In 1936, war broke out in Spain between forces aligned with the republic and those loyal to fascist general Francisco Franco. The war foreshadowed the worst of the violence that would engulf Europe in the coming decade. It was one of the first contemporary conflicts that involved the wholesale destruction of cities and the deliberate targeting of civilians. With the help of Nazi Germany and Fascist Italy, Franco’s forces terrorised Spain while the international community sat quietly on the sidelines.
Pablo Picasso immortalised the conflict with an artistic tribute to those who perished during the destruction of the Basque town of Guernica by German bombers at the height of the conflict. The mural-sized painting, 3.49 metres tall, depicts the suffering of men, women, children and even animals caught in the melee of Nazi bombs. Looking at Picasso's Guernica today, images of decimated Aleppo and other scenes of carnage in Syria quickly come to mind. Have we learnt any lessons from Europe's war in Spain 80 years ago?
Sadly, no. For we see today the same wanton disregard among warring parties for non-combatants. We see a callous disregard for the rules of war. And despite all the technology available that might define discrete zones of safety for neutrals, we hear news of terrible things that have befallen the innocent. It is as though nothing has changed since 1936 or 1940.
Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) represents some of those neutral individuals in Syria today. And sadly, medical professionals from the group have become victims in those battlefields as they humbly help civilians caught in the crosshairs of war. As The National reported yesterday, more than 150 hospitals in Syria are supported by MSF and six facilities are directly run by the organisation despite the risks its staff face on the ground.
When governments fail to end the carnage in conflict zones, as happened in Spain and is happening in Syria, the role of non-governmental organisations and civilians becomes paramount. The incredible work of MSF shows that there are people who understand this dynamic. In that way, we have taken some of the lessons of the Spanish civil war to heart, but much work needs to be done. The work of MSF underscores the hope that we must maintain that one day Picasso's Guernica moves beyond a strikingly prescient commentary on contemporary society and is only viewed as a depiction of an isolated historical event.