March 8, 1963 Revolution Remembered!

March 8, 1963 Revolution, in reaction, at least to the then repeated coups and exploitation of the homeland resources, has indeed been the driving force behind the Syrians aspiration and desire for freedom, equality and justice. 55 years since then, Syria today, notwithstanding all the sinister plots, conspiracies and the foreign-backed terrorism, is still the throbbing heart and bastion of resistance and civilization. The major pivotal role of the Baath Arab Socialist Party and the late President Hafez Al-Assad in March 8 Revolution, and later in the Correction Movement, has and will ever have immense contributions to the current steadfastness of Syria, under the wise historic leadership of President Bashar Hafez Al-Assad, the guardian of all humanity against every evil and terrorism.

In his March 8, 1990 Speech, President Hafez Assad’s outlined that by then

• We covered the most difficult stages as we put our shoulders to the wheel and exerted concerted efforts to set things right and balance the books.
• Our belief is deep seated that life is an eternal revolution and man is the essence and target.
• The revolution is the locomotive to change status for a better condition to serve man`s aspirations. Speaking of man as an essence and target of the revolution, we tend to think of the youth where we find an optimal personification of man.
• As I described them before, the youth are the hope for the future and the future hope lies in the present.
• Freedom lives along with man and thrives on with his development because it needs a system in life like any other one. Plants grow according to a system; the earth, planets and the human body function according to a very accurate and precise system, but when it malfunctions, destabilization occurs and the system degenerates and collapses altogether.
• The corrective movement was a necessity being an achievement of our party and people. It was the victory of freedom where I used to say time and again that we are as strong as we have freedom and free as much as we are strong.
• The movement has been the bandwagon in all institutions where people participated in the premiership councils, the elected people`s assembly, and councils of the elected domestic administration.
• It is taken for granted that the nation concerned should consult, coordinate and stick together in perilous circumstances. It is pitiful that the other powerful nations coincide with the fragmentation of the Arab weak nations. The Arab nations do not weigh the imminent perils adequately. 
• We should not distance ourselves from the past. In a nutshell, we say that he who reads history and geography would realize that since the decadence of the Arab state, we started to lose parts of our people and land all over the Arab region.
• The ongoing events and the new challenges today set an additional alarm to make us gear up in order not to lose what we hold.
• Syria has been and will be keen on preserving the nation`s dignity.
• A lot wanted to distort or mayhem the nature of our relations with the Soviet Union, but I would say that our nexus is stable as it has ever been in the past. We have been true friends long ago and relations were nurtured by close cooperation. 
• We do not abnegate or be ungracious especially when it comes to colossal issues. The Soviet Union stood by us and supported us in our just struggle in confronting aggression. Such stances will remain an essential page in the history of our relations and will forge them.
• Let us continue building man and land and boost the team spirit. Let us nourish altruism and the national spirit, abnegate selfishness and strengthen the national unity to scatter love everywhere and treat each other tolerably and preserve the dignity of the nation.

  In his March 8, 1989 Speech, President Hafez Assad’s outlined that by then

• What has been realized since the beginning of the revolution is something we are proud of with respect to the scientific profusion and technical cadres, economic growth, social betterment and the increase in production and services.
• Such truth is obvious in all walks of life as in the educational institutions, health sector, factories, natural wealth and agriculture.
• Undoubtedly, our position today is much better with regard to the economic impedimenta, and our economy is robust because we tend to develop our resources constantly.
• This job makes it incumbent on us to slog feverishly and hone our skills and promote teamwork. We all realize that what affects the country would recoil and every success we accomplish would benefit all.
• We must be determined to strengthen our national unity in tune with the aspirations of our people, and by inculcating the national spirit we create the cooperation spirit among all citizens and the atmosphere of initiative and creativity to lay firm grounds of self sufficiency.
• We still have a lot to do to build the nation and achieve production booms, and enhance our steadfastness and capability to extirpate aggression and occupation.
• All that would require the reliance on our people and the support of our friends and the assimilation of the general world opinion of our causes. The basis of our stand remains the firm belief in the causes and in our preparedness to defend them.

