Peace Through the Eyes of Youth in Conflict Zones, Resonating with the World Through
The International Women’s Peace Group (IWPG), Global Region 2 (headed by Director Seoyeon Lee), announced that it held the Middle East online preliminary round of the 7th International Loving-Peace Art Competition on June 14, with participation from children and youth across four Middle Eastern countries.
Under the theme “What I (we) can do to achieve peace?,” the competition brought together over 100 children and parents from Yemen, Syria, Saudi Arabia, and Jordan. Participants illustrated their visions of a peaceful world, conveying messages of hope and harmony rather than war and suffering.
The submitted artworks carried heartfelt messages for peace, depicting pencils instead of tanks, people holding hands instead of barbed wire, and petals floating in place of bombs. One participant shared, “My drawing includes schools and books,” and added, “I want to create a world with peaceful villages where I can spend time with friends instead of facing war.”
This preliminary round went beyond a simple art event, aiming to foster a sense of peace and nonviolent civic awareness among youth who have experienced the scars of conflict in the Middle East. The event gained further significance with the attendance of local media representatives, including Mahmoud Al-Sabul, CEO of Jordan’s Sura Magazine, Dubai TV from the UAE, and journalist Rajaed from the Arab media.
Ahlam Beydoun, an artist from the Lebanon Art Forum, stated, “Art is a universal language that humanity can empathize with,” and emphasized, “The peace you’ve drawn today will become seeds of harmony and stability across generations.” She added, “This competition is a meaningful peace culture and art project hosted by IWPG, headquartered in Seoul, and the participants are artists representing their countries and messengers of peace.”
Seoyeon Lee, Director of IWPG Global Region 2, stated, “The future is held in the fingertips of the children’s drawings,” and added, “I hope the peace that begins from these small hands will one day stop wars and spark change across the world.”
IWPG plans to continue collaborating with educational institutions, governments, and civil society organizations around the world to develop and spread locally tailored peace education programs.
Meanwhile, IWPG is a globally recognized women’s NGO registered with the United Nations Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) and the UN Department of Global Communications (DGC). With 115 branches in 122 countries and 808 partner organizations in 68 countries, IWPG pursues the vision of “achieving sustainable world peace” through activities such as expanding solidarity, spreading a culture of peace, providing peace education for women, and advocating for the legal adoption of the “Declaration of Peace and Cessation of War (DPCW).”
