Madras who in 1904 had been acting Viceroy of India in the absence of Lord Curzon. In this letter Gandhiji makes it clear that what he objects to is that “the British people appear to be obsessed by commercial selfishness.”¹ He says, “…the true remedy lies…in England discarding modern civilization which is ensouled by this spirit of selfishness and materialism”.² In Chapter VI of HIND SWARAJ, ‘Civilisation’, describing ‘modern civilization’, Gandhiji says, “Its true test lies in the fact that people living in it make bodily welfare the object of life” (HS. p.35) According to Tridip Suhrud, this is an inadequate rendering of the original Gujarati translation and should be translated as “Its true identity is in the fact that people seek to find in engagement with the material world and bodily comfort meaning and human worth.”³ Gandhiji calls a civilization that judges fulfillment of human worth or ‘Purushartha’ only in terms of material worth and bodily comfort “irreligious” and “a satanic civilization”, “a black age.” For Gandhiji ‘civilization’ was a moral enterprise. Gandhiji defined ‘true civilization’ as “that mode of conduct which points out to man the path of duty. Performance of duty and observance of morality are convertible terms. To observe morality is to attain mastery over our mind and our passions. So doing we know ourselves”(HS., p.67) Civilization creates a possibility for self-knowledge both for the individual and society. Modern civilization that makes the material world and bodily welfare the chief referent of human and social worth hinders the inward gaze and blinds man. Gandhiji was emphasizing the shadow side of modern civilization with reference to a particular period, however, his insistence on greed and want as the decisive dynamic of modern civilization emphasized how our active moral being is transmuted into passive consuming without conscience. Gandhiji finds the two principles which are at the core of the ethos of modern civilization, namely, ‘might is right’ and ‘survival of the fittest’ unacceptable. One might concede that in stressing the dark side of modern civilization, Gandhiji does overlook many of its strengths, but one needs to recognize that his criticism of colonialism focuses on the imperialistic inspiration and his rejection of industrialism derives mostly from its capitalist context.

In HIND SWARAJ, Gandhiji decries the argument that means justify the ends. He argues for the purity of both ends and means” and there is just the same connection between the means and the end as there is between the seed and the tree”(HS., p.81), therefore violence of any kind must be shunned in achieving the goal because then the means are impure. The very same principles that drove colonialism, direct and guide the global economy, a manifestation of neo-colonialism. In HIND SWARAJ, Gandhiji sought to caution Indians against this and save the British from being ruined by their inability to see the flaw in their motivation and methods. Gandhiji takes pains to point out that his struggle is not against the British but against the civilization they represent. Gandhiji’s prophetic voice cautions us against material greed and power that overrides all other considerations in our post-modern global economy because it can only lead to an exploitative and unjust society where the least are forgotten and trampled upon.

Gandhiji said, “...to bring about the highest intellectual, economic, political and moral development…there should be equal right and opportunity for all…equality between town dwellers and villagers in the standard of food, drink, all other living conditions …In order to achieve this equality today people should be able to produce for themselves the necessaries of life…If we try to work out the conditions for such a life, we are forced to the conclusion that the unit of society should be … a small and manageable group…self-sufficient… in bonds of mutual co-operation and interdependence.”⁴ Gandhiji wanted a human economy based on ‘social-affection’ not impersonal and competitive individualism. He wanted “a leveling down of the few rich…and leveling up of the semi-starved millions”.

The free trade initiated by globalization has hardly been a leveler. The mechanism of debt has made it easy for IMF and the World Bank to impose policies that cripple the 400 million Indians who remain below the poverty line. Global corporations have displaced local trade and the ‘small’ man like the local farmer has been crushed because of cheap subsidized imports which undercut agricultural production. Cheap finished products from China have had the same effect. And so would FDI in the retail market, if it were allowed. Global markets, global communication, global civil society have relegated local people and their interests to the background and weakened democracy through the state. Helped by governments policies of privatization, deregulation and trade liberalization, more than a 100 multinational corporations now control 20% of global foreign assets (Hertz, N., The Silent Takeover : Global Capitalism and Death of Democracy,2001). The rule of the market, not the people governs and guides society. And who has access to the markets? The rich and the influential! Economic democracy in which all can participate equally has no place in a global scenario. Social justice takes a back seat. The poor and the weak are pushed to the wall. The SEZ are an example of such unthinking oppression. Think of the agitations in Gorai, Mumbai or Nandigram and Singur. Poverty and insecurity lead to violence and war. Gandhiji spoke up against just such a situation when he advocated an equality based on co-operative and compassionate non-violence, on ‘fraternity’ not ‘liberty’. As N.R. Narayan Murthy said at the Nani Palkhivala Memorial Lecture on ‘Making Globalisation Work for India’ (Jan.,2007), “…compassionate capitalism which is about pursuing capitalism while keeping the interest of the society in every decision we take to further our own interest” is the need of the hour.

