Living Peace 14: Letters of Wars and Peace
10. 4. 2025 | Politics
At the end of 2022, we at the Peace Institute, started organizing a series of public events entitled Thinking Peace as a response to the multitude of armed conflicts around the world. Since the world has been spiralling into dangerous global militarization, we wanted to rethink what is war, what is peace, and more importantly how to ensure a stable peace which would not be quickly engulfed in new conflicts and wars.
We want to expand on the Thinking Peace cycle and add new dimensions to imagining peace. With the help of amazing individuals worldwide, we are beginning a new series of public letters written by people whose lives were interrupted by war or who found themselves in a recent armed conflict. We have titled this series of letters as Living Peace to emphasize how important peace is and that people often only realize this importance when facing the brutality of war. We want to illustrate how people from Palestine, Ukraine, Rwanda, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, Serbia, Syria, Sudan, Afghanistan, Congo, Yemen and elsewhere think publicly about peace. How do the inhabitants of these regions face wars and military conflicts? What lessons can we learn from their intimate experiences and existential fears?
While opinions of world leaders who justify or even defend wars, dominate today’s media spheres, we want to amplify the voices that defend peace, reject violence and recognize equal rights for all. Having experienced war, they understand why it is essential to live in peace.
The 14th letter we are publishing was written by Eva from South Sudan:
The war came abruptly, our life changed and there were no echoes of peace to be found. Peace, where are you? was heard from all sides and corners of our country. Among them was the voice of my family and the war brought confusion to us, it brought guns, bombs and merciless killings of innocent people. Ooh! What is life? Dead bodies scattered across town, no one buries anyone as life becomes useless and hopeless. After some days soldiers changed into beasts while entering houses stealing items and raping young girls and women. Some were repeatedly raped by more than ten men. They also forced fathers to have sexual intercourses with their young daughters while mothers had to have them with their sons. The whole country was in havoc, our property was destroyed; homes, schools, restaurants, banks and markets were burned down.
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I keep saying we need to sing and spread the spirit of love, peace and unity. We deserve to fight for them despite the fact that a lot of challenges remain – poverty, jealousy and fighting for power. All of these cause wars. Philosophers and lawyers have all tried their best but at the end everything seems meaningless. Let us think together, join our hands and move forward to save souls – not through guns, missiles or bombs but through wisdom and loving words by those who think peace. Let God intervene and help the families who have been stripped by death, leaving them without parents, without daughters, without sons.
LETTER BY EVA FROM SOUTH SUDAN
The war broke out in South Sudan on 16th December 2013. It had been four days since I came from the hospital with a small baby girl. The delivery did not go smoothly, it was very difficult. I had a minor operation and the situation got worse and worse as I was in a lot of pain.I also had to rely on others to support me, but luckily I somehow managed to stay persistent and resilient, I was able to survive and overcome the first hardship.
What a horrible life for a young and energetic woman who had plans and aspirations for her small family in a small but beautiful country South Sudan, in Sub-Saharan eastern Africa.
The war came abruptly, our life changed and there were no echoes of peace to be found. Peace, where are you? was heard from all sides and corners of our country. Among them was the voice of my family and the war brought confusion to us, it brought guns, bombs and merciless killings of innocent people. Ooh! What is life? Dead bodies scattered across town, no one buries anyone as life becomes useless and hopeless. After some days soldiers changed into beasts while entering houses stealing items and raping young girls and women. Some were repeatedly raped by more than ten men. They also forced fathers to have sexual intercourses with their young daughters while mothers had to have them with their sons. The whole country was in havoc, our property was destroyed; homes, schools, restaurants, banks and markets were burned down. Life was altered abruptly and it reminded me of what an old woman in my community used to say: “Love is the only source of peace.” But I asked myself: “Why are communities fighting among themselves and what are the political motives within the government antagonising communities to fight?”
Unfortunately, when the war broke out in our area, we found ourselves in the forest where all survivors suffered from food and water shortages. We were homeless. We struggled every day and everything was difficult; getting food for my children was very tough, my husband was separated from us while being on a mission. We could not get in touch or communicate with him – we were not able to see him for a while, we were worried that something might be wrong as all the state borders were closed off by the Government. We struggled and managed to survive in the forest for four months until we finally reached the Ugandan border where we were denied the permission to cross by the Ugandan police. After a long discussion with our elders, the police officer in charge informed the Government about our circumstances and we were finally allowed to enter into the country. We took a refuge but with so many challenges we have had to face I could not imagine we would still be alive as there were still random killings, thefts and destruction everywhere. Despite repeated issues of bleeding my little baby and other children survived in God’s grace.
I keep saying we need to sing and spread the spirit of love, peace and unity. We deserve to fight for them despite the fact that a lot of challenges remain – poverty, jealousy and fighting for power. All of these cause wars. Philosophers and lawyers have all tried their best but at the end everything seems meaningless. Let us think together, join our hands and move forward to save souls – not through guns, missiles or bombs but through wisdom and loving words by those who think peace. Let God intervene and help the families who have been stripped by death, leaving them without parents, without daughters, without sons.
I thank the Government of Uganda for allowing me and my children to breathe and sleep freely despite the heartbreak caused by our traumatic past.
Peace can be achieved through respectful communication and through swift interventions conducted by international communities. It can be achieved through negotiations, where the differences between the leaders and communities should be resolved. The process should be carried out respectfully, the leaders should approach the youths in their villages and tell them how important peace in the country actually is. And once peace comes, life can become normal again. Developmental processes can continue, while job opportunities can open up again for all. Then we might begin to hope – to finally return to South Sudan, to our home.
