Friday 25 November 2011

Jordanian Opposition Divided Over Syria

"A dispute emerged between the Islamists and the leftists when the slogan for the sit-in was changed from “No to American Intervention in Arab Affairs” to A dispute emerged between the Islamists and the leftists when the slogan for the sit-in was changed from “No to American Intervention in Arab Affairs” to “Hands Off Syria.”"
A fool would expect changing the slogan to “Hands Off Syria.” because its their dirty hands
The Syria unrest started in Deraa.  

A Syrian living in Jordan stands in front of a Syrian flag made with coloured balloons during a demonstration against Syria's President Bashar Al-Assad, in front of the Syrian embassy in Amman 24 November 2011. (Photo: REUTERS - Majed Jaber)
Published Friday, November 25, 2011
Amman - Jordanian activists are becoming increasingly divided over the crisis in Syria between supporters and opponents of the regime in Damascus.

These differences came to a head when six nationalist and leftist opposition parties tried to organize a protest at the American embassy in Amman scheduled for next Saturday, to denounce foreign intervention in Syrian affairs.

A dispute emerged between the Islamists and the leftists when the slogan for the sit-in was changed from “No to American Intervention in Arab Affairs” to “Hands Off Syria.”

The Islamists took issue with the new slogan and pulled out of the coalition organizing the protest.

The Deputy General Secretary for the Islamic Action Front, the political arm of the Muslim Brotherhood, Nimr al-Assaf, expressed his disapproval of the change.

He said that the opposition coordination committee had agreed that the main slogan should be “No to American Interference in Arab Affairs.”

“singling out Syria in this way sends a message of support to a regime which is wiping out its own people, and we cannot be part of this.”

“We were surprised when the slogan was changed to ‘Hands Off Syria,’ which is a direct message supporting the criminal Syrian regime at the expense of its people. This prompted us to decline to participate in this activity,” he said.
Assaf emphasized that Islamic Action is categorically against foreign interference in Arab affairs in Iraq, Libya, Sudan, and Syria, but “singling out Syria in this way sends a message of support to a regime which is wiping out its own people, and we cannot be part of this.”

“The Syrian regime is the only one that can stop foreign intervention in Syria, by stopping the rivers of blood over there, releasing the detainees, and granting the people their demands for dignity, freedom, and rights,” he said.

However, the Jordanian opposition parties said that the aim of the protest was to defend Arab Syria, reject American interference in its affairs, and denounce their attempts to target it.

The parties called on the public to participate in the protest to send a message to the American administration, through its embassy, from the Arab Jordanian people, who reject all forms of foreign conspiracy and interference in Syria’s affairs.

The parties asked those who are going to participate in the demonstration to abide by the slogans: “Rejection of Foreign Intervention” and “Hands Off Syria.”

The parties that called for this protest are the Arab Socialist Baath Party - Jordan, the Arab Progressive Baath Party, the National Movement for Direct Democracy, the Jordanian Democratic People’s Party, the Jordan Communist Party, and the Jordanian Democratic Popular Unity Party.
This article is an edited translation from the Arabic Edition.
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