The demise of multilateralism

The multiple conflicts and deprivations plaguing our world today demonstrate an evident crisis of multilateralism. One wonders what it will take to make the international system, with its plethora of rules and mechanisms for cooperation, as well as varied agencies, more effective in terms of making this world a better and more stable place.

It took the unprecedented devastation caused by WWI to create the momentum to formulate a League of Nations, and its failure to avert WWII, led to its dissolution, and creation of the prominent multilateral agencies of today, with mandates ranging from facilitating trade to addressing environmental concerns, to improving the lives of women and children.

However, the existing system of multilateral engagement is by no means perfect and the policies it has encouraged to achieve economic growth and prosperity for all have not only failed to deliver, but often exacerbated other problems. Multilateral engagement has also been unable to prevent armed conflict in any meaningful way in much of the developing world. International humanitarian law also remains marginalised, and fundamental humanitarian principles are easily ignored by states and non-state armed groups, within the varied theatres of conflict plaguing much of the global South.

Accompanying these lacklustre results, is the growing distrust in the idea of globalisation and respect for international norms, even within the advantaged global North. Under the Trump government, the US has distanced itself from a major climate change agreement, it has made cuts to UN budgets and other international humanitarian and development aid. The EU has changed with Brexit and several European countries which were parties to the UN 1951 refugee convention have abandoned their legal responsibilities.

Therefore, for all practical purposes, frameworks like the UN refugee convention, the Paris climate change agreement are in a shambles, and the International Criminal Court remains unable to punish perpetrators of major acts of violence.

While by no means perfect, multilateralism’s demise is not good news either. Without multilateral engagement, the ability of the so-called international community to address Herculean tasks such as climate change and other global challenges will be further compromised.

Ideas for reforming multilateral engagements are already on the table, such as the ‘Planning from the Future’ study conducted by King’s College London, the Feinstein International Center at Tufts University and the Humanitarian Policy Group at the Overseas Development Institute, which focuses particularly on reforming multilateral capacity to address humanitarian needs.

This recent report offers a diagnosis of what ails the system and a broad outline of what change could look like. It rightly points out how the humanitarian architecture today has not changed much since the 1950s, it’s only much bigger. While institutions have grown in terms of size, scope and number, and advances have been made in the technique of humanitarian response, the key issues of leadership and decision-making have not been addressed.

The multilateral system remains under-represented and over-proceduralised. Moreover, post-9/11 counter-insurgency agendas have heightened the securitisation and militarisation of humanitarian action. There is urgent need for humanitarian action to become more anticipatory, effective and accountable in terms of its approach to crisis response. Humanitarian action must be neither ‘of the North’ nor partial to any agenda, particularly in conflict situations. It should be able to work with a broad constellation of actors, including warring parties, national and regional disaster management authorities, civil society and the private sector, while retaining its independent character.

While there is need to overhaul a range of multilateral organisations, including those meant to facilitate trade, provide international finance, and promote development in general, those instruments and agencies focused on addressing humanitarian concerns is a good place to start, given the varied natural and manmade disasters threatening the world today.

Published in The Express Tribune, October 27^th, 2017.

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