Source: Christian Science Monitor
by staff
“One predictor that a country will move to democracy after a civil war is whether activists relied on nonviolent tactics. The people of Syria, newly liberated from a violent dictator, are now trying to prove this point – that peace begets peace. From small villages to the famed Al-Rawda café in Damascus, civil society groups that kept the cause of nonviolence alive during 14 years of conflict are now convening in peaceful public forums around the Middle East country. They invite citizens to freely discuss issues and help make a transition from the current rule by a former rebel group that liberated Syria Dec. 8. They want the democracy they sought during the peaceful protests of the 2011 Arab Spring against the Assad regime. Damascus has become ‘a large workshop,’ Alma Salem, executive director of the Syrian Women’s Political Movement (SWPM), told the Canadian Broadcasting Corp. last month.” (02/19/25)
https://www.csmonitor.com/Commentary/the-monitors-view/2025/0219/Appeals-to-conscience-in-Damascus