On the 25th Anniversary of the 8th of March Revolution, President Hafez Assad’s outlined that by then

• On the morning of this day in 1963, the sun of the revolution scattered in the sky heralding a new phase in history that eliminates colonization and backwardness, a stage where we embarked on a march of unity, liberty and socialism.
• We have encountered hardships and conspiracies, but owing to our resolve and determination, we have overcome these hurdles and offered great sacrifices for optimal and noble targets to preserve our national unity where we achieved superbly. We made Syria a modern state and the base of the Arab struggle to defend ourselves and liberate the usurped land.
• We covered wide strides on the path of the democratic front. The constitutional institutions exercised their jurisdictions satisfactorily and the interior front remained impervious where no enemy or conspirator is able to smear the nation or undermine its national struggle.
• In the domains of culture and education, progress was remarkable where universities and institutes mushroomed exponentially. Furthermore, in the fields of public health, many well-equipped hospitals and dispensaries were erected. Healthcare and childcare were given prominent attention including vaccination and inoculation campaigns against diseases.
• We opted for the motto of self sufficiency. It is so important especially during the current status where we challenge a fierce enemy supported by a super power like the USA.
• If October war liberated part of the land it means that it constituted a turning point and a catalyst in the conflict with the Israeli invasion. It was the first time when the Arabs moved from defense to attack position. The Zionist media and its allies could not divert this reality from being seen by the world.
• The results of October war were reflected upon the Arab fighter by sharpening him with self confidence and preparedness to sacrifice.
• The honorable battle which was fought by our armed forces against the Israeli invasion in Lebanon bears witness where the forces defended Lebanon and offered thousands of sacrifices.
• Our people in Golan and Palestine express their steadfastness by stones and other means.
• Blessed are your sacrifices, martyrs and the wounded.
• We must build a powerful nation to become a castle of love and steadfastness against invaders. We are a great nation working hard for our unity and solidarity. We must stick together and have one unified will.

On the 24th Anniversary of the 8th March Revolution, 8-3-1987, the Late President Hafez Al-Assad underlined:

•  Our revolution is incessant and strong. It has firm principles and able to accept the challenge and to confront the difficulties.
•  Our revolution confronted the enemies everywhere. We insist on accepting the challenges and defeating it and on making flags of our people which express hopes and aspirations of our nation and their right to fight for their unity, freedom and progress high.
•  The revolution has stepped great steps in realizing its targets through overcoming the obstacles. The revolution through its achievements and victories became the most significant defiance to the colonialist and Zionist forces.
•  We are used not to surrender to any threat or any aggressor , not to be frightened by anything and not to accept any foreign dictations.
• We accept the challenge directed to us. Our decision is to realize triumph on our enemies and to foil the plots as well as making firm steps on the victory road.
• We are strong with our revolution and people, with our aims that express the people’s conscious and with our determination to struggle and offer sacrifices.
• We are strong with our national unity which was always our weapon in each battle and with determination of our people to struggle and offer sacrifices in order to make Syria remaining free, strong and steadfast.
•  We are strong with the Arab nation’s people who refuse surrender and who are always ready to wage battles of liberation, unity and confrontation of surrender and humiliation.
•  Our revolution wasn’t an accidental event in the history of our country and nation, it was a remarkable incident in the history and a turning point in the country’s track of development. It has shouldered the people and the progressive revolutionary vanguards the responsibility of the power.
• It has established the strong base of the Arab steadfastness in the face of the imperialist and Zionist schemes and the strong base of the real Arab action for realizing the Arab unity and the unified Socialist Arab society.
•  Through the 8th March revolution and the Correctionist Movement, Syria has achieved progress in the political, economic, social and cultural domains and became pioneer in the Arab national liberation movement and in the lead of the countries marching on the road of progress and sociality.
• Syria became the basic force of the Arab steadfastness in the face of Imperialism and Zionism and the foundation stone in the Arab action to liberate the usurped Arab territories and restore the Arab rights.
•  Syria became, according to testimony of all people including the enemies, a force that has to be taken into consideration.
•  The 8th March Revolution has offered radical changes in Syria in all fields of life. We will not hesitate in the progress, we will not going back whatever the threats and the challenges were.
• The pressures we are facing will not be to any further extent able to create strategic difficulties for us. We will tackle these pressures and will find the useful and long term solutions to them.
•  The 8th March Revolution is considered a people revolution launched under the leadership of the Baath Arab Socialist Party. The people are the base of this revolution. The Correctionist Movement restored the revolution and the party to people and vice versa and it has trusted people and allowed them to take part in the planning, taking decisions and implementing through the institutional establishments and the popular organizations.
• Our national unity is the basis which we depend on in working and cooperating to confront the interior and exterior tasks. The national unity proved its efficiency in the circumstances and the battles we passed through and it will remain the basis of the internal building and confrontation of the antagonist forces.
•  The legislative decree No.15 for 1971 which included the Local Administration Law was considered a second great step, after the first step of the People’s Assembly, in the road of realizing the popular democracy and engaging the people representatives in managing citizen’s affairs.
•  The Popular democracy isn’t a motto but it is a real practice enriched by experience. We are still looking forward enlarging and enhancing the popular democracy experience to make wide scale of people partners in shouldering responsibility and taking implementing decisions.
•  Last month, the Local Administration carried out elections of the 4th session of the governorates councils and the 2nd session of the cities and towns councils. The electors who won the elections were elected by the citizens. It is pleasing to me that the number of the winning women in these elections amounted 140 comparing with the 65 women in the previous elections. This refers to the fact that women are achieving progress in the society and its establishments to take their natural position, practice their right and duties and to shoulder their responsibilities.
•  The application of popular democracy has reached advanced stages. It is a very important experience to make people manage their affaires by themselves and implement the decision they take to improve their life in all fields.
•  We appreciate the proposals submitted by the Soviet Union for disarmament and call for reviewing them with great seriousness and responsibility to reach a situation removing people’s fear from the nuclear destruction and contributing in solving the international dispute according to the UN charter principles and the peace interests.
•  Getting rid of the nuclear threatening is not limited to one state or other area in the world but it is considered an issue of every state, area and person keen on the life and civilization.

