SSA
SSA
Syrian Studies Association Newsletter
Volume 11, Number 2 Fall 2005 SSA on the Web: www.ou.edu/ssa
Inside this issue: From the President From the President 1 Dawn Chatty, Deputy Director of the Refugee Studies Centre News of Members 2 (Queen Elizabeth House), Oxford In Memory of Da’d Hakim 3 Dr. Ghassan Obeid 5 Dear Colleagues, SSA Sponsored Panels 6 Afwan America 8 This will be the final newsletter of my ‘Presidency’. After Why American Should the November 19th 2005 Business Meeting of the Syrian Engage Syria 10 Fellowship Opportunity 12 Studies Association, I will be handing over my post to Recent Conferences 13 Professor Peter Sluglett, who will be President of the Membership Renewal 15 Syrian Studies Association between November 2005 and November 2007. Members of the Board: It has been a very full and challenging two years, with Syria President and all things Syrian never far from media or academic Dawn Chatty interest. We have worked together to express our position regarding the Syrian Past President Accountability and Restoration of Lebanese Sovereignty Act. We have also Randi Deguilhem made efforts to get alternative viewpoints across to the US Administration President-elect Peter Sluglett regarding the various sanctions signed into being by the White House. These Secretary-Treasurer and other issues will continue to be of concern to the members of the Syrian Sherry Vatter Studies Association. Member at Large Fred Lawson Our association has a rich set of activities organized for the coming MESA Student Representative meeting. Our Board meeting will take place between 11:00-13:00 on November Faedah Totah 19th in the Eisenhower room. This will be followed by a Business meeting Prize Committee Chair Mary Wilson between 19:00 and 20:00 in the Johnson room. Our annual reception will then Lifetime Nominating take place immediately after between 20:00 -22:00 in the Taft room. H.E. Committee Chair Dr. Imad Moustapha, Ambassador of Syria to the United States, will open Peter Sluglett the reception with a short presentation on current US Syrian relations. The Book Review Editor provisional title for his talk is “Syria today: Challenges and Crisis.” All three of Stephan Tamari these events take place on November 19th. Newsletter Editor Eylse Semerdjian Webmaster The SSA Prize Committee, chaired by Professor Mary Wilson, has revised the Joshua Landis SSA prize giving schedule such that it will give out a prize for the best article Beirut Representative in odd years and a prize for the best dissertation in even years. Each prize Stefan Weber covers the two-year period preceding, from June to June. This year the prize Damascus Representative for best article published in the period June 2003 to June 2005 will be awarded Sylvia Chift Oleau
~ continued on page 2 ~
SSA SSA
~ continued from page 1 ~ at the SSA Business Meeting. The Prize Committee is News of Members also working on a book prize competition which will be announced soon. Publications In Memory of We have two panel and one thematic conversation/ roundtable sponsored by the SSA this year. The SSA S. Chiffoleau & A. Madoeuf, Les pèlerinages au Maghreb panels are: et au Moyen-Orient. Espaces publics, espaces du public. IFPO, Beyrouth, 2005. Da’d Hakim 1. “Syria: Change at the Margins” organized by Fred Lawson, Monday November 21st between 08:30 and 10:30 Randi Deguilhem, “Shared or Contested Space. Religious Mixity, Infrastructural Hierarchy and the Builder’s Guild in 2. “The Levantine Bourgeoisie between Empire and Mid-Nineteenth Century Damascus”, in Crafts and Crafts- Nation-State” organized by Geoffrey Schad, Monday 21st men in the Modern Muslim Mediterranean, eds. Suraiya Faroqhi and Randi Deguilhem, London, IB Tauris, 2005, November between 17:00 and 19:00. pp. 261-282 rs. Da’d Hakim was born in Idlib, Syria nyone who has worked in the Center for 3. “A thematic conversation / round table in honour during the latter years of the French Mandate. A Historical Archives in Damascus from the late of Professor Andre Raymond” will be held under the M Fellowships Her father was a medical doctor and a minister in Syrian 1970s to the early years of the 21st century has had chairmanship of Professor Peter Sluglett on November cabinets in the immediately post-independence era. the pleasure of knowing its director, Da’d Hakim, or 20th, between 11:00 and 13:00. Nimat Hafez Barazangi, Research Fellow at the Feminist, Mrs. Hakim studied History at Damascus University, Sitt Da’d as everyone, Syrians and foreigners alike, Gender, and Sexuality Studies of Cornell University, has receiving her degree in 1958. She became Director of called her as a mark of respect. As a doctoral student The SSA association will also be sponsoring Hassan received the 2005-2006 Fulbright Scholarship for Syria. She the Center for Historical Documents in Damascus during in Damascus in the early 1980s, I first knew Sitt Da’d Abbas, a Syrian scholar who will be presenting a paper in will collaborate with professors at the four public universi- the 1970s. Thanks to her efforts, the Center’s archives who took me under her wing, there