Remembering Syrian Civil War
Europe was the subject of thousands of intellectual elegies and works of art. How much does it resemble the Middle East? How much the civil war of Syria, which has not ended for many years, resembles the civil war of Spain in all its internal and external dimensions? The war of Syria looks as if it is an extended version of Spanish war.
There is no doubt that, after some years, creative people will produce films, songs and books will be written and paintings made to commemorate the Syrian war. But those who lost their lives in Hama, Homs, Daraa and Aleppo will not return. When someone will come out and say: Our policy regarding the Syrian civil war was wrong, as Roosevelt has said, then the tragedy of millions of people will emerge as stigmas in the memory. However, what distinguishes the Syrian opposition from the Spanish resistance is the Assad regime which will never regain its position. Thanks to the huge sacrifices and the struggle made, the children of Syria will get rid of their handcuffs.
Most of us do not have enough ink to write literature about Syria as a place which remained between prayer and militancy. When I am writing these lines before dawn, I look at the pictures of Syria of the last ten years and sing in whispers: “As long as I can shoot the rabbits, I can shoot the lion.”
(by Merve Şebnem Oruç in Harmoon Centre)
Withdrawal from Istanbul Agreement
The Turkish Official Gazette (recently) published a decision made by the President, Recep Tayyip Erdogan to withdraw from the “Istanbul Agreement” which was signed in 2011 with the Council of Europe to prevent violence against women and curb domestic violence. The Turkish Parliament ratified it in 2012. The decision taken by Erdogan did not specify the reasons. But the support to it came in the form of a tweet of the Turkish Minister of Family, Zahra Zumurud Selcuk, in which she stressed that women’s rights in Turkey were safeguarded by the local laws and the dynamics of the legal system.
On August 13, 2019, President Erdogan had announced the government’s plan to permanently withdraw from the Istanbul agreement. Even widespread protests could not dissuade him from moving ahead. An opinion poll showed last year that the majority of Turks opposed the decision to withdraw from the Istanbul agreement. It showed the extent of the conservatives’ influence within the AKP. Erdogan, who has already abandoned the idea of joining the European Union, is keen to redraw Turkey’s regional alliances and establish its feet ideologically, to revitalise his electoral base among the conservatives. This is in view of the voter dissatisfaction due to the years-long economic downturn. He is also preparing for a new constitution for the country. This will mean strengthening of political and social polarisation inside Turkey, and a wider confrontation between the secular and conservative forces.
(by Hosam Abu Hamid in Al Araby Al Jadeed)
Compiled and Translated by Faizul Haque