Brutal treatment is no longer enough to staunch dissent
By Khalid Ali in Damascus
The Independent
Wednesday, 4 May 2011
"....Speak to any Syrian adult about the Hama massacre in 1982, and the sideways glances and hushed tones will reveal all you need to know about the bloodbath which ended a Muslim Brotherhood uprising in the city. Estimates for the total body count vary, but anywhere between 10,000 and 20,000 people died when Hafez al-Assad, the former president and father of the current Syrian leader Bashar al-Assad, pummelled the ancient Syrian city into submission.
Some analysts are suggesting that the younger al-Assad is trying to implement a "Hama solution" in Deraa, where scores of people have been shot dead and residents are practically cut off from the outside world. But in spite of the violent response, the turnout for rallies last weekend was possibly even higher and certainly more organised than before. There were still a frightening number of deaths – at least 62 in addition to more than 500 since mid-March, according to rights groups. Yet the fear which once pinned back the masses under Hafez al-Assad seems to be losing its hold.
"The government is trying to use the same tactics as in the 1980s," said Radwan Ziadeh. "But they don't know that the situation is different now. The protests are not in one or two cities, but in more than 80 towns and cities around the country.""
By Khalid Ali in Damascus
The Independent
Wednesday, 4 May 2011
"....Speak to any Syrian adult about the Hama massacre in 1982, and the sideways glances and hushed tones will reveal all you need to know about the bloodbath which ended a Muslim Brotherhood uprising in the city. Estimates for the total body count vary, but anywhere between 10,000 and 20,000 people died when Hafez al-Assad, the former president and father of the current Syrian leader Bashar al-Assad, pummelled the ancient Syrian city into submission.
Some analysts are suggesting that the younger al-Assad is trying to implement a "Hama solution" in Deraa, where scores of people have been shot dead and residents are practically cut off from the outside world. But in spite of the violent response, the turnout for rallies last weekend was possibly even higher and certainly more organised than before. There were still a frightening number of deaths – at least 62 in addition to more than 500 since mid-March, according to rights groups. Yet the fear which once pinned back the masses under Hafez al-Assad seems to be losing its hold.
"The government is trying to use the same tactics as in the 1980s," said Radwan Ziadeh. "But they don't know that the situation is different now. The protests are not in one or two cities, but in more than 80 towns and cities around the country.""
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