Syrian opposition forms new body to unify stands

A prominent Syrian opposition figure announced Thursday the formation of the National Coordination Body that would represent the Syrian opposition at home and abroad.

Speaking during a media conference, Lawyer Hassan Abdel-Azim, the secretary general of the Arab Socialist Union party and the spokesman for the National Democratic Gathering, stressed that the recently formed body aims to bring national and democratic changes in Syria.

"This step came after three months of hectic efforts carried out by some national parties to unify the stand of the Syrian opposition at home and abroad," Abel-Azim told a media conference.

The body comprises many groups and opposition parties including five parties that represent the Kurdish movement in Syria and other independent opposition figures. Abdel-Azim expressed his rejection to "any foreign intervention in Syria," asserting that the only outlet to the current crisis is through an overall national dialogue.

In his last week speech, Syrian President Bashar al-Assad called for a comprehensive national dialogue and said this dialogue has become the title of the "current phase." Syrian Foreign Minister Walid al-Moallem also said in the following day that whoever wants to test Syria's seriousness to make changes in the country should take part in the dialogue to help shape the country's future.

Abdel-Azim said last week that the recent speech made by al- Assad was "insufficient and not reassuring."

The newly formed body issued a statement at the end of the media conference in which it urged the Syrian authorities to release all of the political detainees and demanded a new constitution for the country without the article number eight providing that the Baath party is the leader of the state and society.

Since coming to power in 2000, al-Assad has freed political prisoners and passed laws aimed at liberalizing the state- controlled economy. But he has also clamped down on political activists, jailing pro-democracy advocates and cracking down on government critics.

Syria has been in unrest since mid March when anti-government protests broke out in the southern province of Daraa and spread to other Syrian cities. Syria blamed the unrest on "armed groups and foreign conspiracy" and stressed that it would track down gunmen who have intimidated people and damaged public and private properties.

The government said that hundreds of security agents and policemen were killed by gunmen since the eruption of protests in the country in mid March. Syrian oppositions, however, accused the security forces of harshly cracking down on the protests.

Editor: yan

English.news.cn   2011-07-01 00:57:39