U.N. report highlights “unintended’ impact of sanctions on Syrian people
QAMISHLI, Syria (North Press) – A United Nations agency released on Friday a report highlighting how sanctions against Syria affected the lives of the Syrian people.
The United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Western Asia (ESCWA) released a report titled “Dynamics and Unintended Effects of Unilateral Coercive Measures (UCMs) against the Syrian Arab Republic,” which provides insight on how sanctions are affecting different areas of people’s lives in Syria.
After the beginning of the conflict in Syria and in response to the Syrian government’s actions towards protests, the U.S. and the European Union enforced Unilateral Coercive Measures on Syrian entities in May 2011.
The sanctions targeted individuals and organizations through sector-specific restrictions, focusing on key economic areas like oil, electricity, information technology, and banking.
“Our report provides a detailed look into how UCMs have unintendedly affected the lives of ordinary Syrians, particularly access to essential sectors such as healthcare, education, food security, agriculture, WASH, and humanitarian assistance,” stated Dina Melhem, head of the National Agenda for the Future of Syria (NAFS) project at ESCWA.
“By unintended impact of sanctions, the study means impacts falling outside of the stated objectives of the UCM measures as formally adopted.”
The main discoveries in the report show that 66 percent of surveyed individuals throughout Syria are against the sanctions.
Even those who favored the sanctions acknowledged the harmful effects they had on their financial situations.
Over-compliance significantly undermines the effectiveness of exemptions, “impacting financial transactions, contracting, procurement, imports, and humanitarian operations,” the report states.
It pointed out that the shortage of certain goods directly affects essential services, input availability, and costs for people’s livelihoods, such as the production of pharmaceutical products and importation of machinery and inputs for agriculture.
The report stressed the need for continuous discussions with stakeholder, including NGOs to address unintended consequences of sanctions.
The report also called for providing “clear regulations and information on permitted trade and procedures for smooth humanitarian operations, as well as ensuring access to legal aid or services for dealing with multiple sanctions regimes.”