Reading Reaction # 4 Syrian Uprising

Hozan Hasan

EAP1/C

April 20, 2011

PoliticalScience

Reference:

Shadid, A. (2011, April 19). Syria steps up its crackdown while promising reform, from http://www.nytimes.com   Retrieved April 20, 2011 from http://www.nytimes.com/2011/04/20/world/middleeast/20syria.html?pagewanted=1&ref=world

 Summary:

            Syria is one of the big countries in the Middle East. In the article which I read, it is talking about the Syrian dictatorship government which has been governed by the Assad family during the 40 years they manipulated the power in Syria. Now the people of Syria are trying to change the political system in the country and they are trying to change peacefully without violence or killing people. The people of Syria want to change the power by the same way of Egyptian people when thousands of people gathered in Tahrir Square and they made Hussni Mubarak resign from power.

Reaction:

            According to the article, the Syrian people struggled with the dictatorship system and the ruling of the country by one party for a 40 year span; the people want freedom, a democratic system, a pure election, and a good life. The Syrian government surrounded the people, and by using weapons and killing their own people, separated the opposition, because the government did not want that kind of idea for change. In place of that, Mr. Assad announced the reform plan for the government and made reform inside the country; the people did not care about that kind of reform; they really want to change the system. Now in Syria the people have sacrificed and spent most of their life with Al Assad’s family ruling, so they have  just seen using violence against people and executing anyone who is against the Baath party ideology and Bath’s thinking. The new generation in Syria are trying to change the political system and political ideology like Egypt and Tunisia happened before 3 two months ago. Furthermore, the USA by funding and financially supporting the Syrian groups who are against the government, opening opposition TV channels like Barada TV, and encouraging the people to try to change the system peacefully. It is one of the successful methods the USA has tried to use for the countries whose people struggled with the dictatorship system and who have seen one leadership for the whole life span without changing. The USA tries to show the people the life of democracy and the smell of freedom, because most of the people in Syria didn’t know much more about the good things in democracy, because they lived with the one party system for 40 years. It is a long time for a country like Syria. The Syrian government has the radical thought about the people and they are against any ethnic groups inside Syria, because they didn’t accept different ethnic groups in Syria and they try to execute people and terrorize them. Until now the Kurdish people inside Syria have had no citizenship rights, and the government didn’t accepted them as citizens because they are Kurdish and their identities are Kurdish. The numbers of Kurdish people in Syria are more than 3 million people, and for thousands of years they have been living in Syria, but the dictatorship government didn’t give them the rights of citizenship because they are not Arab. There are unequal inside Syria and there is a huge problem like corruption. The groups of people of Syria who support the government have the power, money, and force, and they are free to do everything without being investigated. The people of Syria support the idea of changing the government but they are afraid of execution, and killing by the government; they are also afraid of the war happening like Libya; they are afraid of Bashar Assad’s using a dangerous weapon against their people. Generally the people of Syria believe that the dictatorship power in the country must change as soon as possible because that system didn’t do anything for the country during 40 years.