SYRIA AND THE 'NORMALISATION' OF WAR

If only the combatants could sit and talk and make peace.

The proxy and civil war in Syria has now been raging for just over 5 years, during which time several hundred thousands of Syrians have been killed, many more injured, and millions have been displaced in the country and even more have left it as migrants to other countries bordering it and away from it.

The war has been raging between the Syrian Government and the myriad of opposition forces, and their respective allies. The Government forces are augmented by their Iranian, Hezbollah and Russian allies, while the opposition forces are being supported by their respective allies, such as the Turkey, Saudi Arabia and the Sunni Gulf States, the United States, some of the NATO countries, and some of the states in the Middle East.

Various reasons and rationale have been given for this war of attrition between the Government and the Opposition forces, but more often than not, it has been characterised as a struggle between Sunnis and Shites, including Alawites, or between a 'ruthless dictatorship' and Syrians who want to have a open and transparent 'democratic' system of government. 

Whatever the causes of this conflagration which is consuming Syria and her people, what is now clear is that the country and its people seem to have become greatly fractured and almost mortally wounded, with the armed forces on opposition and government sides apparently wanting to fight until they vanquish the other.

From darkness to light?

The Syrian conflict, like so many others, eg, in Nigeria, Sudan and South Sudan, in Yemen, in Libya, in 'Indonesia' Papua New Guinea, and  in Palestine, has now become 'normalises', with people having to learn how to live with conflict as if it is a normal state of being. The world has become inured to the suffering of the Syrian people, having looked on and tried to help for over 5 years. Like the powerless Syrian civilians, they have lost some of their interest in what is taking place in this tragic death struggle. 

Their governments are guided by their own perceived self-interests, geopolitical consideration and pragmatic about the role they play in the war. They are not easily swayed by arguments about people suffering and the immorality of wars and the need to bring the suffering to an early end. They are not the ones paying the human cost of the war, and are therefore not eager to quickly resolve it.

Avoiding a 'sand castle' peace.

At the same time, the combatants have become more hardened, as they see their comrades, families and others dying. They begin to ask themselves why are they and other people dying; what is it for? For the hyer-religious jihadis, they are dying for the birth of an Islamic State, for an Islamic system of government in Syria, and are prepared to continue to kill, destroy and die for it. Their skewed perception lead them into wrongly thinking they are doing what they are doing because Allah wants them to do it; to replace happiness on earth for the promise of happiness in an undefined and non-existent heaven.

For the ordinary combatant, if there really is such a person, their initial reason for becoming a part of this madness might have been their political idealism, and/or their loyalty to their country, which might not be the same thing as loyalty to the Assad Regime. However, they also would be questioning why they continue to be part of this madness, and might tell themselves that they are doing so to protect their families and friends, as the heart and resolve of many or most of the combatants become hardened and they gradually loose their humanity and it is replaced with the wantonness of war-time psychology.

The ceasefire which has been agreed for at least parts of Syria was an encouraging development, so it is depressing that it now seems to be breaking down, at least in some parts of the country. Most recently their has been another brokered cease-fire to cover Aleppo, but we will have to wait and see how this develops. Just as how we will have to await more details about the bombing of the refugee camp near Sarmada, which has reported resulted in the deaths of dozens of civilians.

Making Syria and the Syrians whole again.

This bloody war needs to be brought to a closure, but also to a sustainable closure which will allow the people of Syrian to rebuild their country as a unified and, hopefully, secular state which guarantees the basic human rights of all its people. 

Further 'normalisation' of this conflict is to be avoided, as it makes recovery from the war much more difficult, as one tries to return to civil societal values and 'abnormalise' conflict.

OWOHROD