Reflection on World Children Day 2022

Reflection on World Children’s Day 2022

“From Hiroshima to Fukushima, Child to Child Messages.”

Dear all,

Every year, World Children’s Day is celebrated on the 20th of November to commemorate the Declaration of the Rights of the Child by the UN General Assembly on November 20th, 1959. The objective of this international day is to promote togetherness and worldwide awareness to improve children’s welfare everywhere and anywhere. The theme of 2022 is to share a positive message of equality and inclusion for every child.

Sadly, the war in Ukraine is a tipping point for world security, welfare, and the international economy, especially since we are residents of a globalized world. Indeed, we are currently living in a fragile world as grave humanitarian crises and the impacts of land mines, cluster munitions, in addition to nuclear war threats grow without a light at the end of the tunnel. This brutal war and its consequences have jeopardized our hope and plan to build our ideal world – one with a healthy and peaceful future for all.

As we may remember, the United Nations proclaimed 2000 as the International Year of the Culture of Peace. Furthermore, the UN declared the years 2001-2010 as the International Decade for a Culture of Peace and Non-violence for the Children of the World, which has special significance to us. To this end, many of us were involved in proposals and action plans to promote the education and involvement of the children of the world in the practice of a culture of peace under the slogan: Preparing Our Children for Peace. Like many of you, I had the opportunity to take part in a number of activities on peace and disarmament campaigns regionally and globally. Children were a priority in my plans and involvements.

In this respect, I remember one of the articles I published in public and educational magazines, under the title: “From Child to Child…Toward a World Free of Nuclear Weapons,” and its subtitle: “From Hiroshima to Fukushima, Child to Child Messages.” (An image of the article is attached). Child-to-Child (CtC) is a children-led approach to health promotion, community development, and world welfare and peace. CtC is based on the belief that children can be actively involved in their communities, in solving community problems, and in bridging gaps to understand each other as well as other communities.

Many of us were involved in activities and projects such as “Learning to Abolish War: Teaching Toward a Culture of Peace.” This project was designed as a peace educational tool that directly confronts the paramount task of bringing forth a culture of peace and the abolition of war.

Unfortunately, the war in Ukraine has challenged our plans to prepare our children and youth for peace and conduct peace education activities in various parts of the world. Indeed, this catastrophic war has forever changed life as we know it.

However, as campaigners and activists working together to build a culture of peace and non-violence for the children and youth of the world, we believe more than ever that peace education programs are vital. This belief is the only way we can look forward to a peaceful and healthy world in which our children and future generations live.

All the best

Ghassan Shahrour

On World Peace Day 2022: We are far from peace

Dear colleagues,

I share with you my post to my colleagues in my groups.
Subject: on World Peace Day 2022: We are far from peace

Between “Sustainable Peace for a Sustainable Future” (the slogan of “International Day of Peace” for 2012) and the slogan of “End racism. Build peace.” In 2022, we tragically find the world today far from peace. However, we must remain adamant about achieving our goals, which should motivate us more than ever to work harder together for a world of peace, a world free from violence and racial discrimination. A world where sympathy and empathy overcome suspicion and hate. A world we can really be proud of.
My article in Arabic on “International Day of Peace” in 2012 is linked below.

https://bit.ly/3Le3DPa

Peace on all of you.

Ghassan Shahrour

بين “سلام مستدام من أجل مستقبل مستدام” وهو شعار “يوم السلام العالمي” للعام 2012، وشعار ❞إنهاء العنصرية وبناء السلام❝ في عام 2022 ، للأسف نجد العالم اليوم أبعد ما يكون عن السلام الأمر الذي يدفعنا أكثر من أي وقت مضى للعمل من أجل عالم خالٍ من العنف والتمييز العنصري. عالمٌ تتغلب فيه الرحمة والتعاطف على الشك والكراهية. عالم يمكننا حقًا أن نفخر به. مقالي “يوم السلام العالمي” في عام 2012، لكم جميعا كل السلام
https://bit.ly/3Le3DPa

غسان شحرور

Civil society organizations maintain momentum toward a world free of nuclear weapons, By Dr. Ghassan Shahrour,

      During the last months of 2012, there has been a series of events organized by civil society actors in different parts of the world to support international efforts to eliminate nuclear weapons regionally and globally. They include:

1- International Conference: Building towards a nuclear weapons-free Middle East: Civil society input, October 13th 2012, Institute for Child Health, London, organized by the campaign of Nuclear Disarmament in UK.

2-“Athens Dialogue” on a Middle East Weapons of Mass Destruction free zone, November 14th-16th 2012.

3- “The Middle East without Weapons of Mass Destruction, the Way Forward- Civil Society Input” conference, Helsinki December 14th – 16th 2012

     The movement will continue making use of the initiative of the government of Norway to hold international conferences on the humanitarian consequences of nuclear weapons during March 4th – 5th, 2013. That conference should see greater recognition that the humanitarian impact of nuclear weapon use would be unacceptable, and the civil societies hope it will inspire states to begin the work of outlawing and eliminating these weapons.

     To demonstrate that a treaty banning nuclear weapons is both possible and urgently needed, the International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons (ICAN) is planning for a Civil Society Forum on March 2nd – 3rd 2013, which will be conducted in parallel to an intergovernmental conference. This forum will gather a wide variety of civil society actors activists interested in nuclear weapons, humanitarian principles, public health and people’s health, environmental organisations, development organisations, and youth organisations, as well as interested media to learn, discuss, act and join forces for a global ban on nuclear weapons.

     Those events strongly support international efforts to abolish nuclear weapons in the Middle East and the world.

     My colleagues in ICAN, the International Physicians for the Prevention of Nuclear Weapons (IPPNW), and Arab Human Security Network have built their advocacy on the facts that nuclear weapons have “catastrophic humanitarian consequences” that include the unique and horrifying medical, health, environmental, and humanitarian effects:

1-If just one of the world’s 19,000 nuclear weapons were detonated, intentionally or accidentally, not only would it kill thousands of people instantly, but, as the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) has concluded, first responders would be unable to provide the emergency relief so urgently needed.

2- Nuclear Famine: A nuclear war anywhere in the world, using as few as 100 weapons, would disrupt the global climate and agricultural production so severely that the lives of more than a billion people would be at risk according to IPPNW’s research study.

3- There is also an enormous diversion of resources to maintain nuclear weapons at the expense of real health and social needs that are inexcusably underfunded. World spending on nuclear weapons surpasses $105 billion every year, while the estimated cost of fully achieving the eight Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), until 2015 is $135 billion. MDGs, as many of us know, include the eradication of extreme poverty and hunger, reduction of child mortality, achievement of universal primary education, improvement of maternal health, promotion of gender equality and empowering women, combatting HIV/AIDS, malaria and other diseases, and ensuring environmental sustainability as well as others.

    Another example of the challenges and the needs of the people everywhere is the growing health costs of the people in our aging societies. A recent study released by the world economic forum on September 18th 2011 in Geneva estimated that the global economic impact of the five leading non-communicable diseases (NCDs) – cardiovascular diseases, chronic respiratory disease, cancer, diabetes and mental ill-health could total US $ 47 trillion over the next 20 years.

    Our message: Nuclear weapons are the most destructive, most indiscriminate, most inhumane weapons of mass murder ever created. Their use—and even their possession—go against every principle of international humanitarian law and also against the hope of the people to achieve better future for all. 

    * Dr. Ghassan Shahrour, Arab Human Security Network