External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar unveiling the statue of Mahatma Gandhi in Japan.
Tokyo: External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar today unveiled the statue of Mahatma Gandhi. During this, he also made the world aware of Mahatma Gandhi’s message. Jaishankar said that this eternal message still applies to the world witnessing conflict, polarization and bloodshed that solutions do not come from the battlefield and no era should be an era of war. Jaishankar made this remark while unveiling the bust of Mahatma Gandhi at Freedom Plaza in Edogawa, Tokyo. Jaishankar arrived in Japan on Sunday on a two-day visit from Laos for the meeting of foreign ministers of ‘Quad’ (Quadrilateral Security Dialogue) countries. He was welcomed by India’s Ambassador to Japan Sibi George.
Jaishankar spoke on Gandhi’s eternal messages during the event. He said, “I want to say today that when we are seeing so much conflict, so much tension, so much polarization, so much bloodshed in the world, Gandhiji’s message is very important that solutions do not come from the battlefield and no era should be an era of war. This message is as relevant today as it was 80 years ago.” Jaishankar said, “His (Gandhi’s) second message is in the context of sustainability, climate adaptation, green development, green policies. Gandhiji was the original prophet of sustainable development.” He said that Mahatma Gandhi was the biggest supporter of living in harmony with nature. The Foreign Minister said, “So Gandhiji’s message is not only for governments, but everyone should adopt it in their personal lives. This is something that we pass on (to the next generations).
Gandhiji’s message is relevant for the whole world
Gandhiji was definitely a supporter of inclusiveness and this is what we are seeing today in India and around the world. Jaishankar wrote on the social media platform ‘X’, “Started my visit to Tokyo by unveiling Gandhiji’s bust in Edogawa. Bapu’s achievements still inspire us and his message of peace and non-violence is timeless. His principles are even more relevant today, when there is so much conflict, tension and polarization in the world.” He thanked Edogawa Mayor Takeshi Saito, Parliamentary Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Masahiro Komura, MP Hideo Onishi, members of the Indian community and friends of India who attended the event. The Foreign Minister said, “It was a pleasure to know from the Mayor that the park that holds a special place in the heart of the Indian community in Tokyo will also soon be named Gandhi Park.”
Little India is located in Edogawa
Jaishankar said, “Little India is flourishing in Edogawa. It is a pleasure to see strong people-to-people ties between India and Japan.” He said that Edogawa Ward decided to install this wonderful bust of “Father of our Nation Mahatma Gandhi” to strengthen ties with India. Jaishankar said that people in India consider Gandhiji as the Father of the Nation. He said, “But for the world he is truly a global icon and we have to ask ourselves today why is it important for this statue to be here? I can think of three reasons for this.
First, Mahatma Gandhi’s achievements have remained relevant beyond his time, their importance has only grown with the passage of time.” He said the second reason for this is that the message Mahatma Gandhi gave through his life and his work is timeless. Jaishankar said, “What he taught us was important then and is important today. And the third thing is that I have been told that this place is called ‘Little India’.” He said, “This is a place where a large number of people from the Indian community live.
Emphasis on strengthening India-Japan relations
I cannot think of a better way and a more appropriate occasion to strengthen relations between India and Japan. The Foreign Minister said that without Gandhi, India would have probably struggled longer for independence or it would have gone in a different direction. Jaishankar said that India’s independence actually decolonized the whole world, it was the starting point of a “very important event”. He said, “When India became independent, other parts of Asia became independent, Africa became independent, Latin America became independent. (Language)
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