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Middle East
Syrians hold 'Great Friday' protests
Protests come as activists demand an end to Baath Party monopoly on power and
the establishment of a democratic system.
Last Modified: 22 Apr 2011 11:00
Thousands of people have reportedly taken to the streets in Damascus for
rallies on what activists have dubbed "Great Friday", hoping to see the largest
protests in Syria to date against Bashar al-Assad, the president.
Rallies were also held in Daraa, Qamishli, and Hasakah.
The Reuters news agency quoted witnesses saying security forces used teargas to
disperse protesters in the Damascus district of Midan.
A witness told Al Jazeera that demonstrators gathering at a mosque after
prayers in Hasakah in the mainly Kurdish northeast were attacked by
pro-government protesters.
Syrian activists co-ordinating mass protests against al-Assad's rule have
demanded the abolition of Baath Party monopoly on power and the establishment
of a democratic political system.
In the first joint statement since protests erupted five weeks ago, the Local
Co-ordination Committees, representing provinces across Syria, said "freedom
and dignity slogans cannot be achieved except through peaceful democratic
change".
"All prisoners of conscience must be freed. The existing security apparatus has
to be dismantled and replaced by one with with specific jurisdiction and which
operates according to law," said the joint statement.
Al Jazeera's Cal Perry, reporting from the capital, Damascus, said protests
were expected in over 40 cities across the country.
"The big question on everybody's minds is: what will we see here in the
capital. Last Friday people tried to march into the capital but they were
turned back by tear gas.
"What we see now is that security forces are pre-empting protests by
positioning themselves in the centre of towns like Homs and Daraa, so it will
be difficult for the protesters to get to the centre of these towns when the
security forces are already there."
Witnesses said security forces were setting up checkpoints in areas surrounding
Damascus, checking people's ID cards.
The demonstrations will test whether Assad's decision to lift emergency law,
imposed by his Baath Party when it took power in a coup 48 years ago, will
defuse mass discontent with repression and corruption.
"We are determined on totally peaceful protests... we rejoice at the downfall
of the state of emergency. It was not lifted, it was toppled... With the help
of God, we will embark on freedom," a comment on a Facebook page run by
activists said.
Residents organised neighbourhood patrols after activists said 21 protesters
were shot dead on Monday and Tuesday in Homs by security police and gunmen
known as 'al-shabbiha'.
Aided by his family and a pervasive security apparatus, Assad, 45, has absolute
power in Syria.
More than 220 protesters have been killed since pro-democracy protests erupted
on March 18 in the southern city of Daraa, rights campaigners say.
A decree Assad signed on Thursday that lifted emergency law is seen by the
opposition as little more than symbolic, since other laws still give entrenched
security forces wide powers.
Human Right Watch said Assad "has the opportunity to prove his intentions by
allowing [Friday's] protests to proceed without violent repression.
"The reforms will only be meaningful if Syria's security services stop
shooting, detaining, and torturing protesters," Joe Stork, the group's deputy
Middle East director, said.
Army patrols
Soldiers in groups of five patrolled the streets of Homs overnight on foot.
Plain-clothed security police and security police wearing camouflage uniforms
were also present, two witnesses said.
Emergency rule has been used since Assad's Baath Party seized power to justify
arbitrary arrests and detention and a ban on all opposition.
Assad's conciliatory move to lift the state of emergency followed a familiar
pattern since the unrest began a month ago: pledges of reform are made before
Friday when demonstrations are the strongest, and are usually followed by an
intense crackdown.
The authorities have blamed armed groups, infiltrators and Sunni Muslim armed
groups for provoking violence at demonstrations by firing on civilians and
security forces.
Western and other Arab countries have mostly muted their criticism of the
killings in Syria for fear of destabilising the country, which plays a
strategic role in many of the conflicts in the Middle East.
Syria is technically at war with Israel but has kept its Golan Heights front
quiet since a 1974 ceasefire.
Source:
Al Jazeera and agencies
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