weren’t many of us the SSA sponsored panel Syria: Change at the Margins, to ties, supported by the Syrian Ministry of Higher Education (including Ottoman-era records) were organized and researchers in Damascus at that time. Over the many attend the MESA meetings. We will assist in whatever way and the Supreme Council of Sciences. The title of her action made accessible to the scholarly community. Hundreds years, she and I came to know each other very well, on we can to make his trip to the US a reality. research project is: “Higher Education and Training Pro- of researchers from Syria, other Arab countries, and both a professional and a personal basis. gram: Workshops on Contemporary Social Sciences.” international institutions owe Mrs. Hakim a debt of Her passing away in June 2005 came as a jolt since I look forward to seeing as many of you there as can gratitude for her work to keep the archives close at she somehow seemed as eternal as the documents make it. It promises to be a very interesting gathering in Book Reviews hand, accessible, and open, sometimes in the face of themselves for those of us who knew her during the Washington D.C. this year. pressures to impose a more restrictive regime. She last quarter of a century as the director of the Damascus published several books dealing with archival materials archives. On freezing cold days, when we huddled by Book Review Editor Steve Tamari apologizes that a list I remain, with all best wishes, and supervised publication of a catalogue of the Center’s the sobya, trying to stay warm as we read the documents, of recent titles on Syria does not appear in this issue of shari‘a Islamic court records. she often invited us into her office for coffee or tea and the newsletter. For future issues, he requests names of Sincerely yours Those of us lucky to have met her will remember lots of conversation. By the time Sitt Da’d died, she had new book titles and the names of those members who her grace, warmth, and hospitality, qualities that helped recently retired and was replaced by Nihad Jerd, who is are interested in reviewing books. He can be reached at Dawn to make the Center a cozy, welcoming and intimate place now replaced by Ghassan Obeid as the new director of [email protected]. to work – even in the windy days of winter. Mrs. Hakim the Archives. is survived by her husband, the civil engineer Ahmad Like many other Syrians in the 1950s and 1960s, al-Fadl, and by her four children (two sons and two Sitt Da’d did her graduate work in Egypt, at Ain Shams daughters), three of whom live in the United States. She University, after having completed undergraduate work Elections 2005 The Spring 2005 Newsletter failed to identify the will be long remembered, and greatly missed. at Damascus University. And although she travelled the translator of the Petition by Syrian Intellectuals for world over, having visited all of Europe numerous times The Syrian Studies Association Withdrawal from Lebanon. The translation was – Jim Reilly and Abdul-Karim Rafeq and the U.S., where several of her children continue would like to congratulate its new written by Ibaa Ismail, an Arab American poet of to live, as well as the Arab countries and sub-Saharan board members who were elected Syrian origin. She is also the chief editor of Safahat Africa – she was a world traveller – including several (“pages”), an “artistic cultural magazine” published in Spring 2005. extended trips to Japan and other countries of the Far in Michigan by The Arab American Literary East, she remained firmly attached to her roots, to Idlib Association. Safahat publishes Arabic as well as dc where she was born, and of course, to Syria. President: Peter Sluglett English articles, short stories, poetry, prose, essays, I will miss Sitt Da’d. Secretary Treasurer: Annie Higgins and children’s works and welcomes contributions. – Randi Deguilhem
SSA SSA
Director Dr. Ghassan Obeid of Dar al-Watha’iq al-Tarikhiyya Speaks on the Future of the Center
by Elyse Semerdjian
Dr. Ghassan Obeid has been an conditioners, one of which will serve a database of documents with the employee of the Center for Historical researchers in the reading room. Future scanned documents. Computers would Documents (Dar al-Watha’iq al- plans for the center include a new be equipped with a search engine to Tarikhiyya) for more than a decade. facility. This would entail moving look for key words in documents to His most recent position with the the archives from Souq Sarouja to expedite research. There are also plans Center was that of Assistant Director Masakan Barza. This move would to erect a website that would have an for Da’d Hakim. Dr. Obeid is a take researchers out of the center of index of available documents at the soft-spoken man who can often be the city and the documents away from center. The center is also continuing found making rounds with the staff, the pollution that threatens to damage its work on the awamir sultaniyya politely greeting them and sitting them. The facility will have the documents. So far, they have with employees patiently explaining proper temperature