Misuse of religion biggest threat to world peace: Nobel winner

Rampant misuse of religion to exploit societies poses one of the biggest threat to global peace and surpasses even the increasing incidents of communal conflicts, according to Nobel Laureate Leymah R Gbowee.
"As far as world peace is concerned, our biggest challenge today is not religious conflicts but people's misuse of religion as a means of exploiting societies, the 2011 Nobel Peace Prize Laureate told PTI.
On her first visit to India, Ghana-based Gbowee participated in the recent event "Nobel Solutions" where six Nobel laureates from different fields and across the world came together to discuss mankind's biggest problems and propose possible solutions.

According to the 43-year-old Liberian peace activist, it is time that religious leaders took a step forward and made efforts to the process of peace building by initiating dialogues and not leave the task on politicians alone.
"I think there is a need for lot of dialogue but also it is time for global religious leader is to realise that it is not enough to leave peace-making and peace building to the politicians," she said.
Responsible for leading the Women of Liberia Mass Action for Peace, Gbowee brought an end to the Second Liberian Civil War in 2003 thorough her "non-violent struggle for the safety of women and for women's rights to full participation in peace building work," ushering in a period of peace in her country and enabled a free election in 2005.

The movement began when she received, what she calls "God's message" to bring the women of two different faiths together to pray for peace.

"It was literally a voice telling me to bring the Christian and Muslim women together to pray for peace and that was how it all started," she said adding that women have always played their roles as "advocates of peace."
The impact of women and children, the level of suffering
of the poor people are very similar the activist said.
Pointing out that the state of Indian women was not very different from those in Liberia, Gbowee called upon the women in the country to strive for their rights and for peace.

"The impact of women and children, the level of suffering of the poor people are very similar. The women of India should keep up the fight for the women to rise. It is not going to be easy but we should continue to work for peace because it is only for working for peace that will ensure that good overcomes evil," she said.
Despite the soaring tensions worldwide, Gbowee said she is optimistic and hopeful of the planet achieving global peace eventually as long as the positive forces stand tall and firm in front of the destructive ones.
She said, "I am not one person who believes that our world is going to go back to war. I believe many people are vested in peace and all we need now is for those vested in peace to stand up against those few who are bent on taking us to a global war," she said.

Gbowee, a single mother of six, including one adopted daughter, is based in Accra, Ghana. She has written a memoir, "Mighty Be Our Powers," and is the subject of a documentary about her activism called "Pray the Devil Back to Hell.