The legacy of war is long

That is the main thought I have had in recent days. The legacy of war is long, much of it hidden and unknown. It is intriguing that, just after the 100 year commemoration of WW1, the COVID19 threat should remind us of the 1918/19 worldwide flu epidemic, which killed more people worldwide than the War (more than 50 million compared to 20 million deaths from the war). But it is usually war and conflict that makes the headlines, and which are more popularly revisited in books and films.

At last year’s Anzac Day commemorations, I wondered: how long do we keep ‘remembering’ and in what way? How long, and for what purpose? Now that the 100 year anniversary has past, should we remember in a different way?

 

Well, this year, the COVID threat has kept us honouring Anzac Day at home. It’s made participation easier for all – and seen less cars in the street. Perhaps it’s also reminded us of the ‘freedoms’ we take for granted, freedoms denied in many of the world’s conflict zones, refugee camps, or states of oppression. Who knows what next year will bring? Will COVID19 and its fallout make us think and act differently, after being ‘united’ against this unseen non-human entity?

Often, it takes longer to ‘recover’ from war, than the time spent waging it. Longer-term effects may be hidden, not attributed to the war, manifest themselves years down the track, or are further complicated by other events and crises. My father came out to New Zealand along with many others in the mid 1950s – partly because of the depressed conditions and unemployment in post-WW2 Netherlands.

And while we remember on the large scale – every young death had its significant impact on a particular family and circle of close friends. While we remember today the legacy of war for New Zealand and Australia, let us remember also the impacts in Europe, Turkey, Palestine – and all places where war and conflict has happened and is happening. Let us strive for peace, dignity and freedom for all. Honour the war dead by ending war.

 

Photos: 

A memorial in St Josse-ten-Noode, Brussels, Belgium: 

 

1914-1918

1939-1945

Commune (Community) of St Josse-ten-Noode – to her inhabitants who fell on the field of honour: combatants, resisters, prisoners and political deportees.