|
Syrian Kurds dare not waste historical
opportunity
11.7.2012
By Bashdar Ismaeel
—
Ekurd.net |
|
|
|
July
11, 2012
The sheer number of parties and voices that were
represented across the Syrian spectrum paints its
own story.
Fist fits, heated disagreements, deep divisions and
widespread mistrust and this is before a new
government even gets to work in Syria. "They are so
different, chaotic and hate each other," was a
statement from an unnamed official of the Arab
League that just about summed current plight of the
Syrian opposition.
Syrian President, Bashar al-Assad, has lasted by far
the longest out of all of the leaders that have been
submerged by the Arab Spring. Assad has held onto
power for over 16 months, in spite of fierce
international pressure, growing regional anger and a
vicious rebellion, through a combination of
hard-handed tactics but above all else, a fragmented
Syrian opposition front and a lack of a true
leadership.
Last week, hundreds of participants and dozens of
different movements, gathered in Cairo with hope of
forming a unified front against Assad.
The sheer number of parties and voices that were
represented across the Syrian spectrum paints its
own story. The session resulted in anger, physical
fighting and chaos, with a delegate from the Kurdish
National Council of Syria storming out of the
meeting for failure to recognise the Kurds as a
distinct group in a future Syria.
The aim was to unify the Syrian National Council
with view to making it a viable and legitimate front
in Syria, much in the same as the Libyan
Transitional Council was able to successfully
maneuverer international intervention and provided a
credible representation of the Libyan people.
The failure to entice the Kurds en-masse into the
anti-Assad fold, despite numerous overtures from the
Syrian opposition, continues to undermine the
strength and true cross-national appeal of the
council.
International efforts
All the while, in the midst of Syrian opposition
bickering, international powers continued to strive
to gather momentum in the quest to oust Assad. The
Syrian transitional plan agreed in Geneva fell short
of expectations, under the now typical obstacle
provided by Russia and China.
The Syrian National Council itself was largely
disappointed in the outcome and framework of the
Geneva plan.
The 100-member Friends of Syria conference this week
spoke volumes about the international stance.
However, for all the rhetoric and growing
international uproar, this has not led to
substantial change on the ground.
Assad continues to employ all measures under his
arsenal and massacres and reprisal attacks continue
unabated.
The defection of a top general this week, provided
hope that cracks may start to appear at the top of
Assad's empire, but such false dawns have not been
uncommon.
The Kurdish swing
The Kurds have by far the greatest influence to sway
momentum in Syria, but are stuck between an Assad
dynasty that has provided them with decades of
repression and an Arab dominated Sunni opposition,
largely backed by Ankara, that they don't trust.
The Syrian opposition has failed to sufficiently
persuade the Kurds, and the Kurdish viewpoint is
largely understandable.
If the Arab nationalists that form a part of today's
opposition do not give Kurds the sufficient
reassurance they seek over their recognition and
rights at a time when they desperately need Kurdish
support and are not yet in power,www.ekurd.net
then how will they react in the future once they
assume power?
Syrian Kurds only need to look across the border to
Turkey to lose hope. Turkey is a major regional
power, a Western style democracy and part of the
European framework, and yet their Kurds have hardly
had a glut of hope and freedom.
This makes it all the worse, as Turkey is the
biggest sponsor and host to the Syrian National
Council.
The Syrian Kurds, until sufficiently swayed, will
keep their feet on both sides of the equation, both
in a future Syria without Baathist rule and also in
a Syria that continues under Assad rule.
Realising the power that the Kurds have, Assad has
largely refrained from attacks in Kurdish dominated
areas, provided some freedoms and concessions to
Kurds, afforded growing support to the PKK and has
at the same time attempted to divide Kurdish
sentiment.
The Kurds themselves are divided further between a
pro-Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) stance and
an anti-Turkish camp.
Kurdish demands
The Kurds must remain firm on their demands for
recognition and autonomy. If they fail to achieve
their nationalist goals at this juncture, who's to
say when the next history opportunity knocks on the
door?
