Page:Speeches And Writings MKGandhi.djvu/778

 688 NON-CO-OPERATION

with Swaraj operations, that in being the cause of t he- postponement of the movement in Bardoli, they have' in jured the very cause they probably intended to serve. I would like them to know, too, that this move- ment is not a cloak or a preparation for violence. I would, at any rate, suffer every humiliation, every torture, absolute ostracism and death itself to prevent the movement from becoming violent or a precursor of violence. I make my penance public also because I am now denying myself the opportunity of sharing their lot with the prisoners. The immediate issue has again- shifted, we can no longer press for the withdrawal of notification, or discharge of prisoners. They and we must suffer for the crime of Chauri Chaura. The incident proves, whether we wish it cr no, the unity of life. All, including even the administrators, must suffer. Chauri Chaura must stiffen the Government, must still further corrupt the police, and the reprisals that will follow must further demoraLse the people.. The suspension and he penance will take us back to the position we occupied before the tragedy. By strict discipline and purification we regain the moral confidence required for demanding the withdrawal of notifications and the discharge of prisoners.

If we learn the full lesson of the tragedy, we can- turn the curse into a blessing. By becoming truthful and non-violent, botrfin spirit and deed, and by making the swadeshi i.e., the khaddar programme complete, we can establish full Swaraj and redress the Khilafat and the Punjab wrongs without a single person having ta offer civil disobedience.

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