More than a year after its launch the Movement for Justice and Development has broken new ground for the pro-democracy struggle in Syria. While there is so much more to do, here are some of our achievements during the last 12 months:
We launched a successful campaign to highlight the plight of Syrian exiles and refugees around the world. As a direct result dozens of Syrian refugee families stranded in war-torn Baghdad were relocated to safety. Our campaign saved lives while exposing the regime's inhumane and illegal practises.
We expanded our network of activists in Syria twelve-fold. We now have representation in almost all of Syria's 14 governorates. Our worldwide network has similarly expanded, with a strong network in the Middle East, Europe and North America. We have been succesful in reconnecting successful Syrians with politics.
We invigorated the Damascus Declaration for National Democratic Change. The opposition umbrella-group has been strengthened by our membership in Syria and our international presence. Today the Damascus Declaration stands as the only credible opposition collective, and the only viable alternative to the regime.
We established a working relationship with the EU to make sure the view of the pro-democracy movement is heard. In its dealings with the EU, the regime can longer claim to be speaking in the name of the people or acting in their interests. Because of our mature foreign policy, we have been able to gain the goodwill of important regional and international players.
We established a daily-updated interactive website in English and Arabic to reach out to as wide an audience as possible. As of August 2007 we have had 328,938 individual hits. This achievement is the first of its kind for a Syrian political group.
We have appeared over 30 times in the past 12 months on Arabic satellite channels, including the highly-viewed Al-Jazeera and Al-Arabiya news networks. Through mass-communications mediums, we have been able to disseminate our message very effeciently. In record time our profile with ordinary Syrians has increased markedly.
We broke several stories and highlighted them on the news in a way never done before by a Syrian opposition group. The unlawful detentions of parliamentary candidates, the plans to demolish sections of Damascus' historic old quarter, and the assasination of Syrian exiles in Iraq were brought to media attention because of our hard work.
We are the first Syrian opposition group to break into the Western media and make the voice of the Syrian opposition heard. Our appearances on Al-Jazeera International to expose the farcical parliamentary and presidential elections were a groundbreaker. The regime can no longer rely on uncritical reporting in the Western media.
