For as long as I can remember, people have seen the importance of this man (points to image) as a universal figure of peace and equality. The father of non-violence's experience of faith and dedication were forged in his native India, in London and in his early struggles for the dignity of Indian immigrants in South Africa. This man is Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi, who became known as the "Mahatma", meaning the great soul, India's most respected and inspirational political leader. Mohandas was born in 1869 in Porbandar, a small town on the west coast of India, in the Gujarat region, a place alive with culture and diversity of religions – A place I can relate to in more ways than one as I grew up both in Bombay and later in Hong Kong, where many different nationalities come together to form a melting pot of different religions and cultures. I believe this type of exposure is very important as it helps us understand and appreciate other cultures and religions and leads to mutual tolerance. Don't you want to be understood? Young Gandhi was just an ordinary Indian boy of his time who went to study law in London. His first days in London were quite difficult because on the one hand he saw himself as a citizen of the British Empire and dressed like a perfect English gentleman, on the other hand he realized that he was very different since he was a strict vegetarian and one who was polite to listening to and respecting his elders. Although Gandhi was born almost a century and a half before me, upon arriving in New Zealand I myself experienced many similar sensations, as I attended a Catholic school in line with my beliefs and did not feel different from others, only to realize that some among them saw me as... middle of paper... imposing taxes on salt. He launched protest demonstrations, which proclaimed non-cooperation, British-made products were rejected and the salt tax was opposed. He only wore clothes made from hand-woven Indian fabrics. These events were responsible for bringing India closer to gaining its independence, in a unique way and without too much violence, despite the reluctance of the British, as India was the jewel in the British crown. Gandhi had followers and imitators in many parts of the world. Passive resistance was adopted by African Americans led by Martin Luther King Jr., the Solidarity movement in Poland, and the Burmese resistance against their military rulers, to name a few. Not all of them brought victory. Gandhi's influence is still strong. He remains one of the few great positive figures of the 20th century, a century that saw horrors and genocides of all kinds.