Damascus: The Syrian government is holding a two-day meeting with members of the ruling Baath party and its opponents. The government says the Damascus meeting will begin discussion of possible reforms, including multi-party elections and a new media law. But many opposition leaders and protest organisers have refused to attend.Rights groups estimate that more than 1,750 people, including 350 security personnel, have been killed as the government tries to quell the protests.
The government has blamed “armed criminal gangs” for the unrest, which began in mid-March as protests swept other nations in the Middle East and North Africa.
Vice President Farouk al-Shara opened the meeting saying he hoped that Syria would eventually become a pluralistic democracy.
“We are going to hold a comprehensive national dialogue during which we will announce Syria’s transition towards a multi-party democratic state in which everyone will be equal and able to participate in the building of the nation’s future,” he said.
Shura added that the government would end a ban on Syrians travelling abroad, or returning from overseas, “within a week”.
Dissident writer Tayyeb Tizini noted that bullets were still being fired in Homs and Hama, and called for the dismantling of the police state.
“That’s an absolute prerequisite, because otherwise the police state will sabotage all our efforts to tackle our problems together,” media reports quoted Mr Tizini as saying.
“They should also have freed the thousands of detainees, some of whom have been in prison for years. That would have been a present for the people and the meeting.”
