This policy paper presents a feminist political analysis of the situation of Syrian women during the transitional phase, framing it as a political matter that reveals the trajectory of the emerging state following the fall of the Assad regime, rather than treating it as an isolated social or human rights issue. The transitional phase is not merely an administrative handover between two authorities; rather, it is a moment for reconstituting legitimacy and centers of power, and for redefining the public sphere and the parameters of citizenship. In such moments, the position of women within politics, security, the judiciary, and public administration serves as a critical indicator: is the transition moving towards a state of institutions that protect rights and guarantees participation, or is it trending towards the reproduction of exclusion and violence through new narratives and mechanisms?

The paper adopts a feminist methodology that positions women as “experts” on their own realities, drawing upon an intersectional perspective that examines the interplay of gender with geographic region, socioeconomic class, political and ethnic affiliations, and displacement, all viewed through the lens of the structural violence deeply rooted in Syria. The research relied on an analysis of participants’ contributions from focus groups conducted across 12 regions, involving approximately 120 women from diverse backgrounds (including women breadwinners, victims, or family members of victims, activists, detention survivors, and returnees from asylum and displacement). These sessions were facilitated within safe, non-hierarchical spaces with a qualitative narrative approach that does not treat the inputs as mere abstract data; rather, it contextualizes them within the positionality of participants and their lived experiences.

The Syrian Women’s Political Movement (SWPM) would like to thank all those who contributed to accomplishing this publication, individuals and entities, namely the Women’s International League for Peace and Freedom (WILPF), and all SWPM members and staff who assisted with the national consultations.

This work would not have been possible without the Syrian women who participated in the consultations and who, despite the dire conditions, were committed to this work to ensure that the voices of Syrian women are heard.

SWPM National Consultations team members: Hiam Haj Ali, Kebria Alsaour, Khawla Dunia, Lina Wafai, Rowaida Kanaan, Salma Al-Sayyad, Wejdan Nassif

Researcher: Doris Awwad