Suheir Atassi to SKeyes 21-1-2010

8/9/2019 Suheir Atassi to SKeyes 21-1-2010

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Samir Kassir Foundation, Aref Saghieh Bldg.( Ground Floor), 63, Zahrani St., Sioufi, Achrafieh, Beirut, LebanonTel /Fax: 00961 1 397334, Mobile: 00961 3 372717, E-Mail Address: [email protected]

Beirut 21/1/2010

Damascus Spring Prospers ... on Facebook

Suheir Atassi to SKeyes: The will to dissent is witnessing a new

beginning and a wider, vaster horizon

DamascusSKeyesAfter its closure in 2005, the Jamal Atassi Forum for Democratic Dialogue

finally returned with a new look, but this time on the Internet.

A group of Syrian activists, led by the President of the Forum Ms. Suheir

Atassi, launched a Facebook page under the same name. In truth, this is

reminiscent of the Damascus Spring period when such forums were startedin all Syrian cities, shortly after the death of the late Syrian President Hafez

Assad.

Since the launch of the electronic forum, it quickly attracted 278 members

who signed up and joined the friends list, and who then mostly participated

by writing comments on the discussions, which are introduced by the forum

on a bimonthly basis. Even the early members of the forum who are

imprisoned were not thwarted from participating by their incarceration, as

the forum saw contributions by the imprisoned Syrian lawyer Anwar al-

Benni. He is currently serving a prison sentence in the Adra prison, aftersigning the Beirut-Damascus Declaration.

The forum began its discussion with a paper presented by the Syrian student

Malath Omran, which was entitled Syrian youth and participation in public

affairs. The discussion centred on this topic lasted for a week, during whichthere were many comments by the participants and the readers published on

the pages wall.

In the second week, the forum launched a paper entitled nonviolentstruggle, prepared by the Syrian journalist Ahmad Mawloud Tayar. At

present, a paper on the Damascus Declaration for National Democratic

Change is being discussed.To shed more light on the new electronic activities of the forum, SKeyes had

the following conversation with the Forums president Ms. Suheir Atassi.- How did the Atassi Forum, whose name was associated with the

Damascus Spring, start? What are the phases that the forum went

through and how did that experience end?


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The Jamal Atassi Forum for Democratic Dialogue began its public activities

on 14/1/2001, at a time when the Damascus Spring was burgeoning into a

civil democratic and public movement that saw a distinguished involvementin public affairs, and a new framework for dialogue and communication

among the people, following a long period of despair and isolation...

Upon its inception, the Jamal Atassi Forum interacted with and

complemented the other Syrian forums which were established during that

period. The Forum focused on issues related to politics, intellect and culture,

and on enhancing the values of democratic dialogue through public and open

sessions and round table events.

We were active within the constitutional legitimacy, as the Syrian

constitution guarantees these civil activities as rights for the whole society.

However, the Emergency Law that has been in force for 47 years in Syria,rendered citizenship on hold until further notice, while security services

were given free rein in all facets of the citizens lives.

When we applied [for a permit] to the relevant ministry, namely, the

Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs, with a view to publicize the work of

the Forum, the Ministry rejected the application under the pretext of a lack

of jurisdiction.

Soon after that, crackdown began against all forms of democratic activism,

resulting in the banning and closure of forums, while pressure from the

security services against the Forum began with the arrest of Habib Issa, theofficial spokesperson for the Forum, and continued with official summonses

that pressed towards closing down the Forum, all while the latter was being

infiltrated by agents working for the authorities and the security services.

In 2005, the Forum was keen to broaden the scope of its activities, and

sought to establish a youthful movement, stemming from the fact that their

interest in activism would be a fundamental factor in attracting a wider

segment of society that had hitherto refrained from engaging in public

affairs.

The Syrian security services decision to shut down the Jamal Atassi Forum

for Democratic Dialogue, to besiege its headquarters and to stop its eventsand meetings was sometimes being justified under the pretext that the Forum

represented the opinions of the Muslim Brotherhood Organizations in an

open seminar on Reform in Syria (in addition to many other opinions forsimple clarification), and at other times under the pretext that the Forum

failed to obtain a permit from the Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs

(which rejected the application submitted by the Forum as we have


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mentionedunder the pretext of a lack of jurisdiction). It seems that these

excuses have overlooked the failure of the authorities themselves to issue a

modern law that regulates the work of forums, associations and politicalparties as such. It should be mentioned here that the Forum had acquired a

de facto legitimacy due to its engagement in public dialogue activities for

five years.

-Why has the Forum reappeared online in this particular time?We have never thought that the Forum was finished. We did not shut it down

with our own hands. And despite the arrests, threats, siege and prevention,

the Forum kept insisting on inviting the public to its seminars on the first

Saturday of each month, despite our belief that seeing them banned was

inevitable. The Forum has laboured, in every sense of the word, to keep the

freedom of expression and dialogue alive in both memories and minds,despite the repeated deployment of security services to prevent the few who

opted to come to the Forums headquarters to defend their simple right to

dialogue, and despite the various other harassments against the residents of

the building and nearby homes.

