Introduction
The ongoing Syrian war has been a significant source of gross violations of human rights. The war began in 2011 between the Syrian Arab Republic and several domestic and international forces (Akhmedov, 2022). The international community has condemned the multiple acts of human rights abuse and war crimes committed by both sides of the conflict. Each side of the conflict has its own narrative and understanding of the causes and consequences of war. The following presentation will discuss the two perspectives on the Syrian conflict, focusing on the causes and consequences, the role of the media in the conflict, and culturally sensitive responses.
Causes from the Syrian Arab Perspective
Domestic Political Tensions
The leading cause of the war from the Syrian Arab Republic’s perspective is domestic political tensions resulting from dissatisfaction with the president’s leadership and economic challenges. Syria had been under the authoritarian administration of the Ba’ath Party, headed by President Assad, since the 1970s before the uprising. This implied that the government had a firm grip on the media, frequently censored it, and aggressively worked to crush any dissident voices that were aimed against its operations (Anouti, 2022). As a result, the populace developed anger, which stoked tensions that would ultimately erupt into open conflict in the form of the 2011 uprising.
Suppression of Protestors
The Arab Spring was a momentous time of turmoil and demonstrations in a show of civil disobedience against repressive regimes throughout the Middle East, including Syria. President Assad and the security forces used force against the initially peaceful protests that were aimed at expressing discontent in the Syrian government to eliminate the demonstrations (Debre, 2021). To restore order and end the protests, the administration used violence, arbitrary detentions, torture, and other cruel practices to crack down on peaceful protestors and maintain control of the population. This did nothing but fan the flames of the rebellion and demonstrate to the population the depths to which the government would go to preserve its hold on power.
Foreign Intervention
The other cause of the conflict was foreign intervention. From the start, the government claimed that it was facing an armed insurrection sponsored and supported by foreign organizations and countries (Ford, 2019). The government blamed regional and international forces for providing military and financial support to the opposition. This was an attempt to destabilize the region and weaken the Syrian government, resulting in prolonged conflict with both forces receiving heavy support. Philosophically and militarily, this foreign backing has played a significant role in the conflict’s protracted nature and has resulted in more suffering and mortality.
Causes from Domestic and International Perspectives
Suppression of Human Rights
According to the opposing parties, the denial of fundamental rights is what started the conflict. President Assad’s autocratic leadership deprived the people of Syria of fundamental freedoms, such as the right to free expression, assembly, and movement (Ford, 2019). Due to his repressive reign and the worsening economic situation, the populace could not challenge his rule peacefully. This sparked a growing public of anti-government attitudes that eventually became open violence in 2011.
Lack of Political Change
The absence of political change is another important aspect from the viewpoint of the opposition groups and international forces. The opposition groups have pressed for President Assad’s ouster and democratic government reform since the revolt began (Tripathi, 2023). Sadly, none of these demands have been complied with by the government and have resulted in more suffering and discrimination against individuals. The battle has only gotten longer and more intense due to this inability to bargain and participate in any substantive political discussion with the opposition, thereby impacting people’s lives negatively.
Conflict Spillover
The conflict was sparked by the spillover from other regional conflicts, according to the viewpoint of the international and domestic perspectives. The war in Iraq, the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, and the regional rivalry between Saudi Arabia and Iran have significantly impacted the Syrian conflict. Due to the regional war and rivalry, many regional actors are now competing for power in Syria and supporting their parties. The Syrian war has been influenced by international forces that seek to influence the region. The vacuum created by the collapse of the Syrian government provided an opportunity to be seized by international forces. This resulted in increased foreign involvement in the war.
Main Consequences of the Conflict
Millions of Syrians have been internally displaced or have fled to neighboring countries due to the conflict, which has caused great misery. More than 13 million Syrians require humanitarian aid due to the conflict, according to the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) of the United Nations (Alkhalil et al., 2022). The worsening economic crisis has brought on widespread poverty, food insecurity, and increased mortality and morbidity rates in the region. The absence of essential services like health and education has worsened the dismal situation, resulting in increased susceptibility to diseases.
Several human rights violations and casualties have occurred among the opposition troops, with allegations of arbitrary killings, torture, rape, and other forms of abuse. The Syrian government has been charged with war crimes, including the continued indiscriminate use of barrel bombs, chemical weapons, and nuclear bombs in civilian areas. The government has also come under fire for its indiscriminate airstrikes, breaches of its citizens’ human rights, and media control, which have resulted in increased mortality and hunger among the population.
The Role of Media
The media have been crucial in bringing attention to human rights violations committed by both sides in the conflict in Syria. The crisis and its many facets, from the crimes committed by the Assad administration to the misery of the civilian people, have received extensive coverage in the leading international media outlets (Zhang & Luther, 2020). While the media has extensively covered the wrongdoings of the government, the opposition forces have mainly benefited from the publicity, indicating a bias in gross human rights abuses.
The Assad regime’s abuses have received more attention in the media than the opposition groups, resulting in bias and an oversimplified image of the fight. The media has also been accountable for ignoring the conflict’s cultural and religious dynamics in favor of the political ones. Therefore, the media should play a role in informing about all aspects of war.
Culturally Sensitive Responses
The international community is responsible for responding to the Syrian crisis in a way that is sensitive to cultural differences and perspectives, and considering the various conflict dynamics. This necessitates acknowledging the complexity of the problem and realizing that there is more than one correct answer. All sides must participate in the negotiations and be given equal chances to be represented to guarantee an inclusive and thorough peace process. The interests of regional, international, and minority groups should be considered since they are marginalized. Local initiatives such as grassroots reconciliation and peace-building programs should be encouraged to build trust among the conflicting sides.
Justice Mechanisms
Any successful peace process must include elements of justice and reconciliation. An effective justice, accountability, and reconciliation system is necessary for a stable and lasting peace in Syria. The International, Impartial, and Independent Mechanism (IIIM) was established in 2016 by the UN Security Council (Krapiva, 2019).
It was founded to investigate human rights violations in Syria since 2011 and charge individuals for serious crimes such as genocide and crimes against humanity under international law. Although the IIIM is a positive step, it does not have prosecution powers, and more needs to be done to guarantee that no war will erupt again and that consequences will be managed effectively, resulting in a likely scenario of justice and reconciliation.
More work needs to be done locally to increase trust and build working relationships between the parties involved in the conflict. To this purpose, various restorative justice models should inspire reconciliation, aid in the reintegration of combatants, and restore harm done to the civilian population. Supporting traditional forms of justice, like customary justice and local peace projects, is essential to strengthening local communities and limiting the possibility of an outbreak of another civil war in the region. This will be a positive step in ending the conflict and advancing peaceful coexistence in the community, resulting in improved living standards and way of life.
Conclusion
The Syrian conflict is complex and multifaceted, with diverse government and opposition perspectives, including local and international forces. Each party involved has its own narrative and understanding of the conflict’s causes and consequences. The media has played a role in raising awareness of human rights abuses violated during the conflict by highlighting news on the conflict in the main international outlets.
The coverage has been biased, focusing only on injustices committed by the government and failing to consider the government’s side. The international community should respond in a culturally sensitive manner that caters to each party’s rights. Effective justice mechanisms should be used to promote reconciliation.
References
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