For two years I lived in the nation of Angola, amid the longest running civil war in modern African history. Maintaining my neutrality was not difficult, for I witnessed first-hand both sides committing atrocities using the weapons of war: land mines, canons, rockets, kidnappings – plus massive misinformation that justified the acts of terror. Our little medical center in southern Angola was filled with people suffering gruesome traumatic injuries, as well as those who were hungry and diseased because of the war’s diversion of food and medicine. One of these young pregnant women, Isabela, worked in my home. Injured from a blast, she walked with a limp and fevered frequently from resistant malaria.
Who suffers most from the weapons of war? During World War I, roughly 5 percent of causalities were among civilians. In World War II, this figure rose to 50 percent. In the wars since 1980, fully 80-90 percent of deaths have been inflicted upon CIVILIANS. The British Medical Journal reported in 2002: “In many war zones, violent deaths are often only a tiny proportion of overall deaths. Populations face a deterioration of their already poor health status, and excess deaths from infectious diseases will usually outnumber deaths due to direct violence.” In the Iraq war, figures from 2003 to 2013 indicate that of 174,000 casualties only 39,900 were combatants. Who were these other 134,100 civilians? Mainly women and their children. What caused their deaths? Usually famine and infectious disease – just like I observed up close.
By contrast, what are the weapons of peace? What are the tools, the strategies, that we can use to prevent conflict and secure human well-being?
Diplomacy is one effective weapon of peace. Dialogue is the first step. As trust is built, dialogue can lead to negotiation and compromise to mitigate disputes. Lasting treaties and settlements may even result. Via multi-lateral organizations, leaders often have frameworks in place to host such dialogue and negotiation.
Nonviolent resistance is another powerful weapon of peace. Championed by recent figures like Mahatma Gandhi and Martin Luther King Jr., nonviolent resistance presses for justice through peaceful protest and civil disobedience, while avoiding the destructive consequences of armed conflict.
Economic interdependence is a more subtle but effective weapon of peace. When people are economically benefiting through trade, they enjoy a vested interest in maintaining good relationships. Conflict becomes less attractive when economic prosperity of both sides is dependent upon mutual cooperation.
Philanthropy is another unsung weapon of peace: food assistance, medical care, public health interventions, education opportunities, cultural exchanges, Christ, himself the Prince of Peace, admonishes us all:
I say to you who hear, Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who abuse you. To one who strikes you on the cheek, offer the other also, and from one who takes away your cloak do not withhold your tunic either. Give to everyone who begs from you, and from one who takes away your goods do not demand them back. And as you wish that others would do to you, do so to them.
Today, years since conclusion of the Angola Civil War, I continue to witness how my Angolan colleagues defend their most vulnerable – precious women and children – by readily utilizing weapons of peace to protect those like Isabela.