Syrian Women’s Political Movement Statement

Seven Years on, Syrian Women Continue their Struggle for Justice

On the 7th anniversary of the Syrian Revolution, the Syrian Women’s Political Movement (SWPM) honors the many sacrifices Syrian women and men have made – and continue to make – in their pursuit of freedom, justice, democracy, and equality, and we call on the international community to take the action needed to end this brutal conflict.

Seven years ago, people across Syria – women, men, and children – peacefully took to the streets full of hope. In this extraordinary moment, Syrians of all walks of life came together out of a collective determination to cast off the Assad regime’s decades-old tyranny and demand a democratic Syria for all Syrians. For this, we have faced unthinkable horrors – indiscriminate bombardment, mass disappearances, forced displacement, torture, extrajudicial killings, chemical warfare, sieges and starvation. Hundreds of thousands of Syrians have been killed – tens of thousands of them women – and countless disappeared. As the war enters its eighth year, we fear the worst is yet to come.

The atrocities committed in Syria have taken place in full view of international community, with total impunity. Women’s demands for civilian protection and justice have consistently gone ignored. While world powers contemplate the complexity of the Syrian crisis, our beloved country has been decimated. It is the Syrian people who are paying the ultimate price for the international community’s failure and unwilling to act.

Yet, despite the hardships, Syrian women’s determination remains unwavering. Syrian women have played a major role in maintaining the social fabric, supporting families, and providing services particularly in besieged areas. The SWPM will continue to uphold the demands of the Syrian Revolution and struggle peacefully for justice and reform. Syrian women want what all people want: accountability for human rights abuses and war crimes; equal citizenship and civic freedoms; democratic elections and participatory government. We want, like all women and men, to establish a society that is secure, equal and free.

On this anniversary, we honor all those who risked their lives in the name of a free Syria: the detained, the murdered, and the disappeared.

Syrian Women’s Political Movement

15 March 2018