The year 2024 has been a deeply worrying year so far—with the 11th month starting– as human suffering caused by war and conflict remained at very high levels throughout the year. What is more, in the context of at least two of these wars, the possibility of these leading to World War 3 has continued to exist to various extents during the greater part of the year. The number of people displaced and affected by conflict related humanitarian crisis are also extremely high, even as the shortage of funds for meeting their essential needs is extremely acute. There has been a tendency, as in Sudan, Gaza and Lebanon, for conflict related devastation and displacement to spread extremely fast. What is extremely worrying is that the current situation of several serious conflicts does not provide adequate indication at all of where and how these will end.
Combine these six factors, and you probably have the most worrying situation seen in recent decades which just now shows hardly any signs of improving in the coming months.
This is the reason why this is just the right time for launching a major peace initiative worldwide which can yield some hopeful results around Christmas time, or sometime between Christmas and the beginning of the new year. Christmas and the first day of the next year are particularly important days for various sides of conflicts to make important announcements for peace, and a many-sided peace initiative launched now can help to prepare the base for this. Of course if as a result of such efforts hope-giving results start appearing even before Christmas it will be even better, as sooner peace comes the more human lives are saved and greater reduction in human suffering is also achieved.
This peace initiative can take many forms as suggested by the creative thinking of the people committed to peace. However I would like to specifically suggest that at least at six levels people should mobilize, initiate discussions and come out with appeals for peace. As far as possible this should be achieved by December 1.
These six levels are—diplomats and statesmen, academics and scholars, students and youth, peace organizations, women’s movement and humanitarian aid organizations.
The mobilization at any of these levels is not seen here to be taking place as a single mobilization. There can be several mobilizations in various regions and circles taking place at the same time at all these six levels.
These mobilizations should be unbiased and guided only by the best possible understanding of peace with justice. In particular it should be emphasized that peace with justice is the foremost objective of such mobilizations and any one-sided or revenge-based agenda is not to be taken up here.
At these six levels numerous meetings or inter-actions will take place, and on this basis each group should issue an appeal. This appeal will of course make a strong case for justice-based peace from various points of view, and urge all sides to commit to this as soon as possible. In addition this appeal should include several suggestions and solutions generally for taking forward peace and also for the more specific resolving of various conflicts. While all conflicts can be the subjects of such appeals, three conflicts which should get special attention are those of middle-east, Ukraine and Sudan. Peace suggestions can also be made in the context of those areas where possibilities of new conflicts are emerging. This appeal should also say something regarding what can be achieved around Christmas or the first day of the next year. If the group can contribute something further to the peace process, it should state this commitment in the appeal. If the group can continue to work for peace with justice beyond this time (during the next year and perhaps even further), it should also state this in its appeal.
Side by side with preparing this appeal, this group should collect some funds before Christmas for helping people affected by various conflict-related humanitarian crises. A significant part of this will be donated on or before Christmas for humanitarian aid, while a smaller part will be kept for further peace work by this group, if a decision for continuing this work in the next year has been taken. Thus side by side with the peace effort, the humanitarian aid effort will also be strengthened.
Several of these groups working together, or on their own, should also take the initiative to organize conferences, discussions and dialogues on the key theme of avoiding third world war or nuclear war under all circumstances. These should be also used to create wider public awareness on the very high risks relating to this and the need for very strong and continuing public mobilization on this issue.
All these efforts will hopefully contribute to resolving of several conflicts in some significant ways, or else increase chances of this happening in the near future. As these various efforts come to know more about what other such efforts are saying and doing, there will be increasing chances of mutual cooperation and working together. Several new ideas will come up some of which may be taken up by at least sections of leadership on various sides of conflicts, while some ideas may also motivate people caught in various conflict situation to start some high potential efforts for peace on their own. On the whole, as a result of all these efforts there will be a lot more highly relevant discussion and ideas relating to peace with justice so that the possibilities for peace will be strengthened. As a result of the continuation of a lot of this work and the developing cooperation among these various groups the entire peace movement and efforts will be strengthened a lot and further hope-giving results of this will also be visible next year.
Bharat Dogra is Honorary Convener, Campaign to Save Earth Now. His recent books include Protecting Earth for Children, Man over Machine, Planet in Peril, Earth without Borders and A Day in 2071.
