Dec 2022

By, Ibrahim al-Khalil

Producing, Issam Khoury

Translate by, the CESD team

The Project

The Center for Environmental and Social Development took the initiative to organize a series of meetings with Syrian girls, whose ages range from 9 to 22 years. Some experts from organizations working in the Syrian regions participated in these meetings, in addition to some media professionals and civil society activists. The participants were from different regions, according to the following:

• Areas of the Syrian regime
• Opposition areas “Idlib, the northern countryside of Idlib”
• Opposition areas “Southern Idlib countryside”
• Opposition areas “Northern Aleppo countryside”.
• Asylum camps in Turkey.
• Syrian refugees in Europe
• Syrian refugees in the United States.

The Zoom program was relied upon to organize the meetings, and the following organizations and institutions participate in the process of coordinating the meetings:

• Environmental and Social Development Center
• Union of Syrian Democrats
• Ninar Press Corporation
• Syrian Relief Agency
• Tomorrow’s Women Organization

Notes:

We deliberately, in our dialogues to be in different seasons, so that:

• The first and second dialogues took place during the winter period of 2021, during the height of the spread of the disease.
• The third dialogue, it took place during the summer period of 2022, when the injuries were low.
• We deliberately conducted a dialogue with two doctors residing inside Syria during winter 2022, when the pandemic was weak, but other epidemics were widespread.

The first meeting

Names of participants: 13 participants

1. Hana Muhammad – western Idlib countryside.
2. Shams Mansour – western Idlib countryside.
3. Ola Kafaya – Idlib city.
4. Banan Jagmoor – Idlib city.
5. Marwa Al-Azzo – Idlib city.
6. Ghadir Al-Juma’a – displaced from Jarjanaz and residing in Idlib.
7. Diana Sheikh Hassan – Idlib city.
8. Safia Al-Juma’a – Jarjanaz – West Idlib resident.
9. Mariam Khattab – western Idlib.
10. Maymouna Afara – west of Idlib.
11. Noor Al-Nun – Idlib city.
12. Journalist Osama Aghi.
13. Journalist Ibrahim Al-Khalil

Meeting date: December 10, 2021

The most prominent dialogues

• Safia says: In light of the Corona crisis inside Syria, many injuries occurred, and I was one of the injured, and I live with my family in a modest house consisting of two rooms, and there is an injured person, we cannot quarantine him, and no one visited us regarding spreading awareness, and there was not an isolation shelter is located in my area.

• In her turn, Ghadir, who lives in the city center of Idlib, where the population is large, said that there were no real awareness programs that reached the people who are most in need.

• As for Nour, she said that she was infected with the infection while she was pregnant, and she thought that the case was a common flu “cold”, but she went to take a COVESD-19 test and the result was that she was infected with Covid 19, so she adhered to the home quarantine for a period of 20 days, with great fatigue and shortness of breath.

• While Maryam, who was displaced from the countryside of Maarat al-Nu`man and lives in western Idlib, says: There were many injuries, infections occurred, and many people died, most of them elderly, and within one month we witnessed nearly twenty deaths, among them were doctors, which sparked terror in the hearts People, where schools were stopped by the Directorate of Education, and education (by WhatsApp) was the greatest burden,  as it was limited to the WhatsApp application via audio recordings, and certainly this technology is not useful because there is one mobile phone for the whole family.

• As for Banan, she says that universities and schools continued remotely, but without modern technologies, only through the WhatsApp application, they sent a copy of the book, with a voice to the teacher, and the big dilemma is that most people do not have modern phones that can download the volume of lessons, also the cost of the Internet is very high, and we are poor.

• On the other hand, Ola says: Regarding income and living, most people were affected, since most of the residents of the region work as “day laborers.” As for those who had kids in Turkey or elsewhere, they lived on cash transfers sent to them by relatives from abroad. Regarding the situation in hospitals, Ola says: Existing hospitals were unable to accommodate the massive cases of the injured, and there were distress calls from doctors for the people’s commitment to home quarantine to prevent the spread of infection.

• Hana, in her turn, said: The injuries in the countryside are very few, and it is not like the cities because there are good spaces among the population, except those customs and traditions caused the spread of infection. When someone died, people would come to offer condolences without fear of disease, and without relying on the conditions of distancing, causing an increase in the spread of infection.

• Shams, also from the countryside, says that one of my neighbors was infected with the virus, and she was transferred to quarantine, where he recovered after a while, but his son was infected and died after only one week.

• When Diana was asked about the condition of the hospitals and medical staff in her area, she said: The medical staff has been exhausted, and because of the lack of support for these hospitals, some of them have gone out of service.

• Regarding the number of hospitals, Marwa says: There are eight hospitals in the city center of Idlib, which are considered insufficient compared to the population. There are private hospitals, but most of the population cannot afford them.

