In March 2011 in the southern Syrian city of Deraa, protests began the country's uprising with a simple chant of patriotic resistance: "God, Syria, freedom." Ten years later, in the streets of Damascus, one of patriotic subservience can be heard instead: "God, Syria, and Bashar only". This version is the victory cry of President Bashar Al Assad's supporters after it was announced on Friday he won over 95 per cent of the vote in recent presidential elections.
The result is widely viewed as a sham, and even for his most ardent followers there is no hiding from the terrible position in which the country now finds itself. Conservative estimates suggest that 500,000 Syrians have died in the country's civil war, which began as a movement demanding more rights, but not necessarily the fall of Al Assad.
Over the course of 21 years, Al Assad has been been elected to office a total of four times. On each occasion, he has been declared the winner with close to 100 per cent of the vote and on each he has done little to address Syria's longstanding issues, relating primarily to the country's broken economy and politics, which ultimately resulted in 2011's uprising.
While the war the uprising birthed appears to be in its diminuendo, Syria’s territory remains fragmented and its economic woes have worsened. And while Al Assad's position now appears to be the strongest it has been since the uprising, that is the case only because of a deeply repressive administration and disregard for political consensus.
As he enters the first days of his fourth term, Al Assad will need to confront and address the legacy of his two decades in power. Eighty per cent of people in the country are thought to be living below the poverty line, according to the UN. The government controls just 60 per cent of its pre-war territory, and estimates suggest that there are over 6.5 million Syrian refugees across the world and just over 6 million more displaced internally.
In an attempt to salvage a stable idea of what it means to be a Syrian citizen after the war, the UN has been pushing the government and opposition parties to discuss constitutional reform. The beleaguered idea was floated as far back as 2012, but it was only in 2019 that a Syrian Constitutional Committee, comprising representatives from the government, opposition parties and civil society groups, was convened. This questionable election result will likely be used by Al Assad's side to stall talks further, and claim false legitimacy in negotiations.
The war also saw Damascus under Al Assad go from being a crucial and founding member of the Arab League to a regional outcast that relied on the support of non-Arab allies to survive. If modern Syria is to claw back the semblance of a modern state, Al Assad's administration must endeavour to rebuild trust with its neighbours, as well as his own people. That will require a great deal of work after a regionally destabilising catastrophe of a war for which his governance was largely responsible.
Standing on the threshold of another seven years in power, Al Assad has a choice. There will be no long-term stability or prosperity in a "Bashar only" state. If he really does stand for Syria, he will have to break with precedent and work towards building a government and state for all citizens, particularly those still scattered across the world in traumatic limbo. It is a long shot but one that is desperately needed.
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Five hymns the crowds can join in
Papal Mass will begin at 10.30am at the Zayed Sports City Stadium on Tuesday
Some 17 hymns will be sung by a 120-strong UAE choir
Five hymns will be rehearsed with crowds on Tuesday morning before the Pope arrives at stadium
‘Christ be our Light’ as the entrance song
‘All that I am’ for the offertory or during the symbolic offering of gifts at the altar
‘Make me a Channel of your Peace’ and ‘Soul of my Saviour’ for the communion
‘Tell out my Soul’ as the final hymn after the blessings from the Pope
The choir will also sing the hymn ‘Legions of Heaven’ in Arabic as ‘Assakiroo Sama’
There are 15 Arabic speakers from Syria, Lebanon and Jordan in the choir that comprises residents from the Philippines, India, France, Italy, America, Netherlands, Armenia and Indonesia
The choir will be accompanied by a brass ensemble and an organ
They will practice for the first time at the stadium on the eve of the public mass on Monday evening
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Profile
Company: Justmop.com
Date started: December 2015
Founders: Kerem Kuyucu and Cagatay Ozcan
Sector: Technology and home services
Based: Jumeirah Lake Towers, Dubai
Size: 55 employees and 100,000 cleaning requests a month
Funding: The company’s investors include Collective Spark, Faith Capital Holding, Oak Capital, VentureFriends, and 500 Startups.
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The internal combustion engine is facing a watershed moment – major manufacturer Volvo is to stop producing petroleum-powered vehicles by 2021 and countries in Europe, including the UK, have vowed to ban their sale before 2040. The National takes a look at the story of one of the most successful technologies of the last 100 years and how it has impacted life in the UAE.
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Tips for taking the metro
- set out well ahead of time
- make sure you have at least Dh15 on you Nol card, as there could be big queues for top-up machines
- enter the right cabin. The train may be too busy to move between carriages once you're on
- don't carry too much luggage and tuck it under a seat to make room for fellow passengers
