The power within.

I am writing to thank you for The Challenge to Violence edition (NI 381), which I find extremely relevant under the current increase in the number of youths carrying knives in London and across England. As a young Londoner, I want to do what I can to combat the power violence has over youth, and one way to start would be by making people aware of the success achieved elsewhere by anti-violence campaigns.

In the media campaigns against the possession of weapons, the message is usually that carrying a weapon poses a potential threat to yourself (ie the weapon may be turned on you). It seems to me that when targeting young people an ominous warning of danger is rarely sufficient as a preventative method! The anti-gun campaign carried out in Brazil ('Present Arms!') targeted the mentality of young men, and I believe it was by challenging the ego that the campaign achieved such success. It is necessary to stress that carrying (and therefore relying on) a weapon is not only dangerous, but that it is a sign of weakness. It is people who use the power within themselves who show real strength. This was demonstrated by the strength and courage of those individuals of the Nonviolent Peaceforce working in Sri Lanka ('The Challenge to Violence'), who used the power of their minds to overcome violence.

These two articles continue to motivate me to do what I can for peace, and I plan to start by making others aware of methods which have already been successful in overcoming violence.

Tanisa Gunesekera London, England