On the 12th Anniversary of the 8 march revolution,8-3-1975, the Late President Hafez Al-Assad underscored:

•   We know the way and the goal we are heading towards with confidence, belief and strength that will enable us to realize the target which is mainly marked by good, right and justice.
•  I am convinced that our enemies and their allies have absolutely no doubt that we ,in Syria, will not yield to any pressure.         
• They are deep-rooted people and part of a deep-rooted people and nation, they are organizing and building up themselves, and have the determination to realize victory and will reach this.
•  It is very important that the 8 march revolution come and we achieve great progress on the revolution track with firm resolution, realize more achievements in the internal building domain and at the same time booster the efforts to liberate territories and restore rights.
•  It is great evidence that the 8 march revolution will always be as its people wish, an incessant movement which is considered the main characteristic of revolution. For us, the revolution in its essence is a persistent work to transmit toward the best and an incessant effort for progress and building and realizing more achievements to people. The road of revolution is endless, whatever we pass stages we have more ones in front of us. Revolution needs more hard working and energy.  
•  The essential point in the continuity of this track is the incessant interaction between the revolution and people, between the leadership and people and the adherence to principle and to norms of revolution. Thus, people will be the support of the revolution, which in turn will ensure the continuity of progress and success.
•  Our people, who struggled for social justice and socialist metamorphosis, were bounded to fight the imperialist and Zionist forces and to wage the war of liberation.
•  Our armed forces are the shield of the country and the defender of our land and rights. They are the first confronting force, which its heroism in the wars of October and Golan had realized great appreciation and admiration in the Arab nation and the world.
•  Our armed forces gained care and will gain more to preserve its high level of readiness and combating capacity and to remain the immune force that is frightening the enemy.
•  Our armed forces had played its role and will remain doing this with honor, it renewed the nation’s championships, asserting that a nation containing such these brave men  will not conquer.  
•  We are enforcing our defensive capacity in face of an enemy fed up with weapons after the heavy losses it obtained in the October war. This enemy disguised to every human values and principles and insist on resuming aggression and occupying lands.
•  As we are speaking about national and Arab struggle and about the circumstances it is passing through, which require popular awareness and determination to realize success. 
•  As we are speaking about all of this, we have to refer to an important part of our people; to half of our people, to women, especially due to the fact that this year is the year of woman.
•  The world people are now celebrating the international woman year. No people are prior than us in celebrating this year. In our country, woman played pivotal role in all phases of history and our struggle against colonialism. Her struggle was multiple. She was struggling with herself , with her husband, with her son, with her father and with her brother. She is fighting against hardness of circumstances and against disorder of life.
•  Of course this issue is new. All of us have to know that this taking must be translated into realities, measurements and laws. This thing must be clear, it doesn’t just mean issuing legislative decree or law to the People’s Assembly, but we have to be confident in contents of the law.
•  If man in general knows how much he suffered during his suffering , woman in our countries deserve best appreciation and respect and complete cooperation of us in attaining her aspirations to be the genuine person who is able to donate and to give his country all his potentials.
• I am always saying our logo must be martyrdom or victory, and I am saying martyrdom because it’s our way to victory.
• The best to conclude my word is to ask God to have mercy on our martyrs who fight for the sake of nation.

Dr. Mohamad Abdo Al-Ibrahim

Editor-in-Chief

alibrahim56@hotmail.com

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President Hafez Al-Assad