'Say no to toy weapons': Malakand's children launch campaign

School children and social activists distribute awareness pamphlets among shopkeepers selling toy weapons.

THANA: To promote peace in the area, school children from Malakand urged shopkeepers to not sell toy weapons.

An anti-toy weapons campaign was organised by Hunar Kor in Malakand on Saturday with the slogan: “Say no to toy weapons.”

As a part of the campaign, school children and social activists distributed awareness pamphlets among the shopkeepers criticising the trend of selling toy guns, pistols and other weapons.

During the shop-to-shop campaign, school children displayed their paintings based on the campaign’s theme.

While speaking to The Express Tribune, female student Gul Afshan said that “instead of stocking toy-weapons, the shopkeepers must sell items that can help us learn.”

Renowned Pashto poet and singer Amjad Shahzad spoke on the occasion and said that children should be saved from the gun-culture which is one of the main causes of lawlessness in the region.

“Sometimes, a small mistake leads to bigger destruction. In the same way, the toy guns lead our children towards gun-culture,” he said.

Member of Hunar Kor Nangyal Yousufzai said that “when parents buy toy guns, they buy a tool for their children which pushes their minds towards militant thinking.”

He advised people to buy toys that help children to be creative.

“If we introduce our children to books and pens then we can nurture a good generation,” he added.

Artist Faisal Kohzad said an alarming number of Pakhtoon children are playing with toy guns and their parents don’t even realize the negative effects they might have on their children.

The participants of the campaign urged parents not to buy such toys while appealed to the government to take notice of this trend and ban the sale of toy guns.