The Assyrian Democratic Party (, ; short: ADP) is an Assyrian political party active in

Syria Syria, officially the Syrian Arab Republic, is a country in West Asia located in the Eastern Mediterranean and the Levant. It borders the Mediterranean Sea to the west, Turkey to Syria–Turkey border, the north, Iraq to Iraq–Syria border, t ...

, that traditionally represents the interests of the Eastern

Assyrians Assyrians (, ) are an ethnic group indigenous to Mesopotamia, a geographical region in West Asia. Modern Assyrians share descent directly from the ancient Assyrians, one of the key civilizations of Mesopotamia. While they are distinct from ot ...

of the Khabur valley. Although aiming for the peaceful implementation of

democracy Democracy (from , ''dēmos'' 'people' and ''kratos'' 'rule') is a form of government in which political power is vested in the people or the population of a state. Under a minimalist definition of democracy, rulers are elected through competitiv ...

in Syria, the party has generally sided and cooperated with the

Ba'athist Ba'athism, also spelled Baathism, is an Arab nationalist ideology which advocates the establishment of a unified Arab state through the rule of a Ba'athist vanguard party operating under a revolutionary socialist framework. The ideology ...

government A government is the system or group of people governing an organized community, generally a State (polity), state. In the case of its broad associative definition, government normally consists of legislature, executive (government), execu ...

since the 1990s. In course of the Syrian Civil War, the Assyrian Democratic Party has come to be closely affiliated with the Khabour Guards and Nattoreh. It is part of the Syrian Democratic Council of

Rojava Rojava may refer to: * Syrian Kurdistan, also known as Rojava, the geographical region where Kurds historically settled within present-day Syria * Democratic Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria The Democratic Autonomous Administ ...

Ideology

Since its foundation, the Assyrian Democratic Party has been considered to be "overtly sectarian", regarding the Eastern Assyrians as the only "true" Assyrians while distrusting the Western Assyrians. Since the outbreak of the Syrian Civil War, the party has however gradually broadened its aims and become more inclusive. In 2014 it began to work closely with other Assyrian and Christian denominations in the "General Authority of the Chaldean Syriac Assyrians", a committee whose stated aims also include ensuring social equality and more rights for all Christians of al-Hasakah Governorate. In 2017, the party declared that it wanted a new constitution for Syria that recognized all Assyrians as native people of Syria and granted them "cultural, administrative and other rights". The ADP also officially rejects partisanship and supports the peaceful implementation of

in Syria, and is

social democratic Social democracy is a Social philosophy, social, Economic ideology, economic, and political philosophy within socialism that supports Democracy, political and economic democracy and a gradualist, reformist, and democratic approach toward achi ...

according to '' Al-Araby Al-Jadeed''. Nevertheless, the party has generally sided and cooperated with the Ba'athist government since the 1990s, and supported pro-government militias in the civil war. The ADP advocates the unity of Syria, though has begun to support plans for the country's federalization since 2017. By July 2018, an ADP member stated that the "federal model that was set up n northern Syriais satisfying as we feel sufficiently represented".

History

Foundation and early years

The Assyrian Democratic Party was founded in 1978, when a splinter faction under Adam Homeh seceded from the Assyrian Democratic Organization (ADO). From its outset, the ADP understood itself as proponent of rights for the Eastern Assyrians as opposed to the Western Assyrians, who dominated the ADO. Over time, a strong rivalry developed between the pro-opposition ADO and the ADP, which shifted increasingly closer to the Ba'athist government in the 1990s. As result, the Assyrian Democratic Party came to present itself as the pro-government alternative to the ADO, and when taking part in various Syrian parliamentary elections, supported Assyrian candidates that were not strongly opposed to the rule of the

al-Assad family The Assad family ruled Syria from 1971, when Hafez al-Assad became President of Syria, president under the Ba'ath Party (Syrian-dominated faction), Ba'ath Party following the Corrective Movement (Syria), 1970 coup, until Bashar al-Assad was Fal ...

