Druze spokesperson calls for federal Syria

ANHA agency conducted an interview with the spokesperson for the Druze community in Sweida, Sheikh Marwan Rizq, from his hometown in Sweida province. He discussed his vision for the most suitable form of the Syrian state and ways to achieve what he described as “a Syria for everyone,” in addition to a number of issues related to governance and political administration in the country.

During the interview, Rizq offered a critical view of centralized decision-making, saying that “54 years of oppression and Assadist colonial rule” were linked to a centralized system of government and one-man decision-making. He added that this is what is now being imposed again by the interim government in Syria, noting that “the centralized system is the cause of destruction wherever it exists.”

He added that regional experiences, including Iran, show in his view that “centralization and monopoly over decision-making lead to injustice and the absence of popular and elite participation, which in turn leads to authoritarianism and the ruin of the country,” similar to what Syria is witnessing today.

Speaking about the popular movement, Rizq said that “Karama Square” in Sweida witnessed protests that continued for more than one year and four months. He stressed that the demands at the time were “the unity of Syria, democracy, secularism, federalism, and decentralization,” and that these demands remain the same under the rule of the interim government in Syria. He considered this ongoing movement as contributing to reviving the Syrian revolution.

He stressed that “the country will only succeed through a federal system,” saying that this model represents, in his opinion, the most suitable framework for managing the state.

Regarding political administration, Rizq said that discussion of the form of governance is tied to the existence of “a secular democratic government that accepts others and works on a constitution drafted with the participation of Syria’s elite, in addition to a parliament representing the various components,” rather than a power based on exclusion and monopoly. He added that the current reality reflects the presence of “an exclusive authority.”

He concluded by emphasizing that Syria is “a productive and generous country,” capable of rising again, but stressed that this requires a transition to a “secular democratic decentralized system,” considering that continuation of the current situation will lead to more backwardness, division, theft, and confiscation of decision-making and freedoms.

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ANHA