We met with Mexican Ambassador to the UK Diego Gomez Pickering on 7 October to discuss Syria. Ambassador Diego wanted to hear our opinion as to what is happening in Syria, we emphasised to him that there is a root cause of the problem which is Assad which needs to be dealt with in order for any solution to materialise.
The Manchester University student society 'Friends of Medecins Sans Frontieres' invited us to deliver a 'Voices from Syria' presentation on 7 October. There was a high attendance of over 60 students.
RR attended an event for Stop the War titled 'Don't Bomb Syria' on 6 October. The event's discussion centred around UK policy around Syria and the group's strong view that the UK should not get involved at all. Unfortunately, none of the panel speakers were Syrian, and the Syrian voice was marginalised throughout the event.
We spoke at a Stop the War event on Syria on 8 October hosted in Bolton. The small audience was very engaging, and we discussed the practicality and feasibility of any UK action towards Syria.
Rethink Rebuild Society has had no response to an email it sent to Stop the War on 23 September requesting an opportunity to speak at its Manchester event on Syria on 6 October. The current panel features four speakers, none of whom are Syrian, thereby framing a discussion on Syria without input from the most important party to the issue - the Syrian people themselves.
Commenting on the recent Russian airstrikes on Syria, Rethink Rebuild told BBC Radio 5 Live on 2 October that we strongly condemn Russian intervention and call for civilian protection, namely through a no-fly zone.
Richard Harrington MP hosted a number of Syrian groups on 2 October to discuss issues pertaining to the resettlement of Syrian refugees to the UK after he was appointed as the special minister to oversee this process.
Rethink Rebuild Society was featured on iTV4 on 1 October discussing Russia's recent intervention in Syria. Responding to the comments of a Russian MP, we noted that we were disappointed in her classification of Assad as legitimate when he was in fact committing war crimes and crimes against humanity against his civilian population.
The third and final day of the Labour Party Conference on 30 September was busy with a final push for lobbying! After a BBC Radio Manchester interview in the morning, we learned that Jeremy Corbyn was also due to arrive for some interviews, and waited for him to arrive.
Speaking on the UK's policy in accepting 20,000 Syrian refugees by 2020, Rethink Rebuild Society's Advocacy & Policy Coordinator stressed on 30 September that Syrian voices should be at the forefront in shaping UK policy on Syria.
Rethink Rebuild Society
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Tel: +44 161 222 9779
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