Prominent activist rebukes Coalition over Passports' false promises

Reporting by Faris al-Rifai; Translation by Yusra Ahmed

(Zaman Al Wasl)- A prominent activist and former member of the National Coalition, has rebuked the key opposition group over irresponsible promises to renew expired passport, saying Coalition wants to sell false hope.

Omar Idlbi, in statement to Zaman al-Wasl, has demanded the Coalition’s members to apologize to Syrians for deceiving them, either intentionally or not, and forming a legal committee to investigate the matter and hold responsibility to each one deceived Syrians.

Idlbi warned of mitigation the matter like the Coalition did in Measles vaccine’s deaths.

The former Coalition’s member expressed his opinion of the Coalition’s attitude toward the matter saying: “the coalition has not only procrastinated the matter, it was not interested in this issue in first place and did not give enough effort.”

He added that nothing was done in regard to the matter apart from communication between the National Coalition’s embassy in Doha with the Arab League and other countries politically recognized the Coalition to gain agreements to issue passports’ extension sticker.

“However that act is not legal and showed lack of experience in International Law,” Idlbi added that issuing or renewing passports are matters of sovereignty and only countries recognized by the United nations or states-like entities like the Palestinian Authority have the right to do so.

“The Coalition does not have that merit therefore it cannot issue or even renew passports” Idlbi mentioned that conflict between the Interim Government and the Coalition’s Embassy in Doha in regard to renewing passport aimed to gain personal achievements, and it has badly affected Syrians. “All the matter was imagination and forgery”.

Idlbi considered the matter more serious than just selling false promises; it can reach to harming, no matter if intentionally or not.

Idlibi called on the Collation to form a legal committee to investigate the matter, but he expressed his disappointment from previous experiences in dealing with such problems, like investigation in vaccination’s deaths, which no one knows how it was done.

Idlbi insisted that responsible for such false promises must know that they are no longer immune against accountability.

“We must demand investigation by the Coalition which is responsible for them, we hope that the new Coalition’s leadership would do its duties and be up to responsibilities.

If it did not do what should have been done, we would pressurize them by our activists in the revolutionary field, who do not accept such transcendence.”