FN-nyhedstjenesten IRIN har testet dybden i de blodige protester mod det syriske regime og finder ganske mange flere nuancer, end der ellers kommer ud i de internationale medier.
BEIRUT, 23 February 2012 (IRIN) – In Syria’s commercial capital, Aleppo, posters (plakater) plastered across the city tell the story of a community which, until recently, has been largely voiceless in the violent events of the past year.
The posters say opposition to the Intifada, or uprising, does not mean support for the regime.
This objection resembles one in the capital Damascus last July, when Christians, who have thus far not joined the protest movement en masse, covered walls in the Bab Tuma neighbourhood with posters denouncing the “Friday celebrations” by regime loyalists, which took place while both security officers and civilians were being killed.
Since March 2011, what began as peaceful protests against Syrian President Bashar al-Assad have increasingly turned into an armed rebellion.
Many Syrians, including dissidents, have opposed the nearly one-year popular uprising. Not because they support al-Assad, who has been accused by the UN high commissioner for human rights of possible crimes against humanity in the crackdown on protesters, but because they fear for the future of their country without him.
These people, so-called loyalists, describe the uprising as a crisis, or `azmah’ in Arabic: a challenging phase to be overcome by the government eventually.
As the international community increasingly turns against al-Assad, analysts say a consistent proportion of Syrians have maintained a detached, if not hostile, position towards the “opposition”.
Their reasons range from a desire for stability, regardless of its authoritarian enforcement, to the perception that elements of the opposition are inherently violent and radical.
Ethnic minorities view the uprising through a survivalist lens, fostered by the narrative of the regime and some personal accounts. This has further polarized versions of the events and reduced the possibility of any reconciliation.
IRIN hears from these segments of the population whose voices have often been drowned out by the protests and the gunfire.
Another Iraq?
Læs videre på http://www.irinnews.org/report.aspx?reportid=94931
