n Military solution could only fan more protests Blaming “saboteurs and gunmen” for the unrest that has swept Syria does not seem to have earned Syrian President Bashar Al-Assad any new admirers. In a speech three days ago, Assad claimed that various reviews of the Syrian political situation will soon be underway, with possible democratic reforms in the offing, including the legalization of political parties other than his own Ba'ath organization. Then he went on to say that there would be no negotiations with saboteurs and gunmen. The general response to Assad's speech —from internal opposition, neighboring Turkey and the US — was a disdainful shrug of the shoulders and a demand that Assad stop with the words and take some action. Already Assad's promises made at the start of the unrest earlier this year have not been fulfilled and there has yet to be any sign that they will. His promises to remove emergency laws were followed by his own forces opening fire on peaceful protesters. Ironically, Assad has called on the Syrian people not to let the economy fail, even though it has been clear from the beginning that his own forces are the aggressors in the situation, and it is the actions of his government that threaten what had been a fairly robust economy. And, now, it is the actions of his government that have resulted in a refugee crisis on Syria's border with Turkey. Fleeing the indiscriminate gunfire at civilians, 10,000 Syrians have crossed the border into Turkey, placing significant demands on Turkey's infrastructure and creating huge demands for food and other simple amenities. It will be interesting to see if Assad will repeat his previous behavior of promising political reform only to follow up his promises with military attacks on his own people. It is a precedent that he has established, and one which would be shameful to repeat. Indeed, the time for words in Syria has passed. It is now time for action, but not the kind of action the Assad government has taken in the past. __
