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Peace is an essential aspect of democracy. It allows societies to use existing resources and infrastructure to improve the quality of life instead of destroying them in communal violence. Democracy is based on human rights, and implies the progress of the political, economic, social and cultural rights by all. Without democracy ordinary people cannot have a voice in the distribution of resources.
Democracy is the most peaceful political system in this world. Whether a nation is rich or poor, powerful or weak, democratic countries don't wage war against each other. In communist countries as well as religious-dominated counties, fighting against each other or killing each other often take place.
According to R. J. Rummel there is no case of democracies killing their own citizens. Democratic freedom promotes nonviolence. But if in a democratic system, people are deprived of employment, it is a danger, as they are likely to be recruited into the armed bands of warlords and political extremists like Maoists and Talibans.
As Noam Chomsky said, "the new insight and the new art of democracy is that we have ways of regimenting the minds of men just as an army regiments their bodies, and we should do it". Achieving a non-violent world are mutually interdependent and inseparable goals.
According to Immanuel Kant: "Having to fight, having to pay the costs of wars from their own resources, having painfully to repair the devastation war leaves behind, and, to fill up the measure of evils, load themselves with a heavy national debt that would embitter peace itself and that can never be liquidated on account of constant wars in the future".
Kant, de Montesquieu, Thomas Paine, Jeremy Bentham and John Stuart Mill have always explained that democratically free people are spontaneous, diverse and pluralistic.
R. J. Rummel has stated that to promote democratic institutions promotes a deeper and more durable peace because it promotes a social field, cross-pressures, and political responsibility; it promotes pluralism, diversity, and groups that have a stake in peace.
Since World War II, nonviolent actions have grown under the influence of Mahatma Gandhi and Martin Luther King.
Till date 4 million Vietnamese, 1.5 million Armenians, 3 million Ukrainians, 6 million Gypsies and Slave, 1.7 million Cambodians, 5 million Chinese, 5 million Russians, 1.4 million Bengalis, 1 million Sudanese, 1 million North Koreans, 800,000 Rwandans, 500,000 Ugandans, 250,000 Burundians, 800,000 Japanese and 1.5 million Iraqis have already dead by war. About 95 million of people have been killed in communist countries only.
There have been nearly 13,600 wars since 3,600 B.C. The toll of human misery measures around 30,000,000 direct battle deaths since Waterloo and 1,000,000,000 since 3,600 B.C. Then there are uncountable deaths, broken bodies and lives from the ravages and effects of these wars. According to UNDP'S Human Development Report, about 300,000 children were soldiers in the 1990s and 6 million were injured in armed conflicts.
Widespread starvation and political powerlessness add to global insecurity terrorist organization and Maoists are increasing. The arms trade makes weapons more available to terrorists, Maoists drug traffickers and other violent factions around the world. The number of small arms currently in use around the globe is near 500 million.
According to Human Rights Watch, small arms have been the only weapons used in 46 out of 49 wars since 1990 and have killed 3 million civilians since that year. The level of arms currently in circulation has greatly surpassed any cases the availability of small arms is fueling local conflicts.
The 1972 BTWC (Protocol of the Biological and Toxin weapons Convention) prohibits the development, production; stockpiling, retention or acquisition of biological weapons is a unique class of weapons. Today, 143 States are parties to the Convention. Security Council Resolution 1325, adopted in October 2000, specifically mentions the need to consider the different needs of ex-combatants and their dependents in DDR (disarmament, demobilization and rehabilitation).
Suffering of civilians in war is increases substantially during any kind of war. The focus of war is the destruction of the other the ideologically, and ethnically. In the first World War, five percent of the casualties were civilians, and in the second World War, the figure was fifty five percent. Since then civilians have accounted for ninety percent of the casualties.
Maoist War
The most urgent concern in Nepal is the security of life. So long as the Maoist war continues Nepalese people have to live in fear, in the fear of an impending attack on any village. When the Maoists attack, entire families are massacred. We have to pay a high price for the Maoists war. We Nepalese people are the constant victims of the on-going Maoists war.
The Maoists war has affected our entire life. War and poverty have prevented us from having access to our basic needs of life like health and education. The Maoists war has ruined our life. We all Nepalese are anxiously waiting for the end of the war and ushering of peace.
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Journalist and Story Writer Kamala Sarup is specializing in in-depth reporting and writing on Peace, Anti War, Women, Terrorism, Democracy, and Development. Some of her publications are: Women's Empowerment in(South Asia, Nepal)Booklet). Prevention of trafficking in women through media,(Book) Efforts to Prevent Trafficking in for Media Activism (Media research). Two Stories collections. Her interests include international conflict resolution, cross-cultural communication, philosophy, feminism, political, socio-economic and literature. Her current plans are to move on to humanitarian work in conflict areas in the near future. She also is experienced in organizational and community development. A meeting of jury members held on 21 March in Geneva has decided to attribute Kamala Sarup, The Conservative Voice, writer, with a Honorable Mention of International Award for Women Issue.
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