THE UN SECRETARY-GENERAL
ADDRESS AT THE ASIA SOCIETY:
“CRISIS IN
SYRIA: CIVIL WAR, GLOBAL THREAT”
New York, 20 June 2014
Ms. Josette Sheeran, President and Chief Executive Officer of the
Asia Society, Excellencies, Ladies and Gentlemen,
I am honoured to be hosted by the Asia Society. I thank Josette
Sheeran for her leadership – not only of the Asia Society today, but also for
her previous service as head of the World Food Programme.
I am here to highlight the worsening of the already horrific war
in Syria, which continues to bleed beyond its borders.
I am here to express my disappointment at the cold calculation
that seems to be taking hold -- that little can be done except to arm the
parties and watch the conflict rage.
The international community must not abandon the people of Syria
and the region to never- ending waves of cruelty and crisis.
We must act. All the values for which we stand, and all the
reasons for which the United Nations exists, are at stake, here and now, across
the devastated landscape that is Syria today.
Ladies and Gentlemen,
Let me start by recognizing the full scale of the catastrophe.
The death toll may be well over 150,000. Half the country’s
population of more than 22 million is displaced, including nearly 2.8 million
registered refugees who have fled the violence and persecution. Prisons and
makeshift detention facilities are swelling with men, women and even children.
Deaths by summary executions and unspeakable torture are widespread every day.
People are dying from hunger and from once-rare infectious diseases. Whole
urban centres and some of humankind’s great architectural and cultural heritage
lie in ruins. Destruction and death are everywhere.
It did not have to be this way. In 2011, when thousands of Syrian
civilians peacefully filled the squares of Dara and other places, they were not
calling for regime change. “Hurriya”, they chanted; “freedom”. They held
banners, not weapons. After decades of repression, they wanted reform, not
revolution.
The response of the authorities was merciless: snipers and tanks
firing indiscriminately into the crowds. Appeals to President Assad from around
the world fell on deaf ears. As popular demands escalated, the Government’s
reaction turned even more ferocious. Civilians took up arms. Syrians turned
against each other. Regional powers became involved. Radical groups gained a
foothold. Syria today is increasingly a failed state.
The United Nations has tried hard to address the conflict’s deep
roots and devastating impact. Despite the severe limits on access imposed by
the warring sides, we have launched humanitarian operations of enormous scale.
Our human rights machinery has been scrupulously monitoring, documenting and
condemning atrocities. Our disarmament teams have worked with the Organization
for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons to destroy one of the world’s largest
chemical weapons arsenals.
This work is saving lives and reducing suffering. But our
fundamental objective -- an end to the conflict – remains unmet. Divisions
within Syria, the region and the international community, and continued arms
flows, continue to fuel the conflict. These bleak prospects have darkened
further with the flare-up of violence and sectarian tensions in Iraq. Suddenly,
the cohesion and integrity of two major countries, not just one, is in
question.
The time is long past for the international community, in
particular the Security Council, to uphold its responsibilities. In that
spirit, I offer the following six points that can chart a principled and
integrated way forward to international action.
Ladies and Gentlemen,
First, the immediate priority of the United Nations in Syria is to
end the violence. The Government's indiscriminate use of barrel bombs, SCUD
missiles and artillery; mortar attacks by opposition forces; and terrorist
tactics by extremists highlight the urgent need to stop the killing and
destruction. Governments that hope to regain legitimacy do not massacre their
own people.
It is essential to stem the flow of arms pouring into the country.
It is irresponsible for foreign powers and groups to give continued military
support to parties in Syria that are committing atrocities and flagrantly
violating fundamental principles of human rights and international law.
I urge the Security Council to impose an arms embargo. If
divisions in the Council continue to prevent such a step, I urge countries to
do so individually. Syria’s neighbours should enforce a firm prohibition on the
use of their land borders and airspace for arms flows and smuggling into Syria.
I recognize that an embargo would risk freezing an imbalance in
place, given the extent of the Government’s weaponry. But the Syrian war cannot
be won militarily. The sides will have to sit across
from each other again at the negotiating table. The only question is how many
more people must die before they get there? Increasing numbers of Syrians are
taking matters into their own hands and negotiating agreements to stop the
fighting in their own neighbourhoods. These local agreements may be imperfect,
because some are a result of coercion and deliberate starvation. However they
came about, they indicate a desire of desperate communities to end their suffering
and receive international relief.
