Syrian civil society holds rare dialogue on country’s tensions with transitional government, EU officials

DAMASCUS, Syria — Representatives of Syria’s civil society hold rare open discussions in Damascus in the presence of officials from the European Union and the transitional government. They touch on sensitive topics, including sectarian tensions, ethnic divisions, and people killed by different sides.

The EU-organized meetings known as “The Day of Dialogue” are the first to be held in Damascus after taking place in past years in Brussels. Today’s meetings come nearly a year after the fall of the 54-year Assad family rule in Syria in a stunning offensive by insurgent groups in early December.

The meetings that used to take place within the framework of the Brussels Conferences were mostly boycotted by then-president Bashar Assad’s government.

The EU says today’s meetings were organized in cooperation with Syrian civil society and the Syrian transitional authorities.

“The meeting that used to be held to talk about Syria is now being held in Syria,” Syria’s Foreign Minister Asaad al-Shibani says in a speech at the opening session held at a conference center in the southern outskirts of Damascus.

Shibani adds that today’s meetings represent “a solid partnership with the civil society and our partners in the European Union.”

Michael Ohnmacht, chargé d’affaires of the EU delegation to Syria, says 500 people from Syria’s different religious and ethnic groups took part in the meetings and “this is something very positive.”

“This is what we hope for Syria’s future, to see this inclusive state which will be a state in the form of all its citizens,” Ohnmacht says.