controls, for both published one book by the title of Awa a task he would like them to perform. documents and researchers, and the mir al-sultaniyah li-Wilayat Dimashq Recently his status changed when in Khalid al-Azm house will most likely fi tay'i n al-qudah wa-al-wulah wa- March 2005 he was named the new become a series of offices. al-muwazzafin : min khilal tarjamat director of the archives. More plans include digitizing al-sijillat al-mahfuzah fi Markaz al- Dr. Obeid was born in the city of the sijills. Currently, any copies of Watha'iq al-Tar i kh i yah bi-Dimashq Deir Zor in 1965. His family moved the sijills requested by researchers published in 2002 under the direction to Damascus in 1970 where he has are done using a digital camera. The of Da’d Hakim which contains the lived ever since. He has had a long digital images are of extremely high topics and synopsis of documents standing interest in the history of quality and allow the researcher to from the Damascus collection. The Syria obtaining a degree in history zoom in on the page scanned for Aleppo and Damascus collections from the University of Damascus, and a closer view. Workers have been have been summarized in translation a M.A. in history at the University photographing the documents with along with topic headings in note of Muhammad the V in Morocco. digital cameras and compiling them books. There are plans to organize He finished his Ph.D. in history on CDs. Somewhere in the future, these summaries along topical lines at the University of Damascus in researchers will use those CDs along such as military, trade, etc. 2004 working on the topic of social, with computers that will be installed in Researchers in the reading room of Dar al-Wath’aiq economic and architectural history in the new facility instead of the original Damascus from 1724-1756. documents. The originals will still The new director has several be available, but the hopes are to cut plans for the future of the archives. back the circulation of them in order to He shared some of them when preserve them. The ministry plans to interviewed in July. At the moment, start working on the designated Barza the Khaled al-‘Azm house is building September 2006. Dr. Obeid is undergoing repairs which also include hoping for a 2007 opening. the expected installation of five air Further plans include creating
SSA SSA All this raises crucial questions about local autonomy dynamism of a society whose members choose not overtly and popular dynamism for a society in which a durable to confront, but rather covertily to erode an oppressive Syrian Studies Association Sponsored Panels at authoritarian regime, whatever the strength of its sym- political order. bolic and physical tools, cannot control everything. In MESA 2005, Washington D.C. this respect, the experience of Latin American and, more Participants: recently, Eastern European countries is worth revisiting. For all their diversity, one pattern common to them all • Myriam Ababsa, « Forms of Counter-Revolution was that change at the margins succeeded in giving life to in the Countryside » Mafalda Ade Winter, University of Tübingen competing ideas, creating spaces for public expression and Sunday, November 20 mobilizing popular energies even during the era of authori- Foreign Trader Families and Their Social Milieu in 19th • Hassan Abbas, « Early Signs of Social and tarian rule, laying the foundation for subsequent transi- 11 :00am Century Aleppo Cultural Revival » Geoffrey D. Schad, Franklin and Marshall College tions. In a comparative perspective, this panel intends to explore a wide range of unobtrusive changes taking place Round Table in Honor of Professor André Raymond Corporatism and Colonial Civil Society: The Struggle over • Sylvia Chiffoleau, « Pilgrimages and the Public deep inside Syrian society, at the margins of the primary Chair, Professor Peter Sluglett the Syrian Chambers of Commerce, 1934-38 Sphere: ‘aradât in Ma‘lûla» Kevin W. Martin, Georgetown University public sphere. Our working hypothesis is that such changes take Monday, November 21 “Deliver Us from Foreign Economic Aggression”: • Paulo Pinto Helu, « Disciplining the Faithful: place along three different lines: First, for a number of ac- 8:30 a.m. Al-Sharika al-Khumasiyya and Adib al-Shishakli — Sufism and the Politics of Morality » Private-Sector Development under a Populist- tors who generally comply with the rules and norms set by the state, change at the margins consists of appropriating Syria: Change at the Margins Authoritarian Regime • Jordi Tejel Gorgas, « Kurds : From Dissimulation and subverting established rules and norms and conferring Organized by Fred H. Lawson Bassam Haddad, St. Joseph’s University to Visibility ? » Syria’s New Rentier Bourgeoisis: Its Origins and Impact new meanings on them so that they serve new objectives. In this way, the ability of various groups to take charge of Chair: Elisabeth Longuenesse, CNRS Paris on Socioeconomic Transformation in Syria Discutan: Fred Lawson Discussant: Fred H. Lawson, Mills College existing bureaucratic processes indicates the limits of au- thoritarian