The failure of the UN, European Union and the Arab world to address the double whammy of the Assad governments repressive actions in Syria and the pincer movement of IS has culminated in an already growing problem of refugees and a growing xenophobia in the UK to become the humanitarian crisis it is today.
Britain's response has been to take just over 200 Syrian refugees last year until this week when the public outcry of the response of the Bullingdon Club that now run this country has brought about a u turn. This u turn is not a heart felt compassionate response but an embarrassed political move designed to silence critics. As yet there are no increase in Syrians reaching our towns and cities and the local infrastuctures have yet to inform us of how these refugees will be housed, fed and generally cared for. But already the government is talking about the money needed coming from the Overseas Aid budget, a rejigging of monies for political gain.The crisis brings to a head weeks of media propaganda about the movement of peoples across Europe, in fact across the world in response to a fortress mentality, epitomised by the UK and Australian responses to asylum and refugee peoples.
Sadly the death of a little Syrian boy and his body floating in the sea has finally prompted a compassionate response. Hopefully the UK will change and people will begin to develop an ideology based on compassion rather than separatism and undermine the prevailing selfish, class ridden constructs which have brought into power a government not of the people but of 25% of us who we can eventually remove to build a better more utilitarian society of equal opportunity for all, including migrants and refugees.
