Syrian writer, activist: Multifaceted government failure requires national will to liberate Syrian people

Syria continues to witness a politically, judicially, economically, and socially tense situation, with an increase in violations and attacks in most Syrian cities. Observers attribute this to a departure from realistic options that could help resolve the current political deadlock.

The important questions are increasingly being raised about the possibility of reaching a political settlement without restructuring the security and judicial institutions, and the initiation of a genuine dialog process among the Syrian parties and political forces.

The necessity for the government to acknowledge that it is transitional and temporary

The Syrian writer and political activist Ali Al-Amin Al-Suwaid pointed out that the reasons for the escalating political, economic, and social crisis in Syria stem from the interim government's disconnection from the Syrian reality and its choice to attempt to assert its legitimacy from abroad. Despite these efforts, they will not benefit the government because these measures do not support the desired political transition in Syria and do not work to revive the economy, which continues to decline instead of stopping its collapse.

He explained: "The first reason for the failure is the current government's refusal to acknowledge that it is a temporary or transitional government at all, and Syrian affairs are being handled as if this government will last until the Day of Judgment, as some of its ministers like to say. This lack of acknowledgment is evident in official dealings both inside and outside Syria." The Syrian transitional government must be written in all government documents. And even the title of the presidency must be accompanied by the term "temporary" or "transitional." It should be written as the transitional president, not just the president.

He added: "The government's acknowledgment, both in form and substance, that it is temporary contributes to placing Syria on the first steps toward building a viable state." This recognition absolves it from any childish measures that were taken and contributed to the destruction of the state, not the Assad regime. "Transitional governments do not have the authority to impose laws related to the citizens' economic or legal lives, nor do they have the right to make international agreements concerning the fate of the Syrian homeland and its people."

In addition to "the transitional government not recognizing that it is transitional, it is taking measures that do not serve the Syrian people but seem to respond to the interests of external parties such as Turkey, Russia, Iran, the United States, and Israel," according to Al-Amin.

Al-Amin mentioned that: "The steps to rehabilitate the symbols of the previous regime and its criminals have dealt a severe blow to civil peace and the sense of achieving justice." The transitional government did not fulfill its role in preparing for a permanent government, which includes establishing courts for transitional justice. Instead, it hastily pardoned the thousands of killers and criminals, employing as many of them as it could in its departments, thereby planting the seeds of an imminent security explosion in Syria.

He added, "Arresting a criminal like Amjad Youssef and making him confess that he is the sole and ultimate responsible for his massacres without holding the Assad regime accountable in any way is merely a childish attempt to absolve the symbols of the Assad regime, who have become a burden on the neck of the current transitional government."
A package of required options

Regarding realistic options to overcome the current political deadlock, he said: "There is a package of options that could put Syria on the right track, although they seem unrealistic at the moment. The truth is that there will be no stability in Syria as long as these matters remain unimplemented." And the most important of these points are:

- The transitional government announces its commitment to the duties of transitional governments in form and substance.

- The government announces its reversal of all decisions related to the lives of citizens that it has made.

- Rewriting the constitutional declaration so that the government's goal is to maintain the safety of the land and the safety of the people.

- Arresting the criminals who were tools of the Assad regime and imprisoning them until they are tried according to the proper legal procedures.

- The resignation of the government and the appointment and reformation of a true technocrat government and a Prime Minister who are not shadows of the shadowy sheiks.

- Reinstating all civilian employees to their positions unless they have exceeded the legal age. And those who exceed the age limit will be retired and will receive their full rights, regardless of who they are.

- Approval of a precise roadmap leading to free and transparent parliamentary elections and then presidential elections.

And the list goes on, but it seems unattainable, as the government does not see itself working for the benefit of the Syrian people as much as it works to please non-Syrian parties, according to the Syrian political activist.

Multifaceted government failure

Regarding the necessity of restructuring the security and judicial institutions, he saw that "Syria today is in a state of stagnation," and it is unknown when this phase will end. This stagnation is represented by the government's inability to address any legal, constitutional, or political obligations, and by inventing economic and social laws that have no relation to the Syrian reality or the interests of the Syrian people. The government has only succeeded in conscripting young people to become members of the public security forces and appointing sheiks who have no connection to the judiciary as judges in Syria's courts, above any judge and above any law.

"A Syrian national will" is needed to liberate the Syrian people.

Regarding the national dialog, Al-Amin believes that "there is no need for a national dialog as it is a waste of time." The Syrians possess legal, economic, constitutional, and scientific expertise that enables a group of them to present the people with a version of the Syrian state that every Syrian dreams of.

What is required is to allow these patriotic Syrians from all over Syria to work according to the interests of the Syrian people only.

The Syrian writer and political activist, Ali Al-Amin Al-Suwaid, concluded his talk by saying: "The national will has overshadowed freedoms, human rights, and political transformations in the country."

ANHA