Syrians celebrated the fourteenth anniversary of the Syrian revolution, raising the slogan of freedom and dignity, which aimed to overthrow the former Assad regime and build a state of freedom and justice.
In pursuit of this slogan, the revolution went through significant turning points. It began as a peaceful movement, then quickly transformed into an armed conflict after the former regime responded with violence.
With the complexity of the geopolitical landscape, Syria has become a theater for regional and international interventions. Today, with the shifting balance of power and the fall of the Assad regime, some believe the revolution has ended, while other Syrians insist that it has not yet ended and that it will continue until its goals of state-building and transitional justice are fully achieved. It remains a guardian of these goals, and when these goals are achieved, it can be said that the revolution has reached its end.
Comparing the Syrian revolution with similar experiences in other Arab countries such as Egypt, Yemen, and Libya, despite the differences in the timeframe and the method of overthrowing the regimes in those countries, there are similarities in some aspects. The revolutions in these countries did not achieve all of their goals, and their people declared the revolutions over. This created a preoccupation among Syrians that their revolution must achieve all of its goals before its end can be announced.
In this context, researcher and political writer Turki Mustafa says: "A revolution is a set of structural changes that affect the value, social, political, and economic structures. In this sense, the fall of the regime is a step along the path of the revolution. We must define the goals of the Syrian revolution. If we do not agree on them, we will undoubtedly disagree about what has been achieved and what has not yet been achieved."
He adds: "From this perspective, we can raise pivotal questions about the nature of the Syrian revolution: Is it a movement against the political regime only, or is it a profound transformation encompassing all aspects of life? Accordingly, it can be said that revolutions are not limited to changing governments, but extend to include restructuring the social, economic, and sometimes cultural structure of the state. Therefore, the Syrian revolution has begun a new phase using different methods and tools, and it continues."
For his part, political researcher Lawrence Chemali says, "We must first understand the reality of revolution and its profound meaning. Revolution is a radical process aimed at changing the existing political, economic, and social conditions and adopting a new vision of how things should be. Therefore, revolution, in addition to being a supra-legal state characterized by radical, violent change, is also an intellectual and moral state."
He continues, "Based on this conception, it can be said that the revolution has ended in its initial state, that is, in terms of its manifestations and tools outside the framework of the law, with the entry into the phase of building a just legal system after the fall of the former regime. However, it has not ended in terms of its intellectual and moral interaction with events and developments. The essential part of the revolution is its vision for what comes after the fall of the regime, and revolutionary ideas are in a state of constant interaction, coupled with the revolutionary incubator's commitment to defending these values and demands, of which transitional justice is one of the fundamental demands, but not the last. The revolution has ended its tools, but it has not ended intellectually or morally."
In a previous statement, Syrian President Ahmad al-Sharaa said, "The revolution is over and has become a thing of the past, and the era of the state has begun." Meanwhile, a large segment of Syrians still associate the continuation of the revolution with the achievement of transitional justice, which requires holding accountable the criminals who committed atrocities against the Syrian people.
Over the course of fourteen years, the revolution was not merely a political struggle; it was an expression of the Syrian people's will to achieve freedom and justice. In light of the new situation—the fall of the old regime and the rise of the revolution's sons to power—many Syrians believe that achieving transitional justice is the key to ending the revolution by achieving its core goals: accountability, fairness, and building a new future free from tyranny.
Transitional justice, as a concept, is not limited to trials or legal proceedings; it is a comprehensive system aimed at addressing the legacy of gross human rights violations. It also includes uncovering the truth about the crimes committed, holding those responsible accountable, compensating victims, and establishing guarantees of non-recurrence through reforming laws and security and judicial institutions. In the Syrian case, the situation appears more complex due to the multiplicity of parties involved in the violations and the depth of the resulting social rift, making the path to justice fraught with difficulties, but not impossible.
On the other hand, some viewpoints hold that political stability in Syria must be based on clear guarantees for transitional justice and accountability, otherwise the crisis will recur in a different form. Therefore, it is essential to address the roots of the conflict to achieve political stability built on a solid foundation of justice, which was absent during the era of the former regime. Linking the end of the revolution to the achievement of transitional justice is a legitimate right for those who demand it, and a fundamental necessity for turning the page on the past and building a political future in Syria that is governed by justice and equity.
As the Syrian revolution approaches the end of a decade and a half, the question that remains urgently asked is: Has the revolution truly ended? Or has it entered a new phase of civil, political, and intellectual resistance?
The continued demand for justice, the insistence on not turning the page on crimes without accountability, and the adherence of a broad segment of Syrians to the values and goals of the revolution demonstrate that this revolution has gone beyond being merely a political moment to a long-term historical transformation, reshaping Syrian consciousness and shifting it from a state of submission to a state of action.
The revolution may have lost momentum on the ground or retreated militarily, but it has not been defeated intellectually or morally, as long as there are those who continue to raise their voices of injustice, cling to the truth, and believe that building a new Syria can only be achieved through justice and accountability, not through forced settlements or disregard for the rights of victims.
Therefore, the Syrian revolution, even if it is limited in scope and scope, is a continuation of the revolution.It may seem like it's over to some, but it still lives on in the conscience of Syrians, pulsating whenever a martyr or detainee is mentioned, breathing whenever a mother demands retribution, and reborn every time a new awareness is formed that there is no future without justice.
Saleh Al-Abdullah - Zaman Al-Wasl
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