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For me,
peace means doing my usual household duties without hearing the noise of
guns nearby and you can come home safely and freely
do regular things like helping your kids. Now my family and I can look forward
to the future,
because those problems are no longer there.
It's one of the poorest countries in the world, ranked
in the bottom ten. A devastating civil war lasting 12 years
led to the displacement of 1.3 million Burundians by 2005,
mainly to the refugee camps of neighboring Tanzania.
But Burundi is not a country defined by harrowing statistics,
it's a country marked by the commitment and sheer determination of its people
to fight for peace and for justice, to get back on their feet,
and to become self sufficient once again.
When someone is respected
they feel they have justice. Justice does not discriminate rich people from poor ones,
real justice respects young and adult rights and treats everybody fairly.
In times of peace, you can travel easily.
You know when night comes and you've not finished your journey, you can trust others and
ask for somewhere to sleep,
something to eat and then in the morning you can continue your journey peacefully.
Cord's all-Burundian team have been working with communities since 2005
to make the vision a self sufficient and peaceful life
a reality. Last year alone our team helped peacefully resettle
and secure access to food for 700 families.
Together we built 150 water springs
and improved drinking water for 27,000 people.
We buildt 12 new classrooms each with their own latrine
and trained and empowered over 1,700 people
with increased literacy, numeracy skills and understanding
of their human rights.
Peace and justice means something different to everyone, but its community partnerships
such as these
which will help build the foundations for the future.
For me, peace is when nobody is killed in our country,
peace means that we can travel easily even at night,
piece also means living with people and helping each other with problems.
To me, justice means well-being;
living peacefully without quarreling with others.
I think when nobody is poor, you have peace. When everyone has something to eat you have peace.
Cord's work across Africa and Asia is focused on ending poverty
and building peace. You can donate online
at cord.org.uk, by calling us
on 01926 315301
or by sending a cheque payable to Cord
to 1 New Street,
Leamington Spa, CV31 1HP
Please give whatever you can.
Thank you for your support.