Ladies and Gentlemen,
Second, the international community must do its utmost to protect
people – their human rights, their safety, their dignity.
The United Nations is providing food for four million people every
month. A polio vaccination campaign reached more than 3 million children in all
14 governorates. With courage and impartiality, UN relief workers and their
partners, including the Syrian Arab Red Crescent, the ICRC and other NGOs, will
continue to help Syrians in need.
But 4.7 million people are in hard-to-reach locations. The
Government has actively removed medical supplies from aid convoys, and has
collectively punished communities it regards as sympathetic to the opposition.
Some rebel groups have acted similarly. The recent drop in the volume of
assistance is directly linked to complicated bureaucratic procedures imposed by
the Government.
I appeal for an end to the sieges – and for immediate unfettered
humanitarian access across internal frontlines and across borders.
The international community has provided barely a third of the
funding needed for the relief effort. Additional Member States need to step
forward.
I also call on the Syrian Government as well as the armed
opposition and extremist groups to immediately release all individuals who have
been arbitrarily detained. President Assad recently expressed his intention to
authorize a significant release of detainees. I call on him to follow through
on that commitment.
Ladies and Gentlemen,
Third, we desperately need new efforts to start a serious
political process for a new Syria.
The Geneva Communique of 30 June 2012 set out a clear roadmap for
a democratic political transition, and remains the basis for any peaceful
settlement.
However, the warring parties systematically blocked the tireless
efforts of two of the world’s leading diplomats, Kofi Annan and Lakhdar
Brahimi. Diplomacy seems to have stopped in its tracks. The presidential
election earlier this month was a further blow to the political process. The
election did not meet even minimal standards for credible voting, and has
created a fact that runs counter to the Geneva agreement.
I will soon name a new Special Envoy. That person will have a
mandate to pursue a political solution – but will not be able to wave a magic
wand. Much painstaking effort and cooperation will be needed. The Special Envoy
will strive to advance the UN’s protection agenda, and will work with the
parties and their regional backers in a search for new elements on which to
build some hope of a political process.
Diplomacy by the United States and the Russian Federation helped
bring the sides to the table in the first place. I urge them and all the
members of the Security Council to re-engage. Regional countries have a special
responsibility to help end this war. I welcome recent contacts between Iran and
Saudi Arabia and hope that they will build confidence and reverse a destructive
competition in Syria, Iraq, Lebanon and elsewhere.
Let me also underline -- and salute -- the important efforts being
made by Syrian civil society to maintain the fabric of society and keep open
channels of solidarity and communication. These courageous women and men have
much to contribute. Their voices must not be drowned out by the incessant
sounds of violence.
Fourth, any peace process will have to ensure accountability
for serious crimes.
The Syrian people have a fundamental right to justice. The United
Nations and its Member States have a duty to defend that right.
Earlier this year, the Commission of Inquiry established by the
Human Rights Council concluded that the International Criminal Court is the
appropriate venue to pursue the fight against impunity in Syria. The High
Commissioner for Human Rights has repeatedly called on the Council to refer the
situation in Syria to the Court. However, last month the Security Council did
not vote to authorize such a step.
I ask those Member States standing in the way of such a referral
to consider the message this sends about their commitment to accountability. I
ask those who say “no” to the ICC, but who say they support accountability in
Syria, to come forward with credible alternatives.
If not today, then someday the perpetrators will surely be called
to account. No side is innocent in this conflict, and there is no statute of
limitations for the heinous crimes we have seen.
Ladies and Gentlemen,
The Syrian conflict has also been the arena for the first use of
weapons of mass destruction in the 21st century. Our fifth imperative is to finish
the destruction of chemical weapons in Syria.
Despite great challenges, 92 per cent of Syria’s chemical weapons
have been destroyed or removed from the country. Production facilities have
been dismantled and de-commissioned, under the highest standards of
verification. There have been some delays, however, and this work will continue
beyond the original deadline ten days from now.
There have since been additional allegations about the use of
toxic chemicals such as chlorine.
