Posting from Damascus
Dear Readers, It will be much harder to post intelligently from Damascus. The Internet just isn't fast enough to get around the proper articles in a timely fashion. The US embassy allows Fulbrighters to use an embassy computer that has a satellite connection, but I have only been able to open my email once out of 4 days trying. (They say this has nothing to do with the intervention of the Government, which can't read or interfere with satellite stuff.) I will go to the regular internet cafes and see if the results are better. They very well may be. Much information comes to me via email. So without it on a regular basis, I will be blind. Michael Young wrote about the same subject as I did in his last post and linked to me. (I would link to him now, but my computer is too slow to make it feasible.) He argues that Syria could very well be a center for Iraq's terror organizations. He argues Abdul Halim Khaddam has his networks into Iraq, suggesting that other Syrian officials and services also do, and that the Syria state - at least the tangle of officials and bureacracies that make it up - may all be looking the other way on what their brethren are doing. [I miss-paraphrased Michael a few days ago, claiming that he suggested that "Khaddam is probably at the center" of Iraqi resistence. He suggested no such thing and I hope he will accept my appologies for any misleading para-phrase.] Only the Syrian opposition in exile is suggesting that Khaddam is at the center of things. The US and Iraqi governments are arguing that the Syrian intelligence is at the heart of planning in Iraq, but they have not named Khaddam as the main organizer. Khaddam has known contacts to Iraq, Young suggests, because he presided over the oil-electricity deal General Petreus struck with Syria last year, rather than leaving the task to the appropriate minister in Syria. Michael is right that under normal circumstances ministers would have done the deal. But nothing along the Iraq-Syrian border was normal in 2003. This is why a US General was brokering the deal for Iraq and not an Iraqi minister. One can understand why the Syrian government would not regard the situation as normal and assign someone with more military and political clout. But nothing can prove that the Syrian intelligence is not at the bottom of things in Iraq, nor that the Ba`th has not rediscovered its common ideological roots after 40 years of separation. The same, of course, is also true of Iraqi accusations against Syria, none of which have actually been demonstrated. Why have we not seen the photos of terrorists with Khaddam? The Iraqi Government has every reason to try to shift the blame for the successes and potency of the resistance onto secret Syrian organizations. After all, Iraqi forces have been a disaster themselves at finding hard evidence about the resistance's leadership. American officers argue that the resistance knows more about the movement of American troops than the Americans know about the resistance. Not good. A big stain on the Iraqi intelligence. Of course the weakness of Iraqi forces and their unwillingness to fight in a number of cities is also an embarrassment that can't be covered up by blaming Syria. The failure of Iraqi intelligence and defense forces cannot be placed at Syria's door, although, it is hard to think that someone won't try. All the same, this does not exculpate Syria. It is easy to speculate right know. Washington has upped the pressure on Damascus in so many ways these last months that there must be many people in the Syrian administration arguing for just the type of hardball policies Damascus is now being accused of. Most Syrian's are with the resistance in their hearts and believe America is in Iraq for no good. My mother-in-law asked me if I thought the Americans were stealing Iraqi oil. She also allowed as how she couldn't believe the resistance would cut off the heads of Iraqis. Her views are widespread. She was a teacher for 25 years and reads several newspapers a day. Of course, she also likes al-Manar television, Hizbullah's channel. Having just gone through the painful process of looking for an apartment in Damascus, it is quite clear that Syria is experiencing very big changes, that most people are only just waking up to. Rents have gone through the roof. Most Syrians blame this on Iraqis and other foreigners, but there are several other more important reasons. The new renter’s law, which is now two years old, has completely eliminated socialism of rental properties and has caused a major revolution in the ability of property owners to accumulate wealth. I will talk about this and the newly proposed agricultural laws that will do the same thing for rural property in an upcoming post. In the mean time, be patient as I learn the new system here.
BookForum - Jan/Dec 2005
One of the most significant deficits in the Arab world today—and one which the highly publicized United Nations Arab Human Development Reports have so far failed to mention—is the staggering absence of young voices on the intellectual scene and in the public debate concerning societal and political reform. This is perhaps the starkest manifestation of the "knowledge gap or deficit" referred to in the reports, issued annually by the United Nations Development Program to monitor socioeconomic and political conditions in the Arab states. Arab countries, it seems, have somehow ceased to produce intellectuals—artists, novelists, poets, and political and social analysts—who could navigate new courses and harness popular sentiment to help lift their countries out of the morass in which they are mired.
Take Syria, which has historically produced more writers and thinkers of great renown than any other Arab state. In contrast to the dozens of figures who emerged on the country's intellectual scene in the '60s, '70s, and '80s, there is hardly a single figure in Syria today who is capable of galvanizing popular interest. Indeed, no author, poet, or thinker below the age of forty has managed to make a name for him- or herself within the country, much less in the Arab world at large.
