Syria signed the Protocol, but what about the sanctions?

Syria signed the Protocol of the Arab monitoring Committee, and we heard the Qatari minister welcoming the resolution, and showing flexibility that needs explanation regarding the future of Syria and the right of the Syrians in determining the future of their country. However, he did not admit that his plan to attack Syria and to drop its regime has failed, that the round of the current confrontation has ended, and that Syria succeeded in getting rid of the ambush which was put through commendable flexibility in light of maintaining the national sovereignty. The Syrian leadership was deeply aware that any delay to start to find a solution at the Arab level will be at the expense of the Syrian blood first, and at the expense of the Syrian sovereignty second. Third and last, those who are awaiting the defects of the country would achieve a valuable opportunity to attack it through the foreign interference.

The statements made by the head of the Arab Follow-up Committee on the Syrian crisis did not put emphasis on the immediate lifting of the sanctions as Nabil Al-Arabi, the Arab League Secretary General, promised. This comes because this step is not the point here, for the logical question to everyone who contributed in taking the decision to boycott Syria is whether the economic and other boycotts against Syria were in favor of the Syrian people and were preserving the lives of citizens and their safety in light of the new situation in Syria, which took as an Arab state the task of boycotting the Israeli entity over sixty years and succeeded in doing so without taking part in the other tasks assumed by various Arab countries.

Yet, taking a closer look or even a superficial one at the living situation in Syria after the resolution clearly indicates the great size of the damage caused by this resolution, and suffered by the Syrian people and the Syrian economy. In fact, Hamad bin Jassim, Qatar’s foreign minister, or anyone else, cannot claim that the resolution prevents any party involved in the conflict with Syria from continuing practicing its convictions, whether they were true or false, for the result was that the killings have increased and groups of militants and outlaws were spread more and more. Moreover, the economic situation has worsened represented in an unprecedented increase of consumer prices, unemployment and poverty increased, and the crisis of fuel and electricity began to emerge, contrary to what the decision makers have alleged regarding their intention to alleviate the suffering of the Syrian people.

The Syrians have waited the Arab League to interfere in an effective and balanced way to solve the Syrian problem, which means interfering through the material and moral influence of the Member States to stop the bleeding at the first place, by calling all parties (and not just the government) to stop shooting and terrorizing the citizens. Most importantly, this means asking Syria’s neighboring countries like Turkey, Jordan, and Lebanon, to prevent the infiltration into Syria and to stop the smuggling of weapons and counterfeit money, which began to materialize in the markets of Syria. Then, they should have put pressure on all parties to start a transparent national dialogue that bring us to the reasonable and balanced solution and preserve the unity of Syria, as well as its civil peace, which it was enjoying over the decades.

If the League of Arab States respect its role and objectives, for which it was formed, it would have been better for it to ask the Western countries to stop the economic blockade on the Syria as a people and state, but it was rather subjugated and it accepted the Western interpretation that is against our nation about the fact that it seeks to curb the Syrian officials, so that to support the Syrian people and to avoid violence against them. However, days proved their lie and deception, for the blockade in light of the factual findings was the worst practice of violence against the Syrian people.

The rise in commodity prices with the disappearance of other markets and the emergence of long queues in front of the small stores and the gas and fuel stations certainly show the goals of the boycott and blockade sought to be achieved by all those parties. Everyone was exposed before the facts of reality as experienced by the Syrian people, and the parties that are saying valueless words most regarding defending the rights of the Syrian people, as well as their freedom, are the same who are damaging and undermining the dignity of their homeland most through violating the sovereignty and threatening to interfere in its affairs.

The facts of the past months, since the outbreak of the protests, demonstrations, and the acts of violence in Syria, presented to the Syrians the evidence on the importance of the national unity and the unity of the Syrian territories, as it also showed clearly that the peaceful solution to the crisis is the right way to help their country spare more devastation that might take it many years back, as happened in Iraq and Libya, even if it took a different form.

Choosing democracy as the Syrian people want or what might be called democracy on the Syrian way has only one path, which passes through the Syrian territories and do not exceed them. This path is free of mines, explosives, conspiracies and deception. Is the path of national reconciliation, the implementation of the reforms without delay, and stopping the violence all over the Syrian territories by all parties, and simultaneously.

Now, the same goes for the position on the decision of boycott, we should raise the voice of upright to tell those who are monitoring that you are here in Syria in order to calm things down, to bring the right back, and to show the truth with what is good for Syria and its proud people. You are here to control the brethrens who are suffering distress, and you are not a military commission that is taking the task of making a truce or a victory for a party over the other. We sincerely hope that your mission will succeed and that you will be able to achieve peace and goodness to Syria and its great people.