The Syrian regime has issued a series of punitive measures against participants in the protests in As-Suwayda for more than a year since the demonstrations began. These measures varied from job termination, deprivation of state support, and precautionary seizure of property as retaliatory actions against them, and to send deterrent messages to anyone thinking of joining this movement, which has continued despite all of the regime’s attempts to suppress it.
The latest punitive measures from the regime occurred in early October, when the Ministry of Finance in the regime’s government issued a decision to place a precautionary seizure and confiscate the movable and immovable assets of a number of peaceful protest activists in As-Suwayda province.
Suwayda 24 reported on October 3 that the decision was based on a letter from the General Intelligence Directorate (branch 285), and included a list of 15 names of activists from the village of al-Qrayya, whose properties and funds were seized for participating in protests against the Syrian regime.
One of the 15 activists in As-Suwayda learned about the precautionary seizure of his assets by chance when he went to open a bank account at the Commercial Bank in As-Suwayda.
The activist, who preferred not to be named for security reasons, stated that when he went to open a bank account to benefit from the state cash support instead of the smart card, the employee informed him that he could not complete the process due to an existing precautionary seizure on his assets.
The 24-year-old activist from al-Qrayya added, “I visited the Finance Directorate in As-Suwayda, and there I was surprised to find a seizure decision on the properties of 15 people from al-Qrayya since May 23. I have not received any official notification of the seizure decision, yet it has been implemented, as evidenced by my inability to open a bank account, and even if I had an account in the bank, I could not benefit from it, or even carry out any sales of my property.”
The activist indicated that most of those whose properties were subject to precautionary seizure had security reports written against them, confirming their participation in the events of storming the Baath Party branch in al-Qrayya, boycotting the People’s Assembly elections, in addition to participating in protests against the Syrian regime.
He stated that the precautionary seizure decision deprived individuals of their properties and made them unable to benefit from support for basic goods. Consequently, they are forced to purchase fuel, bread, and gas at the market’s free prices, which burdens them further as winter approaches.
The regime’s government announced last June its intention to start lifting government support for subsidized goods and materials, transitioning to cash support gradually.
The regime instructed holders of the electronic smart card to open bank accounts in the name of the cardholder within three months, preparing to transfer support amounts to these accounts.
Deterrent messages for protesters
In response to the seizure decision on the properties of activists in As-Suwayda, the General Authority for Peaceful Movement in the province issued a statement saying that the measures taken by the judicial authority, under the directive of security agencies, were aimed at influencing the will of protesters, intimidating people, and blackmailing them to relinquish their civil and political rights, which were confiscated by the regime’s authority and its security apparatuses.
The authority called upon civil society organizations and political and civil activities to confront these actions, which are not based on any legal or constitutional reference, and constitute a violation of peacefulness and public and private rights, and an affront to people’s dignity and their legitimate civil rights demanding political change peacefully and civilly.
For his part, Syrian writer Hafez Qarqout stated to Enab Baladi that the Syrian regime aims through the precautionary seizure decision to achieve two goals: firstly, punishing protesters who oppose its policies and demand its downfall; secondly, it seeks to deter others from joining the peaceful movement, sending messages that their properties could be seized if they participate in demonstrations, thus trying to diminish the movement.
Qarqout, who is also from As-Suwayda and had his properties seized ten years ago, added that the regime targets individuals randomly and seizes their assets, sending threatening messages that the seizure list could later expand to include many, and that it targets anyone who has participated in the protests, not just those leading this movement.
Security, not legal decision
The decisions to place precautionary seizures on the properties of protesters in As-Suwayda are not the first, as last April, the Assad regime issued a similar decision against other protesters who confirmed that employees of the Real Estate Directorate asked them to refer to the Military Security branch in As-Suwayda to lift the seizure signal placed on their properties.
The seizure decision was issued at that time by the head of military intelligence, Major General Kifah Milhem, who ordered the seizure of movable and immovable assets of a number of activists in As-Suwayda, meaning they could no longer act with their money without referring to the Military Security branch.
Ghazwan Kurunful, head of the Free Syrian Lawyers Association, views the precautionary seizure of protesters’ properties as a security and illegal decision since the National Security office originally has no right to impose a precautionary seizure on people’s assets. However, it has legitimized this right for itself to punish protesters, thus overstepping the powers of the judiciary.
