The Lies They Say About Post-War Reconstruction in Syria

Rasa - First things first: The Syrian government which liberated so many cities and towns from foreign-backed terrorist groups of ISIL and Al-Qaeda – with a helping hand from Iran, Russia and Hezbollah – has no plans whatsoever to confiscate homes and lands of those who fled the once terror-held areas. There is no ‘New Land Law' for it either.

News ID: 437810

Date: 20 May 2018 - 22:47

RNA - Still, that hasn’t stopped ‘fakestream’ media outlets in the West and the Arab world to claim otherwise. They claim that a new urban development law in Syria has put the onus on citizens, millions of whom are displaced, to prove ownership of their homes — or potentially risk losing them to postwar developments - and government supporters.

This is while the full implications of Law 10 of 2018 are yet to be seen. There are provisions allowing distant relatives to register properties for absentee landlords, allowing for flexibility. However, there is no conflict between government loyalists and opponents, nor should this be a cause for anxiety - especially among those forced to abandon their homes in areas where foreign-backed terrorist groups have now been crushed. Under the law and through legal channels, people are free to return to their homes as their rights will be protected as soon the nationwide reconstruction efforts begin.

Indeed, it is silly to argue that those who can prove ownership will still lose their homes because of their political affiliations or activities. No government entity is going to steal any private property and no civilians will ever get arrested just because they want to return to their homes. Syria has already proved otherwise in thousands of cases, where thousands of militants have applied for government amnesty and have return home along with the families across the country.

Into the argument, and according to the Syrian government officials and entities, those who have left the country, or those who have been internally displaced (over 6.6. million), can ask their families and relatives to register their properties using the necessary paperwork, and keep the hope of return alive. True, it will be a complicated process, but no one is going to scuttle this process deliberately, much less put such legal claims in jeopardy. Those who possess the proper paperwork can and should secure their home as per a new presidential decree, that’s according to the Syrian Interior Ministry.

According to Fars News Agancy, the political interpretation is that the government seeks to rebuild the country and it will need all the help it can get from the international community and its own people. Besides, no one in the government has ever said that Damascus plans to alienate its own people, much less recoup the land of the displaced and redistribute it to those close to the government so they can rebuild new neighborhoods. Such baseless allegations are there to ensure further divisions inside Syria and deeper distrust among the general public.

Irrespective of media shenanigans in the West and the Arab world, the people of Syria should help their government to rebuild post-conflict Syria. Their efforts and investment in rebuilding Syria will bolster their domestic market and economy and heighten international competition over their own future. Such unity would also prevent the de-facto partition of Syria and any return to its pre-war unevenly- developed status.

The government and the people should take steps to prevent Syria from sliding backwards economically and prevent Syria from unbalanced development. They can seek help from their allies and the international community to leverage reconstruction assistance as a tool for jumpstarting reconciliation talks between the opposition parties and the government as well, and convene multi-track dialogues on development with various stakeholders to ensure reconstruction is consistent across the country.

People are the hope for rebuilding Syria and the government cannot do this alone. That’s a fact. They should never allow any chance of renewed violence and division, nor should they ever let national reconstruction efforts and plans pave the way for an open-ended American military occupation and dominance. Their unity and resolve could tip the scale toward the Syrian people and government.

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