Thus far we have discussed the Indian question from the internal or
national point of view. But it has an international aspect also. It is
said, and we hope that it is true, that the world is entering into an
era of new internationalism and that the old exclusive chauvinistic
nationalism is in its last gasps. This war was the greatest social
mix-up known to history. It has brought about the downfall of many
monarchs and the destruction of four empires. The armies of the
belligerents on both sides contained the greatest assortment of races
and nations, of religions and languages that were ever brought together
for mutual destruction. Primarily a fight between the European
Christians, it drew into its arena Hindus, Mohammedans, Buddhists,
Shintos, Jews and Negroes of Africa and America.
The war has produced a revolution in Russia, the like of which has never
been known. It is now said openly that the Russian Revolution had as
much influence on the final _debacle_ of the Central Powers as the
strength of the Allies and the resources of America. The revolution has
spread to Germany and Austria and threatens to engulf the whole of
Europe. It has given birth to a new order of society, aglow with the
spirit of a new and elevated kind of internationalism. This
internationalism must have for its foundation justice and
self-determination for all peoples, regardless of race or religion,
creed or color. In the new understanding between nations coöperation
must be substituted for competition and mutual trust and helpfulness for
distrust and exploitation of the weaker by the stronger. The only
alternatives are reaction, with the certainty of even greater war in the
near future, and Bolshevism.
Now, nobody knows what Bolshevism represents. The Socialists themselves
are divided over it. The advanced wing is enthusiastic, the moderates
are denouncing it. The Liberals and Radicals are freely recognizing that
it has brought into the affairs of men a new spirit which is going to
stay and substantially influence the future of the world. The
stand-patters denounce it in the strongest possible terms. They
calumniate it to their heart's content and move heaven and earth to
exterminate it. But we feel that only radical changes in the existing
order will stem its tide. The Socialists and Radicals want to make the
most of it, while the Imperialist Liberals and Conservatives want to
give as little as is compatible with the safety of the existing order in
which they are supreme. The struggle will take some time, but that it
will end in favor of the new spirit no one doubts.
The only way to meet Bolshevism is to concede rights to the different
peoples of the earth now being bled and exploited. Otherwise the
discontented and exploited countries of the world will be the best
breeding centres for it. India must come into her own soon, else not
even the Himalayas can effectually bar the entry of Bolshevism into
India. A contented, self-governing India may be proof against it; a
discontented, dissatisfied, oppressed India perhaps the most fertile
field. We hope the British statesmen are alive to the situation.
But that is not the only way to look at the international importance of
India. By its geographical situation it is the connecting link between
the Near East and the Far East and the clearing house for the trade of
the world. Racially, it holds the balance between the European Aryan and
the yellow races. In any military conflict between the white and the
yellow races, the people of India will be a decisive factor. In a
conflict of peace they will be a harmonising element. Racially they are
the kin of the European. By religion and culture they are nearer the
Chinese and Japanese.
With 70 million Moslems India is the most important centre of Mohammedan
sentiment. With Christians as their present rulers, the Hindus and
Mohammedans of India are coming to realise that their best interests
require a closing up of their ranks. There is no doubt that, come what
may, their relations in future will be much more cordial, friendly and
mutually sympathetic than they have been in the past. The Hindus will
stand by their Mohammedan countrymen in all their efforts to revive the
glory of Islam, and to regain political independence for it. There is no
fear of a Pan-Islamic movement if the new spirit of internationalism
prevails. If, however, it does not, the Pan-Islamic movement might find
a sympathetic soul in India. Islam is not dead. It cannot and will not
die. The only way to make it a force for harmony and peace is to
recognise its potentialities and to respect its susceptibilities. The
political independence of Islamic countries is the basic foundation for
such a state. We hope that the statesmen of the world will give their
most earnest thought to the question and sincerely put into practice the
principles they have been enunciating during the war. The case of India
will be an acid test.
A happy India will make a valuable contribution to the evolution of a
better and more improved humanity. An unhappy India will clog the wheels
of progress. It will not be easy for the masters of India to rule it on
old lines. If not reconciled it might prove the pivot of the next war. A
happy India will be one of the brightest spots in the British
Commonwealth. A discontented India will be a cause of standing shame and
a source of never ending trouble.
With a republican China in the northeast, a constitutional Persia in the
northwest and a Bolshevist Russia in the not remote north, it will be
extremely foolish to attempt to rule India despotically. Not even the
gods can do it. It is not possible even if the legislature devotes all
its sittings to the drafting and passing of one hundred coercion acts.
The peace of the world, international harmony and good-will, the good
name of the British Commonwealth, the safety of the Empire as such,
demand the peaceful introduction and development of democracy in India.