On the other hand, peace is a situation or a period of time in which
there is no enmity, violence or war in a certain locality or country. More so,
it is the state of being calm or quiet, or living in mutual friendship with
others.
Hostility and conflict, or lack of peace, which has subjected mankind to
a state of mockery, has indeed arrested the developmental thrives of most
nations in the world thereby constituting a severe and uncontrollable poverty
among the populace.
On its part, conflict which is as old as the world has succeeded in
rendering the socio-economic growth of many countries incapacitated due to its
cruel and dastardly nature. Conflict or crisis through the emergence of
terrorist activities such as assassination, kidnapping, massacre, genocide and
what have you, has not only brought endless anxiety to the people, but has
contributed immensely to the degradation of the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) of
the affected countries. Above all, the dangers of war or the level of the
post-traumatic stress disorder attributed to it cannot be overemphasized.
Statistics show that the root cause of several conflicts are directly
related to valuable natural resources such as gold, diamond, oil and gas,
diesel, coal, kerosene, timber, water and so on. Needless to say; addressing
the ownership, control and management of natural resources or endowments is
crucial to maintaining peace and security thereby sustaining an ideal
development.
Surely, peace and security are essential foundations for social progress and sustainable development. Thus, we must quench the fire of extremism among us in order to tackle the root causes of conflict, because peace is definitely a long journey that we are bound to collectively embark on. Suffice to say that, we are expected to hold peace in our hearts and minds, and tenderly nurture it so it would grow and blossom.
Regarding the effect of peace to humanity, in 1981, the United Nations
(UN) General Assembly through a resolution established the International Day of
Peace. The Assembly mandated the UN Member States to observe September 21 of
every year as Int’l Day of Peace. The first International Peace Day was
celebrated on Tuesday September 21, 1982; the first commemoration was meant to
coincide with the anniversary of the United Nations’ opening session, which was
held annually on the third Tuesday of September.
In addition to the commemoration, in 2001, the UN General Assembly by
unanimous votes adopted resolution which established 21st September
of every year as an annual day of non-violence and ceasefire. By this resolution,
the United Nations invites all nations and people to honour a cessation of
hostilities, and to otherwise commemorate the Day through education and raising
of public awareness on issues related to peace.
It is no longer news that, armed conflict causes untold grief and
hardship to families, communities and the entire countries involved. Indeed,
too many are suffering today at the brutal hands of war-mongers and terrorists.
This is why, from the onset, we must learn to teach our children and wards the
essence of tolerance and mutual respect. Let’s invest in the schools and teachers
that will build a fair and inclusive world that embraces diversity; fight for peace
at all cost, and defend it with all our might.
Therefore, from time to time, we are meant to sensitize our children, relatives, friends, colleagues, associates, and what have you, towards emulating the habit of the UN Messengers of Peace, or the likes of Princess Haya, Daniel Barenboim, Paulo Coelho, Michael Douglas, Jane Goodall, Edward Norton, Steve Wonder, Charlie Theron, Elie Wiesel, just to mention but a few, whom remain distinguished individuals carefully selected from the fields of art, literature, science, entertainment, sports and other fields of public life, who have agreed to help focus worldwide attention on the work of the United Nations as regards promotion of peace. These prominent personalities or icons volunteer their times, resources, energies, talents and passions to raise awareness of United Nations’ tireless efforts to improve the lives of billions of people worldwide.
The International Day of Peace offers people globally a shared date to
think about how they can contribute towards ensuring that natural resources are
managed in a mature and sustainable manner, thus reducing potential for
disputes as well as paving ways for a sustainable future, which is no doubt the
future we want.
Monday September 21, the world
over commemorated the 2015 International Day of Peace. As Nigeria alongside the
global community is still passing through the euphoria of the celebration, I’m
using this avenue to call for a holistic condemnation of any form of hostility
or conflict taking place around us especially the ongoing Boko Haram terrorism
in order to sustain a formidable peace needed for both individual and national
developments. Think about it!
COMR FRED DOC NWAOZOR
(TheMediaAmbassador)Executive Director, Centre for Counselling, Research
& Career Development - Owerri
_____________________________________
frednwaozor@gmail.com
+2348028608056 http://frednwaozor.blogspot.com
Twitter: @fdnnwaozor
