How the UK has failed to protect Syria
The extent of the deaths in Syria could have been avoided if the responsibility to protect had been upheld, says Rayhan Haque.
Saturday 5 January 2019 12:59, UK
After comments made by Foreign Secretary Jeremy Hunt about the situation in Syria, Rayhan Haque, convener of the foreign affairs think thank Fabian International Policy Group, says the UK has neglected its responsibilities.
Hundreds of thousands of people were shockingly killed in the genocides that engulfed Rwanda and parts of Bosnia in the 1990s. The horrors that took place compelled the world in pledging "never again".
Yet two decades later, history has repeated itself in Syria. Conflict there has completely devastated the country, with over half a million deaths and dozens of chemical weapons attacks.
Some 13 million people have also been displaced and years of fighting has led to a global refugee crisis on a scale not seen since the Second World War.
And now Jeremy Hunt, in his comments to Sky News, has all but officially conceded defeat in efforts to remove Bashar al Assad from power. This will be an incredibly difficult pill to swallow for all those who have suffered or lost loved ones under his reign of terror.
The foreign secretary also called on Russia to secure peace in the country and to make "sure that President Assad does not use chemical weapons on his own people".
That same Russia has vetoed 12 UN Security Council resolutions on Syria, including those to investigate and to hold those carrying out chemical weapons attacks responsible.
This depressing outcome is no accident. In fact, it could have been avoided if not for our shameless failure to uphold the responsibility to protect commitment (R2P).
This doctrine asserts that states have a responsibility to protect their citizens and others around the world from mass atrocity crimes. It was universally agreed at the 2005 UN World Summit and provides a framework for preventing atrocities of the kinds witnessed in Syria.
R2P is principally about prevention.
Between the first peaceful protests in Syria in February 2011 and full scale conflict in mid-2012, there was a huge missed opportunity for meaningful political and diplomatic action to help bring about a peaceful settlement.
Being absent from the game eventually paved the way for Russia’s entry into the war to save Mr Assad.
R2P can really work in averting atrocity crimes and humanitarian disasters, but only if you commit to undertaking effective preventative action.
The UK needs to learn lessons from Syria and lead the global renewal of R2P.
First, a more balanced assessment of the costs of action and inaction is needed when facing these crises.
Syria has tragically shown us what can happen if we fail to act properly or do nothing. Developing a cross-governmental atrocity prevention strategy would go some way to facilitating that.
Second, we must remember R2P is 99% about prevention.
That means working towards developing a global early warning system with real teeth, which measures risk levels and identifies potential flashpoints.
It means focusing our overseas support budget on capacity building in vulnerable states, such as developing robust judicial and rule of law systems. And it also means being there to help during big change moments, such as elections and transitions of power.
Finally, we need to ensure the UK is in no way, either directly or indirectly, playing a part in atrocity development.
We could start by immediately ending arms sales and military support to states such as Saudi Arabia, who are bombing the life out of Yemen.
If we are serious about atrocity prevention and still want to manufacture and export arms, then that trade must be properly regulated under an ethical framework.