Right now, it might feel like you can’t turn on the news without seeing coverage of atrocities taking place across the globe. The ongoing violence in Syria, Iraq and elsewhere demands urgent attention, and calls on us to answer the question of what more can be done to protect civilians at risk.
Preventing mass atrocities and genocide is a core national security interest and a core moral responsibility of the United States
On May 18, President Barack Obama issued an Executive Order outlining “A Comprehensive Approach to Atrocity Prevention and Response.” This Executive Order seeks to further shift the U.S. government from investing in overwhelming military force to investing in long-term atrocity prevention strategies.
Following a bipartisan demand from the Senate in 2010 to do more to prevent atrocities, the President established a high-level working group that draws high ranking officials from the military, intelligence community, foreign service, financial sector, and other parts of the government into regular meetings that monitor early warning signs of mass violence and organize the U.S. government’s response. This is a huge step toward better reorganizing our government to prevent mass violence. What the president did with his Executive Order this weekend is institutionalize this group, known as the Atrocities Prevention Board.
Here are five reasons why President Obama’s Executive Order matters:
1. Preventing Violence and Protecting Civilians is the Right Thing to Do
Today 60 million people are displaced by conflict.
Our world is currently facing an unprecedented number of humanitarian crises fueled by violent conflict. In recent years, reports have found global armed conflicts are becoming more deadly – in Syria, over 100,000 civilians alone are estimated to have been killed.
Further, over 60 million people have been displaced by conflict worldwide – a level higher than the end of World War II. By 2030, the UNDP has predictedfifty percent of the world’s poor will live in areas facing violence and conflict.
Investing and expanding the U.S. efforts to prevent atrocities is critical in protecting civilians, breaking cycles of violence, and ensuring sustainable peace.
2. Early Prevention is More Effective than Late Intervention
Institutionalizing atrocity prevention to mitigate and break cycles of violence.
The Atrocities Prevention Board identifies early warning signs for atrocities and genocide, and can spur the U.S. government to take preventative action in advance of a crisis, and in places where violence does break out can help to catalyze early response. The APB also identifies gaps and makes recommendations to strengthen policies, programs, resources, and tools to improve prevention capacities.
By prioritizing investments in prevention, the U.S. government is able to move away from the false dichotomy of intervening militarily or doing nothing to more effectively addressing the underlying drivers of violence.
3. Building Peace is Cheaper than Fighting War
The global impact of violence containment is $9.46 trillion.
By some estimates, preventing war is sixty times cheaper than fighting a war. Investing one dollar in prevention measures saves the world ten dollars in recovery costs. Prevention investments also produce a substantial positive effect for the wider economy by improving governance and institutions.
The cost of containing the fallout from violence is staggering. In 2014, the Institute for Economics & Peace calculated the global economic impact of violence containment was $9.46 trillion U.S. dollars.
4. Atrocities Prevention is Already Working
Early warning and action has saved lives.
U.S. government-wide efforts to prevent atrocities through the APB have already had an impact – from efforts to support civil society advocates for free and fair elections in Kenya to supporting local leaders working to build peace in the Central African Republic and Burundi. As a country, the U.S. may never be able to prevent all atrocities, but the nation has a responsibility to act where possible, apply lessons learned, and build structures to prevent mass violence.
5. Both Republicans and Democrats Support Atrocities Prevention
Atrocities prevention has long-established bipartisan support.
In 1988, President Ronald Reagan signed the U.S. law ratifying the United Nations Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of Genocide, stating: “This legislation represents a strong and clear statement by the United States that it will punish acts of genocide with the force of law and righteousness of justice.”
President Bill Clinton established the first Office of War Crimes Issues, now known as the Office on Global Criminal Justice. President George W. Bush incorporated the prevention of atrocities and genocide into his 2002 and 2006 National Security Strategies, professing the “moral imperative that states take action to prevent and punish genocide.”
President Obama’s Executive Order is another welcome step in the long established bipartisan consensus that preventing genocide and mass atrocities is a core national security interest of the United States.
The reasons for investing in atrocities prevention are compelling. President Obama’s Executive Order is an important step in institutionalizing this approach as part of a more comprehensive U.S. government strategy. However, to further strengthen our commitment to preventing mass violence and protecting civilians, Congress must also take action to permanently authorize the APB and sustain the complementary tools that work to make effective prevention possible. Passage of the Genocide and Atrocities Prevention Act, S.2551, now before the Senate would provide this needed support.
