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The youth of Syria after a stage of political non-participation
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Yahya Al-ous
Much is being said about the 'social movement'. It is being described as a condition which is starting to make its way into the public life of Syria, despite the differences of opinion in considering whether this is truly the case, or whether it is merely a small margin of freedom granted on purpose, which will be abolished as soon as it is considered necessary. The clue here is the number of arrests of activists who cross the lines.
. In certain cases it is necessary to consider the novelties and changes on a regional and international scale which are making this movement a matter of current importance which no-one can ignore or keep repressing ad infinitum. In the vastness of this situation which depends on various changing events, the crisis of the generation of young people in Syria will in the next few years, emerge as one of the most dangerous crises being faced by the challenge of moving to a new stage, and that which in reference to this demographic group may extend from a merely hypothetical role in any process of change in the construction of Syrian society.
As a natural result of this situation of non-participation, which the Powers have exerted over young people over a period of four decades, the problem appears to be extremely deep-rooted. We find ourselves faced with a huge demographic group which is looking for experience but has a lack of memory; a group which is unable to truly understand that it is itself an effective agent of change; a group lost between two choices; the politics imposed upon it, and its natural role as being creative and open.
So what happened?
For a start, we cannot say that the segment of the population which in Syria is grouped under the heading 'young people' and which exceeds 65% of the population, is defined by shared characteristics, or has a defined beginning and end, and evident features. If the factor of age unites it, it is also divided by many differences, such as economic situation, state of education, gender, and other things, and this reflects the reduction in stature which this segment is experiencing. So what are the circumstances which led to this situation?
A portion of Syria's youth has been controlled by a policy of containment, applied to them since the first days of the Ba'ath party's assumption of power in Syria. In April 1963, the National Union of Syrian Students was established, and after that the Revolutionary Youth Union, and in the year 1973 when the decision was taken to found the National Progressive Front (NPF), another decision was made, forbidding the parties of this weak front from activities inside the student and military milieux. And in this manner, the Ba'ath remained in sole control over this segment. This was before the outbreak of the events of the eighties and the changes which they brought about which helped the Authorities to maintain a tight grip over political activities in Syria. This was in the shadow of an impoverished political life which had already been confined to a number of the weak parties representing the NPF. The consequence was the termination of any potential chances for young people to escape from the will of the regime, or at least escape from the Ba'athist ideology.
Therefore, this segment became fair game for the political organizations which exercised a monopoly over the representation of young people and spoke in their name, and its characteristics were erased and their ideas and interests were confiscated. The result is a segment of the population known by the term 'Young people', which carries the mentality of the authority, and which is united by geographical place, not by ideas, and not by true convictions; a fragile group open to exploitation by upstarts and opportunists.
Arabic studies and research attempts have failed- and there are few of them- in dealing with the dilemmas of young people in the Arab world because they are treating them out of their societal framework, and at a time when it is impossible to separate these crises from their overall context of a social crisis. With an absence of figures and effective studies which reflect the effect of the social and economic crises on the youth of Syria, these young people remain in contact with the political predicament which they find themselves in. They have two options: Either penetrating into the political structures represented by organizations and unions controlled by the authority, or silence and total exclusion. This is all in the shadow of growing unemployment rates, accompanied by low levels of qualifications and a lack of scientific experiences amongst graduates from Syrian universities, all of which result in less employment in the private sector. Especially if you know that the sagging governmental sector also has weak employment and is drowning in a huge maze of bureaucracy, which has encouraged young people to emigrate abroad in search of employment.
The government realizes that it is facing a real crisis with regard to the segment of young people in Syria and that this crisis is a natural result of the practices of the Syrian authority concerning young people over the last forty years. Because of the paramount importance of this sector and its effect on development plans in general, the government tried to express its interests and to address the crisis, creating measures towards this segment such as a project of fighting unemployment, a reduction in military service, the distribution of a number of houses to young people, organizing collective wedding ceremonies, and allowing the NPF to operate amongst students. But is this enough to overcome the crisis in which the Syrian youth lives? The revival of this segment needs reconsideration of all the concepts and values which were imposed upon them in order to regain the spirit of initiative and to create an independent personality far from the effects of the official party ideology. In consequence, the clear appointment of symbols for this segment who can speak on behalf of the youth and truly represent them is necessary. This requires the government to reconsider the methodology of its party unions, who control this segment- a methodology which is controlled by the security forces.
Escaping from the crisis
The youth sector of Syria has been unable to play any effective role in Syrian life during the last four decades, which is because of the activities of pressure and the limits which it has been constrained by, which produced a marginalized sector of the population unable to engage in effective social participation in order to address the difficulties and interests of a fast-moving world, and to create a personality for the youth group. For the sake of restoring the spirit to this social group, there are many issues which need to be addressed immediately in order to start the healing process, and they are;
- The problem of work, which is considered a bridge for youth to cross, from a state of social and political exclusion, towards social participation.
- The lifting of control over this segment, which would allow young people to choose the political trend freely and without intervention by any governmental body.
- The guarantee of political participation, especially outside the context of parties and unions.
- The right to knowledge seperate from the obscurity and impositions of official propaganda, and the right to a free media which would reflect the truth of this segment, its interests and its dreams.
- The expenditure of money on education in order to achieve effective qualifications for students, to enable them to enter the labour market.
- The establishment of youth foundations and organizations which would allow them to express themselves, their political and social desires within the framework of these organizations which are able to develop their capacity to participate in planning the social policy. |
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