UN General Assembly
2013

Nations and its Security Council should answer this question — have the perpetrators been condemned? Unjust sanctions, as a manifestation of structural violence, are intrinsically inhumane and against peace. Contrary to the claims of those who pursue and impose them, it is not the States and the political elite that are targeted; rather, it is the common people who are victimized by such sanctions. Let us not forget the millions of Iraqis who, as a result of sanctions cloaked in international legal jargon, suffered and lost their lives, and the many more who continue to suffer throughout their lives. Those sanctions are violent, pure and simple, whether called smart or otherwise, unilateral or multilateral. They violate inalienable human rights, inter alia, the right to peace, the right to development, the right to access to health and education, and, above all, the right to life. Sanctions, beyond any and all rhetoric, cause belligerence, warmongering and human suffering. It should be borne in mind, however, that their negative impact is not limited merely to their intended