Politicians, intellectuals: democracy is gateway to political solution in Syria

As attention turns to the form of the future Syrian state, the visions of intellectuals and politicians are increasingly highlighting that genuine democracy cannot be built without recognizing the rights of peoples and components that have endured decades of marginalization and exclusion. This perspective holds that Syria’s future is contingent upon restructuring the political system on the basis of real participation, decentralization, and social justice away from rigid centralism, which has failed to accommodate Syria’s diversity and has instead generated successive crises.

In this context, Hussein Hamid, a member of the Central Committee of the Kurdish Left Party in Syria, pointed out that the absence of democracy within the country’s system of governance has fostered chaos, alongside injustice, authoritarianism, and chauvinism. He stated: “In post-independence Syria, governance has not witnessed any form of democracy up to this day. The rights of non-Arab Syrian components were never recognized; instead, they were marginalized, which led to the implementation of exceptional racist policies against these components, particularly the Kurdish people from the extraordinary census to land confiscation and demographic change.”

He added: “The current form of governance in Syria, even after the fall of the Ba'ath regime, has not fundamentally changed. Parliament, the army, and even government ministries were formed without the participation of Syria’s components, especially the Kurdish people, who have yet to obtain their legitimate rights within the Syrian constitution.”

Hamid also addressed the recent agreement between the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) and the Syrian Interim Government, stating: “This agreement has both positive and negative aspects. Its positive side lies in halting war and massacres and stopping the machinery of violence against peoples. However, it failed to secure and constitutionally guarantee the rights of the Kurdish people. We hope that the Kurdish delegation emerging from the Conference for Kurdish Unity will visit the capital, Damascus, and work to ensure Kurdish rights within Syria.”

He continued: “Without genuine democracy in Syria, political violence will arise automatically. Chaos will prevail, and there will be no real participation in the process of building a new Syria.”

Hamid expressed hope for the dawn of a new democratic era in Syria, emphasizing that the previous system of governance should serve as a lesson for the Interim Government, urging it not to repeat the same mistakes. He stated: “Enough of absolute centralism in a homeland that encompasses multiple components, nationalities, and religions. Through unity, we will work to bring Syria to safety and democratize it, so that components do not suffer in the future as they did in past eras. Political decentralization will reunite the fragmented Syrian society left behind by years of war.”

For his part, Akram Darwish, a member of the Union of Intellectuals in the city of Ad-Darbasiyah, stated that democracy is founded on key principles, foremost among them equality among all segments of society. He noted that wherever democracy is achieved around the world, political and security stability follows in all its dimensions. However, he stressed that Syria’s Interim Government still lacks democratic governance.

He added: “When freedom of opinion is guaranteed for all components, and when their legitimate cultural rights are secured, Syria becomes an integrated and cohesive entity that is difficult for any external power to penetrate. All Syrians rally around their homeland, which underscores democracy’s pivotal role in consolidating stability across all fields.”

Darwish pointed out that the former Ba'ath regime, over a period of fifty years, was an authoritarian, repressive, one-color system, which led to catastrophic consequences and ultimately plunged Syria into civil war. He added: “The Interim Government must draw lessons from the previous system of governance and must release freedoms in Syria so that all segments of society can express their views and every component can express its identity.”

He further stressed that “when religion is instrumentalized in the service of politics, it becomes distorted,” adding: “Religion is a spiritual relationship between human beings and God and cannot fulfill the functions of politics within society. Unfortunately, Syria today is experiencing a state of religious extremism and fanaticism similar to the nationalist extremism of the former Baath Party, which has resulted in wars against Alawites, Druze, and Kurds in Syria.”

In concluding his remarks, Akram Darwish affirmed that “rigid ideologies remain closed in on themselves, reject other viewpoints, and claim monopoly over truth. Yet truth belongs to no one alone. Therefore, we are in urgent need of genuine democracy in Syria one in which women, youth, and all segments of society actively participate.

ANHA