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Raising a toast to a crusader for peace

To mark the 100th anniversary of the first woman to win the Nobel Peace Prize, an exhibition on "Bertha Von Suttner: A Life For Peace" will be inaugurated at Gandhi Smriti in Delhi this Wednesday.

The 16-day exhibition, part of the European Union Cultural Week celebrations, is being organised by the Austrian Embassy in association with Gandhi Smriti and Darshan Samiti.

Born as a countess in 1843 in Prague, Bertha Von Suttner became the first female recipient of the prestigious Nobel Peace Prize in 1905. She stood up against relentless fanaticism, hatred and militarisms at a time when the role and importance of women was considered a mere non-entity. But her tireless efforts in promoting and propagating peace and non-violence made her friend and benefactor Alfred Nobel to not only create the Nobel Peace Prize but also confer the prestigious award on her.

As a writer and lecturer, Bertha Von Suttner was the figurehead of a worldwide peace movement. Although her direct link with Gandhiji is difficult to establish, her philosophy of peace and ahimsa is similar to the one propagated and practised by the Father of the Nation.

She made a passionate appeal for peace through her work in "Lay Down Your Arms" in 1889. Its realistic descriptions of the horrors of war left the readers distraught. In 1894 she reposed great hope in the new Tsar Nikolai II. Indeed, the Tsar decreed a peace manifesto asking for disarmament and an international peace conference. She eventually became the leader of the peace movement and founded the Austrian Peace Society in 1891. — Madhur Tankha

— Madhur Tankha

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