As Syria crumbled with countless deaths and destruction, Raed Fares, one of the few remaining figures of the 2011 Syrian movement for democracy, survived several attempts on his life to live as a symbol of resistance to Bashar al-Assad.
The journalist with robust determination and energy lived through the horror of devastation and used sarcasm and irony of laughter in his serious struggle to keep hopes alive for a day when his battered Arab country would finally have democracy.
But last Friday, when the world leaders fought trade wars and chose compromises over Syrians’ right to democracy, gunmen came and silenced Fares in the rebel-held Idlib province, taking away the glimmer of hope from the suffering Syrians.
His Radio Fresh, with its daring broadcasts, challenged Bashar al-Assad’s dictatorial rule and played music and had female presenters, representing a foil to the closed ISIS mindset.
As reported by the BBC, Fares’ activism and struggle for freedom and democracy incurred him ire of both militants and the Syrian regime. A few years ago, the ISIS had tried to kill Fares with bullets but he survived despite wounds in his bones and lungs. Only two years ago al-Qaeda-linked Nusra Front detained him. Fares’ Radio also saw opposition from The Hayat Tahrir al-Sham alliance (HTS) for broadcast of music.
Don't want to believe @RaedFares4 has been killed. One of the few peaceful pro-democracy activists from the early days of the uprising who was still in #Syria .Tireless, uncompromisingly principled, good humored, big-hearted and much more. A huge loss. #KafraNbel . RIP my friend pic.twitter.com/XjWMhnfu3S
— Donatella Rovera (@DRovera) November 23, 2018
On Monday, the National Public Radio remembered Fares, playing his voice when he spoke of his resistance to Assad’s tyranny and the dangers he lived through.
The assassination of Fares takes away a powerful voice for democracy from Syria’s battlefield of bombs and ideologies. A voice silenced for advocating the cause of democracy in should have been a huge headline. But the world is into too much of chaos and strategic conflicts, where proxies have a field day and humanity suffers and ideals of democracy retreat. Yemen is another reminder of the darkening Middle East. The Arab Spring of revolutions has been sacrificed at the alter of national interests.
The world powers including the U.S., which allowed Assad to cross redlines under Barack Obama, have failed to defend Syrians. Russia, which continues to defend Assad, has allowed his regime to perpetrate more horror on Syrians. The Middle Eastern players Iran and Saudi Arabia keep their sectarian and regional political rivalry over all other considerations. It is true that the ISIS has been weakened and beaten back at many places in Iraq and Syria but what about the people. When will the people have a participatory democracy?
The result has been a terrible loss of civilian lives, the rise of militant organizations and emboldening of Assad’s tyrannous regime. Fares’ story has been one of a daring voice, abiding courage and enthusiasm for freedom from repression and dictatorship. Journalists expressing dissent across the broader Middle East and South Asia – Iran, Pakistan, Turkey and Saudi Arabia – are treated with contempt, and subjected to torture and killings. The denial of democratic rights, particularly the freedom of expression, to the people – one the biggest reasons behind the lack of genuine and all-round progress across the broader Middle East- must come to an end.
