26 May 2024

In a meeting at Hayat Community Development Center in Afrin on Saturday, SNC President, Dr. Bader Jamous, offered an overview of the Syrian political process and the importance of the role of Syrian civil society organizations in the political solution in Syria.

The meeting involved the management and members of Hayat Community Development Center, which is a civil society organization based in Afrin engaged in development fields and seeks to engage the local community in the political process.

The SNC President overviewed the political process and the stages it went through since the international community and the United Nations adopted the Syrian political process as the sole solution for the Syrian issue. He further explained how the political solution is affected by international and regional political conditions and the regime’s stalling and evasion of its obligations under international resolutions in terms of the political solution.

He also overviewed the activities and endeavors which the SNC is undertaking at the European and international levels in order to keep the Syrian file on the priorities of states. Jamous also described the internal meetings between the component of the SNC and the consensus reached on a political solution based on international resolutions as well as the interaction between the SNC and the institutions, syndicates and Syrian CSOs stressing that the SNC welcomes this coordination and partnership.

He also pointed out the importance of intensifying efforts by all Syrians to keep the Syrian file alive on all levels and continuing to demand that the international community helps further a political solution and find binding mechanisms to compel all parties to reach a political solution that is convincing for Syrians through the full and strict implementation of UNSCR 225 to meet the legitimate Syrian aspirations of freedom, justice and a state of law and citizenship.

Dr. Jamous commended the efforts of active Syrian organizations in Europe, the US and elsewhere indicating that the independence of the judiciary in these countries helps file lawsuits against the Syrian regime to prosecute those responsible for the killing of Syrians on account of war crimes. He stressed that keeping the Syrian cause in the spotlight requires continuing to firmly believe in it.

The participants enriched the meeting with interventions and comments concerning the agreements and international resolutions and the outcomes of Brussels VIII Conference on Supporting the Future of Syria and how it differed from previous conferences.

The discussion also tackled the role of civil society organizations in the political process and the importance of bridging the gap between the situation inside and outside Syria. The SNC welcomed collaboration with all active Syrian entities and recognized the importance of working to form a consultative venue for each area to maintain communication, make initiatives and participate in political decision making.