When you read about the latest news on international sanctions, they may sound like a very distant political maneuverer by many nations to try to put pressure on another nation. But have you ever thought about who really suffers the most from these sanctions? Is it the politicians, or the citizens that need to buy food, pay their bills, and keep their jobs?
When sanctions are applied, they typically will hit the average person harder than anyone else, since they are the ones that don’t have the ability to find ways around the lock that has been placed on a country’s economic doors by the sanctions. The political leaders can generally find a way to get in or out of a country’s blocked economy, but the everyday citizen is the one left waiting outside trying to figure out how to meet their economic needs. Let’s take a look at how this actually happens in the everyday lives of the average citizen living under sanctions.
What Are International Sanctions?
Restrictions imposed by one or more nations (generally including trade restrictions, financial restrictions, travel restrictions, and freezing assets) are referred to as international sanctions because they were put in place to influence the actions of another nation.
The United Nations, as well as other nations (particularly those considered “great powers”), utilize sanctions as an alternative method of resolving international issues relating to human rights violations, nuclear programs, and political disputes.
While sanctions may be designed to place pressure on governments, in practice, the average person on the street will likely not feel any immediate negative effects from sanctions. The first people to experience the effects of sanctions will usually be businesses, workers and families.
How Sanctions Disrupt Everyday Life?
How are ordinary individuals affected by sanctions? Consider a situation in which your country loses its ability to access the banking system and purchase goods from outside its borders. This would result in businesses not being able to bring in all their necessary materials, banks losing their ability to conduct business internationally, and businesses withdrawing their operations from your country.
This can have a devastating impact on the average person: fewer available jobs and less choice of products, and potential for an uncertain future.You may start to see empty shelves in your grocery store for your favorite imported products or your company cutting back on employees due to the loss of income from international sales.
The impact of sanctions goes beyond politics; it has become a question of survival.
Rising Prices And Inflation
Rising prices is an immediate and major impact of sanctions due to limited access to imported goods resulting in diminished supply levels while demand remains constant: hence, resulting in prices going up as demand exceeds supply; therefore, inflation occurs, thus making goods such as flour, cooking oil, medicine and fuel costly.
Consequently, families who tended to budget themselves each month will find themselves having to make tough decisions about whether they will purchase necessary medical supplies or pay their electric bill or other essentials.
The imposition of economic sanctions creates a dam that parallels the flow of trade. As this flow continues to slow down, there is an increase in pressure caused by increased prices.
Job Losses And Economic Instability
Many businesses that rely on the economy and have key industries (such as banking, oil, manufacturing and technology) often experience problems when sanctions are applied. When these industries are in trouble, many companies will look to either save money through layoffs or closing their operations completely.
For the average person, sanctions mean less employment, lower salaries and fewer job opportunities. Smaller businesses lose out as well, since they need a consistent marketplace and imported goods.
If you are operating a small clothing store and suddenly can’t get any fabric imported to sell, your business begins to decline, your customers stop coming, and your business will ultimately have to shut down. Sanctions hurt someone’s livelihood a little bit at a time.
Impact On Healthcare And Basic Services
People think that sanctions are meant to stop the importation of luxury items and military hardware. But in fact, sanctions are frequent contributors to the disruption of healthcare systems and other necessary services.
For example, hospitals may have difficulty getting medical equipment, machine parts, or specific medications from other countries. While many of these medical products are technically exempt from sanctions, financial and shipping restrictions make it impossible to receive them, which makes it very hard for patients to get the treatment they need.
When a patient is waiting on a specific type of cancer drug or when there is a shortage of vaccines for children, those patients are victims of international politics but are victims nonetheless.
Psychological And Social Stress On Citizens
There is a duality to how sanctions affect people; they have an economic effect but also have emotional and psychological consequences. Stress levels go up considerably for individuals as they face higher prices, unemployment issues, and uncertainty regarding their job stability.
Families become increasingly worried about their future well-being. Young individuals may lose optimism in their ability to develop a long-term stable career path. As there is an increase in inequality due to social tensions, lower-class families struggle much more than those who have either connections to government or are financially secure enough to weather the external conditions created by the sanctions.
The stress experienced through all this creates social instability, as it can lead to a rise in mental health disorders, increased rates of criminal activity, and potentially civil unrest. It’s much like living beneath a constant shadow or a permanent cloud that prevents sunlight from shining directly on you.
Do Sanctions Really Change Government Behavior?
Many wonder about the effectiveness of sanctions, given that their purpose is to motivate a regime to change its polices; however, past examples demonstrate varying degrees of success.
In certain situations, a government may become increasingly defiant and utilize sanctions as propaganda to promote the idea that all of its country’s ills are caused by outside forces. The elite enjoy some degree of immunity, at the expense of the civilian population.
Ultimately, this is a difficult contradiction created by the application of sanctions. The intention of any sanctions is to exert pressure on an oppressive regime in order for it to alter its behavior for the benefit of the people; however, in most cases, it actually produces the opposite effect.
What This Means For The Global Community?
Sanctions placed on a country’s economy can lead to numerous economic ripple effects within the surrounding areas, internationally, and in worldwide supply chains.
If a country reduces their production/exports of oil, for example, the prices of oil may increase worldwide. Therefore, sanctions are not a localized issue; they’re also a major global issue.
As global citizens, we must understand that political actions at the international level often create subtle changes in the daily lives of many ordinary individuals.
Conclusion
Sanctions are often viewed as a non-violent means of achieving change, yet there are many harmful effects from economic sanctions to the civilian population of a nation. Although they are intended to create pressure on a government, it is typically ordinary citizens that suffer to the greatest extent through increased living expenses, lost jobs due to a lack of demand for goods and services, limited access to health care, and continued anxiety and tension resulting from living under the fear of attack or war.
By looking at the impact of sanctions on the daily lives of individuals, it becomes easier to see past the front page of the newspaper and recognise the individual human beings that are affected by these sanctions. Behind every statistic is a family that is struggling to live, adapt to life without significant resources and to keep their spirits up while living under extraordinary hardship.
