SOHR exclusive| Syrian National Conference … Does it seek forming new platform?

Syrian National Conference has concluded its proceedings amid large debate due to the existing division and the withdrawal of some parties after flag of the revolution has caused division and created a crisis despite of the aspirations that were built on the conference results for moving the political stalled situations for more than ten years.

The conference documents, that SOHR obtained a copy of it, have stressed that all the previous conferences have proven that it became difficult, if not impossible, to achieve the objectives of holding conferences.

Amid the ongoing confusion, and in parallel with the UN resolutions over the Syrian issues, especially Geneva and the UNSC resolutions number 2254, it became necessary to put the political transitions on the road if the different parties really seek to exit the tragic conditions that the Syrian people have been suffering.

The conference has expressed rejection for shortening the political process in one basket.

General coordinator of the opposition-affiliated National Coordination Authority in Syria, Hassan Abdel Azeem, in his interview with SOHR, has rejected to comment either negatively or positively on the conference results or outputs. But he expressed hopes that basic efforts have been keen to form an expanded coalition for the revolution and he democratic national opposition’s forces inside and outside.

He added that the National Coordination Committee for Democratic Change and the Democratic National Front (GOUD) are working on forming an expanded political coalition where all the national democratic forces inside and outside could participate. He hoped that GOUD could pave the road for establishing a preparatory committee for the institutional conference that could represent all the forces, fronts, independent national personalities for drafting a joint visions and an internal system that will unite the efforts of such powers in order to end the division and rescue the Syrian people and boos the political process in in Geneva in accordance with Geneva 1 statement and the related international decisions.

He deemed the formation of GOUD is a kind of successful move noting that many sides have signed many consensus and understandings.

Abdel Azeem confirmed there is strong keenness and willing of several forces to form an expanded coalition and to participate in an expanded conference with GOUD.

Regarding the controversial withdrawal of some parties of the conference, Brigadier Mostafa Farahat, member of the General Secretariat of the Syrian National Conference told SOHR an exclusive interview that the national conferences and proceedings are not the reasons or the responsible for not reaching a solution for the Syrian crisis, adding that the Syrian national and political moves are healthy to send voices and sufferings of the people to the international community and to the Syrians themselves.

He said, “let us imagine that all the Syrians have quitted the national and the political work and stay at home, who will demand their rights. Shall we wait for solution from the sky or shall we depend on the others to solve our problems.”

He noted that the large number of national calls and initiatives are not harmful especially the Syrian difficult crisis.

The Syria opposition activist explained that reasons of failure for reaching a solution is the division of stands and the diversity of participants, some of which are against the Syrian will which add more complication to the Syrian issue, and the other is related to the Syrians themselves.

Regarding the reasons that have nothing to do with the Syrians are the international and the regional conflicts that have covered the Syrian space for settling down their differences especially among the international poles, until the Syrian affairs have become a matter of discussion without the presence of the Syrians either the regime or the opposition.

For example Russia-Iran-Turkey were meeting to discuss the Syrian issue without presence of the Syrians themselves, he said highlighting the imperialistic intentions of the some involving countries in the Syrian struggle and the continuous hindering of the political solution path by the regime forces in absence of the international interest of the Syrian problem and support of some sides to the regime’s behaviors and other reasons.
He reiterated that the division situation in the Syria is one of the most important reasons for not reaching a solution which increased over more than ten years of ongoing conflict.

“It is well known historically that in absence of role of the country the people shelter to the narrow circles that are now prevailing Syria, as the country has turned into small states that are even allied to regional or international side.”

He noted that some Syrian sides have went even beyond that episode as we followed calls for conferences on religious, tribal or sectarian base, and all those divisions are emerged and enlarged by absence of role of the centeral state that should protect the people and secure their stability and means of living conditions, matters that have complicated the way for reaching a comprehensive solution for the Syrian tragedy.

He attributed reasons of the failure of reaching a solution to the presence of the crisis merchants who flourish during the chaos and conflict among all the Syrian sides as well as the absence of consensus on someone to administer the coming stage.

Farahat reiterated, we are as Syrians are living state of political desertification that has been imposed by the ruling regime since 1970, so the political moves that we see nowadays are not at the level of the demanded matured level to face a corrupted ruling system over fifty years that are deep rooted inside and outside. He added inside Syria, people are ruled by iron fist and policy of hunger, and at the outside level, the regime has managed via its media to show the people who demand freedom, democracy and social solidarity to look like devils.

On the other hand, Samar Kahkarly, told SOHR that denied reports about the withdrawal of the flag, adding that step has been taken due to the initiatives that don’t seem deep in addition to the feelings that the provided document are ready made and that the general authority has nothing much to discuss. “I opposed the content of the document” he said.

He added that a committee of four people to redraft a complete roadmap to abide by the revolution soul has been formed, and the main focus went to enforcing UNSC resolution number 2254 in addition to the Iranian and the Russia occupations and the issue of the detainees and other issues of top priority.

He pointed out that the documents were required to be provided and then they were directly rejected by the conference participants who wanted to concentrate on electing the preparatory committee. But that demand has been rejected by the withdrawing parties which added tensions to the discussion and the later withdrawal.

However, Kahkarly has pledged to rejoin the conference again in case of brining revolutionist decisions.

He described the final statement of the conference as weak adding that his fears were right, as it hasn’t mentioned the importance of excluding al-Assad from the transitional ruling authority and hasn’t focused on the Russian and the Iranian occupation and hasn’t included one word about revolution.

He concluded his comment to SOHR by saying “I withdrew because I haven’t seen something related to the national decision or restoring the Syrian sovereignty.”

Meanwhile, Abullah Hag Mohamed al-Ameen, secretary general of the democratic leftist party told SOHR that the participation in the conference made on base that the conference is Syrian-Syrian meeting away from any foreign agenda with national secular trend far from any religious or national division.

But he highlighted that the conservation of some participant was present in the first session because the roadmap didn’t mentioned the ouster of the regime, deeming the conference aims were to brighten the image of some political persons so I decided to withdraw with a large group of participants.

He accused the two conferences of neglecting the amendments of some documents and not recognizing the committee of redrafting them, which was an evidence of bad intention to clean the profile of some persons and create a platform the is similar to Cairo or Moscow platforms.