Observed more in the breach in the land of his birth especially at election time Mahatma Gandhi's teachings are very much alive on foreign shores.
Observed more in the breach in the land of his birth especially at election time Mahatma Gandhi's teachings are very much alive on foreign shores.
The latest evidence comes from Australia, where Marcelle Hoff, the Deputy Lord Mayor of the City of Sydney, was inspired by Mahatma Gandhi to mount a campaign to have a former Water Police base returned to the public as parkland.
Hoff yesterday spoke to the media about how the Mahatma inspired her group's approach in the campaign after the Sydney Harbour Foreshore Authority, which controlled the 1.6 hectare site, wanted it sold via a 99-year lease to allow the building of a 13-storey residential tower.
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crusader: Marcelle Hoff's quest to save the park led to her becoming Deputy Lord Mayor of Sydney |
"I truly strongly believe in Mahatma Gandhi... in his teachings: search for the truth, respect your opponents and the end must justify the means," she said.
The Deputy Mayor admits the Mahatma's precepts, "with a dose of psychological warfare" helped in the campaign of the Friends of Pyrmont Point Group, in their fight but also pitch-forked her into the Town Hall (Municipal Corporation) as deputy mayor.
Initially given very little chance to save the site from the ravages of commercialisation, Hoff's group organised rallies, meetings and got a green ban in its bid for open space for a park that would add another piece to the foreshore walk and not block the winter sun.
As a result of Hoff's group's relentlessness, the cash-strapped corporation coughed up A$11.8 million (approx Rs 4 crore) for the site which, according to architects, "interprets the site's maritime associations" and includes boardwalks, maritime remnants, platforms, a children's play area, a pavilion with a cafe and a place for cultural events.
