Women must become the vanguard for a more caring world, humanitarian Coretta Scott King said this week.

The widow of Martin Luther King Jr., and 1996 Sara Lee Frontrunner Award recipient, was speaking to more than 100 people who gathered at the Southampton Princess on Wednesday night to discuss women's issues.

The event was organised by research and development group Akinstall International.

Mrs. Scott King said it was an era where women around the world still suffered human rights injustices yet had a key role to play in creating a nonviolent society and world.

While more men were involved in bringing up children today, she said, even the best of them did not fully understand the demands of motherhood.

There was "a long way to go before we can celebrate an equal partnership in child rearing and marriage,'' she added.

"As the 21st century approaches we must place a new emphasis on nonviolence as a family value,'' continued Mrs. Scott King. "We must resolve that our children will learn the principle of non-violence.'' Women had to guide their children in the values of compassion, caring, patience, understanding, tolerance and forgiveness.

Mrs. Scott King added that these qualities should be taught through adult behaviour -- not lectures.

Once learned, children would respect themselves and others and value people and their social responsibility.

"This can be the greatest gift for the future,'' she said.

Also key to a child's development and a nonviolent society, she continued, was the need to be able to deal with conflict.

"It is unavoidable,'' she admitted, "but many people do not know how to deal with it.'' This was mainly due to children growing up without witnessing effective conflict management.

She said she realised that nonviolent child rearing was becoming more difficult in today's society but stressed: "It starts with the parents because the children are always watching.'' Mrs. Scott King said nonviolence was not just about child or spouse abuse, nor was it about behaviour.

Instead, she pointed out, it was about attitude.

It is about the way we treat each other, speak to each other and look out for each other, she continued.

And it was a permanent attitude involving the values of understanding, forgiveness and sharing being "brought to the breakfast table'' and utilised until "going to bed at night''.

The primary cause of violence was the "decay in moral and spiritual values'', she said. "People are losing their spiritual bearing.'' Faith and power had to be found as they were necessary for the change she was referring to, she said.

With them would come unconditional love and this was the key to peace.

"Peaceful goals are reached by peaceful methods,'' she noted. "We will not build a peaceful world by following a negative path.''