Professionals

Under the present regime, Syrian professionals are increasingly frustrated because they are denied a strong and independent voice. All their associations, including the Engineers' Association, Bar Association, Medical and Pharmacists Associations have been forcibly taken over by the ruling Ba'th Party. This has limited the extent to which these organizations can actually look after their members' interests. The weakness of these regulatory bodies will also limit the extent to which widespread corruption, nepotism and cronyism can be stamped out in the professions.

Young graduates hoping to enter a professional field are badly let down by an education system which does not take into account the job market or the needs of business. Because the economy is mismanaged, the job market is very narrow. The result is a rapidly increasing number of educated young professionals who are unemployed.

The Damascus Declaration will aim to make professional organizations open to all and not only for Ba'th Party members and give back professional associations back to professionals.

The Damascus Declaration will seek to secure engineering jobs for all engineering graduates from Syrian universities and to establish links between university departments and the business comunity.

Small & Medium-Sized Businesses

The business community in Syria realises that corrupt regime activities are affecting their business. Small and medium enterprises in Syria have faced an uphill struggle for the last 40 years. They have had to put up with Soviet-style command economy policies, nationalization, bureaucratic restrictions on imports and exports and rampant corruption.

In addition, SMEs have been gradually pushed out of the market by large state-owned companies controlled by regime cliques that hold a monopoly over the import of raw materials. SMEs also have to contend with rampant corruption which often leads to huge price increases and renders businesses unprofitable.

The Damascus Declaration belives that economic reform cannot take place without political reform first. Fighting corruption in all its forms is the highest priority for the Damascus Declaration. Only by making the neccessary political steps to engender an effective anti-corruption policy can further steps be taken to help promote SMEs.
 

Students & Young People

The Syrian population is very young with the median age at only 21.4 years. But for over 40 years the regime has gone about systematically destroying Syria's education system. Students and young people are paying the price for schools and universities which are outdated in their curriculums and teaching methods, and which offer few practical skills.

Teachers and lecturers who are not members of the Ba'th Party enjoy little freedom of action, while valuable teaching time is taken up by political indoctrination lessons. Student unions have been hijacked by the Ba'th Party and have become instruments for enforcement, rather than organs of expression. Youth unemployment in Syria is a major problem with jobs reliant on personal connections and bribes rather than ability. Compulsory military service is also a major grievance for young people. Thousands of youths emerge from two years of military service demoralized and defeated.

The Damascus Declaration is passionate about investing in Syria's future generations. The Damascus Declaration calls for an end to the politicization of education, reform of the current system of military service, and unemployment to be reduced by having greater job-creation opportunities.
 

Women

Women in Syria face a number of challenges which often go unreported and unnoticed. Women in rural areas are still susceptible to violent abuse and gross discrimination. In the private sector women do not receive the same salaries as men, and their participation in public life lags behind men. Prostitution is a growing concern in Syria with the influx of refugees, together with poverty and urban sprawl, resulting in an increase in this social vice. Meanwhile, the General Feminist Association in Syria has been hijacked by the Ba'th Party and has become a propaganda tool.

The Damascus Declaration, led by chairwomen, will seek to empower women's organizations throughout country and behind the pro-democracy movement. The Damascus Declaration will aim to de-politicize the General Feminist Association, enshrine equal pay in law, and combat honour killings and prostitution.
 

Rural Poor

Rural areas have traditionally suffered neglect. Governments have for too long been urban-focused while ignoring the concerns of rural areas. The tragic results are all too apparent: large-scale rural-urban migration, rural poverty, decline of agriculture, an ageing rural population. Farmers complain of an outdated state-run agricultural sector which does not make agriculture profitable. The regime practises discrimination against farmers from certain areas while favouring others in terms of investment, particularly electricity, sanitation and communications.
 

The Damascus Declaration is opposed to the policy of forced purchase of agricultural produce by the state at minimal prices. The Damascus Declaration seeks to help farmers get a fair price for their produce and help rural areas get an equal share of the national wealth through a sustainable increase in the level of investment on rural infrastructure.