rule, belying a one-dimensional view of govern- Chair: Elisabeth Longuenesse Myriam Ababsa, IFPO Amman Panel Summary ment policies. Second, change has occurred in specific marginal Forms of Counter-Revolution in the Syrian Countryside A close argument support the project of an issue of the areas, either ones that have long been neglected by state Hassan Abbas, IFEAD Syria: Change at the Margins Revue des mondes musulmans et de la Méditerranée officials (such as the kind of public piety that is routinely Cultural Revival as the Portent of Syria’s Social Efferves- (REMMM), expected at the end of 2006. It is made up of displayed during pilgrimages and ziyarât) or activities cence Current research on contemporary Syria presents a fifteen papers analysing three themes: that have escaped repeated attempts at state control (such Sylvia Chiffoleau, IFPO Damascus surprising paradox: studying most domestic issues is deli- as many of the country’s Sufi orders). While pilgrimages Pilgrimage, Ziyara, and the Enlargement of Syria’s Public cate if not impossible, due to a political leadership that is • To live, to get organized, to think up give rise to an alternative collective identity that chal- Sphere neither open to analysis nor tolerant of criticism, yet most lenges the “national” citizenship promoted by the state, the Paulo G. Hilu Pinto, Universidade Federal Fluminense studies focus almost exclusively on government institu- • Modes of religious and community expression spread of semi-public religious associations reinforces the Disciplining the Faithful: Sufism and the Politics of Moral- tions, the official Ba’th party or the ruling Alawite jamâ’a. gap between the shared discourse of pious communities ity in Syria Furthermore, most existing studies emphasize the durabil- • Mobilization and dissent at the margin and the public discourse promoted by the state. Jordi Tejel Gorgas, University of Fribourg, Switzerland ity and even the consolidation of the Ba’thi regime, in spite Third, change is taking place through the emergence Kurds of Syria: From ‘Dissimulation’ to Visibility? of events surrounding the recent presidential succession. of new public issues, or more precisely the drawing up of Some observers even claim that the whole of Syria consti- old issues in new terms to make them at last visible. This tutes a “society in crisis” or a “stagnant society,” as a result is especially the case with regard to popular mobilisation Monday, November 21 of wholesale domination of society by the state. As a re- around human rights and identity issues. Despite being sult, they tend to ignore important facets of a country that 5:00 p.m. severely repressed by the state, social movements are generated great expectations in the early 2000s, but where, choosing to explore unconventional channels, such as the as one influential scholar has asserted, “nothing happens The Levantine Bourgeoisie between Empire and Na- promotion of artistic and cultural societies, to attract young anymore.” tion-State and highly-educated urbanites. Meanwhile, previously Newer research on the micro-level workings of Syrian marginalized ethnic groups, such as the Kurds, are becom- society, including a number of recent anthropological stud- Organized by Geoffrey D. Schad ing more tempted to shift from their long habit of dissimu- ies, fails to support such an hypothesis, and in fact tends Sponsored by the Syrian Studies Association lation and openly advance political claims. to disconfirm it. Close field observation reveals recurrent, It is the common contention of panel participants that vivid movement throughout the entire domestic arena. Chair: Peter Sluglett, University of Utah such processes of “change at the margins” bear witness to Even though much of it seems minor and takes place most- Discussant: James A. Reilly, University of Toronto a gradual but profound enlargement of the Syrian public ly “on the edge” of society, such activity proved especially sphere. The appearance of new actors and the invention of exuberant during the brief “Damascus spring” of 2000-01. new modes of societal mobilisation attest to the growing
SSA SSA
“Afwan America” themes of U.S.-Arab World relations as well as domestic politically. The final scene includes a debate between Between scenes of the play were dialogues between two politics in Syria. Dibo and the maid in which she tells him about all the Syrian men about various subjects, some of which included A Syrian Response The play is set in a five star hotel in Syria in which glory of America, the freedom it has to offer and the Arab nationalism and Pan-Arab themes. Interestingly, the Dibo and his father are working on the pipes. The staff at opportunities to be had. Dibo responds by noting that first dialogue the men were wearing traditional gallabiahs. to U.S. Foreign the hotel are expecting a millionaire and his daughter to sexual freedom is not real freedom and being robbed for At the end of that monologue they were handed western Policy arrive who will soon be visited by her fiancé and his father five dollars is also not any freedom he desires. Finally, style