You can see more in this video:

The second meeting

Names of participants: 12 participants

1. Raghad Diwani – residing in Austria.
2. Aisha Obaid – resident in Turkey.
3. Farah Mohamed – guest from Egypt.
4. Zahra Muhammad – residing in Turkey.
5. Mohamed Mohamed – residing in Germany.
6. Omar Theeb – residing in Turkey.
7. Maha Bachiri – guest from Algeria.
8. Fadi from Idlib.
9. Nidal Sheikh
10. Rawan Razzouk – Idlib
11. Journalist Osama Aghi
12. Journalist Ibrahim Al-Khalil

Meeting date: December 11, 2021

The most prominent dialogues

• Issam Khoury, and being from the Syrian-American community, says that Syrians residing in the United States of America have been treated as Americans considering the Covid-19 pandemic, such as quarantine for those unable to find shelter, financial aid, health care, and vaccinations.

• As for Fadi from northwestern Syria, he says: The pandemic had a great psychological impact on the Syrian society in light of the great economic paralysis coinciding with unemployment and the absence of job opportunities for young people, in addition to the lack of food and necessary materials, and most of these materials are imported from Turkey through the Bab al-Hawa crossing, Which is considered an economic outlet for the region, and humanitarian aid has decreased and been curtailed.

• From the medical point of view, Fadi adds that the hospitals designated for isolation are relatively few, and there was no psychological support for the injured, as the fear factor dominated the patients, and many of them died, perhaps from fear. As for education, it was stopped.

• Aisha talks about education as she resides in Turkey, where education was divided into three stages with the distribution of educational aids for the continuation of education, and these aids were distributed to those most in need and education was limited to basic subjects only.

• In Austria, Raghad says: The student used to apply that he needed educational aids remotely, and the student could pay a percentage of the means according to his family’s income with the closure of universities and schools, and the decision to send students to school was up to the parents, and actually the Austrian state did not distinguish between Austrian citizens and Syrian refugees In terms of providing all services, including vaccines.

• Nidal Al-Sheikh says: Measures have been taken by the Turkish government, for example, there were financial fines for everyone who violates the ban decision with certain hours for shopping under strict restrictions, which made the spread of cases less than in other neighboring countries, and vaccines were distributed to Syrian refugees just as the Turks got them.

• Rawan from inside Syria Most families today live in collective housing, as every three families gather in one house. If a person is injured in the housing, he cannot be isolated with the absence of health awareness and ignorance of safety and prevention measures.

• Maha Bachiri: She clearly conveyed the reality of the spread of the virus in Algeria and showed that all Syrian refugees in Algeria received similar services to those obtained by Algerians. Maha showed the negative impact of social habits on the spread of the pandemic in terms of reducing the risk of this virus.

You can see more in this video:

The third meeting

Names of participants: 12 participants

1. Mays Abali – Lattakia countryside.
2. Duha Haj As’ad – Lattakia countryside.
3. Yumna Muhammad Khair – rural Jisr al-Shughur, residing in Turkey.
4. Remas Heskiro – Jisr Al-Shughour.
5. Narjis Sheikho of Afrin and its environs
6. Sidra Sheikho Afrin and its environs.
7. Sulafa Sheikho – Afrin and its environs.
8. Dr. Hisham Nashawati – New Jersey “Doctor”
9. Journalist Ibrahim Al-Khalil
10. Muhammad Kindawi – Antioch / Turkey.
11. Abdul Karim- Afrin
12. Jana Haj Asaad, Lattakia countryside

Meeting date: August 71, 2021

The most prominent dialogues

Speaking about the COVID-19 crisis, the participants touched on the difficulties considering the crisis, whether they were social, medical, or educational

• Sidra from the Afrin region said that considering the covid-19 crisis, masks were worn, caution was taken, gatherings were avoided, and home quarantine was adhered to according to the instructions of medical institutions. Schools were closed and the educational process continued remotely through modest means such as WhatsApp.

• Sulafa, from the same region of Afrin, said: The lessons given to us in light of the crisis were very difficult and were limited to telephones and through the WhatsApp application via audios, which was disturbing to my family and brothers, due to the small size of our room “All house is one room”.

• As for Narjis, Sidra’s sister from Afrin, who lives with her in the same house and shares a room with her, she said that she was suffering from noise and lack of focus because education via the WhatsApp application was not satisfactory enough and did not reach the required level, because the whole family uses one phone.

• As for Rimas from the city of Jisr al-Shughur, she said that schools were closed considering the Corona crisis, and the same method of teaching was followed via WhatsApp, and it was also limited to phonetics, without means of explanation for the lessons, which led to difficulty in understanding and understanding most of the lessons.

• Yumna Muhammad Khair from the countryside of Al-Jisr, who resides in Turkey. Quarantine was applied by the Turkish government, schools were stopped, and we attended only on exam days with the use of a policy of distancing in seats. As for vaccination, it was imposed on people over the age of eighteen, such as parents and teachers.

