Syrias Propaganda Cloud: How the West Is Falling for Misinformation
Jun 22, 2012 4:45 AM EDT
From paid protesters on both sides and outsiders money to the rise of an ominous, unknown third party, the media war is oversimplifying what could be a powder keg.
Having just returned from Syria a few days ago, I can confirm that the situation on the ground there is very disturbing, though perhaps not in the way that many might assume. As it stands, the government remains in control over most of the countryincluding the economydespite the best efforts of propagandists to say otherwise. Yet if the Syrian economy worsens, and if the crisis there comes to involve more and more groupsboth inside and outside the countrythere is a growing possibility that what started as a conflict between the Syrian government and a ragtag group of rebels will become a powder keg that could escalate into a regional war and possibly even an international confrontation.
Already, tourism has collapsed in Damascus and much of the countrys economy has become stagnant. Nevertheless, Syrias historical self-sufficiency, coupled with help from the likes of Russia and Venezuela to meet shortages, means that the economy is not in dire straits. What is clear, however, is that the violent instability facing the country (whatever its origins or aims) is exacerbating a shaky economy that was weak even before the crisis blew up last year. Today, money is coming into the country from many sources, including Turkey, Iraq, Iran, Qatar, and Saudi Arabia, among other nations who are supporting one or more of the various players. Yet such political inflows of funds have a tendency to eventually do more harm than good.
Some of those inflows, for instance, are funding propaganda, which serves to exaggerate Syrias genuine problemseconomic and otherwiseas part of a great spectacle to sway world opinion. This includes Saudi money coming into Syria via Lebanon to fund demonstrations, with people getting $30 a day to protestin front of cameras and microphones, of course. That isnt to say that there arent many genuine demonstrators with real grievances; at the same time, the government habitually stages its own propaganda shows, also inducing people to whoop it up for the media. Such stage-management, along with fake torture videos and a host of other propaganda stunts, provide false justification for or against outside meddling, with some Europeans and certain people in Washington pushing for various military options, and a broad group led by Russia and China, but also including many in the region, calling for diplomatic solutions to the crisis.
The recent launch of the Mayadeen television by Syrian and other private-sector money and including some ex-Al Jazeera staff, presumably to counter the latter stations anti-Damascus slant, is a good example of how this media war is evolving. The problem is that many in the Gulf and the West seem keen on turning Syria into a pit of conflict, with the aim of isolating Iran and her allies. Such plans are foolish and will likely backfire, leading to more violence along the Syrian borders and beyond.
The sheer amount of propaganda makes charting the future scope of the conflict difficult. But one possibility is that Syria will explode into all-out civil war, replicating the dark days of Lebanon in the 1980s or in Baghdad after the fall of Saddam, some two decades later. In both cases, different shadowy groups ran amok, as economic fragility and security fears allowed outsiders to indulge in political manipulation. For some in the West and elsewhere, all that would be good news, providing as it does leverage to send messages to others through car-bombs, kidnapping, etc. Yet, meddling in this manner might backfire, as troublemakers flourishing in a chaotic Syria could damage Western interests in the region, putting oil facilities and other businesses at greater risk from armed groups, while making life less safe for tourists and others from Europe or America.
The signs are already ominous. As the violence intensified this spring, Ahmad Fawzi, a spokesman for the joint Arab League-United Nations special envoy, Kofi Annan, said at a press conference in Geneva that there is a third element that appeared on the ground in Syria, adding that hallmarks of some activities or incidents appear to come from sources other than opposition or government. A few days later, Fawzis perspective was confirmed by Martin Nesirky, U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-Moons spokesman, who told reporters in New York of his fear that a third force was at play in Syria. Though he insisted that theres no hard evidence on specific groups," Nesirky added that this undoubtedly complicates the task of stabilization by the international community. At around the same time, U.N. peacekeeping chief Hervé Ladsous spoke at a press conference in Damascus of a terrorist third party, warning against further militarization of the crisis.
