Minerva, Fall 2011 - Citizens for Global Solutions

Assertive Action To Protect —Without WarLucy Law WebsterLucy Law Webster is a retired UN PoliticalAffairs Officer who is an officer ofthe international World Federalist Movementand of Economists for Peace andSecurity. She is also Executive Directorof the Center for War/Peace Studies.There is no easy way to protect human rights in clique-owned nations to prevent the deliberatekilling of civilians who want change. Nonetheless when transition councils (asin Libya) ask for help, it is right that the UN Security Council and other internationalcooperative bodies (like the Arab League) give a green light for protective action.It is important to note that the real cry for help by people facing death and displacementimposed by internal security forces as in Syria, or by an autocratic regime opposed byinsurgents as in Libya, is totally different from the effort of émigrés from Iraq to getthe United States to invade their country. Urgent requests for help from people on theground are serious cries to protect life; some other reasons given for action such asthose that preceded the U.S. invasion of Iraq are mainly just excuses for war.Our aim should be to avoid war and to empower the international community to helpto protect people whose most basic human rights to life and security are deliberatelyviolated by rulers who use the police power of the state to protect themselves whilekilling and violating other citizens.While there is no simple formula for assertive action to protect that would not involvepotentially-escalating violence with some measure of collateral damage, there are waysto maximize protection while minimizing violence:1. Civil society groups such as Citizens for Global Solutions have asked UN SecurityCouncil permanent members to take “Responsibility Not to Veto”. Similarly, PresidentNicolas Sarkozy recently asked President Vladimir Putin to refrain from using Russia’sveto to block a UN resolution criticizing Syria.2. Non-NATO nations, as well as those in NATO, should make maximum use of thelegal opportunities to deploy UN Standby Peacekeeping forces to protect civilians inareas of danger before potential slaughter occurs.3. Regional groups such as ASEAN, the Gulf Cooperation Council, the African Unionand the European Union should explore ways to act in concert with each other andwithin the UN Charter rules to protect citizens against war and violence.4. To enhance the credibility of the Responsibility to Protect norm, all countries shouldrefrain from using it as an excuse for military action that is not held to the minimumlevel of violence and destruction possible. In discussing Syria with President Sarkozy,President Putin recently pointed out that the war in Iraq had not served the interests ofmost Iraqis. It definitely did not help to advance the R2P norm.5. Monitoring who is responsible for killing civilians (for example in Côte d’Ivoire orSyria) mainly provides data for post-conflict justice. It also helps to establish accountabilityto ICC norms that will deter future killing. Thus it is of value, but not as importantas diplomatic and peace force action to prevent war and internal conflict.6. In the longer run, the UN needs a relatively small directly recruited UN EmergencyPeace Service that can put highly trained UN security forces on the ground, who willrisk their own safety for the protection of civilians.7. Also in the longer run, the UN Security Council should replace the veto power of thevictors in WWII with a system of weighted voting that represents all regions and allnations in an equitable manner.ï44 • Minerva #39 • November 2011