In the meantime, the older, familiar voices—Adonis, one of the most daring and creative contemporary Arab poets; Nizar Qabbani, hands down the most popular Arab versifier, inspiring singers throughout the Arab world with his works; Saadallah Wannous, the most prolific Arab dramatist; and Sadiq Jalal al-Azm, the courageous critic of contemporary Arab thought, both religious and political—continue to dominate. And this despite the fact that Qabbani and Wannous are dead, and Adonis and al-Azm are in their seventies, with Adonis living in Paris and al-Azm spending most of his time teaching abroad, in Europe, the United States, and Japan.
What happened? A number of factors are responsible. For one, a climate of fear continues to prevail in Syria, thanks to the severe limits on freedom of expression and assembly still imposed by the Baathist government. Every Syrian below the age of forty was raised under the rule of the Baath Party, which seized control of the country in a bloody coup in 1963. Syrians of this generation have vivid recollections of the dictatorial rule of Hafez al-Assad, father of the current president, and the horrific crackdowns of the late '70s and early '80s, as well as the 1992 massacres in the central Syrian city of Hama, where more than fifteen thousand people were killed and buried in unmarked mass graves.
This kind of repression has, naturally, fostered an attitude of political and social apathy among young Syrians and stifled the spirit of free inquiry. Add to this an outmoded educational system that values rote memorization over critical thinking, societal and cultural taboos on the criticism of "traditional values," and a serious shortage of activities, social clubs, and national programs designed to discover and support talented individuals in the arts, humanities, and social sciences, and the dearth of young intellectuals today should come as little surprise.
The above factors have also contributed to a decrease in exposure to modern philosophy and the intellectual trends of the West, so that even as limits on freedom of speech in the Middle East are now being challenged as a result of the introduction of the Internet and the proliferation of Arab satellite-TV networks, the few young voices in Syria who have managed to emerge (most of them in their late thirties and forties) have often shown a woefully inadequate understanding of contemporary global realities. Instead, they tend to fall back on the dated, nationalistic rhetoric of their predecessors rather than attempting to critique it. Thus the problem of inadequate human resources, which the UN reports identify, seems to affect not only the professional sphere but the intellectual scene as well, a situation true of nearly every Arab country, to varying degrees.
And yet, lifting the limits on freedom of expression and fostering the development of young intellectuals aren't enough. There is a clear need to bridge the gap in knowledge that separates the Middle East from the rest of the world. This requires broad exposure to modern Western thought—not only academic and cultural exchange programs, involving scholars, students, and artists, but more important, the adoption of a large-scale effort to translate into Arabic works of Western philosophy, the humanities, and the social and political sciences, classical and contemporary alike. According to the 2003 Arab Human Development Report, fewer than 4.4 books per million people are currently translated throughout the Arab world each year, in comparison with 519 in Hungary and 920 in Spain. Given that the total population of the Arab world is around 250 million, the total number of books translated into Arabic each year is around 1,100.
In the past, similar translation efforts have, over time, led to an intellectual and cultural renascence in the societies that have championed them. This was the case in the Arab world in the ninth century, when Arab scholars set about translating Greek and Aramaic works on philosophy and science. There is a strong argument to be made that a serious commitment to translation, in tandem with programs designed to encourage young Arab minds to grapple critically with these texts, could have a similarly beneficial effect today. It is a time-consuming undertaking, to be sure, but then, cultural battles are won only through decades of interaction and introspection. Cultures do not change overnight. Naturally, considering the ambitious scale of such a project, it cannot be entrusted solely to the Arab regimes or independent Arab publishers, who are struggling to get by. Rather, an alliance of state, independent, and international institutions is needed to provide funding and work out a plan adequate for such a vast enterprise.
One major channel for this undertaking is likely to be the Internet, where censorship by Arab states is still fairly lax. In Syria, the website www.maaber.org has already managed, in four short years, to establish itself as a vital outlet for young and aspiring minds. The site offers sections on philosophy, nonviolence, psychology, environmental affairs, and literary endeavors, especially poetry and short stories. Although based in Damascus, its contributors and readership come from all over the Arab world, as well as from Arab communities in Europe, the United States, and Australia. Despite its continued political reticence (and its highly sophisticated language, which makes it accessible only to a tiny minority of readers), Maaber nonetheless showcases youthful thinkers who possess exactly the kind of analytical skills and introspection that are sorely needed if Syria, and the rest of the Middle East, are to develop a more realistic and fruitful vision of the future.
