Joan Smith: Let's keep the ambassadors' wives out of it

These women are now in the awkward position of trading on their husbands

Share
+More

Being the wife of a dictator is, I imagine, pretty much like being married to a mafia boss. Everyone's a bit scared of you, wondering what you might say to your husband, but I doubt whether you have a great deal of power. Then there's the thing you don't talk about, all the nastiness that went on in Libya last year and ended so badly for the poor Gaddafis. You don't want to wind up dead or in exile, so why would you listen to a couple of women who seem to think you should stop your husband blowing the country to bits?

"Speak out now, for the sake your people," these strangers implore in a video. Their husbands are senior diplomats at the United Nations and they want to talk to you, Asma al-Assad, woman-to-woman.

"Asma," they plead. "When you kiss your own children goodnight, another mother will find the place next to her empty." It's heart-rending stuff, full of images of dead and injured children – and wrong-headed on so many levels that it's hard to know where to begin.

First, the inhabitants of Syria aren't Mrs Assad's people. She's actually a British citizen and in any case her husband's family imposed itself on the country by force. They've tortured and murdered people for decades but Mrs Assad was relaxed about marrying into the dynasty. "What happened to you, Asma?" is the silliest question in the video, given the absence of any evidence that she cares about human rights or democracy.

And while I'm sure that Sheila Lyall Grant and Huberta von Voss-Wittig mean well, I don't think that the wives of the British and German ambassadors to the UN have (or should expect) any special standing in this matter. Their video wouldn't have got anything like as much attention if their spouses were plumbers, which puts them in the awkward situation of appearing to trade on their husbands' positions. As it happens, I agree with them about the horrors taking place in Syria. But where do we draw the line? Would it be acceptable for an ambassador's spouse to make a video supporting Mitt Romney? Or start a petition demanding the arrest of a democratically-elected politician for alleged war crimes?

But the most annoying aspect of the video is its sentimentality about women. It's in a similar emotional register to Kony2012, the film which deluded millions of people into thinking they could "stop" an African warlord. Its most egregious fault is an assumption that women can just get together and sort these things out.

Everyone has a responsibility to behave humanely, regardless of gender. Until the conflict began, Mrs Assad was quite happy to present herself as the glamorous face of the regime. She may be a wife and mother, but I've no reason to think she's any nicer than her ghastly husband.

www.politicalblonde.com

React Now

iJobs Job Widget
iJobs General

Senior IP Associate / Partner - Manchester

Excellent Salary Package - £60K to £120K: Austen Lloyd: We have an exciting op...

Java Developer

£200 - £250 per day: Progressive Recruitment: Java Developer - Urgent Requirem...

BUSINESS INTELLIGENCE ARCHITECT, SAP

£70000 - £95000 per annum + Bonus, flexible working hours, remote work: Progre...

SAP BUSINESS INTELLIGENCE SENIOR CONSULTANT

£50000 - £56000 per annum + Benefits package, flexible working hours: Progress...

Day In a Page

Read Next
 

No police officer friends for me, then

Archie Bland
 

Ed Miliband is staring at an open goal and I know just the pair of strikers to win it for him

Matthew Norman
'There is a battle going on inside us that is never discussed'

Masculinity in crisis?

'There is a battle going on inside us that is never discussed'
Have US shock jocks gone too far?

Have US shock jocks gone too far?

An incendiary remark from Rush Limbaugh may be the beginning of the end for outspoken right-wing US broadcasters
The ‘Beverly Hills’ of Surrey pays more income tax than big cities of the North

The ‘Beverly Hills’ of Surrey

Elmbridge pays more income tax than big cities of the North
Heavenly Bodies

Heavenly Bodies

Michael Landy's artistic marriage made in heaven... and hell
'He will always be a friend': Jackie Stewart backs Polanski

'He will always be a friend'

Jackie Stewart backs Roman Polanski
The price of pacifism: Refusing to go to war is finally being recognised as a brave act

The price of pacifism

From the Second World War refusenik to the 19-year-old Israeli, Holly Williams talks to five people who risked shame and suffering to take a stand as conscientious objector.
'It was mass hysteria': Jason Isaacs on groupies, theatre bores and snogging James Bond

Jason Isaacs: Groupies, theatre bores and James Bond

To millions, Jason Isaacs is one of Harry Potter's arch enemies – but his wife prefers him as a Scottish TV detective.
Notes from a small island: Is Sealand an independent 'micronation' or an illegal fortress?

Sealand: 'Micronation' or illegal fortress?

Thomas Hodgkinson spent a week at the tiny platform off the Suffolk coast to find out.
Not a bad bone: Mark Hix cooks with cutlets and ribs

Mark Hix cooks with cutlets and ribs

If you ignore cutlets and ribs, you'll risk missing out on some delicious and easy meals, says our chef.
The experts' guide to summer: From getting fit for the beach to recreating that Olympic buzz

The experts' guide to summer

From getting fit for the beach to recreating that Olympic buzz
Sex, drugs and fast cars: The legend of James Hunt has set Hollywood hearts racing

Legend of James Hunt has set Hollywood hearts racing

Early glimpses of Ron Howard's film Rush suggest it will portray Hunt as a high-living lothario, with an insatiable appetite for partying.
Macklemore: 'I don't have moderation when using drugs and alcohol. It was hurting my life'

Macklemore: 'I don't have moderation'

The next Vanilla Ice or the next Eminem? Macklemore doesn't have a record contract – but he does have the UK's biggest-selling single of the year.
Don't be shy: Bill Granger's Sri Lankan recipes

Don't be shy: Bill Granger's Sri Lankan recipes

Sri Lankan cuisine is light, sunny, wonderfully spiced – and so easy to cook from scratch. Just as soon as you've broken into the coconut, that is.
Sir James Dyson’s latest project: Cleaning up hospitals

Sir James Dyson’s latest project: Cleaning up hospitals

Doctors are hailing the revamp of a Bath neonatal unit, where babies sleep more and feed better, as the model for patient care
One man returns to Argentina's town that drowned

One man returns to Argentina's town that drowned

Epecuen was submerged under 10 metres of water in 1985. Now the floods have gone – and 83-year-old Pablo Novak has moved back in