North and East Syria hosts inaugural forum on minority issues to promote diversity and inclusion

ZALIN, North and East Syria — Under the theme A Future Enhanced by Diversity, civil society organizations and media institutions of North and East Syria convened the inaugural Forum on Minority Issues in North and East Syria. The event, held in Zalin (Qamishli), North and East Syria, aimed to address challenges facing minorities through a gender-sensitive lens and to identify their needs and priorities.

The Forum was organized by Synergy / Hevdestî Association for Victims, Arta Foundation for Media and Development, Tadmrto Organization for Development and Community Cohesion, Syrians for Truth and Justice, and Bridge Organization. It sought to foster consensus around shared visions for the future of minority communities in the region.

Speaking to the press, Synergy member Abbas Ali Musa emphasized the Forum’s focus on discussing issues related to religion, language, and political representation. Musa noted that approximately 10 speakers contributed to the discussions, providing insights that will form the basis of recommendations to be shared at the Annual International Forum, organized by the UN in late November.

Suroyo FM Administrator Samer Hanna participated in the Forum, addressing the role of media in advocating for minority rights in Syria. Hanna reflected on the media landscape before 2011, under the dictatorial Syrian regime, and after 2011, under the Democratic Autonomous Administration of the Region of North and East Syria (DAARNES). He highlighted DAARNES’s progressive measures, such as granting minorities the right to speak their native languages and eliminating the term “minorities” from official discourse.

Hanna further stressed the importance of preserving the Syriac (Aramean–Assyrian–Chaldean) people’s linguistic and cultural heritage through institutions dedicated to promoting their mother tongue.

The Forum was structured around two key themes: 1) the rights of minorities in North and East Syria before and after 2011 and 2) the empowerment and political representation of minorities in the region.