Arkoneil Ghosh, a 12 year old ADN Junior Champion from India has shared devastation and sorrow for the children in Ukraine.
In an act of solidarity, Arkoneil has shared a moving poem on the tragedies of war.
The Avoidable Deaths Network share our heartfelt condolences for the needless avoidable deaths taking place across Ukraine.
The Dogs of War are Unleashed in the Ukraine
Author: Unknown
Translator: Darshan Mondkar (from Marathi to English)
Ask what war is,
Ask the Germans who brought down a wall to become one, as history was retold,
Ask the children of those who reached the Red Square, only to perish in the brutal cold,
Ask Italy, Ask Poland,
Or ask Britain who won in the end.
Ask what war is,
Ask the land of rising sun, that got turned to ashes overnight,
Which stood clutching the Buddha as fires burnt around it,
Ask the soil of Hiroshima, that still remains infertile,
Or the womb of Nagasaki, that remains barren to date.
Ask what war is,
Ask Iran that bloodied itself for eight years,
Ask Iraq, Ask Afghanistan,
Ask Vietnam too,
Turn a blind eye to Kashmir, as usual,
But at least ask Kargil,
Ask Ladhak.
Ask what war is,
Ask Ashwathama, who wandered around with a bleeding forehead,
Surely ask Gandhari, who cried clutching one hundred corpses to her bosom,
But also ask Panchali, event through the Pandavas won.
Ask what war is,
Ask Porus, Ask Napoleon,
Ask Alexander, who took off to win the entire world,
Ask Ashoka, who won the deadliest battle of Kalinga,
And if that’s not possible,
At least ask the one who refused to go to war,
King Siddharth Gautam.
Ask what war is,
Ask the parents of those soldiers, who yearn to see their children for months on end,
Ask the wives and the kids, who are startled with dread every time the phone rings,
Ask the villages at the border of the war zones,
Ask the broken walls that were shelled down, never to be rebuilt,
Ask the houses trembling with fear,
Ask the daughters and mothers, who hide their dignity with their tears.
Ask what war is,
After you are done with your sumptuous dinner,
Or after you have had your drink,
After you have taken a stroll in your plush garden,
After you have had your evening chat with your friends,
Or after you have spewed your views through your mobile,
After the baseless debates on TV are over,
After you have made plans for your tomorrow,
If possible, ask your own self, sometime,
Ask your conscience.
Ask what war is.