10 Nepali students lost their lives in the Israel-Hamas war. On November 6, a candlelight program was held at Asphodel Public School in Nepal to mourn the victims. About 30 students in grades 9 and 10 from Asphodel Public School attended the event, organized by the International Youth Peace Group (IPYG).
This event was held to remember the terrible wars taking place in other countries during the Dashain and Tihar periods, the biggest festival in Nepal, and to express condolences through candles for those who were killed in the Israel-Hamas war. Dashain is the biggest holiday in Nepal, meaning it is a day to celebrate the victory of good over evil, and Tihar is the festival of lights.
The event began with a presentation by Hyeju Park, the director of IPYG in Nepal. In her presentation, she said, “In war, there are no winners and losers; there are only sacrifices of innocent civilians, leaving wounds that no one can heal. However, peace will not be achieved automatically if we do not speak out and work for peace. If we think that someone else will do the peace work, we must remember that the next victim could be us or our families. Therefore, let us all become messengers of peace, fulfilling our duties with love and respect in our home, school, and society.”
Next, the student council president of Asphodel Public School had a presentation on the topic, “The power of students for peace.” Next, students watched a video related to the Israel-Hamas war and mourned for the victims of the war and all the victims of the earthquake in West Rukum in Nepal. Then, they filmed slogans (ONLY VICTIMS, NO WINNERS, STOP THE WARS, WIN OVER EVIL WITH LIGHT) holding candles.
During this event, students at Asphodel Public School held candles and mourned for the 10 Nepali students who lost their lives abroad and for the innocent victims surpassing 5,000 of this war. They also pledged not to forget this sorrow and to raise our voices for peace. They shouted slogans to prevent war as messengers of peace.
IPYG, which hosted this event, is an affiliated organization of Heavenly Culture, World Peace, Restoration of Light (HWPL), an international peace NGO founded for global peace and cessation of war. The IPYG has been heading toward peace with its representative projects such as Peace Walk, Peace Letter, and Peace Education with the youth around the world. Recently, IPYG is highly active in Nepal. On October 13th, Asphodel Public School completed peace teacher training and held a graduation ceremony, and 14 teachers received certificates. Following this candlelight program, Nepal IPYG is planning various projects in 2024, including a peace talk show, dance contest, operation of a children’s peace choir, and establishment of a peace monument.
