DEMOCRACY in the Middle East has long been a central policy for the United States, most recently centering on the nation of Syria in which the United States has played and should play a strong, firm role. This focus most recently prompted Farid Ghadry, President of the Reform Party of Syria, to speak at the University last Tuesday night. His discussion focused on the establishment of democracy in Syria in the face of an entrenched dictatorship and the role of the United States in such a process.
Ghadry's party is based in the United States and Europe and is mostly made up of Syrian exiles or those who fled Syria. It works, he says, to end "the huge propaganda machine of war, of hate, and of violence" that is the Syrian regime, and to build a state "where multiple parties are represented and elections are held free from fear, intimidation, and repressive measures." The situation in Syria is very complex, however, as the Ba'ath Party maintains a tight control over Syrian society. This control has resulted in a small minority oppressing the general populace, openly jailing elected political opponents, restricting economic prosperity to themselves and of course occupying the sovereign nation of Lebanon.
Opposing the Ba'athists are two groups, though the first is little more than a puppet party controlled by the regime. The second party, what the Ghadry's calls the "Prisoners of Conscience," is far more important as they are the members of the Syrian Parliament and other citizens who are opposed to the Ba'athist's oppression and tyranny, and who as it turns out are mostly in jail. These men are what Ghadry's calls "a force to be reckoned with," and one of the major goals of the Reform Party is to secure their release.
The Syrian Reform Party has an extremely difficult task. It is fairly new, spread across the U.S. and Europe and has few active members actually within Syria for fear of repression. There are, however, many recent signs, Ghadry says, that promise a far more positive future for both the party and for Syrians as a whole. One major sign is that the "twelve families who control 80 percent of Syria's economy" are beginning to fight among each other. This is a good sign because it destabilizes the current regime, allowing reformists access to the tightly controlled mainstream society. Second is a rise in international pressure, primarily over Syria's 25-year-old occupation of Lebanon. Syria has recently promised to withdraw its troops. As French President Jacques Chirac told President Bush, when this event occurs "the Damascus government [is] unlikely to survive."
Most importantly of all, however, is that the United States fights what Ghadry calls "the intuitive disbelief that the U.S. really will push democracy," which is the result of Cold War memories of arms buildups and the desire for stable Middle Eastern governments above the call for democracy. To prove this is not true, the United States has a number of options. The Syria Accountability and Lebanese Sovereignty Act of 2003 is a significant start, because according to the Cato Institute the Act allows the United States to implement "new measures, which combine punitive economic sanctions with diplomatic pressure." This is important, because it reaffirms President Bush's ability to put significant pressure on the Syrian regime -- such pressure being vital according to Ghadry.
In addition to political and economic pressures, there is of course direct military action. Though Ghadry does not want a full-out invasion, the events in Iraq of the past several years show how difficult it is to remove an entrenched dictatorship and the need for a strong security force which takes a long to train and equip. The United States could easily provide this sort of assistance.
Democracy in Syria is without a doubt possible as the current regime is beginning to turn on itself and as international pressure continues to mount. To affect this, however, the United States must prove its commitment to ensure a truly free society and to minimize the chaos of regime change. Political and economic pressures must be continued to push the Ba'athists to recognize Lebanese sovereignty, release their political figures and allow opposition movements, and to restore some sort of equity to an economically oppressed nation. Fortunately, recent U.S. policy in Iraq is a clear signal that such injustice will not be tolerated, and that the United States will hold firm to its moral duty of ensuring freedom and ending oppression in Syria. We must do this carefully, but we must also not be afraid to act with strength and resolve.
Allan Cruickshanks column appears Fridays in The Cavalier Daily. He can be reached at acruickshanks@cavalierdaily.com.
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