By Amir Nik
"Tear down this wall!" Four iconic words that have been famous all over the world for their role in ending the Cold War. When they came out of President Reagan's mouth, they became a battle cry. But what is the most of world don't know, is that there was a person on the "wrong side" of the conflict against communism who was more necessary to bring democracy in the whole of the Eastern Europe than the USA, his name was Mikhail Gorbachev. Mikhail saw firsthand the horrors of Soviet Russia under Stalin. He has witnessed his family that are fighting for survival during the great purge in which food prices were raised dramatically. This made him want to make a huge change in the government. As a young and adult person he worked as a hand at a state farm, which helped him in his political ambitions.
Mikhail Gorbachev must be considered as a Peace hero because of the traits he possesses that other heroes have as well: bravery, compassion and leadership. Gorbachev have to be considered a hero because of the fact that he cared about his people resulting in reforms to the government, he was a miraculous peacemaker and born leader as displayed in his many peace talks, and he bettered relations with other western powers which laid the foundation for improvement of Soviet economy.
While Gorbachev ascended through the ranks of leadership in the Soviet Union, he always had one thing on his mind, reforming the government. He felt that he needed to do this because of the difficulties he witnessed in his homeland and virtually everywhere else he went. Once he got into power, decided to introduce many reforms to help his people. " Earlier that same year, Gorbachev announced a new series of domestic reforms, including expanded freedoms and the democratization of the political process, all of which were to be achieved through his policies of social and economic restructuring, or perestroika, and openness, or glasnost... It was also in 1988 that Gorbachev first expressed his intention to end the Communist party's control of the day-to-day operations of the country and create new, elected political institutions.
This displays Gorbachev's boldness and willingness to go where no others during that time went, and reformed the government in a great way that benefited his people. It also demonstrates how Gorbachev was not afraid to turn to democratic values, and that he was a pioneer through these reforms. He called for further reforms, even helping his people elect their leaders. "...he called for rapid technological modernization and increased worker productivity, and he tried to make the cumbersome Soviet bureaucracy more efficient...multi candidate contests and the secret ballot were introduced in some elections to party and government posts" ("Mikhail Gorbachev" Encyclopedia Britannica). He risked it all when he implemented the "secret" ballots because it was against the Communist Party and he risked getting booted out of power. His selflessness showed through in these revolutionary reforms. They were instrumental in bringing democracy to the Soviet Union, he also tried to boost the economy, that plan bore fruit after he was out of power, however. Through all of his brilliant reforms, Gorbachev helped his people and his economy become freer and more democratic, making life better for most who were stuck inside the "Iron Curtain."
Not only was Gorbachev a visionary, he was also a wonderful peacemaker and leader, and one that his country needed. He did many things to end wars and to make peace with the west and even in Afghanistan. “In December 1987 he signed an agreement with U.S. President Ronald Reagan for their two countries to destroy all existing stocks of intermediate-range nuclear-tipped missiles. In 1988-89 he oversaw the withdrawal of Soviet troops from Afghanistan after their nine-year occupation of that country...Gorbachev was the single most important initiator of a series of events in late 1989 and 1990 that transformed the political fabric of Europe and marked the beginning of the end of the Cold War"
Gorbachev saved many Russian lives by pulling troops from Afghanistan and signing an all-important nuclear treaty with the U.S., which was extremely important to ending the Cold War. Not only did he save Russian lives with treaties, he also saved thousands of innocents which may have been killed in Cold War proxy conflicts, such as the Vietnam War and Korean War, although these were before his era, had he not signed these treaties, he could have had to deal with another conflict. Not only did he sign treaties to save lives, he also put a lot of effort into saving the economy.
Along with making peace with western countries, he helped the Soviet create trade relationships. He did many great things to bring about warmer perceptions from the west, the most notable of which was bringing down the Berlin Wall. "Perhaps the most dramatic moment of the year came on November 9 with the opening of the Berlin Wall, for nearly thirty years a grim reminder of the hostility and suspicion dividing East and West. Gorbachev was universally acclaimed as the man who had finally brought the Cold War to an end...Gorbachev had won the 1990 Nobel Peace Prize for his bold moves to improve the international political climate."(Goldman). By bringing down the Berlin Wall, Gorbachev showed the west that Russia was ready to change and were no longer a strict ultra-communist regime, causing more countries to open trade with Russia. With his brilliant actions, he won the coveted Nobel Peace Prize, although this did not mean much to Russia at the time as they were in the process heavily reforming, it signaled an era in which Russia and other countries were no longer at war and these countries improved trade relationships.