Kurunful told Enab Baladi that the precautionary seizure is originally a preventive measure taken by the judiciary based on a lawsuit filed by a person against someone who has borrowed money and refused to return it. Thus, the court temporarily seizes a portion of the debtor’s assets equivalent to the value of the debt, but for the Ministry of Finance to seize the assets of protesters based on an order from the National Security office is contrary to the law.
The opposition’s Syrian National Coalition confirmed in a statement last November that resorting to intimidation tactics by the Assad regime officials in As-Suwayda province through imprisonment threats, job termination, and pursuit if state employees continue to participate in demonstrations is a clear indication that the security mentality and method of dealing with the Syrian regime remain the same as they were in the early days of the revolution in 2011.
Termination of jobs
Among the punitive policies pursued by the Syrian regime against participants in the As-Suwayda movement was the termination of jobs in government departments or positions for engaging in protests against it in As-Suwayda province, or for not joining mandatory or reserve military service.
The arbitrary dismissal decisions for employees in As-Suwayda affected teachers and employees in the agriculture, health, electricity, and social services directorates, as well as members of the Baath Party.
On January 21 of this year, the Education Directorate in As-Suwayda province issued a decision to dismiss teacher Sadam al-Najm from his job.
Al-Najm said to Enab Baladi that the school administration informed him of his dismissal decision after his work hours, following repeated summonings to security branches and warnings from the school administration to refrain from participating in protests.
Al-Najm’s dismissal was not the first of its kind in the As-Suwayda movement, as several other activists were dismissed in As-Suwayda prior to this case.
Activist Bashar Tarabieh stated to Enab Baladi that he was dismissed from his job as an employee in the Education Directorate because of his participation in the As-Suwayda protests, and he was also arrested as a result.
He added that the dismissal decision came from the National Security office and included 16 “malicious charges,” one of which was his participation in anti-government protests, noting that his sister was also dismissed from her job for participating in the protests at that time.
Maher Lutfi, another resident of As-Suwayda, stated to Enab Baladi that he was also dismissed from his job at the As-Suwayda Hospital laboratory due to his participation in the “We Want to Live” protests that erupted in 2020.
The dismissal decision for Lutfi included charges of “incitement against the state, insulting the head of the state, and undermining national sentiment,” according to what he told Enab Baladi.
Lutfi pointed out that he refused to return to his government job after being asked to submit a “request for pardon,” and remains out of government employment to this day.
The “We Want to Live” movement is a series of demonstration gatherings in As-Suwayda that began in 2020, protesting the economic conditions in the country. However, those gatherings were intermittent until the start of the second As-Suwayda movement on August 17, 2023, which continues to this day.
The latest dismissal decisions impacted 41 employees at the As-Suwayda Electricity Company last September, on the grounds of their failure to join reserve service, despite having made several prior “security settlements.”
Hafez Qarqout stated that the dismissal of employees at As-Suwayda Electricity Company is a type of security and service punishment that the regime resorts to in retaliation against the people who have risen against him, to show everyone that he still has the ability to make decisions that harm people, and that the services of this province are under his control.
Attempts to suppress the protest movement
The Syrian regime continues its punishment and pressure policies against the people of As-Suwayda, who insist on continuing their peaceful movement, which entered its second year in mid-August, while rejecting the regime’s orders or joining military service.
Despite the regime’s attempts to suppress the As-Suwayda movement through assassinations, arrests, and explosions targeting al-Karamah Square in the center of As-Suwayda several times, residents remain determined to continue their protests.
Qarqout believes that the precautionary seizure of properties or dismissal from jobs will not affect the As-Suwayda movement at all. The protesters, when they began their demonstrations, were aware that they were dealing with a “criminal regime” that could use various means to suppress their movement. Nevertheless, they continued their demonstrations, which have been ongoing for more than a year.
The As-Suwayda protesters completed, on August 16 of last year, their first year of protests, defying the security grip of the intelligence services that tried to quash the peaceful movement.
On August 17, 2023, the first spark of the As-Suwayda movement ignited with a general strike represented by road blockades and the closure of Baath Party offices and government departments and municipalities, protesting the regime’s price hikes of oil derivatives and the poor living and service conditions.