Though Maaber is by far the most sophisticated such website, others have joined in the attempt to take advantage of the relative freedom of expression on the Internet, such as 
One , who talked to business people in Syria about their hopes and fears following the enactment of US sanctions. They find that hospitals in particular are having a terrible time getting replacement parts for sophisticated American machinery, such as MRIs, crucial to patient care.
Another section tries to navigate , outlining the most recent measures, as well as upcoming studies and legislation.
Also, don't miss the , Minister of State for Planning Affairs, about efforts to coordinate Syrian reform.
If this publication can maintain the same quality as its first issue, it will be doing us all a great service.
a fine and disparaging article about the Syrian-backed demonstration in favor of Syria in downtown Beirut, "Telling Syria: Thanks a hundred thousand," in the Daily Star. He ends it by writing: "The Lebanese-Syrian relationship probably cannot transcend subservience to reach collaborative neighborliness. But the worst thing is that few Lebanese have the courage to tell their brethren in Damascus that the gimmicks of Syrian power are separating Lebanon from Syria perhaps irreversibly."
Elsewhere, to the Syrian occupation will have to unify before it can be effective.
quotes a number of analysts - including yours truly and al-Hayat's Ibrahim al-Hamidi - who explain why they think Syria is serious about peace with Israel.
Bashar said to have contemplated going to Jerusalem Last Year
were held early last year.
Syria, meanwhile, denied an Israeli media report that President Bashar Assad signaled he was ready to visit Jerusalem last year and address its parliament in a pitch for peace. "It goes without saying that this is completely baseless," a Foreign Ministry official said of the report published in the Maariv daily.
But Israeli Foreign Minister Silvan Shalom acknowledged Wednesday the Israeli government had held secret contacts with Syria last year, including with relatives of Assad, but said that they had been broken off after leaks to the press. Quoting unnamed Israeli officials, the Maariv daily said Assad signaled he was ready to come to Jerusalem in a move to revive peace talks - suspended in 2000 - but that the gesture was thwarted by Prime Minister Ariel Sharon's office.
Asked about the Maariv report, Shalom did not comment on whether Assad had requested to visit Jerusalem, but insisted contacts held a year and a half ago had been only "preliminary."
explains that there was never much chance President Bashar al-Assad would accept the Israeli invitation to Jerusalem. He doesn't want to be Sadat and Washington is not urging him to go as it did Sadat and doesn't seem any more interested than Sharon in drawing the Syrian's out. As Hardy writes: "President Bush, like Prime Minister Sharon, seems more interested in punishing President Assad than rewarding him."
Israel is Better off with Syrian Forces in Lebanon
, Israeli military radio reported Wednesday.
Israeli National Security Council chief Giora Eiland warned in the report, commissioned by Prime Minister Ariel Sharon, that Syria's withdrawal from Lebanon would only serve to strengthen Hizbullah.
The report's conclusion is in stark contrast to the Israeli government's public stance, which has consistently demanded that Syria withdraw its 14,000 troops from Lebanon and halt its backing of Hizbullah.
Tel Aviv has insisted it will not resume peace negotiations with Syria until both demands are met. Israeli military radio said officials from Sharon's office indicated he found the report's recommendations unacceptable.
Beirut-based political analyst Simon Haddad said the report's recommendation made "no sense. ... Even if Syria withdraws its troops, it will retain control over Lebanon and will retain its relations with Hizbullah." Haddad added that he believed the report was aimed at destabilizing the national entente in Lebanon.
He said it might also be to show that Israel has no interests in promoting UN Security Council Resolution 1559. Adopted on Sept.2, the resolution calls for the withdrawal of foreign troops from Lebanon and for the disarmament of Lebanese and foreign militias.
But political analyst Nawaf Kabbara said, "If Syria withdraws, Lebanon will be faced with the following situation: a weak government and a strong military power in Hizbullah which will definitely grow stronger and more powerful." He added that internal opposition to Hizbullah would also grow, possibly with the help of outside backing, creating a situation which would destablize Lebanon. "Our situation is not easy," he added, "the Syrian presence is indispensable despite its inconveniences."
He added that Hizbullah's raison d'etre will not cease with Syria's withdrawal. "Its goal, at the present, is not limited to freeing the Golan Heights. It is a regional organization and as long as there is a regional justification for its existence, it will continue." What, then, would be the solution? "Going back to the negotiations table," as Syrian President Bashar Assad seems to be doing, according to Kabbara.
Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon has said he will not revive peace talks with Syria as long as Palestinian militant groups operate in Damascus.
Mr Sharon said that President Bashar Assad had not taken "the smallest step" against Palestinian militants based in the Syrian capital. Syria, which had recently suggested renewed negotiations, rejected the Israeli conditions as "unacceptable". Hamas and Islamic Jihad both have headquarters in Damascus.