Towards a Syria "Without Fear": A Rational Vision for Rebuilding the Collective Mind

In the wake of fourteen years of tragedy and bloodshed that swept through Syria, a pivotal question arises: how can Syrian society rise from the rubble of war? The answer extends far beyond the post-Assad process of reconstructing buildings and infrastructure; the essential matter lies in rebuilding the Syrian collective mind.

The true challenge lies not merely in removing the physical debris, but in purifying the national memory from the poisons of fear and hatred, in liberating identity from the confines of narrow affiliations, and in transforming the painful experience into a reserve of wisdom to be drawn upon in building a brighter future.

Fundamental Transformations: From Fear to Understanding, and from Rigid to Multi-faceted Identity

The philosophical vision based on Spinoza's thought indicates that true freedom does not mean the absence of constraints, but rather the ability to understand these constraints and control them through internal causality and rationality. Applying this vision to the Syrian case, a free Syria will not be one entirely devoid of fear—an impossibility after such a bitter experience—but rather one that understands the sources of its fear and deals with it rationally, transforming this fear from an obstacle into a driver for creativity and construction. Similarly, the new Syria will not deny its cultural, religious, and societal diversity but will recognize and embrace it to transform it from a source of division into a source of strength and civilizational richness.

This transformation requires a redefinition of Syrian identity itself. Instead of being a sectarian or narrow ethnic prison, it must become a free and multi-dimensional choice, allowing every Syrian man and woman to build a composite identity that expresses their multiple affiliations without contradiction. Furthermore, the collective memory needs a radical transformation process; instead of remaining a tool for revenge and recalling pain, it must become a school from which lessons and insights are extracted, and a platform for the wisdom that prevents the tragedy from repeating.

Establishing a New Social Contract: From a Predatory to a Guardian State

One of the root causes of the Syrian crisis lies in the absence of a genuine social contract linking the state and society with bonds of trust and legitimacy. Since the very founding moment of the modern Syrian state, it inherited colonial authoritarian structures that over time turned from tools serving society into instruments of domination over it. This model was cemented through successive military coups that established the legitimacy of arms instead of popular legitimacy, then reached its peak during the Ba'ath Party era, which transformed socialism into authoritarian bureaucracy and destroyed the traditional social fabric without replacing it with modern, strong institutions.

The former Assad regime (father and son) established an illusory social contract based on the barter of "stability in exchange for freedom," an unwritten deal that collapsed as soon as the regime lost its ability to provide the minimum of stability and security. The mechanisms of domination evolved as security institutions transformed from tools defending the nation into tools for governing and suppressing citizens. New forms of privatized violence emerged through quasi-governmental militias operating outside the law, and repression itself became a profitable economy for networks of interests allied with the power structure.

Perhaps one of the most dangerous transformations witnessed by Syria is the transformation of the state from a national institution into a family patrimony, through mechanisms of hereditary succession, the privatization of state institutions, and their conversion into family property. This led to the erosion of the regime's legitimacy even among its traditional base and its inability to undertake any genuine reform for fear of the disintegration of the interest networks it depends upon.

From Thought to Practice: A Practical Roadmap for Reconstruction

General philosophical visions are insufficient to build a new Syria after December 8, 2024; these visions need practical translation across several interconnected levels. On the intellectual level, a "Syrian Rational Renaissance" project could be launched, including the establishment of an Institute for Rational Studies that rediscovers the Arab rational heritage from Ibn Rushd (Averroes) to the Mu'tazila, and translates global philosophical works like those of Spinoza with applied commentaries on the Syrian reality.

New educational curricula could also be developed, teaching a "Philosophy for Citizenship" subject in schools, adopting history books with a critical methodology, and training teachers in dialogue methods and acceptance of difference.

On the societal level, a "Bridges of Trust" program could be implemented, involving the creation of locally elected councils of wisdom in every neighborhood and village, comprising notables from all components, tasked with resolving local disputes and organizing joint projects. A Syrian digital archive could be established containing testimonies from all regions and sects, regional mobile museums could be set up displaying multiple narratives of the conflict, and a national Memory Day could be designated to commemorate all victims. Economically, cross-sectarian agricultural and commercial cooperatives could be encouraged, along with organizing joint exhibitions for traditional products from all over Syria.

On the political level, the transitional phase requires a genuine participatory constitutional process, through a constituent assembly representing all components of the Syrian people, holding public hearings in all provinces. The new constitution must guarantee mechanisms for constitutional review allowing genuine popular participation, establish an independent supreme constitutional court, and provide special guarantees for minority rights on identity-related existential issues. This must be accompanied by a genuine democratic transition involving the creation of an independent electoral commission, setting a single non-renewable presidential term, and funding parties from the public budget with full transparency.

The Triple Liberation: Towards Free and Active Citizenship

The process of Syrian reconstruction can be read through the lens of the "Triple Liberation" inspired by Spinoza's philosophy. The first level is liberation from the "imagined guardians of identity" who confine Syrian identity to a single narrow dimension. This requires an identity liberation program including a national campaign emphasizing multiple identities, removing the religion field from official documents, and encouraging mixed marriage without sectarian declaration.

The second level is liberation from the "merchants of war and hatred" who profited from the conflict and perpetuated it for personal gain. This necessitates applying transitional economic justice, including confiscating war funds from all parties and investing them in a national reconstruction fund, and holding accountable economists and beneficiaries who contributed to financing and prolonging the war.

The third and most important level is liberation from the "fear that turns citizens into subjects," through a project for active citizenship involving training thousands of young people in community leadership, engaging them in managing municipalities and local institutions, and providing scholarships for outstanding students from all regions without discrimination.

Syria as a Global Laboratory: A Historic Opportunity to Develop a New Human Model

Post-Assad Syria represents a unique historic opportunity to develop a new human model for managing diversity and emerging from civil and sectarian conflicts. Syria can transform into a living global laboratory testing the possibility of coexistence in a culturally and religiously diverse society, through limited voluntary population exchange programs, joint housing programs in mixed areas, and economic incentives for multi-sectarian companies.

Syria can also pose a practical challenge to the "clash of civilizations" theory, which presents conflict as an inevitable fate between different identities. This can be achieved by establishing a Syrian Observatory for Civilizational Dialogue that organizes international conferences on the "Syrian model for managing diversity,develops exchange programs with societies that have emerged from civil wars, and exports "Syrian expertise" in national reconciliation.

More importantly, Syria offers an opportunity to develop a new political model that could be termed "Pluralistic Democracy," an innovative blend of liberal democracy and special guarantees for minorities, based on extensive administrative decentralization while preserving national unity, and a social market economy that considers justice and balance between regions.

In conclusion, building a Syria "without fear" is an arduous task requiring rare intellectual and moral courage, firm political will, and broad popular participation. But it is not impossible; it is an imperative necessity for emerging from the dark tunnel Syria has entered.

As Spinoza taught us, true freedom is not in escaping constraints, but in understanding and controlling them through rationality and wisdom. This is precisely the historic mission facing the current Syrian generation: transforming tragedy into opportunity, diversity into strength, and fear into a driver for creativity and construction.