DAMASCUS, SYRIA – Much has been said of Syria in the headlines lately that I have delayed putting up this post, holding my breath for an awesome Egypt-like turning point to happen here. (Sure, President Bashar al-Assad is replacing his cabinet, but protests continue.) Shortly after January 25th, there was talk that the country would face its own people-powered democratic revolt, with a Facebook page calling for exactly that: Syria’s “Day of Rage.” But that “Day of Rage,” however, failed to materialize – though the government was prompted to legalize the use of Facebook, which I discovered, many of its young citizens had already been using via proxy servers.
When Husband and I visited Syria on the second week of March, the world’s eyes were not yet directed at the seeds of unrest taking place within, but at the devastating earthquake/tsunami/nuclear crisis in Japan and the escalating unrest and civil war in Libya. Which, speaking of large scale uprisings, a revolt like that would never happen in Syria, I was told by those in Damascus and Aleppo. While everyone acknowledged the need for greater political freedoms and social reform, they pointed to reasons why a revolution wouldn’t work here: from the relatively large – and comfortable – middle class population in the country to the respect and admiration Syrians have for their president. (Keep in mind Readers, this was just our experience in town. The locals we spoke to were nearly all involved in one aspect or another of the tourism industry – which like in Egypt is temporarily suffering – and their interest may be in having a “stable” country and not one shaken by a revolution. Others are fearful of arrest, have been intimidated by the police state, and are on the whole not comfortable speaking openly about politics, especially to a foreigner. We often take such things for granted in America…)
