National Reconciliation

History of the mankind has proved that national reconciliation is the one and only way forward for the Syrian people out of the current crisis. Events of these past months show that interference by certain regional and world powers has added to the conflict.

For the past centuries, the Syrian people have been an example on how co-existence can be. Due to its vital geo-political position in the Middle East, Syria has been subject all the time to non-stop invasions. According to political analysts, the regional geo-political landscape is more like a poker game. On one hand, Turkey is working to safeguard the interests of the Western bloc as well as her own aspirations. On the other hand, Iran is doing its best to safeguard her worldwide-recognized national right of attaining nuclear power for peaceful purposes. The Russian Federation and Popular China are moving confidently on the same chess board to stand face to face with the United States, Britain, France and Germany at the top of the list of Western countries which look forward to control the region.

The Syrian people have witnessed the occupation of Afghanistan, the invasion of Iraq in 2003 and the series of interference in the affairs of the countries of the Arab region under the title of “Arab Spring”. The poker faces of certain monarchy regional powers have been the mask to their true intentions. Under the pretext of “safe zones for the Libyan people”, the NATO Alliance moved side by side with the Gulf States to pave the way to a regime that best serves the Western interests in the region. The same pretext did not succeed when it came to the Syrian example. The Russian and Chinese double veto has always been there in the Security Council to safeguard the integrity of the Syrian sovereignty of land and people.

According to the Russian Foreign Minister Sergie Lavrov, Syria has chances of reaching national reconciliation despite a great number of opponents to this process. Lavrov declared in August that “There are quite a few opponents for such a movement towards national reconciliation, both inside and outside Syria, so chances are far from being 100% but they do exist,”. In the same declaration, the Russian Minister added that “External players must only create conditions for dialogue in Syria; Syria’s fate should be decided only by its citizens, without foreign intervention”, and “National reconciliation is the only chance to stop the bloodshed as soon as possible and provide conditions for Syrians themselves to sit down at the negotiating table and decide the country’s fate without any suggestions and without any intervention from the outside. The only thing that the external players must do is to create conditions for this dialogue to begin.”

In each and on every occasion, Russian, Chinese and Iranian officials have topped Syria’s friends to express their wishes and proposals aimed at “covering as many Syrian opposition groups as possible to make sure that contacts between government and opposition representatives occur as frequently as possible.” In this respect, the National Reconciliation Minister Ali Haydar bears a great deal of responsibility to pave the way towards dialogue between all parties to the crisis in the country.Haidar, who is also the Chairman of the Syrian Socialist Nationalist Party (SSNP), insists that he “joined a project and not a ministry,” revealing that contacts with the armed opposition are underway. The National Reconciliation Minister realizes that bearers of the foreign project were able to interfere in the path of the crisis. They took advantage of the enthusiasm, exuberance and fervor of some of the Syrian youth and their demands to impose a violent image onto the political mobilization which was supposed to be peaceful, notwithstanding that it has proved to be quite violent at all times.

So far, the Syrian opposition has two ministers in the new government. “Due to the current situation and the refusal of an opposition within the opposition to enter into the new government, nothing better could have been done.” the Minister believes. Haidar further believes that the new government is a step forward towards opening the gates for a real political process in Syria which would achieve the demands of the Syrian people. The Minister also expressed this conviction that “It is not a question of numbers and having two ministers. If we go into the details, we see that the positions given to the internal opposition, who agreed to join the government, are two very important ones.” Haidar realizes that national reconciliation is a cornerstones for political reform process. The parliamentary elections have been a step forward not to fall into a constitutional vacuum. Due to wrong messages sent to different sides in the opposition, some do not understand that national reconciliation is the main headline of the government’s program, on the basis of a conviction that nobody can win over the other. No one should have that illusion. Without a political solution to the crisis, fighting will not solve anything and could extend for a long time following the example of the Lebanese civil war of violence and counter-violence. Syria cannot get out from this crisis without a reconciliation. As in all countries that face crisis, the Syrian people have no choice but to end up with a reconciliation at a national dialogue table.

The new government’s program is based on a project which fundamentally aims at  breaking up all the existing structures and building an environment assembled around a national project that isolates all extremists, wherever they are. All sides to the conflict must recognize each other. They Should also recognize that the crisis is Syrian and the solution should be Syrian too. If the crisis is deeply political, the solution must be definitely political and not military. The only instrument for a political solution is dialogue, but on the basis of rejecting foreign intervention and violence. No Syrian side should think that they alone can emerge victorious in this battle. Syrians cannot win over other Syrians. Victory, solution and the way forward come all from the Syrians themselves.

Nihad Abou Romiah