In this context we need to re-examine Gandhiji’s idea of ‘sarvodaya’ as the goal of ‘swaraj’. Gandhiji saw ‘swaraj’ as rule over oneself, as self-control and as self-government. He said, “...In your emancipation is the emancipation of India. All else is make-belief.”⁵

Gandhiji’s principle of ‘swadeshi’ “simply meant that the most effective of social, economic and political functions must follow the natural contours of the neighbourhood”, thus affirming “the immediate community”⁶ Globalization on the other hand overwhelms local cultures and destroys them. (1998 World Culture Report, UNESCO). It imposes an alienating homogeneity and inhibits localism and diversity, which Gandhiji meant to encourage in order to counter the centralizing and alienating forces of the Modern State. The clash between the dosa and the burger is one simple illustration of how commerce has overridden local culture.

Gandhiji’s quest for ‘decentralisation’ may seem impractical in the face of the material prosperity globalization trumpets but it is also equally obvious that the hegemonic homogeneity globalization promotes does succeed in obliterating differences. In fact, it alienates minorities and enkindles resentment. The reactionary polarization and ghettoization on religious lines that we are witnessing is undeniably a result of loss of identity and cultural bonding that comes with globalization.

Gandhiji’s ‘swadeshi’ did not mean ethnocentrism. Gandhiji was not a cultural chauvinist who would negate the global dimensions of common humanity even as he firmly stood his local ground. His concept of ‘oceanic circles’ was “...precisely an attempt at articulating inter-related levels of social organization”⁷ “His nationalism was anti-imperialist not chauvinist, a struggle for political justice and cultural dignity”.⁸

Gandhi was a cosmic man who wanted all cultures to be enriched without losing their identity. “His ‘swadeshi’ envisaged a more personalized and communitarian society on a human scale, yet extending to include both the biotic and even the cosmic”.⁹

Gandhiji’s critique of uncontrolled capitalism that was exported by the British as ‘modern or western civilization’ needs to be given a serious thought. Selfish individualism and self-interest which is responsible for the economic, political and ecological crisis that the world is facing today, warns us of what will befall us if we ignore the path of common good for all mankind. The ‘least’ cannot be forgotten in Gandhi’s vision for India and the world. There is an urgent need for markets and business to be grounded in sound ethics and for economic decisions to be guided by rules that foster greater justice and fair play ensuring a level playing field for all players in the global economy so that oppressive relationships of dominance-dependence will not trigger turmoil like that seen in 2011- whether it was ‘Occupy Wall Street’ or the widespread discontent across Europe. Can we reflect on Gandhiji’s advice and localize the global economy so that the enormous power of globalization can be utilized in a way that benefits rich and poor alike? For this we will have to find a more human ideal for society. Maybe if we can go heed Gandhiji’s idealism it will not be impossible! Gandhiji who saw the village as his world with regard to economy and polity and the world as his village in the realms of culture and religion has a lesson for our times.

References

1. Parel Anthony J., (ed), Gandhi : Hind Swaraj and other Writings, Cambridge University Press, 1997,134.
2. ibid. 134.
3. Suhrud Tridip, How to Read Hind Swaraj: A Reflection, in Vidyajyoti Journal of Theological Reflection, August 2009, Vol. 63/945.
4. Nehru, Jawaharlal, A Bunch of Old Letters, London, 1958, 511-12.
5. Gandhi, M.K., Collected Works, 1958-89, 100 Volumes, Government of India, New Delhi.
6. Roy, Ramashray, 1985, 114, as quoted in R. Heredia’s ‘Gandhi’s Hind Swaraj Today’, Vidyajyoti Journal of Theological Reflection, October 1999, Vol. 63/10, 74.
7. Heredia, R., Gandhi’s Hind Swaraj I, Vidyajyoti Journal of Theological Reflection, September 1999, Vol. 63/9.
8. Nandy, Ashish, The Illegitimacy of Nationalism, Oxford Univ. Press, Delhi, 1994, 3.
9. Heredia, R., Gandhi’s Hind Swaraj I, Vidyajyoti Journal of Theological Reflection, September 1999, Vol. 63/9.

Notes

All page numbers for quotations from HIND SWARAJ (HS) are from the following book: Parel Anthony J.,(ed), Gandhi : Hind Swaraj and other Writings, Cambridge University Press, 1997.

Courtesy: This article has been reproduced from the ISBN Publication - Gandhi in the New Millennium - Issues and Challenges' published by Khandwala Publishing House.

* Associate Professor, Department of English, SNDT College of Arts & SCB College of Commerce & Science for Women, Churchgate. | Email: marged16@yahoo.co.in