On Saturday, the 7th of August, a statement was issued by the local authorities of Houran calling for a decentralized rule in the province of Daraa, and that Syria become a civil and democratic state in which everyone can exercise their freedoms stipulated in the Universal Charter of Human Rights.
The statement said, “The time of centralized systems is over forever and the difference between governance and administration is wide. Whoever rules the country and controls its army and its foreign relations may not necessarily be able to manage it properly without a decentralized democratic process in which the provinces and municipalities choose their own representatives. This will give the people their rights with justice, like how it does in all advanced governing systems in the world. The ones in power must leave the local administrative issues to the local authorities.
In addition to that it mentions, “Our experience before the regime’s return to our areas proved that the population’s management of their areas led to better development and justice. This experience confirmed that the people’s direct and transparent election of their representatives leads to positive results, it holds the corrupt accountable and rewards the successful”.
The local authorities then added, “We do not confront the regime in order to protect terrorists as it claims, but we fight terrorism before they do and reject the sectarianism that Assad is trying to plant. We do not accept to be prisoners of the corrupt and criminals.”
They added that the only way is a peaceful transition of power in Free Syria which must be in accordance with agreed international resolutions, especially Resolution 2254.
The statement further added the results of war and bombardment by the Assad regime led to the horrible conditions of Syria as it is today; with a collapsed economy and drastically deteriorating living conditions for the locals. Assad’s inability to run the country and solve these issues has become crystal clear, as mentioned by the statement.
This has caused widespread debate on social media, with many who support the initiative while others say it as not representing the people of Houran, or having no popular support. Many activists saw the multitude of opinions as a positive thing, as it does not call for the splitting of political ranks. Since they are all linked to the same demand but through different methodologies, which is to preserve the dignity of the people of Houran and their lands, and to ensure their safety. This is in addition to achieving the initial principles of the revolution without being linked to any agendas that go against it.
It is worth noting that the Houran tribes and authorities had also issued a statement on August 5, calling on the Russian guarantor to stand up to his responsibilities and abide by their promises on southern Syria. Several meetings have taken place between opposing sides with no positive outcomes while hostilities still continuing. This may have led to the Russians dismissing General Assad Allah al-Ghalib due to his failure to solve the issue between them.
