Op-Ed: Refugees Must Carry Peace, Not the Shadows of the Past

Discussions about asylum seekers often focus on politics, policies, or social pressures. Yet behind these debates lies a profoundly human story. Seeking refuge is not merely crossing borders—it is a journey toward life, dignity, and hope. At its core is a universal truth: every person longs to live free from fear.

When individuals flee war, persecution, or oppression, they make a moral choice as much as a physical one. They leave behind danger and humiliation to reclaim their humanity. The refugee experience, stripped of labels and stereotypes, reflects both human fragility and resilience. We flee because we must. We survive because we refuse to surrender our sense of self, even when everything around us seeks to strip it away.

Arriving in a new country does not end this journey—it begins a deeper ethical challenge. Sanctuary brings safety, but it also brings responsibility. Refugees must ask: What does it mean to live rightly in a nation that has given us peace? How do we honour the freedom we sought? What obligations accompany the security we now enjoy?

A central moral principle emerges from these questions: those who escape conflict must not recreate it. Having fled authoritarianism, extremism, or oppression, we cannot carry those patterns into our new home. To do so would betray the very values that drove us to seek refuge.

Communities in exile may feel a pull toward old grievances or rivalries. Trauma does not vanish easily. Yet ethical living calls for discernment. Our memories should guide us, not bind us; they should become lessons, not weapons.

Peace is not passive; it is an active, ongoing choice. For refugees, it is both personal and collective. We owe it to ourselves—to heal. We owe it to our new home—to contribute. And we owe it to the world—to show that those who have escaped darkness can also be bearers of light.

This responsibility is liberating, not burdensome. Choosing peace ends cycles of harm. Rejecting division affirms that renewal is possible. Honouring the generosity of our host country is not a transaction—it is a relationship that calls for gratitude, humility, and ethical participation.

I speak from experience. I have lived through conflict, persecution, and fear. I chose not only to leave my homeland but also to leave behind the destructive forces that once shaped my life. Peaceful societies are not accidental; they are carefully, consciously, courageously built. Every refugee who steps onto new soil has the opportunity to contribute to that creation.

We have one life. Survival brought us here; the next step is how we choose to live it. If we have been given peace, we must value it. If we have gained freedom, we must protect it. If we have escaped darkness, we must not cast its shadow on our new home.

The path is clear: live gently, live consciously, and honour both our past struggles and our present refuge. In seeking safety, let us also become sources of stability, unity, and peace.