We are all keenly aware that almost all of the killing in Syria is
being done with conventional weapons. Still, it is essential to reinforce the
global norm banishing the production and use of chemical weapons.
Ladies and Gentlemen,
Sixth and finally, we must address the regional dimensions of
the conflict, including the extremist threat.
Syria’s neighbours are showing remarkable resilience and
generosity in hosting the huge influx of refugees. But even as Syrian
displacement continues to increase, the Iraq crisis threatens to lead to new
displacements. The already heightened economic, social and political strains in
recipient countries could intensify.
The conflict has created fertile ground for radical armed groups
from within and outside Syria, including Hezbollah and those affiliated with or
inspired by Al Qaeda or other extremist groups. Foreign fighters are in action
on both sides. This has increased the level of the violence and exacerbated
sectarian divisions.
The Syrian Government has demonized the opposition as terrorists.
But many of the armed opposition groups want to be a part of a political
solution. Some have endorsed the Geneva Communique. At the same time, no one
should be blind to the serious threat posed by terror groups in Syria. Whatever
the differences on the country’s political future, the world must come together
to eliminate funding and other support for organizations designated as
terrorist groups by the Security Council, including Jabhat al-Nusra and the
Islamic State of Iraq and al-Sham.
The Syrian conflict has now spread visibly and devastatingly to
Iraq, with flows of arms and fighters across a porous border. Here, too, while
responding to a very real danger, one must also guard against a narrative that
fails to see the legitimate grievances of all the country’s people, and pursues
a sectarian agenda.
Developments in the past few days make it all too easy to imagine
a spiral of attack and reprisal not seen in Iraq since 2006 and 2007.
The Sunni extremists of ISIS are trying to show that the
Government in Baghdad, Iran and the United States are working together to
support atrocities against Sunnis. This perception would help them mobilize
support from the Sunni majority that does not share the extremists’ agenda. It
is essential that the Government of Iraq and its supporters do everything
possible to avoid falling into this trap. Military strikes against ISIS might
have little lasting effect or even be counter-productive if there is no
movement towards inclusive government in Iraq.
It is imperative for the Government and its backers to ensure that
no reprisals are carried out against Sunni communities in revenge for the
barbaric acts by ISIS. The ISIS is a threat to all communities in Iraq; all
should now work together. Moderate Sunnis should make it clear that they are
against terrorism. Kurds should not be seen as disengaging or benefitting from
the ongoing chaos. And Shias should agree that the army is a national
institution.
Sectarian warfare is a disaster for all. It generates a vicious
circle of polarization and terrorism. It is crucial for the region’s leaders --
political and religious -- to call for restraint and avoid further contagion. I hope other countries,
including Saudi Arabia and Iran as well as other regional governments, can find
ways to build bridges that promote calm and reconciliation.
The United Nations and I personally stand ready to take any
initiative that those leaders would find helpful. The region is already
wrestling with dramatic transition and the fallout of unrealized aspirations.
The risk of massive sectarian violence beyond national borders compels us all
to go the extra mile for peace.
Ladies and Gentlemen,
These six elements can point the way forward – provided there is
strong backing by the warring parties and all those with influence over them.
For the moment, the greatest obstacle to ending the Syria war is
the notion that it can be won militarily. I reject the current narrative that
the Government of Syria is “winning”. Conquering territory through aerial
bombardments into densely populated civilian neighbourhoods is not a victory.
Starving besieged communities into surrender is not a victory.
No one is winning; no one can win. Even if one side were to
prevail in the short term, the devastating toll will have sown the seeds of
future conflict.
To the Syrian people, I say: the United Nations will not give up
in trying to help you restore peace in your country.
To the Member States of the United Nations, my appeal is this: you
must put your differences aside, uphold your responsibilities and work with the
United Nations to end to this tragedy.
Not long ago, I participated in the opening of the renovated
Islamic galleries at the Metropolitan Museum of Art. A great many of the
treasures were from Syria and Iraq. I was inspired by their long civilization.
At the same time, I was deeply saddened to think of the suffering those
countries and peoples are experiencing today, and of the destruction of
thousands of years of cultural heritage in just a few years of violence.
Let us recognize the unimaginable suffering that abounds today;
and work together now to build a better future for the people of Syria.
Follow me on Twitter @NabilAbiSaab
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