Reykjavík Grapevine - 21.06.2013, Blaðsíða 12

by Tómas Gabríel Benjamin
Syria | War
Civil War In Paradise
UNICEF’s Sigríður Víðis Jónsdóttir on Syria
Sigríður, who has a background in jour-
nalism and a master’s degree in, gov-
ernance and international development
from University of East Anglia, first
travelled to Syria in 2009 during a time
of peace. At the time, she was working
on her book ‘Ríkisfang: Ekkert’ (“Citi-
zenship: None”), about Iraqi refugees
who were granted asylum in Akranes,
Iceland. The easiest way into Iraq was
the land route through Syria, and Sig-
ríður had heard a lot of good things
about Syria. “I got myself a room in the
old parts of Damascus, by the centuries’
old city walls,” she says.
The war in Iraq was then in full
swing and Syria was accepting refugees
with open arms. They too rented rooms
in Damascus or lived with relatives.
Most of them were waiting to go back
home, others were building a new one
in Syria.
When she returned to Iceland, Sig-
ríður recommended visiting this beau-
tiful paradise to all of her friends. “It
seemed inevitable that it would expe-
rience the same boom in tourism that
Iceland has seen,” she says, “the culture
was accessible and profound, and the
people very generous. I have lived in
other places for longer periods of time
without being so deeply moved.”
Trading the handshake
for the fist
The Arab Spring swept through Syria in
2011 where a series of protests erupted
into a full-blown civil war. Many were
forced to rely on their neighbouring
countries’ hospitality, with an estimat-
ed 1.5 million Syrians now living as
refugees in Lebanon, Jordan, Iraq and
Turkey, according to the UN Refugee
Agency.
Sigríður says certain societal chang-
es had been on Syrians’ minds when she
was there, changes that might upset the
status quo. “It is only natural that people
come forward to work towards a fairer
society, but what surprised me was that
the protesters were met with extreme
measures when what they were after was
a dialogue.”
The cost of the conflict has been
great, both in human lives and ancient
treasures. “I travelled to Aleppo in the
North and saw the historic old market
and the citadel,” Sigríður says of her for-
mer visit. “They were on the UNESCO
World Heritage list, but have now been
seriously damaged by the war. It is in-
credibly depressing.” In fact, all six of
Syria’s heritage sites have been damaged
or destroyed, including the crusader cas-
tle ‘Krak des Chevaliers.’
Moving forward
Syria is constantly on Sigríður’s mind,
and she feels ill hearing about explo-
sions or fighting in areas she knows
intimately.“The solution,” Sigríður says,
“is for all political leaders that can influ-
ence the situation to commit to do so.”
Until then, she finds some solace in
the stalwart aid work of UNICEF and
other charities. “Help is steadily reach-
ing more Syrians,” she says. “Although
the efforts of a single person can only go
so far, I believe each person has a moral
duty to help others in need. And people
can do just that by donating money to
charities involved, or spreading the word
on social media sites; every little bit
helps.” Icelanders have also been respon-
sive to UNICEF ś emergency appeal for
Syria, Sigríður says. “They seem to un-
derstand that their contributions count.
Each month 22,000 Icelanders also do-
nate to UNICEF, and a fixed part of that
sum goes to our emergency work.”
Recently a couple of noteworthy Ice-
landers have stepped forward criticizing
foreign aid work. Progressive Party MP,
Vigdís Hauksdóttir publically stated that
“a broke man can’t pay for others,” and
Executive Director of Fjölskylduhjálpin
(Family Aid Iceland), Ásgerður Jóna
Flosadóttir insisted we first solve our do-
mestic problems before helping others.
“Why not tackle domestic and for-
eign aid simultaneously?” Sigríður re-
plies. “UNICEF, for example has done
a lot of work for children in Iceland, at
the same time as saving children ś lives
abroad. For just 6,000 ISK we can pro-
vide 107 sachets of therapeutic food for
malnourished children, 167 vaccina-
tions, or 80 notebooks and pencils for
children in need. That’s a lot.”
It goes without saying that it would
be difficult to do as much good for that
amount of money in Iceland.
In emergency situations like Syria,
Sigríður says children are always the
most vulnerable. “We have mobile medi-
cal teams that perform life-saving opera-
tions, but children need more than just
food and medication,” Sigríður says.
Schools get destroyed or shut down be-
cause of fighting, but once they reopen
it is vital that children start going back.
“Not only does it give them an education,
but also a routine and something to look
forward to.”
Syria has been transformed from
what Sigríður remembers, but she says
she still wants to revisit it. “The war is
terrible, but what people forget,” she
says, “is that life still goes on. People
still wake up, go about their day and fall
asleep. One day this conflict will come
to an end.”
Having just finished a conference call with the executive directors of UNICEF, Sigríður Víðis Jónsdóttir is relieved to hear good news from Syria – a weekly
report shows that emergency supplies for women and children have reached bombarded Aleppo and Homs in Syria. After two years of brutal civil war, the
infrastructure of the country has crumbled and access to basic services has been crippled. Sigríður is the communication director of UNICEF Iceland, and is
responsible for raising awareness of the emergency relief efforts in Syria.
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Photo: Nanna Dís
Photo: UNICEF
12The Reykjavík Grapevine Issue 8 — 2013