The uprising is flagging in Deraa, the town where the Syrian protest movement started and where protesters suffered the most fatalities, thanks to a combination of mass arrests and the promise of both compensation and limited reforms.
Residents of the southern Syrian town of Deraa, where at least 50 people have been shot dead by the security services, said that the police launched a series of house raids two nights ago and detained anyone suspected of participating in the two-week revolt.
They also inspected all the mobile phones they found for footage of the protests, and forced the owners to identiy everyone shown in the film clips which have been used to tell the world outside the besieged town about the uprising there.
Another wave of arrests on Saturday targeted protesters who dared to gather in the town. Some of those detained were released on condition that they participate in a pro-government rally on Friday, while others were beaten or given electric shocks, residents said. The fear of disappearing into Syria’s prison system had left many reformists on the run, sleeping in their cars or with families who had not taken part in the rallies.
At the same time, the Government has sent a high-level committee to the town with pledges of compensation for those killed and a promise to examine their demands and introduce reforms by April 25th. While there was scepticism that the Government would deliver after a hollow speech by President Assad, the very real threat of further crackdowns appeared to make them more receptive to the offer.
Advertisement
“If our demands are met, we’ll be satisfied,” said one man who had made speeches at the demonstrations. Asked if the fall of the regime to be toppled was still a demand of the angry crowd, the man shrugged. “It will be difficult for the regime to be overthrown,” he said, adding that the people wanted more freedom and the lifting of the hated emergency law which has allowed for arbitrary arrests for half a century.
“Unless more people are killed in the demonstrations, the situation won’t escalate again,” said the man, who asked not to be identified. “We have achieved something. We received a lot of promises so people are hopeful. If our demands are not met, then God knows what will happen. There will be more protests.”