What do we want, what do we hope to see for this country, for our beloved bilad, when the regime is gone?
Certainly, we use words that carry great meaning: freedom, democracy, non-sectarianism and so on …
But what can they mean? Are they just buzzwords? After all, wasn’t freedom in the slogan of the Baath? Wasn’t unity?
I cannot speak for everyone in Syria but I can speak for what I want and what those I’m in touch with want.
We want a government that doesn’t rule by force and fear but by the consent of the governed: we long to give that consent to our rulers. We want a government that is accountable and lives by law, where no one is above the law and the law is fair, where abuses of position are punished and where torture and unlawful detention are things of the past.
We want a democratic society, one where there is freedom of the press, freedom of expression, freedom of assembly. We want our artists and poets not to be afraid of criticizing the government; we want our newspapers and television to be honest and open. We want to be able to discuss what we think with those we want to talk to.
We want a government that is representative. We want regular elections and meaningful ones, not simply asking us to assent to premade decisions but letting us choose. We want a fully elected parliament where we choose every seat. We want a president we choose, not chosen in a backroom party deal or ingheriting power. We do not want generals to lead us but we want those we voted for.
We want a Syria of many parties. We want to be able to choose from many parties and to have them compete for our support. We want all viewpoints to be able to compete, none barred for being too religious or too anti-religious, too nationalist or too anti-nationalist. We want capitalists and communists, Islamists and nationalists, socialists and regionalists to compete.
We want a Syria where the half of us who are women can progress. We want a Syria where what a woman wears is not an issue of state concern, whether she is covered or veiled or bareheaded should be between her and her God.
We want a Syria that is truly secular, where neither one religion dictates to the rest nor does a philosophy against religion reign.
We want a Syria where Christians, Druze, Jews, Muslims, Sunnis, Shia, Alawis, Catholics, Orthodox, Armenian, all are welcome to be a part of our nation. We want a Syria where the poison of sectarianism is gone.
We want a Syria where all the languages of Syria, Arabic, Aramaic, Armenian, Kurdish and Turkish are free …
We want a Syria where education is available to all, where universities welcome the farmer’s daughter as much as the official’s son. We want a Syria where all of us can fulfill our potential.
We want a Syria where good ideas fuel economic growth, not political connections. We want a Syria where the richness of our minds and our culture lets us build a great and prosperous tomorrow.
We want a strong and prosperous Syria that once again leads the world. We want a free Syria that welcomes back our lost provinces. We want a Great Syria once again.
We will have much work to do in the days and months and years ahead.
But we can do it. We will need to rewrite the constitution to reflect a mature and free society, we will need to discuss how to have responsible local governments as well as national ones.
We will, though, succeed.
We will build a great Syria.
8 comments:
You speak like a patriot, not a partisan. How rare is that!
Syria- and those of us who follow you- are lucky to have you.
We in the west talk a lot about freedom and democracy. Unlike you, our generation never had to fight for it. In our hubris, we think we know the real value of those things. We know nothing of real oppression or of what it takes to put it all on the line.
Thank you for reminding us just precious the gift of freedom really is.
Please, keep writing.
Godspeed.
This is a beautiful vision. May it come to be in our lifetime. Insha'allah.
Just a hypothetical question, and maybe thinking too far ahead, but would you ever run for a political office if Syria is able to achieve a new government?
You've gained some recognition through this blog, and you come from an old family that has a history of involvement in trying to keep Syria free of oppression.
What do you think?
Also I agree with Micah in regards to many people in the west never having had to fight for their freedoms. We live with the benefits of what previous generations fought for, and so take it for granted. Then we're confused and upset when powerful people and corporations get laws made to take away some of those things and we're not sure what to do about it.
Thinking about that, and about your post regarding people who use the plight of others to make themselves feel better, reminds me of a line from an Oingo Boingo song...
~You're just a middle-class socialist brat, from a suburban family and you never really had to work... And now you tell me that you've got to get back, to the struggling masses, whoever they are...
Yeah, forget those people.
Hard to think of supportive things to say from so far away, but I'll say the cliche' things anyway. Stay strong, keep safe, we're rooting for you.