button down shirts, after the second monologue, ties at the hotel. The staff does a double take when the fiancé the maid criticizes the Arab governments, the way that and so on. By the end of the play, their last monologue and father arrive, not only are they pretentious, throwing in nothing gets accomplished, the taking of bribes, the way they were wearing full business suits. The scenes were also by Elyse Semerdjian English words and strutting in fine made European suits, but that projects like road construction can take years. Dibo interspersed with dance routines. One worth noting was they happen to be dead ringers for Dibo and his father. The takes a long pause, smiles, and nods, the entire audience a traditional Arabic dance (debke) which featured debke This summer Afwan America (“Excuse me America”) staff showers and grooms the two soot-covered plumbers roars with laughter in agreement with her statement. This songs from all over the Arab World. When a Saudi song was was the featured play at the Rameta theatre located to assume the identities of the fiancé and his father in a is one of many critiques of Arab and Syrian government played the hefty Saudi character came to the front to dance, in Yusuf al-‘Azmeh square in Damascus. The play plot to get Dibo to marry the millionaires’ daughter and found within the play. Other more subtle criticisms during other songs characters came to the front and danced. was written and directed by Hummam Hout and the ultimately get money from the wealthy father. The way in could be found during a job interview scene with the The medley was an obvious reference to Arab unity. Muhandaseen players—a troupe based in Aleppo. The which the play unfolds is enhanced by the constant change Americans. Applicants were asked “if you could be Many of Hout’s plays have been criticized by outside troupe has performed some controversial plays over the of character on the part of Hout who moves back and fourth anyone in the world who would you be?” One applicant observers as being too Arab nationalist. Sure, there are Arab past two years. Prior to Afwan America, they performed between a plumber who speaks in a popular Aleppan accent answered that he would like to be the son of the head of nationalist themes, but the play is also refreshingly honest Didd al-Hukumah (“Against the Government”) which and a flamboyant doctor who is sensitive to his fiancé’s the parliament since he would be able to do whatever he and critical of both the U.S. and Arab governments. Our raised political eyebrows. Rumors circulated in Damascus attempt to even joke around with him. wants and get away with it. In the middle of this scene, hero Dibo was both silly and polemical. He is the voice that President Bashar al-Assad attended the controversial The scenes are supported by the appearance of a cast the players stopped and asked “is this real or just acting?” of the real man of the streets, critical of the West and also play sitting in the first row. of characters which include a This was a direct reference to the real head of parliament critical of some of the problems facing everyday Syrians. Over the summer Saudi Arabian character with his in Aleppo who has used his political leverage to bail his At one point in the play someone asked Dibo if he hated advertisements for Afwan four wives. His attempt to jump son out of compromising situations. Even better was Americans. He quipped, I love the American people, what America were plastered across the desk in order to grope Dibo’s response when asked the same question during the I hate is the politics of America’s government with respect throughout the city featuring the hotel receptionist was met job interview. He answered “I want to be George Bush.” to the Arab World. This was not a play about hatred of any Hout imprisoned by the stripes with laughter by the audience. When asked why he answered that if he were George sort, but it was a response to the burdens the Arab World on the American flag. The My personal favorite was the Bush he would climb Mount Qasyoun and throw himself has been put under since September 11 and Bush doctrine. play began with a scene of stubborn American who refused off of it to save the world. the FBI raiding a hotel lobby to speak Arabic from right to which was followed by a left, and instead spoke from choreographed dance routine. left to right a difficult talent to The opening song “America master. Dibo said “The man hiyya al-muftah,” “America, is speaking Arabic, but why she is the key,” included lyrics am I not understanding him?” that parodied America’s power At one point in the play the and attempt to execute its will cast stopped and laughed after upon the rest of the world. In one long sentenced uttered in the first scene the FBI finds perfect, yet backwards Arabic. itself face to face with Dibo The American, his wife and (our hero who happens to be her servant were in Syria on a plumber who cleans drain “business,” however the maid pipes). When confronted Dibo reveals that she is actually the stands frozen (with soil on boss undercover. The dialogue his