Syria
Shame on outsiders creating another hell whilst Syrians are being killed
Jun 22, 2012 4:45 AM EDT
From paid protesters on both sides and outsiders money to the rise of an ominous, unknown third party, the media war is oversimplifying what could be a powder keg.
Having just returned from Syria a few days ago, I can confirm that the situation on the ground there is very disturbing, though perhaps not in the way that many might assume. As it stands, the government remains in control over most of the countryincluding the economydespite the best efforts of propagandists to say otherwise. Yet if the Syrian economy worsens, and if the crisis there comes to involve more and more groupsboth inside and outside the countrythere is a growing possibility that what started as a conflict between the Syrian government and a ragtag group of rebels will become a powder keg that could escalate into a regional war and possibly even an international confrontation.
Already, tourism has collapsed in Damascus and much of the countrys economy has become stagnant. Nevertheless, Syrias historical self-sufficiency, coupled with help from the likes of Russia and Venezuela to meet shortages, means that the economy is not in dire straits. What is clear, however, is that the violent instability facing the country (whatever its origins or aims) is exacerbating a shaky economy that was weak even before the crisis blew up last year. Today, money is coming into the country from many sources, including Turkey, Iraq, Iran, Qatar, and Saudi Arabia, among other nations who are supporting one or more of the various players. Yet such political inflows of funds have a tendency to eventually do more harm than good.
Some of those inflows, for instance, are funding propaganda, which serves to exaggerate Syrias genuine problemseconomic and otherwiseas part of a great spectacle to sway world opinion. This includes Saudi money coming into Syria via Lebanon to fund demonstrations, with people getting $30 a day to protestin front of cameras and microphones, of course. That isnt to say that there arent many genuine demonstrators with real grievances; at the same time, the government habitually stages its own propaganda shows, also inducing people to whoop it up for the media. Such stage-management, along with fake torture videos and a host of other propaganda stunts, provide false justification for or against outside meddling, with some Europeans and certain people in Washington pushing for various military options, and a broad group led by Russia and China, but also including many in the region, calling for diplomatic solutions to the crisis.
The recent launch of the Mayadeen television by Syrian and other private-sector money and including some ex-Al Jazeera staff, presumably to counter the latter stations anti-Damascus slant, is a good example of how this media war is evolving. The problem is that many in the Gulf and the West seem keen on turning Syria into a pit of conflict, with the aim of isolating Iran and her allies. Such plans are foolish and will likely backfire, leading to more violence along the Syrian borders and beyond.
The sheer amount of propaganda makes charting the future scope of the conflict difficult. But one possibility is that Syria will explode into all-out civil war, replicating the dark days of Lebanon in the 1980s or in Baghdad after the fall of Saddam, some two decades later. In both cases, different shadowy groups ran amok, as economic fragility and security fears allowed outsiders to indulge in political manipulation. For some in the West and elsewhere, all that would be good news, providing as it does leverage to send messages to others through car-bombs, kidnapping, etc. Yet, meddling in this manner might backfire, as troublemakers flourishing in a chaotic Syria could damage Western interests in the region, putting oil facilities and other businesses at greater risk from armed groups, while making life less safe for tourists and others from Europe or America.
The signs are already ominous. As the violence intensified this spring, Ahmad Fawzi, a spokesman for the joint Arab League-United Nations special envoy, Kofi Annan, said at a press conference in Geneva that there is a third element that appeared on the ground in Syria, adding that hallmarks of some activities or incidents appear to come from sources other than opposition or government. A few days later, Fawzis perspective was confirmed by Martin Nesirky, U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-Moons spokesman, who told reporters in New York of his fear that a third force was at play in Syria. Though he insisted that theres no hard evidence on specific groups," Nesirky added that this undoubtedly complicates the task of stabilization by the international community. At around the same time, U.N. peacekeeping chief Hervé Ladsous spoke at a press conference in Damascus of a terrorist third party, warning against further militarization of the crisis.
Syria
Shame on outsiders creating another hell whilst Syrians are being killed
