Giving peace a chance

So where's all the peace in the news headlines? Well, perversely, it takes major disasters on the 9/11 or Asian tsunami scale to remind us of our collective humanity. After such events, the world can show that it cares without hiding behind cultural and ethnic barriers.

There is, however, another way to achieve peace — a way that doesn't require a stark nudge from nature or humankind to get results. Local grassroots projects are galvanising young people across the world to think about peace, not just as a vague utopian ideal, but as something that can actually be achieved.

Father Apisit Krisaralam, founder of the Sowing Seeds of Peace in the Mekong River Basin” project

“Sowing Seeds of Peace in the Mekong River Basin” is such a project. Set up in Thailand, the initiative is the brainchild of Father Apisit Kritsaralam, director of Ruamrudee International School (RIS) in Minburi.

Father Apisit has worked alongside representatives from UNESCO, Assumption University and the Regional Unit for Social and Human Sciences in Asia and the Pacific (RUSHSAP) to bring the project to life across Laos, Vietnam, Cambodia, China and Myanmar as well as Thailand.

“The idea came about because we wanted to do something to bring a culture of peace to this region,” says Father Apisit. “For me, peace is something that needs to come out from ourselves. Peace is not only for one person, it’s about understanding how we live together. We need to reach out to others so that we understand the cultures of different people.”

Work on the initiative began last semester and the project was finally launched last month during a week of peace-themed activities at RIS. The idea is that schools and universities in each of the countries surrounding the Mekong Basin will develop similar activities of their own with a core team visiting each institution to provide a sense of unity. The initial round of projects will culminate in a special celebration at Assumption University in July.

“We asked all the other countries to arrange what we have been doing in our school — such as poetry, essays and artwork — so that young people can see the importance of peace and how they can help themselves to understand more about the region,” Father Apisit explains.

“They should know that difference doesn’t mean opposition. Many countries focus too much on their own interests. We need people who can step away from their own needs and look out for others’ interests as well.”

The initiative is a huge undertaking that could potentially be complicated by political issues, particularly in those participating countries where human rights are questionably observed. But, according to Father Apisit, the focus will be very much on the students. “We are not there to promote any government ideologies,” he says, “only the culture of peace.”

Many of the students at RIS, along with those at its new sister school, Redeemer International School of Thailand, entered into the spirit of the week. For some, it was an opportunity to show off their talents while promoting a common sense of humanity.

Student Council organisers May Chinavanichkit and Soo Hyang Lee stand in front of the peace mural

May Chinavancihkit and Soo Hyang Lee, 12th and 11th graders, respectively, are prominent members of the school’s student council. It was their job to help engage the student population and to promote the idea of peace within the school community.

They helped to organise everything from a huge mural painting to a town hall-style meeting and “hug-a-thon”. While the programme was designed to be fun, there was a serious message behind it all.

“When we say ‘peace’, the topic is very general,” says May. “At Ruamrudee, we didn’t really have much awareness of it and didn’t really know about the conflicts in the Mekong Basin because we were not that interested. But now, we hope that students at RIS especially will have more awareness and realise how important this topic is in our community.”

Soo is equally keen that apathy should not be allowed to hold sway among her peers. “My definition of peace is a society where children can live in harmony with their parents,” she says. “They should not be left out. Everyone should feel like they belong. The reason we have so many conflicts nowadays is that people don’t realise how similar we really are.”

Soo adds that international schools can serve as an example to the rest of the world of how people from different cultures can get along. “We are still young,” she says, “and we can obtain information from people of different cultures. We also have lots of discussion in ‘values’ classes where we get opportunities to learn about each other.”

Perhaps one of the reasons why the project has been taken up so enthusiastically is because the students have been encouraged to be creative in their promotion and internalisation of peace. Some have created artwork and sculptures showing different cultures in harmony, while others have written poems or essays expressing their concerns and hope for the future. A number have won prizes for their efforts.

Star essayist Varin Charungvat

Varine Charungvat, a 14-year-old student at Redeemer School, wrote a challenging piece suggesting that the world would be better off if we learned to talk more and fight less. It may seem an obvious statement but Varine was able to balance her arguments with some mature ideas.

“I think that people involved in violent conflict do know the meaning of peace — they just don’t know its value,” she says. “I know that everyone has peace within themselves, they just have to find it.”

Grade 9 student Jasleen Kaur won an award for her poem A Tethered Rope in which she looks at the stark choice between peace and war. Another student, Bim

Bim Vicharathit and Jasleen Kaur

Vicharathit, from Grade 11, sculpted a globe surrounded by people from all over the region. She deliberately didn’t paint the sculpture, she says, because, unpainted, it shows how all people are part of the same earth and are united.

The week ended in style with a special presentation — attended by local dignitaries, parents and students — that showcased a variety of ideas and launched the project region-wide. The show included drama students performing short pieces encapsulating the concept of peace as well as music and dance.

One group, for example, satirised the role of advertising in society with a sketch entitled Magic Peace Drink, while younger students highlighted the problem of rich city dwellers exploiting the poor in rural communities. The finale brought together the Jeremiah Singers (the school’s senior choir) with famous songstress Nanthida Asavahame to sing the rousing anthem Stream of Love, a song specially commissioned for the project.

For the moment, Sowing Seeds of Peace in the Mekong River Basin is all about raising awareness. It may sound like a small contribution to global consciousness but, as young people begin to learn something about neighbouring cultures, it is hoped that it could grow into something far bigger and more substantial.

If your school or university would like to take part in the project,
you can contact Father Apisit and other organisers at RIS
via email at director@rism.ac.th or by calling 02-518-0320.

CLOCKWISE: Scenes from the show: ‘Price of Peace’; Magic peace spray formula now available; the Jeremiah Singers; magic peace sprayers treat the audience