Sanctions
Part of the neoliberal strategy?
A crime against humanity?
By Rocio
Campos, TFF Peace
Antenna
It is inevitable not to react to Pressinfo # 90
"Lift the Sanctions and Bring More Aid to Yugoslavia". To
convey images with the facts and descriptions offered by
TFFs conflict-mitigation team members Soren Sommelius and
Jan Oberg should be the duty of responsible journalism,
but it is good not to wait for that to happen and take
responsible initiative.
The demolition of the middle-class seems to be the
priority of the global neoliberal policies that have been
adopted by most developing countries and make rich elites
richer and poor masses poorer. The examples are manifold.
I can think of Mexico for instance, where according to
Carlos Fuentes 40 million live in poverty, and 17 million
in extreme poverty. Another Mexican, Carlos Slim, is one
of the richest men in the world who among many businesses
owns Mexico's telephone company, Telmex. He has benefited
from the privatization policies of a neoliberal state
apparatus.
In the light of globalization, international sanctions
have also proliferated as a measure against millions
around the world. Just think of the effects of UN
sanctions on Iraq, where children died because they had
no medicines. Is the lack of medicine in Serbia and
Montenegro a result of the sanctions too?
Could the legitimacy of international sanctions be a
case for the International Court of Justice or the
International Criminal Court? This is indeed a crime
against humanity!
It is not completely clear to me why is the DM the
present currency in Montenergo and used all over
Yugoslavia and elsewhere in the Balkans? More important
than that, what will happen when the European Monetary
Union starts operating? Has the European Union a
homogenous policy regarding the sanctions?
It would be good to let Europe know why
750,000-800,000 refugees represent a problem. Why should
the West care about this? It seems crucial to talk about
the effects of possible migrations in the form of
unemployment, economic crisis and other issues that may
raise people's awareness and concern. Those of us who
believe in social responsibility and international
justice should be creative enough to push the right
buttons in order to get the attention and support even of
those who do not share these values.
The pictures and personal stories described by Soren
Sommelius and Jan Oberg are extremely helpful to us who
were not there to witness what they did. They remind me
of the living conditions of coloured people at the
relocation or concentration camps during the South
African War (1899-1902) as described by J.M. Coetzee in
the novel "Life & Times of Michael K."
Will international sanctions lead to the globalization
of apartheid? Will international sanctions stop if they
reach economic and political elites? How far do the
social costs of these sanctions need to go so they may
translate into social responsibility? Once again in
history, it seems obvious that there is a hidden agenda,
aiming to nourish confusion with the illusion that
everything is been taken care of.
The confusion of war and the illusion of peace for
some money, political power, or what?
May 2000
© Rocio Campos
2000
Rocío Campos, MA
Kroc Institute for International Peace Studies
University of Notre Dame
Indiana, United States
Contact <Campos.3@nd.edu>
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