COMMENT: Let’s give peace chance

 The United Nations observed the International Day of Families on Thursday, May 15, and the International Day of Living Together in Peace last Friday, May 16.

The good news is that both festivities call for an action-driven strategy to resolve disputes and advance harmony in order to foster peace, understanding, and unity.

The International Day of Fami­lies is a celebration of all kinds of families with the goal of fostering closer ties between them. That the United Nations (UN) plans and encourages a range of events to honour the Day on this unique day is inspiring.

More encouraging is the fact that the celebration contributes to increasing awareness of the various family-related and family-affecting issues, such as gender inequality, healthcare, education, violence, and prejudice.

It is a public holiday in other countries, and the intention is for parents to spend an additional day with their children and extended family, which surely strengthens the bonds within the family. This bolsters the theme for this year’s International Day of Families, “Family-Oriented Policies for Sus­tainable Development.”

Since living together as a family offers its members warmth, love, friendship, emotional support, and security – especially amongst couples and their children – the celebration should be encouraged.

In a similar vein, the Interna­tional Day of Living Together in Peace is observed to consistently mobilise the global community’s efforts to advance tolerance, peace, inclusion, understanding, and solidarity.

Every year, May 16 is celebrat­ed globally to support the goal of living and acting as one, unified in variety and differences, in order to create a sustainable world of harmony, peace, and solidarity.

Around the world, people ob­serve a minute of silence at noon on this day. Peace conferences and workshops are arranged to com­memorate the day, and others par­ticipate in intercultural dialogue.

Saying no to violence, embrac­ing diversity, understanding one another even during disagreements or conflicts, avoiding discrimi­nation, appreciating others, and treating everyone with decency and respect are all necessary for living in peace.

Since unresolved disagreements result in strained relationships, stress, and even mental health dif­ficulties that eventually influence productivity, creativity, and gener­al well-being, every effort must be made to coexist peacefully.

The Spectator believes that an act of compassion, forgiveness, and tolerance that results in the cessation of conflicts is necessary for peace to reign.

Therefore, in order to facilitate the work of the National Peace Council, we implore families, communities, ethnic groups, reli­gious organisations, government representatives, and other parties involved in conflicts to give peace a chance and encourage reconcil­iation.

A more peaceful and success­ful society will result from our acceptance of peace since it will encourage collaboration, eco­nomic expansion, social stability, improved well-being, less conflict, and trust.