We live in an age where leaders speak of peace but prepare for war. A world where power is measured not by compassion or wisdom, but by arsenals and influence. The modern world is increasingly run by headless kings—leaders detached from the suffering of their people, obsessed with borders, pride, and control. For the common man, life has become a constant state of uncertainty, fear, and quiet despair.
From the smouldering rubble of Gaza to the snow-covered battlefields of Ukraine, from the Line of Control in Kashmir to the blood-stained streets of Sudan, the cries of ordinary people go unheard. In these places, hospitals become targets, homes become graves, and dreams dissolve with each air raid. It is no longer news when a child is killed or a city bombed; it’s just another number in a conflict report. Human life, once sacred, is now collateral damage in the geopolitical games of the powerful.
The problem is not just war. Even in so-called peacetime, the masses suffer from structural violence: hunger, poverty, and inequality. Over 700 million people globally still live on less than $2 a day. Healthcare systems collapse under pressure, as seen during the COVID-19 pandemic, where the rich hoarded vaccines and the poor buried their dead in silence. In places like Yemen and Syria, years of conflict have destroyed infrastructure, leaving people without clean water, education, or access to basic healthcare. Climate change adds another layer of suffering—floods displace millions in Pakistan and Bangladesh, while droughts steal livelihoods in the Horn of Africa.
Meanwhile, the rich get richer. The global military expenditure crossed $2.2 trillion in 2023, yet billions go to bed hungry. States are spending more on weapons than welfare, more on surveillance than schools. Democracy is slowly morphing into authoritarianism, where dissent is crushed, journalists jailed, and truth becomes a casualty of propaganda. The cost is paid by the people—silenced, surveilled, and sacrificed at the altar of nationalism.
And yet, the myth of security persists. The modern world tells us that unless you possess nuclear weapons, your sovereignty is negotiable. This has led to a dangerous arms race where countries seek weapons of mass destruction not for aggression, but out of fear. The realist worldview—that the international system is anarchic, that states act in self-interest, and that power is the only currency—now dominates global affairs. But at what cost?
The Way Forward
What we are witnessing is not just a political crisis, but a moral collapse. A world that had the tools to end poverty, ensure justice, and promote peace has chosen the path of domination, division, and death. The ordinary citizen is not asking for empires—only dignity. Not for dominance, but for safety. Yet peace is not a fantasy. It is possible—even in these fractured times—if we shift the moral compass of global leadership and listen to the voices on the ground. It begins with dialogue replacing doctrine, diplomacy prevailing over aggression. The powerful must prioritize human security over territorial expansion, welfare over warfare. International institutions must be strengthened—not to serve superpowers, but to protect the powerless.
Peace can be achieved when education becomes a right, not a privilege; when healthcare reaches every village, and when hunger is treated as an emergency, not a statistic. It requires curbing the arms race, rethinking military spending, and redirecting those resources to climate resilience, social protection, and inclusive growth. The media must recover its soul, amplifying truth over propaganda, compassion over division. Most importantly, peace demands courage—not of the soldier, but of the statesman. The courage to admit mistakes, to dismantle hate, and to humanize the “other.” And if the heads of power remain headless in conscience, then the people must become the voice. Because peace is not a luxury—it is a right. And it must be reclaimed before silence becomes the only thing left.
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Dr Waseem Ahmad Bhat is an independent researcher based in Kashmir. He can be reached at [email protected]
