Outgoing president of the Syrian Opposition (SOC) Anas Abdah addressed the Syrian people on the occasion of the end of his presidential term. He highlighted the most important milestones in which the Syrian revolution went through and the SOC’s efforts to keep up with them.
Abdah said that the SOC sought to strengthen its legitimacy in the eyes of the Syrian people by intensifying visits to the liberated areas; preserve the political line and fundamental principles for which the Syrian people have risen up; and ensure that the SOC has near parliamentary representation.
“We remained committed to the fundamental principles of the revolution and the demands of our people regardless of the difficult military reality and the fact that everyone abandoned us at a certain stage. We confronted many attempts to dismantle the political opposition or derail its efforts while our stance on the political process and the Constitutional Committee remained consistent with the aspirations of the Syrian people and their legitimate demands.”
Abdah said that among the very important and critical issues the SOC dealt with was the issue of detainees, especially the risk of the spread of the coronavirus among detainees and lack of medical care.
“The SOC launched a major diplomatic campaign through which we demanded and appealed to all friends and international and human rights organizations to assume their role and exert pressure on the regime to release the detainees.”
He cited the SOC’s efforts to regulate the legal status of the Syrian nationals in Turkey. “Accordingly, the Syrian-Turkish Committee was formed. Today, it serves as the official government channel between the Syrian nationals and the Turkish government.”
“The Assad regime is collapsing economically and socially. Caesar Act will have an additional role in accelerating this collapse. We are keen to ensure that humanitarian aid and basic necessities reach our people everywhere in Syria.”
Abdah added: “We reaffirm our commitment to the goals of our revolution and the national principles that were written in the blood of our fallen heroes. We will continue our work for a real political solution that leads to the desired political transition in accordance with UN Security Council Resolution 2254.”
He also said that creating a safe environment that guarantees the return of the Syrian people to their homeland is one of our primary goals as the existence of such environment is the difference between life and death, between displacement and return to the homeland, and between Syria’s devastation and recovery. Creating this safe environment is the essence of any politician solution.
Abdah concluded his speech by stressing the need to continue to work tirelessly as I stress the importance of building on what has been already accomplished and continuing the struggle at all levels until we build a state that we all dream of. (Source: SOC’s Media Department)