Kurds have waited for decades to be rid of the
shackles of tyranny and repression and dare not lose
this opportunity. As the largest minority in Syria
and a major partner in Syria, they must continue to
press for autonomy and a status deserving of their
numbers and ethnic distinction.
If the Arabs complain of harsh treatment under Assad,
just imagine how the Kurds feel after decades of
neglect and for thousands, not even basic
citizenship rights or outright citizenship for that
matter.
However, unless the Kurds get their own house in
order, they will fail to achieve their goals. The
Kurdish National Council and the Democratic Union
Party's (PYD) People's Council must in one form or
another agree on a common stance.
The PYD, with an affiliation to the PKK, have
steadily grown in influence and power, and their
presence can be felt across a number of towns and
villages in Kurdish dominated areas of Syria.
The more that the divide between the Kurds become
visible, the more that Assad, regional powers and
the Syrian opposition will use this as a cane to
reign in Kurdish demands and diminish their
influence.
What now for Syria?
For several months, international powers have talked
about Assad's days been numbered and how Assad has
lost credibility, yet if the international response
does not become more concrete and more affective at
directly cutting the arteries that support Assad or
if efforts to unify the Syrian opposition do not
gather pace, Assad could find himself still clinging
onto power in another 16 months.
Ironically, the real bastions of hope on the ground,
the Free Syrian Army, are hardly the greatest
supporters of the Syrian National Council and had
boycotted the Cairo talks.
Tip-toeing by the international community,
especially to appease Russia and China will bear no
fruit. Through international military intervention
in the same was as Libya or through a full blown
civil war, Assad's empire will only crumble under
sheer force. The idea that Assad will simply give up
power through a democratic transitional process is a
fantasy.
Regional and foreign powers are already supplying
Syrian rebels with weaponry and logistics support,
but a violent conflict with a divided Syrian
opposition risks drawing out the war for years.
A brighter future for
Syria?
The common conception that ousting Assad will lead
to instant harmony and peace in Syria is delusional.
International and regional powers must act now to do
all they can to strike agreement and unity amongst
the Syrian opposition.
Owed to its disparate factions, great animosity,
sectarian divides and ethnic imbalance, Syria has
all the hallmarks of an Iraq.
Much like Iraq, the real problem for Syria is its
artificial creation as a result of the fall of the
Ottoman Empire. Just like Iraq, the divide has been
effectively stitched through barbaric regimes and
use of force.
As the aftermath of the Arab Spring has proved,
regime change is one thing and practical measures
for a better future in those countries is another.
Foreign powers must brace themselves for a long-term
hand in Syria. While the Kurds, must persevere with
a hard-line negotiation stance and written
guarantees and not fall for mere promises that can
be backtracked at any time in the future.
Bashdar Pusho Ismaeel is a London-based freelance
writer and analyst, a regular
contributing writer for Ekurd.net website. Ismaeel whose primary focus and
expertise is on the Kurds, Iraq and Middle Eastern
current affairs. The main focus of his writing is to
promote peace, justice and increase awareness of the
diversity, suffering and at times explosive mix in
Iraq and the Middle East.
Most recently he has produced work for the
Washington Examiner, Asian Times, The Epoch Times,
Asia News, The Daily Star (Lebanon), Kurdish Globe,
Hewler Post, Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG), KurdishMedia, PUK Online and OnlineOpinion.
He has achieved seminar recommended readings for Le
High University (Pennsylvania) and Massachusetts
Institute of Technology. His work has been
republished extensively elsewhere on the Internet.
He is a longtime contributing writer for Ekurd.net. You may reach the author via email at:
bashdar@hotmail.com
First appeared on: Kurdish Globe
Other Primary Sources of Republication: Ekurd.net,
Various Misc.
Copyright
© 2012 Ekurd.net. All rights reserved
Top |
The opinions
expressed in this commentary are solely those of the
author
|
®
