Two Syrian Specials

Kamal Labwani Charged
An-Nahar reports that Syrian pro-democracy activist Kamal Labwani was formally charged on Saturday with inciting sectarian riots, membership in an illegal organization, and spreading information with the intent to weaken the state. His arrest occurred immediately upon his return to Damascus after conferring with U.S. officials in Washington, D.C. An-Nahar reports that Labwani was allegedly beaten and insulted during his interrogation by Syrian police, according to Labwani's lawyer, Syrian human rights activist Anwar al-Bunni.

While many media outlets and bloggers alike have disparaged Labwani's arrest, it is the nature of the charges that prove even more illuminating regarding the nature of the ills of Syrian public life. First, the charge of "membership in an illegal organization" in Syria means little more than that the person belonged to any organization not directly sponsored by the state. Syrians have no right to free assembly, and consequently Syria lacks any kind of civil society. Hence, this particular charge means that he belonged to any organization other than the Baath Party, a fact which in Syria is, of course, a crime.

Second, the charge of "spreading information with the intent to weaken the state," as an-Nahar indicates, is most likely related to his meetings with U.S. Deputy National Security Advisor J. D. Crouch as well as an interview on al-Hurra TV among other appearances outside of Syria. As Ammar Abdulhamid would probably agree, any Syrian who leaves Syria and tells anyone anything about what goes on inside its nether regions, up to and including Syrian officials ordered to testify in Detlev Mehlis' investigation, can expect similar treatment. More than likely the charges that Kamal Labwani faces at this point are intended as a message not just to Syrians, but also to the many Lebanese who have taken advantage of their own freedom of the press to criticize Syria's transgressions on its soil. After all - from Bashar's perspective - were those pesky Lebanese not complaining, none of these crazy United Nations shenanigans would be happening and Syria would not be so isolated right now.

Third, I am not sure what to make of the charge of "inciting sectarian riots," unless by "sectarian riots" the judge actually meant the recent pro-Baath Party demonstrations organized by the Syrian government in reaction to the demands of Detlev Mehlis and the United Nations. So, either the Syrian prosecutor is just making this one up, or he wants Labwani to take the blame for "unrest" actually staged by the government (the "look what you made us do!" argument). Good one, Bashar. Either way, blaming the victim is nothing new for Syria.

Iraq, Jordan, and Syria
Iraqi Defense Minister Saadoun al-Dulaimi traveled to Jordan to meet with Jordanian Prime Minister Adnan Badran, AP reports. In a statement al-Dulaimi remarked that Syria not only allows for the transit of foreign fighters into Iraq through Syria, but permits the existence of terrorist training camps on its territory. In the highly scripted world of contemporary international politics, the context of a meeting like this takes on meanings well beyond what was said. The timing, the location, the participants, and the fact that "Syria" and terrorism" were mentioned at the same time means more than just the fact that Iraq is concerned about terrorism and wants to tell Jordan all about it. More importantly, this was a discussion about the causes of terrorism in the region, and it seems that even without some kind of direct linkage between the Jordan hotel bombings and Syrian support, Iraq and Jordan seem prepared to accuse Syria already. So, look for a public revelation of Syrian involvement in the hotel bombings very soon. After all, Iraq already blames Syria for lots of things, and Jordanians want to believe more than anything that this kind of stuff does not originate in Jordan. Syria's isolation continues to worsen...