When the horror stops, the key to peace in Gaza and Ukraine will be how power is shared | Simon Jenkins
Constitution-building offers no headlines – but what it can do, history tells us, is stop hundreds of thousands of people dyingSyria is reportedly sliding back towards civil war, as its various factions demand devolved authority. It is at root the same issue, that of local autonomy, that led to regional unrest in Ukraine and splintered leadership in Palestine. It underlies the devastating conflicts in Sudan and the Democratic Republic of the Congo. All these places are flush with guns, allies and bombast. What they lack are national constitutions that allow their citizens sufficient local control to live at peace with others in one nation. They lack the skills of political federation.The present Ukraine war followed the failure of peace accords reached in Minsk in 2014 and 2015; critically, they depended on the technical details of how self-determination was to be allowed in eastern Ukraine. A later failure was that of the Istanbul deal after the Russian invasion in 2022. It appeared to be the result of President Zelenskyy’s reaction to Vladimir Putin’s Bucha massacre. But the origins of failure go back to Russian-speaking eastern Ukraine’s reaction to years of corrupt and oppressive rule from Kyiv. Similar dissent exists among Russian minorities in the Baltic states. Everywhere, localism matters.Simon Jenkins is a Guardian columnistDo you have an opinion on the issues raised in this article? If you would like to submit a response of up to 300 words by email to be considered for publication in our letters section, please click here. Continue reading...
Constitution-building offers no headlines – but what it can do, history tells us, is stop hundreds of thousands of people dying
Syria is reportedly sliding back towards civil war, as its various factions demand devolved authority. It is at root the same issue, that of local autonomy, that led to regional unrest in Ukraine and splintered leadership in Palestine. It underlies the devastating conflicts in Sudan and the Democratic Republic of the Congo. All these places are flush with guns, allies and bombast. What they lack are national constitutions that allow their citizens sufficient local control to live at peace with others in one nation. They lack the skills of political federation.
The present Ukraine war followed the failure of peace accords reached in Minsk in 2014 and 2015; critically, they depended on the technical details of how self-determination was to be allowed in eastern Ukraine. A later failure was that of the Istanbul deal after the Russian invasion in 2022. It appeared to be the result of President Zelenskyy’s reaction to Vladimir Putin’s Bucha massacre. But the origins of failure go back to Russian-speaking eastern Ukraine’s reaction to years of corrupt and oppressive rule from Kyiv. Similar dissent exists among Russian minorities in the Baltic states. Everywhere, localism matters.
Simon Jenkins is a Guardian columnist
Do you have an opinion on the issues raised in this article? If you would like to submit a response of up to 300 words by email to be considered for publication in our letters section, please click here. Continue reading...
