Keep The Peace



International Day of Peace

This is a special day,

not a crazy day.

 

The 21^st of September

is International Day of Peace.

The United Nations established

this day in 1981 and it was

first celebrated in 1982.

Here, in Australia,

a plane flying overhead

is not frightening…

no bombs are being dropped. 

 Kids have the freedom t

o receive a good education

and our roads are free of landmines.

 Not everyone is as lucky.

I’ve walked through

the tiny tunnels in Vietnam,

and wondered how the local people

 lived in them for so many years…

 I wandered through Aki Ra’s

landmine museum in Cambodia

and heard of the amazing work

he does, clearing landmines

every day

with very primitive equipment.

 Red Hands taught me about

the induction of children

into armed gangs,

where they are supplied drugs

 until their addiction ensures they

 remain with their captives.

I’ve wandered the streets

of Northern Ireland,

and seen the remains

of overnight battles.

I’ve seen fear and worry

in the eyes of children

from war zones

and heard their incredible stories.

 Sometimes, it’s good to be serious…

 

International Day of Peace is also

Global Ceasefire Day.

This day allows everyone,

everywhere to have a day away

 from violence.

It is hoped war and conflict

 can cease for a day…

and relief workers can finally reach

 areas they are otherwise

unable to get to. 

People in these areas can be

 provided with the care

and supplies they need.

 They can enjoy a day

free from the drone and whistle

of falling bombs

and the sound of gunfire.

 

A few facts and figures on

The Impact of War

2 million children…

killed in conflict

in the last ten years.

(That’s almost ten times

 my town’s population

killed each year… all children.)

Over a million children

have been left orphaned…

(and many then fall into Child Gangs,

 where lives are filled with killing

 and mixed drugs

or are abandoned

and left to scavenge

for food on rubbish tips.)

Over 6 million kids have been

seriously injured

or have been left

with permanent disabilities

or scarring.

Many of these children have no

 access to the equipment

and resources our children receive

 to assist with their disabilities.

Over ten million children

are left with serious

psychological trauma

after living through conflict.

They are just children…

they were unlucky enough

 to be born in dangerous places.

Conflicts cost us in other ways…

 environmentally – the hills of Vietnam

 are still struggling to overcome

the effects of napalm…

Women are often abused and raped

during times of conflict…

Financially, conflicts are expensive…

And, carelessly dropped

and forgotten war equipment

 and weapons can lead to

 further damage – especially

when children try to sell these

 for scrap metal

and lose limbs from explosions.

I almost feel like I am in

 a beauty contest…

“and, I want world peace!”

I’d love to see a day

where no battles were fought…

imagine.

Today is also

World Gratitude Day.

I’m grateful to live

in such a beautiful country.

Pictures from the

International Day of Peace

facebook page.

 

Vietnamese Anniversary

Today is the anniversary of the Battle of Long Tan - in Vietnam.

I once put in a real effort to understand a

little more about the Vietnamese War.

I gave up.

All I can remember is that the West would take over an area,

they’d move on and the North Vietnamese would move

back into the area and take it back….

And on and on and on.

The Vietnam War saw Australians fighting in jungles and villages for ten years, from 1962 to 1972.

Around 60,000 people made up the Aussie troops.

I went to Vietnam and headed out to the Demilitarized Zone. Old stone churches still bore the bullet holes from the war. Crater holes still lay across the ground. Amazingly brave men and women still worked the fields – searching for undetonated bombs. Land mine accidents were evident in the number of amputees living in the towns and villages.

What I remember the most, are the Vinh Moc tunnels.

The entrances to the tunnels were well hidden. Watching a guide open a secret entrance to the tunnel, lowering himself through the small space before hiding the entrance again was amazing.

Life in the tunnels was so safe that no villagers lost their lives.

I was impressed that the Vietnamese villagers were clever enough to carry the tunnel soil, by boat, to an island off the coast. Several of these trips would be made by night. The beach exits were carefully hidden by dense trees and foliage. They remained undetected by the western soldiers throughout the duration of the war.

The digging of the tunnels continued over the years that they were used. The digging began in 1966 and around 60 families lived in the tunnels until early in 1972. While I walked deeper and deeper underground, the tunnels became darker. Small lights had been set into the walls. The roof became lower and my shoulders started scraping against the sides of the tunnels. Several small rooms were built along the tunnels. They were about 2m by 2m. I was stunned to hear that this was where a family would have lived for four years. While the bombs rained down, the villagers lived, taught their children and loved. One of the rooms was used as a maternity room. Seventeen children were born inside the tunnels.

So, while it is the Anniversary of the Battle of Long Tan today, it’s not just the Australians I think of.