The West continues to put more pressure on Syrian leader Bashar Assad to step aside and shows its support to the opposition. But who are the opposition and could they handle Syria?
“When we say opposition we really are talking about politicians who have assumed leadership roles in opposing the Syrian regime,” Camille Otrakji, a contributing editor with Syria Comment online magazine, told RT. He explained that the Syrian opposition should be distinguished from the Syrian people.He added that many of them have little to do with the people as they have been living abroad for decades.Also the opposition comprises the Kurds whose “main motivation is autonomy or separation.” Another group is the Islamists, who want to play a bigger role in Syrian politics – something the Assad regime will not accept. “Syria is a much more diversified country where you have so many minorities and they aren’t really comfortable with Islamic rule like Egyptians or Tunisians might be,” Otrakji explained.Moreover the opposition includes leftists, communists. “The regime has not been kind to communists in the past. They’ve been imprisoned just like Islamists.”Otrakji also stresses that the opposition is not able to produce any document that highlights their political program. “They really cannot agree on anything because you have those who want Kurdish separation, those who are Islamists and you have secularists and communists. There is no logical place where they can all meet and agree.”Besides, none of them is strong enough to assume power after the removal of President Assad, he concludes.