. The police even had orders to enter private houses and check certificates.Gandhi saw here the need for passive resistance, or "satyagraha." To the people, he explained his concept of satyagraha. First, he said, they must be prepared to observe nonviolence. The authorities would take all measures to put down the agitation. They might use violence, arrest people, and send them to jail, but all this must be faced without resistance.A big bonfire was lit, and more than two thousand certificates were burned. Many Indians openly crossed the border into the Transvaal, where their presence was illegal. Gandhi and many of his followers were imprisoned several times in the course of the agitation. When Gandhi was released from jail, the Indians held a meeting and decided to send a message to England to acquaint the British Government with the real situation in South Africa. Gandhi and Seth Haji Habib were asked to go to London and present the grievances of the Indians. Accordingly, they went, but the mission was a failure. They returned with grim determination to fight to the bitter end.Gandhi found the Government relentless in its actions against minorities. There seemed no solutions in sight. He had to take further measures. In October of 1913, Gandhi organized a march of over 6,000 Indian workers from the Natal mining area into the Transvaal, although crossing into the Transvaal without a permit was not allowed by law. Gandhi and many other Indians were imprisoned. The "satyagrahis" were beaten and whipped to force them to go back to work, but without success. The authorities could not make them return to work. Gandhi had aroused in them the spirit of quiet, dignified resistance.Soon the movement of passive resistance, or satyagraha, spread all through Natal and Transvaal. The Government did not know what to do, because none yielded to their cruel treatment. In December 1913, Gandhi was released, but he would not give up the struggle. Gandh...
