We are only as strong as we are united

The day when all lives matter just as equally still awaits for humanity. The attacks in France and Belgium made it to the headlines, but the ones in Turkey and Syria merely alerted some leaders or members of civil society.

Egoism plays a very crucial role here, it highlights the indifference that underpins such situations. If all lives matter equally, then the terrorist attacks in Brussels wouldn’t have dominated the news while hardly anyone barely expressed solidarity with the casualties in Ankara. The popular phrase that these barbaric acts are a threat to the values of Europe is very correct in principle. However, one must always keep in mind that as European citizens human rights are celebrated and granted to all humans. People are dying every day in every corner of the world, but we empathise with those who might have been us. This individualism is itself an attack on Europe and humanity as a whole.

The leaders of the world spoke, there are those who sought to reach out for peaceful measures and called for unity while others took advantage of this to push forward their agendas against immigration and Muslims. Even here it is clear that there is an imbalance, the leaders of the nations react only when the Western world is under threat.

If we fail to realise that this is not religious but purely political then there is no end.

As misinformed as a Muslim person can be, killing in the name of God was not and will never be religious. Without separation of religion and state, every political point is made through religion.

Immigrants from Syria have been escaping this very ideology and are seeking peace. They should not be scapegoated because they too are being persecuted. Fear must not blind us from understanding others. Closing borders and blaming the many innocent Muslims will definitely not bear fruit. The vulnerable people in the community are always those who will be targeted because if the state does not provide solutions, people will blame those who they feel superior to.

The barbaric attacks in Ankara and Brussels are indeed a tragedy, however the greater the struggle the more glorious the triumph. It is time to look into measures which will benefit all humanity and honour those people who have died with more than just a status on social media because indeed the world cannot lose more precious souls.

Sara Ezabe is a recipient of the Queen’s Young Leaders Award