To desire peace, to have freedom, justice and democracy, to respect to human rights, to wish for the happiness of one’s family, to seek secure and safe life, these are all the shared sentiments of people everywhere.

And the most important question is:

Can wars bring all these shared sentiments?

The human being’s historical experience shows that the answer is clearly negative.

And yet, human history has been stained without cease by the horror of war and meaningless suffering. Despite the bitter lessons of millennia of bloods and tears, humanity remains unable to free itself from the shackles of folly and hatred. There is no parent anywhere who does not grieve at the death of a child in war.

So the following question rises:

How, then, can we transform enmity to empathy, conflict to coexistence?

The only answer that I always find is: to respect our cultures and civilizations, to learn from each other, to understand our common sentiments and spread the love among all nations. Therefore, it depends on every culture’s ambassadors (particularly artists) how to promote peace, love, mutual respect and understanding.

We are all from the Earth. This is what it is materialized in the following poems of great Persian poet, Sa’di, who says:

The children of Adam are limbs of each other
Having been created of one essence.
When the calamity of time afflicts one limb
The other limbs cannot remain at rest.
If thou hast no sympathy for the troubles of others
Thou art unworthy to be called by the name of a man.

Wars are disasters! Don’t beat the drums of wars! It is really dangerous!

War is caused by people. It is, therefore, up to people whether or not they create a world of peace. Let’s have a peaceful life for ourselves, our children and next generations!

I, as a member of Artists Without Frontiers, invite all artists of the world to join us and start a new peace campaign before it is so late!

Sincerely yours,

Peyman Nasehpour