face) and reaches into his between Dibo and this sassy pocket only to pull out two maid are worth mentioning. balls of kibbe (meatballs), She repeatedly criticizes Arab which the FBI agents mistake Mosaic inside the Umayyad Mosque civilization. She begins with for grenades. The agents fall her dislike of Arabic food and preference for American to the floor in expectation of an explosion. Dibo tries to food is made apparent. She says “You don’t even have a explain to the FBI that kibbe is food and not harmful, McDonald’s here.” Dibo answers “we have Booza Jidi” but when the FBI approach him in attempt to arrest him, (a reference to a popular foul mudammas restaurant in the he threatens the FBI with them anyway. This opening Shala’an district of Damascus). She puts differences aside sequence set the tone of this brilliant play which hit on and attempts to seduce Dibo not only sexually but also
SSA SSA
Why America Should Engage much to talk about; both are trying to solve their Iraq Those in Washington who insist on fighting Assad because problems. They share a common interest in subduing he is not democratic are hurting Iraq’s chances for a Syria jihadism and helping Iraq build a united and stable peaceful future. More American soldiers will be killed; government, as Bashar al-Assad has said many times. Iraq’s hope of finding a way out of its downward spiral By Joshua Landis (Damascus) will be diminished. The US has recently won two major
Washington believes it would be an easy matter for Bashar concessions from Syria. It got Syria to withdraw troops to reverse his policy of opposing America’s presence in from Lebanon and won Syrian backing for its Palestine Washington must choose between destabilizing Syria and policy. Now it needs Syrian cooperation in Iraq. This will stabilizing Iraq. It cannot do both. Many in Washington Iraq and cracking down on the Syrian Sunni population that gives comfort and assistance to mostly Arab fighters require real dialogue and support, not merely a bigger stick argue that the President Bashar al-Asad’s regime is the and threats. “low hanging fruit” in the Middle East. When plucked, traveling though Syria. On the contrary, it will not be easy. Sunni Arabs make up sixty-five percent of the population. it will set the other countries tumbling towards reform. Assad recently told the German paper Der Spiegel that Think tanks are calling it Washington is asking for background security checks on the roughly five million Arabs who visit Syria yearly. It he needs three years to bring the kind of party politics to “creative instability.” This Syria that Egypt is now experiencing. He also insisted is a dangerous fantasy. is asking for arrests and surveillance of the Iraqi refugee community living in Syria, which is estimated to be around that he needs economic growth and job creation to carry them out. Bashar’s vision for Syria is to move his country Even the government’s 750,000 strong, and the many tribes that populate Syria’s border. It is also asking for greater restrictions on the towards greater liberalism and a market economy on a par most hard-bitten enemies with Jordan and Egypt. Washington should give him the in Syria do not want to see Syrian mosques and Imams who propagate anti-American and pro-resistance line. benefit of the doubt. To kick the feet out from under him the government collapse. or destroy the economy through sanctions will only create Shopkeepers in the Buzuriyya district Their advice to America another failed state in the region, not democracy. The US is “squeeze but don’t Syria has already taken the easy steps to meet American demands as a sign of good faith. It has built a large sand has nothing to lose and much to gain from détente with break.” Why? Because Syria. Let it test and verify. authoritarian culture wall and placed thousands of extra troops along its 600 extends into the deepest kilometer border with Iraq. (Jordan and Saudi Arabia have not done this.) It has arrested some 1,300 fighters it A first step toward this end is to reopen the oil pipeline corners of Syrian life, into the class rooms, the mosques, running from Kirkuk in northern Iraq to Banyas on the and families, where the father is the master of the house. claims were headed for Iraq. Last month, it initiated UN Images of Damascus sponsored workshops to teach ecumenicalism to hundreds Syria coast. If Syria can use its influence with the Sunni The small group of civil society leaders are not prepared tribes that span both sides of its border to move oil from to govern. Everyone worries that chaos will overtake Syria of preachers. All the same, it has not undertaken the more painful internal measures required to stop infiltrators Iraq to global markets, everyone would be the richer. should the government fall. Deep religious animosities and Washington must choose between destabilizing Syria and ethnic hatreds boil under the surface of Syrian society. before they get to the border, nor has it openly backed America’s occupation of Iraq. stabilizing Iraq. All indications suggest that Washington is pursuing a policy of “regime change