Jain APPG Celebrates 18th ANNUAL AHIMSA DAY

First Ahimsa Day to be held online due to pandemic

London, 24th October 2020. The Institute of Jainology (IoJ), the international Jain Institute that represents the 32 UK Jain organisations in government and inter-religious affairs, held its 18Th Jain All Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) Ahimsa Day meeting today online. “Ahimsa is the key Jain tenet of non-violence/compassion and the event is usually celebrated at the Palace of Westminster, however with COVID19 we have had to hold it online for the first time”, said Dr Mehool Sanghrajka, Managing Trustee of the Institute. “We consider it an opportunity to broadcast the event to a global audience”, he added.
The event is held in October to coincide with the birth anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi.
Harrow West MP, Gareth Thomas, Chair of the Jain All-Party Group, welcomed everyone with a video message and noted how the Jain community had quickly adapted to organising daily zoom events and celebrating festivals online.

Deputy Chair Padma Shree Bob Blackman, MP for Harrow East, also welcomed everyone and noted the work the Jain community had done to support the NHS, key workers and the elderly in Harrow and elsewhere.

Lord Stephen Greenhalgh, Minister for Faith, added his welcome and noted how important the annual Ahimsa Award had become in promoting selfless action and compassion.

The 2020 Ahimsa Award was presented by the Trustees of the Institute to Brother Peter Tabichi, is a Kenyan science teacher and Franciscan friar. He teaches at a school in a semi-arid village in the Rift Valley Province, a region impacted by famine and drought. Peter donates 80% of his salary to supporting pupils in the local village. Despite these difficulties, Peter has dramatically improved attendance, reduced local violence and has even taught local communities how to grow crops that can resist famine. Peter’s students have reached the finals of the Intel International Science and Engineering Fair and won an award from the Royal Society of Chemistry. In only a couple of years, Peter has doubled the number of students attending university.

Dr Mehool Sanghrajka commented; “We wholeheartedly congratulate Brother Peter for winning the 2020 Ahimsa Award. He personifies peace, love and compassion in his work with both his students and his community, and truly represents the message of Ahimsa. We look forward to seeing his ongoing success as well as being a beacon for teachers and community leaders everywhere.”

The IOJ relaunched its Jainpedia.org site at the event. It has been 10 years since the first launch and the site has had many improvements with the advances in technology. It is currently serving over 1m pages every year, and has become standard reading for university students. To celebrate the launch Professor Padmanabh Jaini, the eminent Jain scholar and author, sent greetings from his home in California. Professor Jaini, who will be 97 this year, has been a leading Jain scholar for many years. The Executive Editor of Jainpedia.org, Professor Nalini Balbir also sent greetings from her home in Paris. Professor Balbir has been key to the successful development of the site.