I‘m wondering whom I am adressing in the meantime.
I‘m wondering because I believe after more or less one and a half years witnessing the Arab Spring and its‘ different stages it is time to analyze whom I am really adressing with my bit of profund knowledge I gained. Since one and a half years I‘m trying to comprehend the mechanisms of revolution. It‘s a gift to become part of an inner liberation attempt to overcome an unwanted oppressive rulership, my parents can confirm that, for them for example Che Guevara wasn‘t only a cool shirt-print or wallpaper. Even not living in the landslides the rebellion started or being there in my lifetime, not having roots there or stuff like that modern mass media allows us to take part, to feel with, to suffer together on the level of compassion, to mourn together, to show the affected people there striving for freedom and dignity that they‘re not alone. The possibilities to actively take part are simple but for sure not ineffective: act through connect and share; lend your voice those who are urged to silence and intensify through your words the voices of those too weak to be heard; try to inform your own social environment with the stats and facts the mainstream news aren‘t reporting about.
So whom am I adressing? My own fellows?
Still doing it but not like I‘m selling fish in the harbor market. Merchant-style marketing works only when you have at least something to offer for free. But what should I offer in my case? ,Save a dozen Syrian civilians and you receive a 5% tax reduction voucher for this year‘? Sorry, that‘s not in my power. Instead of that I‘m offering for free all the informations I can get. The informations especially from Syria are mainly foggy and have therefore to be taken with a grain of salt? For sure they are as long as you have no first hand feed. Or better you go directly there to have a straight look what clearly happens. But the chances to get into the country, to enter the revolutionary hotspots, to take some images and interviews a n d to leave Syria without a bullet in your head are definitely too low to dare such an experience. If the regime in Damascus spreads its‘ conspiracy myth about ,armed gangs‘ and ,terrorists‘, well, then it‘s hard for me residing in the safe haven of Olde Europe to prove that and I‘m dependent on trustful sources to disprove that claim. But if the regime is starting a propaganda campaign to spread fears among Muslims and Christs slaughtering each other I‘m well able to act against that even thousands of miles far from Syria by defending the togetherness of both religions in the most simple case of regarding them under the roof of monotheism.
So whom am I adressing? The believers?
Not only. Building bridges in different directions by convincing scepticals among both religions to tear down their own walls of fears and prejudices and in the same time convincing scepticals among the rest of the global community that you‘re not a bunch of bewildered radicals spreading hate and bigotry in the name of recreating the Lord‘s empire. Beating extremism is a widespread topic. Of course you‘re glad as rebel if you‘re joined by fellows fighting for the same goal like you. But if they‘re doing that with the ulterior motive to install a similar terror reign like the actual one, just under a new name, you‘ve got de facto a problem. Keep your revolution clean. That‘s not from me, the icon already exists. A clear sign that the bridges are under construction.
Besides the religious aspect, whom other am I adressing?
Coming now to the point of my typed thoughts. Actually I like to adress the Syrian revolutionaries themselves, most of all the shabab with their remarkable enthusiasm. I like to adress you from my point of view as a German. I both understand and admire your iron will for real change which means ,no compromise, we wanna get rid of the whole regime apparatus and not only that nasty family clan‘. I do support you whereever I can by trying to raise the needed awareness you deserve. I discovered that true Mundass blood is running through my veins. Together we learned that during the first chapter of a revolution the revolutionary movement simply needs another color - i.e. flag - to differ at least optically. And exactly there a new challenge is waiting now.
Imagine all those of the grey mass of irresolute ones generally tending towards a kind of real change but not trusting the revolutionary colors. And now imagine that this part of the Syrian civil society demands as condition for a full support of the revolutionary movement that a post-Baath party has the right to candidate for the first free elections. Hard stuff? Sure it is for a true through‘n through revolutionary for whom even the slightest sign of compassion for the system he‘s fighting against is branded with the label ,enemy‘. Living in a system of controlled mistrust makes you reacting like that. Too deep the images of minors tortured to death are burned in our consciousness, too less time is given the most of us to compensate this unimaginable horror.
But as I mentioned it - I‘m writing now as a German, with all my historical and political background and as far as I remember the post-national socialists (acting nowadays among others under the term national democrats) were and are allowed at elections since the first time I voted and before. Even if they gained sometimes more than 5% in some provinces they always failed to pass that hurdle when it came to national elections. A long process to continuingly handle, even after decades and generations. It's never easy to argue in an instable political situation with logic, and the Allies gave the Germans no chance to proof it by themselves how many might have voted for a potential after-NSDAP party consisting of representatives with no blood on their hands, so in the case of Syria that means my personal prognosis of a post-Baath party percentage during the first free democratic elections might gonna be estimated in the worst case 13 - 15%. Sounds frightening? So what about the other 85 - 87%? Aren‘t they mathematically more than six times bigger? And who of them would join a coalition with the teethless ancestors of a toppled regime? Their fate as opposition backbenchers is granted.
If you take a closer look to the inglorious but luckily unbloody end of the SED regime in the former GDR: the real remnants of that time are hidden as a smaller faction in the hugest German leftwing party DIE LINKE or vegetating as post-communists at a rate of less than 1%. Of course the temptation exists to fear in view of decreasing economical perspectives an increase of voters for both extremist wings, left or right, but if something like that might happen during the next elections we all know that those results aren‘t only ideologically based. And we will have to examine the state of our society in general.
So what I want to adress to you, my revolutionary brothers and sisters, is that you have to be aware of all those willing to support your demands without confessing to your colors. Your enemy, the regime, is not only unwilling, it is unable to do that. In the eyes of Assad and his hard core you‘re all terrorists (even if you‘re only a few months old). But in the eyes of many indecisive ones you‘re meanwhile a serious alternative to the existing regime. Don‘t turn categorically away from them. The sooner you signalize readiness even for a practical coalition the faster they will be ready to go louder, stronger and and definitely more effectful on distance to the Assad regime. And that will weaken it definitely more effectful than all the conferences, contact groups, crisis meetings and monitors‘ missions together.
