After a calm and in-depth discussion of the concerns of our Syrian people, especially the families of the victims of the former Assad regime, during the meeting held on Saturday, June 14, 2025, the Syrian Democratic Platform, composed of many political parties, gatherings, political currents and some civil society organizations, affirms at the outset that transitional justice is the cornerstone of building civil peace and achieving national reconciliation in the future Syria, as it is impossible to imagine lasting stability or a state of law without real justice that addresses the effects of conflicts and violations against Syrians from all sides, especially the Assad regime that committed massacres against Syrians.
The transition from a state of war and division to a state of peace and citizenship requires justice that lays the moral and legal foundations for accountability, reparations, and recognition of victims, while emphasizing that this justice should not be a tool for revenge or settling accounts, but rather a means of preventing recurrence and building societal confidence in the institutions of the post-conflict state.
With this in mind, the Syrian Democratic Platform calls for the following:
- Establish judicial and human rights committees specialized in transitional justice that are professionally independent, protected from politicization or conflicts of interest, and enjoy constitutional and popular legitimacy.
- Clearly distinguish between public and personal rights in judicial processes, while ensuring the rights of blood relatives to accountability, redress, and the non-obfuscation of individual or collective crimes.
- Adopting the principle of reparations in all its dimensions (material, moral and psychological), while expanding the circles of official recognition of victims as an entry point for true reconciliation.
- Forming “truth and justice” committees in every governorate and city, whose mission is to collect testimonies, document violations, and present a comprehensive national narrative that preserves memory and protects the future.
- Allow sufficient time for the maturation of the societal vision of transitional justice, without haste, which empties the concept of transitional justice of its content, or procrastination, which dilutes popular demands for justice and equity.
- Emphasize that accountability is a national right that is not subject to a statute of limitations, and that justice cannot be achieved by an international will alone, but through a free national will that expresses the voice of the Syrian people in all regions.
In this context, we pose a pivotal question to all actors in the current political administration in Syria:
Do we really have the sincere will to achieve true national reconciliation based on fair and comprehensive justice?
Or is it required to close this file under the name of “amnesty” or “forgiveness” without accountability or transparency?
Several experiences – including those of Norway and some Latin American countries – have proven that national reconciliation is not built on forgetting, but on truth and justice, and that the legitimate fear expressed by Syrians – especially the families of the victims and blood relatives – of attempts to dilute or bypass the file is a fear that must be respected, not marginalized.
We also emphasize that the legislative authority in the future Syria should be the backbone of this project, as it is the institution capable of establishing the legal framework and constitutional guarantees for the transitional justice process.
In conclusion, the Syrian Democratic Platform puts this statement before the Syrian public opinion, national and international forces, as a principled and firm position stemming from our conviction that there is no state without justice, no reconciliation without accountability, and no stability without a voice for the victims in the face of the impunity machine.
Syrian Democratic Platform
June 19, 2025
