New World News

t k *^ <4 at « A -I- t NEW WORLD NEWS Leopold von Buch, a mining engineer from the Ruhr, Germany,speaking at the conference in the College of Vol27 No31 23 June 1979 8p Chinese Culture, Taiwan. MORNING GONG SOUNDS IN TAIWAN YOUNG PEOPLE from all over Taiwan took tell him the kind of life he had been living. Quoting Frank Buchman, initiator of Moral part in a Moral Re-Armament conference in 'There were tears in his eyes. He asked,"Son, Re-Armament,it said,'We can find a superior Taipei last month, which an editorial in the can you be sure you won't live that old way ideology that shows the next step ahead for Central Daily News likened to a 'clarion again?" I replied,"Father, the courage I now the Communist and the non-Communist call—the sound of the evening drum and have to tell you the truth will give me the world alike.' the morning gong' in face of materialism. Its power to lead an honest life."' After trans The conference was held in the College of theme was 'Building a new Asia by spiritual ferring to another college, he had been Chinese Culture, Hwa Kang, high on a hill re-armament'. among the top three students in the class overlooking Taipei. Facilities had been made 'Our society is becoming affluent,' wrote every semester. available by College President, Pan Wei-ho the newspaper which speaks authoritatively The Republic of China's Vice-Ministerfor who spoke at the opening session. Other for the Republic of China's ruling Nationalist Foreign Affairs, Yang Si-kuang, addressed speakers at the opening included eight Party. 'But political frauds and economic the conference on the 'moral courage' with overseas delegates from West Germany, dishonesty are rampant, especially among which his country should face the world. Britain, Australia and Hong Kong; Daniel the well-to-do. 'We need spiritual re-armament to renew Lew, Head of the Institute of Sino-American 'Since the end of the Second World War, our society,' he said. A recent article in Sino- Relations at the college; and television MRA has been advancing the goal of man's American Relations expressed a similar idea. executive Hu Joe-yang. DL and DB spiritual victory over his material pursuits. Let us all be spiritually re-armed to combat the shameless degradation of our moral environ ment.' Several of the young people spoke of thei r experience of this 'spiritual victory' through their decisions to put things right in their families and at school or university. Kan Nai-ping told how he had been expelled from university for playing too much mahjong. He decided to live differently, following absolute moral standards, and I told his father. But when he began military service he went back on his decision. At an MRA camp, Kan Nai-ping decided to try again. It took him six months to find the courage to apologise to his father and The audience at the opening of the conference. From 7,107 islands inter-racial bitterness in London had been Armament's active concern for his country's focussed by the funeral of BlairPeach,a New destiny. 'Sometimes we consider ourselves to Britain Zealand teacher killed in a political riot inferior,' he said.'But many of us realise that over immigration earlier in the year. there is something unique which God has 'Most of us immigrants come here ex given us to share with other peoples. We are pecting a better standard of life and a learning to be here for what we can give not greater quality of freedom,' said London what we can get.' MEMBERS OF LONDON'S 14,000-strong teacher Subbiah Kistasamy.'Often we meet At the end of the evening Subbiah Filipino community gave a sparkling display humilations on arrival. Asa result of meeting Kistasamy thanked the Filipino dancers and of their culture at the Westminster Theatre, Moral Re-Armament I have learned to love, singers who had performed after a full day's London last week. 130 from Britain's host serve and respect this country.' work in their hospital, catering or domestic and immigrant communities watched songs Welcoming the Filipinos, Richard Channer, jobs. Speaking of the power of the inner and dances from different parts of the 7,107 Secretary of the Friends of the Westminster voice and of absolute moral standards, which islands of the Philippines, and enjoyed a Theatre, said,'We are sorry for the indignities had freed him from the bitterness caused by Filipino meal. The two Catholic chaplains to you sometimes suffer. We are grateful for the racial violence he had experienced, he London's Filipino community were also your contribution to our society.' said, 'It is our responsibility to bring this present. Genis Ibot, from Mindanao Island in the change to our communities and to the The occasion took place in a week when South Philippines paid tribute to Moral Re- country where we live.' PJE India is not an important but perhaps the most important country for the future society: Hindu, Moslem, Christian, secular: Stalinist, liberal, Maoist, democratic or East which is not active in some Indian mind. If that subcontinent should be rolled up intoauthoritarianism—if that varied ir would be one of the greatest defeats in the human record,sealing the defeat of c mind and to the self-organisation of the working people, then things will be ( Here Genis Ibot speaks to SUSHOBHA BARVE and Judy Lean to ALAN and MARION PORTEOUS,three of those Sushobha Barve Right recipe seemed an obvious place to begin, but this They started by meeting students and was not easy. professors from the city's famous university. 'The first two years were miserable,' she Then they went to one of the city's top WHEN A FACTORY in the north of India remembers. 'To begin with I didn't like industrialists.'He talked for two hours about resolved a violent conflict recently, one cooking and I found it difficult to work the troubles of his factory—his work's result was a IVi million rupee (£100,000) behind the scenes. Everyone else seemed to manager had been beaten to death on the profit within the first three weeks. Even be doing much more interesting things. At factory floor by the workers. We didn't more surprising for the management than home,cooking was something I didn't have know what to tell him—four women,in no this, perhaps, was the fact that they owed to do.' sense experts on industry. The only thing we the settlement, in part, to a visit from four But one day, it occured to her that God could think of saying was that if he took time women who obviously knew nothing about has given different—but complementary— to listen to the deepest thing in his heart, industry. gifts to different people. She decided not to God could tell him what to do. The visitors came from Asia Plateau, the worry about the gifts she felt she didn't have, 'When we left his office, we felt so foolish,' Asian Moral Re-Armament Centre in India. but to use what she did have. 'I decided to Sushobha remembers.'We felt that we had One of them was Sushobha Barve, a short, be responsible not just for cooking the not given anything to this man who had so lively woman from Bombay, who told her meals but also for the use of the centre and much trouble on his hands. But when we story to New World News when she was for caring for those who came to it whether I went back to see him a couple of months recently in London during a visit to Europe. was in the kitchen or not. later, he said as soon as we came through the 'Life became more interesting when I door, "Do you know, I tried a little bit of Dish up decided to be involved in people's lives and your MRA".' to think how to meet their needs, and how Sushobha has lived at Asia Plateau for ten to help Indian industry through the people Indochinese years. She is one of those responsible for who came to the seminars instead of just organising the conferences which regularly thinking about the kitchen.' The manager had tried his visitors'sugges- take place there on industrial relations, Some days she had to cook, leave the tion of listening to God. As a result he had agriculture, education, health and other kitchen to translate or speak in a meeting, invited the leader of the trade union in the aspects of national life, as well as for the then hurry back to dish up the food before factory to his home, and negotiations had practical running of the centre. joining a table to translate for a conference begun which ended in settlement being The road to that factory began for delegate during the meal. reached. 'We discovered later that he had Sushobha at a youth camp in 1965 while she gathered all the employees and apologised was still at high school. There she had Foolish for the part management had played in the discovered that she could do something to trouble.' build a new India—if she was ready to start When she came to Asia Plateau, Sushobha The need in India, Sushobha believes,is to by admitting her own mistakes, and putting had no interest in industrial matters. Five help people to think on a large enough scale them right.

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