Here is a thought..
What about a Syria that can lead with a progressive eastern flavor?
In recent history many of the leading countries emerged in the west. They used ideologies like capitalism and parliamentary rule to create stability that led to thriving economies, content populations and advances on many fronts. Many of them suffer, however, from various social issues.
Can Syria take the leadership role in building a new social structure based on eastern, not western, thought? Can we draw on our past and the elements that led to success in times of past and reinvent ourselves in modern flavor?
That is a Syria I hope for my children. One where they can be free to be who they are, to draw on their strengths, to contribute to its growth and to enjoy basking in its new sunshine. A Syria that does not just adopt things from other places - that is not our character anyway - but one that builds on existing advances with a flavor of our own. We're good at that. Ask around. Syrians will tell you. We're pretty resourceful. Can we apply those talents to build a better country? Count me in.
Wonderful post, Amina. There is always something interesting here, be it history, your insights, or the current events which they examine. Too often, people reduce whole nations to convenient, vague, undefined terms that make them feel good about themselves and their lives.
But, I think anybody who truly wants to see and understand the real world needs people like you talking about their real, daily experiences and thoughts so that it isn't so easy to make grand and ignorant generalizations, like "The West" or "Arabs" or "Palestinians." We can only speak for ourselves, individually. It's why I like your blog so much.
I hope that you aren't discouraged when people insist on making your forum their soapbox. And also I hope that you don't feel like all of us in "The West" are so foolish and loudmouthed as we constantly seem to act. Somehow our free presses and right to say what we want turns out to be far less significant, less honorable and less worthy, but more petty, egotistical, and backward when we use them.
I hope if you are ever in Canada, we might one day be able to sit down and talk in person.
I hope you are well et aussi j'espère que tu feras plus des posts en francais! :)
Grandes félicitations de ma petite amie et moi. Nous aimons lire ton blog tous les jours! Je pense que les gens comme toi éclairera tes frères, tes soeurs, et le monde entier avec la lumière de La Raison.
Bonjour et meilleurs voeux du Canada! :)
Your courage is inspiring, and if I could I would put you in charge of Syria tomorrow.
If I could, I would put you in charge of my country, for that matter.
Great post, just one part I want to correct of what you said.
I'm quoting you:
'We want a Syria where Christians, Druze, Jews, Muslims, Sunnis, Shia, Alawis, Catholics, Orthodox, Armenian, all are welcome to be a part of our nation. We want a Syria where the poison of sectarianism is gone.'
actually syria is for sunni muslims only. the religions that the quran has approved i.e. people of the book (christians and jews), may live in syria and have minority protections but they should live under the status of 'dhimmis' (i.e. half worth of a muslim, cannot build religious centres bigger than mosques, must wear clothing showing themselves as dhimmis etc.).
As for the rafidis (i.e. shia) and the other non-muslims (alawites, druze), they are dirty kaffirs and should be driven out of syria. In fact, if they don't leave it is permissible to kill them and their blood is halal.
so in conclusion: christians like catholics, orthodox, armenians, assyrians; and jews are allowed to live in syria as dhimmis since they are people of the book (ahle kitaab). but dirty kaffirs like the alawites, druze and shia must be driven out of syria or killed (since they came after islam).
I am not trying to be divisive i am merely expressing the thoughts of all sunni syrians (who make up 75% of syria), which was first declared by our national religious scholar ibn tayymiah in 7th century A.H.
finally, the 'poison of sectarianism' cannot be gone since there was no sectarianism to begin with. the conflict between muslims and christians/jews was between religions not sects of the same religion. The shias and alawites and druzes are not muslims hence there also, the conflicts were not between different sects but different religions. the only muslim sect in syria is sunni, all other 'sects' that claim to be muslim (rafidi shia, nusayri alawite, druze) are in fact kaffirs and thus not muslim. Hence there is no sectarianism.
BILAD AS SHAMS IS FOR SUNNIS! ALL OTHER RELIGIONS ARE FALSE AND FOLLOWED BY FOREIGNERS/NON-SYRIANS.
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