In the midst of the failed multinational ‘Friends of Syria’ gathering in Tunis last week, President Bashar Al Assad organised a referendum on a new constitution, which essentially perpetuated his rule for years to come. While confused acquaintances — rather than true friends — discussed ways to topple the regime, Damascus lived in utter denial, continuing its bloody assaults on Homs and elsewhere. It fell on Prince Saud Al Faisal, the foreign minister of Saudi Arabia, to rise to the occasion.
Why do Syrians have so few friends willing to extend a hand and free them from the dictatorship that does not mind spreading mayhem, killing indiscriminately, and destroying the country?
Although difficult to imagine a coherent answer to such a question, one must truly wonder why major powers — who quickly intervened in Libya — essentially abandoned millions of people to their fate on the grounds that any military intervention risked making matters even worse than they already are. Could it be that most long concluded Damascus opted for truly obstructionist fare which, presumably, created intellectual firewalls? To be sure, Damascus enjoyed Iranian, Russian and Chinese backing, with the unified canard that the regime confronted an organised foreign-armed insurrection that, presumably, justified its military responses. Yet only innocents will be surprised when the leaders of all three of these countries literally abandon the Baath regime in Syria the moment their interests require it.
That is not to say that regional and international actors are not looking for opportunities to move on the global checkerboard. Still, one must compare what can be compared, and dismiss fiction from facts. For although Damascus claims that the uprising is not genuine, or that it is largely fuelled by foreign powers engaged in a conspiracy against the Al Assad regime, there was no evidence to support such gratuitous assertions.
No American, British or French tanks have appeared on any Syrian street, operated by either nationals from these countries or members of the Free Syria Army. No western armoured personnel carriers shuffled FSA troops. No Nato air force units denied the Syrian Air Force mastery over its skies. No shoulder-fired Stinger missiles shot down a single Syrian plane. The only known intruders were pilotless spy drones flying over and photographing the scenes — evidence that may be used at the International Criminal Court to try Baath leaders — something that is routine for all major powers engaged in intelligence gathering activities: Nato and Russia, among others.
Moreover, while there is no denying that the current Sunni-Shiite Cold War is fuelling the Syrian uprising, few ought to neglect the moral imperatives associated with what we all see — despite massive efforts to censor the news by assaulting journalists — on a daily basis on our television screens and video links.
Critics of Prince Saud, who burst out a pointed “I think it’s an excellent idea” when asked whether arming the Syrian opposition would be a good plan, cannot conclude that Riyadh was simply motivated by its ongoing ideological race with Tehran.
Nevertheless, to pretend that the killings would simply stop because of lofty calls for Al Assad to step aside or for the military to put the interests of the country ahead of any loyalty to the regime by organising a coup d’etat without the need for parity on the ground is also naive. Even Qatar’s call on the international community to back a League of Arab States ‘force,’ perhaps by accelerating plans for a safe zone along the Turkish border as well as creating security corridors to usher in sorely needed humanitarian assistance, were dismissed as the unreliable wish of authoritarian governments whose own records were less than stellar.
Pilot-less intruders
Under the circumstances, the time has come to go beyond the mere humanitarian contributions — $10 million (Dh36.7 million) in aid from Washington to the Syrian people — or the kind platitudes like “We cannot let [the Syrian people] down.” Such sentiments uttered by US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton were echoed by other western leaders present in Tunis and, regrettably, illustrated why western powers were not with the Syrian National Council (SNC).
The time has also come for Ankara to assume its responsibilities and stop being a mere spectator. The time has come for Iraqis to put sectarian considerations aside and rescue those who continue to suffer just like they were liberated from the ravages of Baathism.
The time has come for Jordanians to stop being afraid of Islamist waves that will, allegedly, deny King Abdullah Bin Hussain the required window to transform his kingdom into a constitutional monarchy.
The time has come for the Lebanese, especially those who prefer the friendship of the Al Assad regime over the multitudes that opened their hearts and homes in 2006, to do the right thing. More than any other neighbouring country, Lebanon must be true to its own calling, and be worthy of its co-authorship of the 1948 UN Universal Declaration of Human Rights.
Among the few with the courage to finally side with the hapless Syrian population was Hamas, as Esmail Haniya declared from his Al Azhar Mosque pulpit in Cairo: “I salute all people of the Arab Spring, or Islamic winter, and I salute the Syrian people who seek freedom, democracy and reform.” Given that Damascus was an established Hamas supporter, the break was stunning, but a perfect example of the winds of change in the Arab East. It was critical for Iran to take note of this dramatic shift too, given that Tehran was Hamas’ principal financial supporter for several years. In other words, Iran’s money, which surely was acceptable in different times, no longer bought the Islamic Republic the kind of influence it hoped for.
Syrians are left to themselves and have few friends because of their country’s bizarre policies since 1946. Nevertheless, the time has come for everyone to end this utter confusion and stand by victims not victimisers. Of course, it will take a while for Syrians to correct past mistakes, though their determination to join the nations of the world ought not be underestimated. Remarkably, most will not give up and are likely to fight for a long-time simply to survive as a people and not be enslaved in their own homes. With or without friends or only with the help of mere acquaintances.
Dr Joseph A. Kechichian is a commentator and author of several books on Gulf affairs.
