By: Mireya Rajendran
Seven shots ring out clearly, a deafening sound breaking the haze of stifling silence covering the small town. Shot. Shot. Shot. Shot. Shot. Shot. Shot. People run, desperately seeking shelter, a woman screams, a man cries out in pain, children flee, hopelessly searching for lost parents. Innocent civilians fall to the ground, wounded, as their families lament. A grenade is thrown, then another, and another. Chaos ensues as their beloved town turns to rubble before their own eyes. Someone has lit the only school for miles on fire. They all watch it burn, burn, burn to the ground. The flames rise, consuming the building as it sinks and crumbles. Toddlers halt in the middle of the confusion and watch, mouths agape, as the school they each attended joyfully each morning slowly disappears, unable to withstand the pressure of war any longer. A small boy sobs, remembering his teacher, a passionate young man from the big city, determined to educate an underprivileged town. Soon, the children of the smoldering village begin to wail, as their precious school ceases to exist in a matter of minutes. No survivors present at the horrifying scene will forget this day. They will never forget the dying moments of their parents, the last breaths of their siblings, the last words of their best friends as everyone perished in a sudden night of death. Not only have these individuals lost countless members of their close-knit community, they will have lost their educational opportunities, in the form of the school building that collapsed, crushing dozens, and dooming hundreds to a future without proper schooling.
Everyone is affected by war and it's time for International Humanitarian Law (IHL) to be properly introduced and enforced to ensure the safety of innocent civilians, who are currently being unnecessarily affected negatively by conflict. One of the many problems is the education of kids in war-torn countries. Millions of children don’t have access to education because governments aren’t putting restrictions in place preventing schools from being targets/casualties in armed conflict.
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