on the cheap” in Syria. Bashar al-Assad has worked hard to repair inter-sectarian It consists of squeezing the country economically, relations in Syria He has freed most political prisoners. psychologically, and diplomatically until it falters. He has eased proscriptions on the Muslim Brothers and Since its invasion of Iraq, the US has halved Syria’s tolerated a much greater level of criticism and civil society economic growth by stopping Iraqi oil exports through than his father did. Syria is also the only Arab country Syria’s pipeline, slapping strict economic sanctions on to state explicitly in its school textbooks that Christians the county, blocking European trade agreements with will go to heaven. The religious tolerance enforced by the Damascus, isolating the president, and scaring away Syrian government has made it one of the safest countries investors. Regular leaks of US policy options to bomb in the region. There have been no terrorist attacks by Syria, carry out cross-border attacks, or freeze transactions extremists in over twenty years. with the central bank have driven investors from Syria. Syria’s Grand Mufti recently complained, “We have been Washington is asking Bashar al-Assad to jeopardize this Joshua Landis is an Assistant Professor of Middle domestic peace by cracking down on the Sunni population destroyed by the economic war the US has led against us.” East History at the University of Oklahoma. He that sympathizes with its coreligionists in Iraq. It would Syrian politicians and businessmen alike are convinced is completing a year as a Fulbright Scholar in Statue of Salah al-Din outside the Damascus Citadel be suicide for him to open a second front against Muslim that Washington wants to bring down the regime, not Syria, where he writes daily political commentary change its behavior. extremists in Syria while Washington seeks his downfall. Syrians overwhelmingly believe that the US is waging a on “Syriacomment.com” and is completing a Now that the United States is looking for an exit from war against Arabism and Islam. For Bashar to attack this book, Democracy in Syria. common perception and support America, he must have Photos by Bryan Lubbers Iraq, it must pare down its ambitions in the region. This means changing its Syria policy. The two countries have Washington’s backing. It is basic realism.
10 11 SSA SSA individualism, limited government, free markets, and constitutionalism. Recent Conferences Ideas like these run across the bound- aries between intellectual schools and political ideologies. Beyond liberal- Fellowship Opportunity ism, they can be found in socialist, Landmark Conference on Bilad al- cluding Abdul-Karim Rafeq (“Syria’s nationalist and Islamist thought alike. FELLOWSHIPS AT THE NATIONAL Sham Held in Damascus Reaction to European Capitalism in In addition, liberal thought in the Under the joint sponsorship of the Second Half of the 19th Cen- Eastern Mediterranean should not ENDOWMENT FOR DEMOCRACY the Syrian Ministry of Culture and tury”), Abdal-Razzaq Moaz (“Bilad be interpreted merely as a transfer the Research Center for Islamic His- al-Sham During the Ottoman Era in of ideas from the West to the East. The National Endowment for Democracy (NED) invites applications to its tory, Art, and Culture (IRCICA)—the a Virtual Museum for Islamic Art”), Instead, the emergence of liberal Reagan-Fascell Democracy Fellows Program. Established in 2001 to enable research arm of the Organization of Toru Miura (“Continuity and Discon- thought in the region should be seen activists, scholars, and journalists from around the world to deepen their under- the Islamic Conference (OIC)--, more tinuity in Damascus from the Mamluk as an intellectual and political reac- standing of democracy and enhance their ability to promote democratic change, than 50 scholars from around the Period to Ottoman Rule”), Thomas tion to the concrete historical experi- the fellowship program is based at NED’s International Forum for Democratic world met in Damascus to discuss Bi- Philipp (“The Governors of Aleppo, ences of the societies in question. Studies, in Washington, D.C. lad al-Sham during the Ottoman pe- Damascus, Sidon, and Tripoli in the One of these key experiences was, of riod. Held between September 26-30, Ottoman Era”), Margaret Meriwether course, the encounter with the West in Program: The program offers two tracks: a practitioner track (typically three 2005, the conference opened a new (“Family Ties and Social Networks in the form of intellectual exchange but to five months) to improve strategies and techniques for building democracy phase in official Syrian and Turkish Early Modern Aleppo”), Randi De- also in the form of economic penetra- abroad and to exchange ideas and experiences with counterparts in the United recognition of the importance of his- guilhem (“Kadak wa-Khulu on Waqf tion, political domination and colo- States; and a scholarly track (typically five to ten months) to conduct original tory-writing for the improvement of Properties: A Look at Nineteenth nialism. research for publication. Projects may focus on the