Regarding the General Presidential Amnesty Decree
The head of the Syrian regime, Bashar al-Assad, issued a legislative decree today, Sunday, September 22, 2024, granting a “general amnesty” for crimes of desertion (from military service), misdemeanors, and infractions committed before September 22 of this year, according to the official news agency “SANA.”
The Syrian Future Movement (SFM) considers this decree to be merely a media gesture with no real impact on the national reality.
The Syrian Future Movement (SFM) views the decree as a repetition of previous amnesty decrees that do not include any binding commitment for immediate release.
The Syrian Future Movement (SFM) believes that the omission of political detainees and prisoners of conscience from the decree indicates that it is intended solely for criminals and regime-affiliated deserters.
The Syrian Future Movement (SFM) considers the exceptions listed in the decree to exclude all political detainees and military defectors from the amnesty.
The Syrian Future Movement (SFM) believes that the amnesty decree did not live up to the media campaign carried out by the former Syrian ambassador to Turkey or to the statements made by Foreign Minister Faisal Mekdad at the Arab League.
The Syrian Future Movement (SFM) asserts that Bashar al-Assad continues to ignore the reality of the fragmented Syrian map and the national need for a genuine political solution, rather than a superficial amnesty that only benefits certain criminals and regime-affiliated deserters from military units and divisions.
