Syria is engaged in a renewed crackdown on political dissent, culminating with the recent detention of Riad Seif (left), a prominent opposition leader. This won’t be the first time that Seif’s been in jail – in 2001, he and several other pro-democracy advocates were thrown into prison for five-year terms, effectively ending a period of political openness known as the “Damascus Spring.” No doubt to bolster its reputation in the wake of the Hariri assassination, Bashar al-Assad’s government briefly released a number of political dissidents (including Mr. Seif) in January of 2006.
But such an action has brought dangers of its own for Assad’s beleaguered regime. Seif is well-respected in Syria, and is “known on the streets of Damascus as an honest businessman who treats employees with unusual generosity.” His presence is a unifying one for many disgruntled Syrians and his message of political openness rings true with much of the struggling middle-class. Seif’s image is, to a significant extent, magnified by the perceived corruption and unreliability of the alternative National Salvation Front, an opposition political force in-exile led by a bizarre alliance between former vice president, Abdel Halim Khaddam, and prominent members of the Syrian Muslim Brotherhood. (A strange coalition indeed, given that Khaddam was part of the Assad administration when the infamous Hama massacre occurred.)
Washington, for its part, doesn’t seem to have done anything about the decision to re-detain Mr. Seif. Not dissimilar to the way that Ayman Nour has been left to fend for himself in Egypt’s prison system, there has not been even a simple request of Damascus for more information. Disappointingly, as journalist Joe Macaron reports, “so far the U.S. Chargé d’Affairs in Syria reportedly has not broached the topic with the sole Syrian official with whom he meets, Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Faisal al-Mikdad.”
While America’s political capital vis-a-vis Syria is undoubtedly low, it doesn’t take much ingenuity to realize that there are still levers that could be pulled to discourage this latest crackdown. Washington has numerous carrots that it can offer — trade ties, most prominently — and a range of sticks. Unfortunately, by failing to even maintain a dialogue with Damascus (there has not been an American ambassador in the Syrian capitol for several years), we’ve badly undercut our ability to influence events. Now, rather than standing up for the cause of pro-democracy activists, the Bush administration is restricted to merely watching from afar.