Hey World Cup fans, resolving conflict in Africa means getting off the sidelines
A young boy trails behind his father and brother as they walk through a "Protection of Civilians" site established at the United Nations in Juba. Photo: Mackenzie Knowles Coursin / Oxfam
Since football is a universal language, we can enjoy the World Cup and at the same time stand in solidarity with those who need a leg up.
In the world’s newest nation, South Sudan, thousands have been killed and 1.5 million have had to flee for their lives – that’s nearly three times the number of fans at the World Cup. With 500,000 soccer fans at the World Cup to witness the hopeful glory of their teams, Brazil has employed 170,000 security personnel. Imagine that this is almost five times as many peacekeepers the United Nations has deployed to protect civilians caught up in the conflicts engulfing South Sudan, Sudan, and the Central Africa Republic.
But Africans across the continent are taking action. In this blog post Winnie Byanyima, Executive Director of Oxfam International, shares more about how Africans Act 4 Africa are hosting football matches across Africa as a sign of solidarity with their brothers and sisters in South Sudan, Sudan, Somalia and the Central African Republic. Their new campaign #SilencetheGuns, is aimed at pushing the African Union to keep its commitment to end conflict in Africa.