In response to a poorly-written and ill-informed article by Simon Jenkins in The Guardian found here, we issued the following response:
"Media coverage of the conflict in Syria has been generally poor, but Simon
Jenkins has crossed the line between poor analysis and outright
offensiveness.
"The article displays all the usual signs of somebody who knows little or
nothing about Syria, but nonetheless has an axe to grind or a pre-existing
theory to apply. Discussing the Middle East as if the only things that
mattered were the invasion of Iraq and ancient sectarianism remains the
go-to approach for the ill-informed would-be expert. It's impressive, in a
sense, that Jenkins has managed to write as though Western countries,
whose responsibilities to protect have been called on and ignored, are the
cause of everything, whereas Russian imperialism and Hezbollah death
squads are a sort of optional add-on.
"Where Jenkins surpasses the usual low standard of analysis is in his
assertion that Syrians aren't ready for democracy. He probably isn't
aware, but the day the Guardian published his piece, the town of Daraya
fell to Assadist forces. In 2011, the people of Daraya rose up in peaceful
protest, calling for democracy and human rights, and were met with
massacre. For four years they have been subjected to a starvation siege,
barrel bombs and napalm, and they have resisted. In the midst of this they
have organised their community democratically, and have been a symbol of
the Syrian dream of freedom. How dare Jenkins speak of this heroic
resistance in this way?
"Jenkins says that a thousand years of tyranny are better than a day of
anarchy. It seems unlikely that Jenkins would make such a comment about
white Europeans.
"Syria today suffers from tyranny and anarchy at the hands of the Assad
regime. There are a great many Syrians who would give anything for the
sort of comfort in which such flippant comments about tyranny can be made.
"If Jenkins doesn't know anything about Syria -- and he doesn't -- he
shouldn't write about it. Syrians could do without the condescension of
the ignorant."
SIGNED:
George Morris, Rethink Rebuild Society
Dr Mohammad Tammo, Kurds House
Dr Bachar Hakim, Syrian Society of Nottinghamshire
Abdullah Allabwani, Oxford Solidarity for Syria
Dr Mohammad Isreb, Syrian Association of Yorkshire
Mazen Ebjaei, Help 4Syria
Dr Amer Masri, Scotland4Syria
Dr Mohammad Alhadj Ali, Syrian Welsh Society
Clara Connolly, Syria Solidarity UK
Dr Fadel Moghrabi, Peace & Justice for Syria
Dr Abdullah Hanoun, Syrian Community of the South West
Reem Assil, Syrian Platform for Peace
This letter was reproduced by Left Foot Forward.