political, social, relations between the modern states Century Damascene Practices”), and Within this conceptional frame- economic, legal, and cultural aspects of democratic development and of Turkey and Syria. Officials from Steve Tamari (“Localism and Ot- work, participants discussed the may include a range of methodologies and approaches. Syria, Turkey, and the OIC played tomanism Among the Teachers of following topics: the emergence of For questions, please an active role in bringing together 18th-Century Damascus”). “public intellectuals” in the region; contact: Eligibility: The Reagan-Fascell Democracy Fellows Program is scholars from ten countries, includ- The conference proceedings will the role of the Arab press; intellectual intended primarily to support practitioners and scholars from new ing Egypt, France, Germany, Japan, be published by IRCICA. debates on culture, arts and politics; and aspiring democracies. Distinguished scholars from the United Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Palestine, Program Assistant, Fellowship reactions to the constitutional revolu- States and other established democracies are also eligible to apply. and the USA. The spotlight, however, “The Roots of Liberal Thought in tion of 1908; political controversies Programs Practitioners are expected to have substantial experience working to was on Turkish and Syrian scholars as the Eastern Mediterranean,” on the colonial constitutions in Syria National Endowment for promote democracy. Scholars are expected to have a doctorate, or they explored their shared history and Conference held at Erlangen, July and Lebanon; and, last but not least, academic equivalent, at the time of application. The program is not Democracy worked to reverse the ethnocentric 30 to August 4, 2005. the impact of colonialism on the rise designed to support students working toward a degree. A working legacies of official and popular mis- The conference was organized 1101 15th Street, N.W., and decline of liberal thought in the knowledge of English is an important prerequisite for participation conceptions of the Ottoman period by Thomas Philipp and Christoph Eastern Mediterranean. Suite 800 in the program. for both nations. Schumann (Chair for Politics and Washington, DC 20005 The conference began with a se- Contemporary History of the Middle Support: The fellowship year begins October 1 and runs through ries of panels on sources and method- East at the Department of Political Tel.: (202) 293-0300 July 31, with major entry dates in October and March. All fellows ology in which scholars familiar with Science, University of Erlangen- Fax: (202) 293-0258 receive a monthly stipend, health insurance, travel assistance, and both the Turkish and Arabic sources Nuremberg) and funded by the E-mail: [email protected] research support through the Forum’s Democracy Resource Center discussed ways in which access to German Research Network (DFG). Internet: www.ned.org and Reagan-Fascell Research Consultancy Program. these sources can be facilitated. The Following three earlier conferences following sessions covered topics in on the history of the Syrian Land Application: For further details and instructions on how to apply, social, administrative, financial, legal, (Bilad al-Sham) held in Erlangen, this please download the “Information and Application Forms” booklet educational, cultural, intellectual, and conference widened the geographi- available online at www.ned.org/forum/R-FApplication.pdf or visit www.ned. art and architectural history. During cal focus by including the neighbor- org and follow the link to Fellowship Programs. Please note that all application the conference, an exhibit of rare Ot- ing countries Turkey, Egypt and Iraq materials must be type-written and in English. toman documents related to Bilad al- while maintaining the main focus on Sham opened at the Syrian National the Levant. Deadline: Applications for fellowships in 2006–2007 must be emailed or Museum in Damascus. The conference departed from the postmarked no later than November 1, 2005. Notification of the competition Several members of the Syrian idea that “liberal thought” is a mode outcome is in April 2006. Studies Association participated in of political thinking which is centered Internet: www.ned.org the proceedings of the conference in- on certain values such as civil rights,
12 13 SSA SSA Syrian Studies Association www.ou.edu/ssa Membership/Renewal Form
Please complete this form and send with a check for your membership dues (personal check in U.S. dollars or in Euros) payable to “Syrian Studies Association” to: Sherry Vatter 3362 Keystone Avenue Apartment 2 Los Angeles CA 90034 USA You have the option of paying your dues on-line with a major credit card. Visit the Syrian Studies Association membership page at
Institution: ______Work Address: ______
Tel:______Fax: ______
Email: ______Web: ______Home Address: ______
______Umayyad Mosque, Damascus Tel: ______
Send Newsletter to: WORK ADDRESS q HOME ADDRESS q 14 15 SSA
Place Stamp Here
To: Sherry Vatter, Treasurer 3362 Keystone Ave., #2 Los Angeles, Ca 90034
16