From Homs to Prague; A Syrian Activist's Dream for Advancing the Nonviolent Movement

Now that the autocratic regime of Bashar al-Assad has fallen and the armed Syrian rebels are in control, numerous questions arise about Syria's future; including how this country can unite and achieve stability, and what role civil activists play in this process? Hamam Youssef is one of these civil activists with over two decades of activism experience. He studied architecture but became involved in politics from a young age. His father was a prominent thinker who was imprisoned and subsequently disappeared early in Hafez al-Assad's era after criticizing him. Hamam Youssef became a political prisoner in 2000 and left Syria two years later. He is one of the founders of the 'Syrian Nonviolent Movement' in 2011; a group that hoped the Syrian people's uprising would proceed more peacefully; however, Assad's confrontation with the people took a violent form, and the goals of this group as a nonviolent movement remained unachieved. During those years, Mr. Youssef joined the first political group that could serve as an option for the transition from Assad; the Syrian National Council, which also failed to achieve results after becoming part of a larger organization. In recent years, this Syrian activist has focused more on humanitarian work and is one of the founders of a small nonprofit organization called 'Checks for Syria,' which focuses on the mental health of Syrian refugees. In Prague, in an interview with Radio Farda, he discusses post-Assad Syria and what significant actions must be taken to ensure that Assad's downfall does not lead to the emergence of another autocratic regime. Mr. Youssef emphasizes in this interview that 'the effort that begins today for real cultural change, raising awareness, calling for democracy, calling for equality, and calling for the rule of law' will be time-consuming. This civil activist recalls that discussing the 'nonviolent movement' at the beginning of the 'Arab Spring' was not easy, stressing that Syrians have not experienced equality before the law for about half a century, and thus the path ahead for activists in this field will not be simple. He also states, 'Many people think that in this very sensitive time they must be present in Syria,' but this poses risks that everyone is currently assessing the costs of, and 'the issue is not whether those in power are willing to allow activists to return or not,' but the question is whether the civil activists themselves 'are ready to take risks or not.'