Pope Francis has put the full weight of his global pulpit behind a Caritas Internationalis campaign urging governments, especially in the West, to get on with the business of ensuring a negotiated peace in Syria. 鈥淪yria: Peace is Possible鈥� launched July 5 with a video by Pope Francis urging the world community to work and pray for peace in Syria.
鈥淓veryone has to recognize that there is no military solution for Syria, but only a political solution,鈥� said Francis. 鈥淭he international community must therefore support the peace talks heading toward the construction of a government of national unity.鈥�
鈥淚t鱿鱼视频app possible, but鈥︹�� said Nayiri Moubayed, clearly uncomfortable with the question of peace now for Syria. 鈥淢aybe after four or five years.鈥�
Her husband, George, thinks it will be 15 or 20 years before Christian refugees such as his family will be able to return to Aleppo. It isn鈥檛 just a matter of rebuilding the devastated city 鈥� its houses, businesses and infrastructure. A culture of peace will take even longer to build.
鈥淭he most important is the people, not the infrastructure,鈥� he told The Catholic Register.
Nayiri, George and their six-year-old son Michel have been in Toronto since Jan. 23. After years of armies, militias, barrel bombs and snipers, then six months as refugees in Beirut and a lucky escape thanks to Nayiri鱿鱼视频app Canadian sister who could sponsor them, the Moubayed鱿鱼视频app don鈥檛 look back at their old homeland and predict the sudden flourishing of a democratic, open and peaceful society.
But there鱿鱼视频app no viable alternative to a negotiated peace as soon as possible, said Ryan Worms, the Canadian Catholic Organization for Development and Peace鱿鱼视频app director of in-Canada programs. From Development and Peace鱿鱼视频app perspective, in collaboration with the community groups it supports inside Syria and among Syrian refugees, negotiations have to include Bashar al-Assad鱿鱼视频app government.
鈥淲hat we can say as Development and Peace is, if you want the belligerents to end the conflict you need all of them to talk to one another,鈥� Worms said. 鈥淵ou do not do peace with your friend. You do peace with your enemy or with the groups that you are fighting on the ground. If there is no form of dialogue between all parties to find a peaceful, diplomatic solution I don鈥檛 see how we will reach a permanent peace.鈥�
As Canada鱿鱼视频app Caritas agency, Development and Peace has been involved in putting together the Peace is Possible campaign (syria.caritas.org) and will sponsor a national day of prayer for peace on the feast day of St. Francis of Assisi, Oct. 4.
Canada is a member of the International Syria Support Group of 26 nations and NGOs who have sponsored negotiations in Vienna last year and Geneva this year. The negotiations have included the Assad regime. At the same time the Commission for International Justice and Accountability has been preparing the legal case to try Assad and his Central Crisis Management Cell of senior government and military leaders for the barrel bombs, razing of entire cities and besieging cities so that civilians could not access humanitarian aid and food.
Peace negotiations held thus far have ruled out negotiating with designated terrorist organizations, including the Islamic State and the Al Nusra Front. Canadian soldiers are currently training Kurdish fighters who are taking on both groups. The United States and several allies are bombing Islamic State positions in co-ordination with the Iraqi military on the ground attempting to retake Mosul. The Kurds, who are seeking an independent state, have been excluded from the talks by the Turks. Russia鱿鱼视频app bombing campaign on behalf of the Assad forces has been suspended, but Russia maintains forces inside Syria.
鈥淚鈥檓 not sure it鱿鱼视频app our role as an NGO from Canada to really say what and how the political process should work,鈥� said Worms.
But Development and Peace has advanced the idea that Syrian civil society 鈥� unions, community associations, non-governmental organizations 鈥� should be involved in the peace process.
鈥淎s of today, we are working with some of these groups. There鱿鱼视频app a richness of expectations, of views and also of dreams of different civil society groups within Syria,鈥� Worms said.
The idea of civil society in the Middle East is a Western fantasy in the eyes of George Zuhair Kassir, an elder of Toronto鱿鱼视频app St. Benhem Syriac Orthodox Church. As a retired chemistry professor who worked in his native Iraq, Jordan and elsewhere, Kassir never saw an NGO or association in the region that could operate without the specific patronage of the authoritarian rulers of the region.
鈥淭hese are luxuries,鈥� said Kassir. 鈥淵ou have to stop the war and then do the other things according to civilized society. The war is there. The intruders are there. The killing happens every day, emigration every hour. You can鈥檛 find the best solution for all that. You have to stop the war in any way (you can), and then you can start bringing people 鈥� decent, thoughtful people 鈥� to sit and make rules for the future.鈥�
Worms maintains that the organizations and people who can make a peace deal work are already in Syria and ready to contribute.
鈥淚 don鈥檛 want to enter into the details of the groups we are working with for security reasons,鈥� he said. 鈥淏ut you have a diversity of groups. You鈥檙e talking about university students鈥� also farmers. It could be medical personnel who decide to organize themselves to advocate for greater access to medicines to the conflict zones鈥� mothers who would organize around ensuring safe access to schools for their children.鈥�
Nayiri Moubayed thinks the best hope for the Christians in Syria is the restoration of the Assad regime to full control of the country, despite whatever war crimes he may have committed.
鈥淚f it is Bashar al Assad, there will be various cultures, various people,鈥� she said.
But she doesn鈥檛 think that scenario is very likely either.
鈥淲e love Syria. But after the war, everything is changed. They destroyed everything,鈥� she said.
鈥淲hile the people suffer, incredible quantities of money are being spent to supply weapons to fighters,鈥� said Pope Francis. 鈥淎nd some of the countries supplying these arms are among those that talk of peace. How can you believe in someone who caresses you with the right hand and strikes you with the left hand.鈥