• As for Duha Haj Asaad from the countryside of Lattakia, she said, “School has been suspended without teaching, and as for us, we always wear masks and sterilizers for fear of infection.”

• As for Mays Abali, she says that my school has stopped for more than a month with the use of distance education via audio recordings through the WhatsApp application considering poor internet service. About the vaccinations. Yes, indeed, they have arrived in the region.

You can see more in this video:

Opinions of medical specialists from inside Syria

Consultants, dr. Walid Tamer, Dr. Hassan Naifi, two residents of the Syrian opposition areas:

• says d. Walid Tamer, we received the pandemic within a depleted medical reality due to the attacks launched by the Syrian regime and its allies, especially in the year 2020, when more than /57/ medical facilities were removed from work, and there is also a shortage of medical staff, operational capabilities, and supplies.

• Dr. Tamer adds that the first injury recorded in northern Syria was on July 18, 2020, and it was in the Bab Al-Hawa border hospital, while in the areas of the Syrian regime, the first injury was on March 11, 2020, and after that, the injuries continued.

• With the reality of the large population density due to the policy of systematic displacement and overcrowding in random camps, where overcrowding preventive measures were the only solution to limit the spread of infection, and in the first phase of the “alpha” pandemic, hospitals were filled and no longer had absorptive capacity, and the virus evolved to pass through mutants. Delta – Gma – Omicron” to very high levels, which led to a high mortality rate that was not recorded accurately.

• Tamer says: Many isolation centers have been established, in addition to the establishment of centers for early detection of Corona, and their number was /5/ centers, but that is not enough for all People

• The third month of the year 2021 witnessed a significant decline in infections.

• The medical measures taken, according to Dr. Tamer, were limited to prevention considering a deteriorating economic and security reality, as it is not possible to talk about hygiene and distancing in camps, schools and places of worship.

• In turn, Dr. Hassan Obaid says: The pandemic started when we were not ready, and isolation centers were established quickly, and at first the treatment for the average case was treated at home, and awareness programs were well spread throughout northern Syria.

• Dr. Obeid adds that washing and hygiene campaigns were intensified, such as distributing masks and sterilizers. When the injuries reached their peak, intensive care beds were insufficient, and people often looked for other areas to admit their patients, knowing that private hospitals, in the thought of extreme poverty, could not bear their burdens.

• Regarding medical facilities, Dr. Obaid concludes by saying: Support has stopped for some projects, which has led to a partial continuation of services, but infections have begun to fade with the development of immunity, and vaccinations have been secured and have become mandatory for all workers in the health, educational, humanitarian and service sectors.

Meeting recommendations

• The need for psychological support programs for patients.
• Work to spread health awareness among the refugees, and not be satisfied with the current bulletins because they are insufficient.
• Finding advanced means to follow up the continuity of education, especially in areas where there is no support and awareness, such as the camps inside Syria.
• Finding translations and brochures to raise awareness inside Syria and illegal immigration areas away from security measures, to take the direction of vaccination and awareness only.
• Seeking to find an application “App” that proves that the person has taken his vaccine in camps and places of displacement, as happens in developed countries compared to camps and places of displacement.
• Raising awareness about the vaccine and combating rumors that promote the dangers of the vaccine.
• Finding alternatives for people whose work is “daily” by supporting them with salaries in light of the restrictions of the ban.
• Providing heating materials for poor families in the winter.
• Most of the girls suggested finding job opportunities for them to help their families with living expenses.
• Participants also suggested, especially inside Syria, to direct organizations that support small projects.
• The need to find platforms for alternative education to schools in case they are closed.
• The need to develop Arabic-language online curricula, with the provision of educational tools and the Internet that support distance education.
• The need to strengthen hospitals with sanitary means capable of protecting patients, such as vents, isolated rooms, masks, gloves, and sterilizers.
• The need to develop the educational reality in Syria and help teachers by providing school photography supplies to create educational seminars that will be published on YouTube, so that they are available to all students for free in case they are unable to enter the school.

Notes:

We secretly communicated with many girls in regime-controlled areas, and we got the following recommendations from them:

• The need to provide Pfizer and Moderna vaccines in the areas of the regime because the available vaccines are only the Chinese and Russian vaccines and people there do not recommend them.
• They need not cut off western medical aid from the areas of the Syrian regime but transfer it from the Red Crescent to independent, non-profit organizations known for their integrity. Most of the medical and food aid is sold on the black market without the people getting it.
• The need to criticize the Syrian Ministry of Education, due to the collapse of the level of education in the areas of the regime and the reliance on private lessons outside the schools.
• The need to put pressure on the Syrian government to provide fuel during the winter period because poverty and the absence of warmth in winter cause a widespread of viruses of all kinds.

The financial cost of the project

The center for Environmental and Social Development received an amount of $1,200 from the Garden of Hope organization, and the center covered the additional financial costs.