"The
victims are fleeing truly horrendous situations: war, violence and savagery.
Paradoxically, the vast majority come from countries where both the United
States and European Union sought artificially to sow democracy. In Iraq,
Afghanistan, the nations of North Africa, and of course, Syria, the
shortsightedness and naiveté of the Europeans and their American allies have contributed
to the disaster of the hundreds of thousands now attempting to escape. The
least they can do is to face their own responsibility."
"After the child drowns,
cap the well [Después de ahogado el niño a tapar el pozo]." The old proverb remains relevant even
today: the chilling, haunting images of a Syrian boy drowned off the coast of
Turkey (and less widely known, his older died as well) have shaken the
conscience of the world and obliged the countries of the European Union to reconsider
their positions on the migrant crisis.
European companies and governments have demonstrated both
the best and the worst in themselves. There have been truly
moving gestures of humanity and generosity, bureaucratic reactions are equally but
not surprising shocked, and outbreaks of xenophobia and discrimination have
been overwhelmed by widespread examples of decency and openness.
The worst is without a doubt the reaction of the Hungary
government. Determined to make life impossible for migrants who have the
misfortune of arriving at its border and in the hope that doing so will halt the
human tide, Budapest has offered them degrading and humiliating treatment. From
deceitfully luring them onto trains destined for detention camps to marking their
arms with ID numbers, these perfidious Hungarians have forgotten their history,
their origins, and their responsibility as members of the more-civilized community
of nations. I won't dwell on the details of their meanness because space for
this column is limited. Suffice it to say that today's Hungarian government does
not represent Hungary and Hungarians, who I know as a brave and good people,
many of whom were also migrants.
It's a step down from the meanness and selfishness of
governments like Poland, the Czech Republic or Slovakia. Seeking to vaccinate
themselves against the possible arrival of today's desperate,
as they too were once, they have also forgotten their history, which has involved
numerous migrations. It is amnesia written with the letter "d"
for discrimination, not to mention selfishness. Of the English, not much different
can be said, although special mention should be made of the political lout [UKIP Parliament candidate Peter Bucklitsch] who wrote that the drowned boy looked well
dressed and well fed, and that his parents were greedy for seeking the
"good life" in Europe.
In contrast,
Germany, Austria and France have led the way: from Angela Merkel, who chose to
run the gauntlet of risk attendant with facing the wrath of the anti-immigrant
movement, to the thousands of volunteers who have taken to the streets to
welcome the refugees and offer them clothing, food, employment or education. There
are similar scenes in Austria and an equally courageous stance by the French
government. In all three of these countries, groups and xenophobic parties
exist that will look to portray this as a humiliation. True leaders, however, know
when to ignore polls and do the right thing. Good for them and the many
others doing as they are doing.
The victims
are fleeing truly horrendous situations: war, violence and savagery.
Paradoxically, the vast majority come from countries where both the United
States and European Union sought artificially to sow democracy. In Iraq,
Afghanistan, the nations of North Africa, and of course, Syria, the
shortsightedness and naiveté of the Europeans and their American allies have contributed
to the disaster of the hundreds of thousands now attempting to escape. The
least they can do is to face their own responsibility.
One last thought:
Mexico at one time had a great tradition of welcoming refugees from different
parts of the world. We received at those fleeing Nazism, Spanish fascism, South
American dictatorships, and civil war and repression in Central America. So on
something we were once so proud of has been lost, along with the compass we
once had when it comes to so many other aspects of our own morality and
humanity.
*Gabriel Guerra is a
political analyst and communicator.
"After the child drowns,
cap the well [