Hence, the Forums virtual return, on Facebook, is a natural continuation of

its defence of its right to exist, and of the legitimacy of its public dialogue

activities.

- Are the Syrians resorting to the internet to escape from reality? Has

the will for dissent been lost, to the extent at which that we only seeSuheir Atassi from the Forums previous management launching it on

Facebook?Is the internet unreal?? I believe that this is a reality that was imposed on

everybody, and one that has affected more than one Syrian experience such

as the youthful campaign to boycott the mobile phone service to protest the

high cost of communications [price] reduction, economy, justice, thecampaign against the draft Personal Status law We want to move forward

not backwards, and the campaign entitled No for injustice against theinhabitants of the Syrian al-Jazira province. The latter campaign prompted

many journalists to write reports on the suffering in this province, as a resultof poverty, drought and neglect. Thus, the people behind these campaigns

are real people, and not fictional...they are very real, and they have found in

this space an available and effective option to express their desire for a better

future.

As for the second part of the question, I completely disagree with it, because

I believe that the will for dissent is witnessing a new start today, and a wider,


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vaster horizon. In fact, the revival of the Jamal Atassi Forum for Democratic

Dialogue on Facebook took place as a result of discussions among activists

and friends present both in Syria and abroad, many of whom young people.The launch was a natural result of discussions that focused on various

aspects of life in the country, and with these, the idea matured and began

taking a regular form that was reflected in discussion papers published every

15 days, accompanied each with a dialogue coordinator, and an outline of

our dialogues which we draft together and republish online. We have with us

some members from the Forums Board of Directors who were arrested in

2005, and who are now active on Facebook.

At present, we are only temporary moderators for the Forums activities.

Soon, we will hold elections for a fixed-term coordination committee. In

truth, we conduct evaluation and voting prior to all our steps, in which theForums friends, who joined it and who accept the responsibility of theirwords, dialogue and stances, participate.

We believe that the Forum is linked to the following principles and

objectives: dialogue and eliminating the taboos over certain ideas, people

and ideologies. Therefore, the Forum cannot be confined to being dependent

on certain individuals in terms of its survival or demise. What is more

important is the continuity of the initiative.

- Were you subjected to any harassment because of the Forums online

revival, and were you asked to shut it down?So far this has not happened. Of course, everything is possible, and our

response to that will be as simple as the simple rights to express an opinion

and the right to dialogue among people, on the basis of which the Forum was

established. We shall endure and continue to engage in dialogue. In truth,

they are already besieging the space provided by Facebook by blocking this

service, but we have and will continue to have all the means to break the

blockade and defend the legality of our dialogue.

- Dissidents and activists in other countries like Iran, for example, use

the Internet as a complementary tool to their activism and not as an

alternative. In other words, the internet is used to transmit informationabout real activities taking place on the ground, or to communicate in

order to organize rallies and events. Why has activism in Syria been

restricted to the internet lately? Are you unable to organize activities on

the ground?I do not think that the situation in Syria is similar to anything found in other

countries. In Syria, even the simple margin that was born with the Damascus


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Spring was eliminated to prevent its growth. Even their claims about reform,

which were cosmetic at best, stopped. In Syria, they destroyed peoples faith

that they can influence and change reality. It has thus become essential forus to search for ways to regain the sense of citizenship, responsibility and

faith in the ability act.

This is what we are working on at present, but this does not mean that we

will not begin taking practical steps. In fact, the papers that have been

discussed on the Forum through Facebook have proposed ideas for action on

the ground, and were discussed and adopted by some, and we will be

working on them soon.

- Do you any plan of action to revive the Forum on the ground, and not

only through the Internet?

The Jamal Atassi Forum on Facebook is an extension of the Forum that isbanned from convening at its headquarters in Syria.

While the Forum invites everyone to compensate with further interaction

and dialogue regarding issues of concern to all those seeking a better future

for the country, it is also carrying out an accumulative effort. An effort that

would allow for communication among all the Syrians interested in public

affairs, whether they are residents of the country, immigrants or exiles. This

is a once in a lifetime opportunity, and ultimately, we will arrive at the

natural and inevitable result: a call for a seminar held at the Forums

headquarters which was never truly closed, and which did not comply withthe ban. Then, [the online Forum] will have an added value: there will be

papers and comments from immigrants and exiles that, by the way, we are

proud of and of their contribution to the Forums launch on Facebook, andwith whom we shall celebrate, at the Forums headquarters, its return andtheir return to their country.

- Do you have any message for Arab intellectuals regarding the Forum?In truth, I prefer that my message be addressed to all people, and to all those

concerned with the values of freedom and democracy.

There is no Arab democracy, or Western democracy, or imported democracy

as the regime likes to call it, and there are no peoples that are not fit fordemocracy. I consider freedom and democracy to be general human values

and principles, and they are basic rights for everyone. For this reason, I hope

that all those concerned with these values will contact us in order to

exchange our experiences, skills and discussions towards a world where

peace, prosperity, security and justice reign.

Documents

Suheir Atassi to SKeyes 21-1-2010