Activities during the civil war

When the Syrian Civil War broke out in 2012, the ADP openly opposed the

Syrian opposition Syrians () are the majority inhabitants of Syria, indigenous to the Levant, most of whom have Arabic, especially its Levantine and Mesopotamian dialects, as a mother tongue. The cultural and linguistic heritage of the Syrian people is a blend ...

, with some of its members even joining the government militias ( Popular Committees) in

Qamishli Qamishli is a city in northeastern Syria on the Syria–Turkey border, adjoining the city of Nusaybin in Turkey. The Jaghjagh River flows through the city. With a 2004 census population of 184,231, it is the List of cities in Syria, ninth most-po ...

. The Assyrian Democratic Party also expressed support for the pro-government Sootoro. In late 2013, the ADP lamented that the

Free Syrian Army The Free Syrian Army (FSA; ) is a Big tent, big-tent coalition of decentralized Syrian opposition (2011–2024), Syrian opposition rebel groups in the Syrian civil war founded on 29 July 2011 by Colonel Riad al-Asaad and six officers who defe ...

had occupied the Assyrian villages in the Khabur valley, saying that even though the FSA fighters did not harass the locals, their presence caused the area to become a target for government attacks. This in turn forced the Assyrians to flee their homes. The ADP also protested against the declaration of the

autonomous region An autonomous administrative division (also referred to as an autonomous area, zone, entity, unit, region, subdivision, province, or territory) is a subnational administrative division or territory, internal territory of a sovereign state that has ...

" by the Kurdish-led administration in northern Syria around that time. Party president Ninos Isho stated in early 2014 that it is "not logical to have 30 percent of the population he Kurdsin this area rule over the other 70 percent he Arabs and Assyrians, and that "the Kurdish political groups must accept real power-sharing". In September 2014, the Assyrian Democratic Party put up a shelter in

for

Yazidis Yazidis, also spelled Yezidis (; ), are a Kurdish languages, Kurdish-speaking Endogamy, endogamous religious group indigenous to Kurdistan, a geographical region in Western Asia that includes parts of Iraq, Syria, Turkey, and Iran. The major ...

who had fled the

Sinjar massacre The Sinjar massacre () marked the beginning of the genocide of Yazidis by ISIL, the killing and abduction of thousands of Yazidis, Yazidi men, women and children. It took place in August 2014 in Sinjar city and Sinjar District in Iraq's Nineveh ...

, and distributed food, clothing and medicine to them. The party also participated in the formation of the "General Authority of the Chaldean Syriac Assyrians" in the next month. This committee aimed at strengthening the cooperation of the different Christian churches, parties and organizations in

al-Hasakah Governorate Al-Hasakah Governorate (; ; , also known as , ''Gozarto'') is one of the fourteen Governorates of Syria, governorates (provinces) of Syria. It is located in the far north-east corner of Syria and distinguished by its fertile lands, plentiful water ...

, and ensuring the rights of all Christians in the region. Among the participants was also the pro-Kurdish Syriac Union Party. After the assassination of one of its commanders by the YPG, the Khabour Guards (a small Assyrian

self-defense Self-defense (self-defence primarily in Commonwealth English) is a countermeasure that involves defending the health and well-being of oneself from harm. The use of the right of self-defense as a legal justification for the use of Force (law), ...

militia) broke their ties with the Syriac Union Party and aligned themselves with the ADP around mid-2015. In November 2015, the ADP issued a statement condemning purported human rights violations in Rojava by the governing Democratic Union Party (PYD). Despite this, the ADP joined the PYD-led Syrian Democratic Council one month later, with Wail Mîrza serving as the party's representative in the assembly. In January 2017, the Assyrian Democratic Party reached a deal with the PYD, according to which the Khabour Guards and Nattoreh would become the sole security force for the Assyrian villages in the Khabur valley. In return, the Khabour Guards and Nattoreh joined the

Syrian Democratic Forces The Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) is a Kurds in Syria, Kurdish-led coalition of U.S.-backed Left-wing politics, left-wing ethnic militias and rebel groups, and serves as the official military wing of the Democratic Autonomous Administration ...

, while the ADP agreed to support the PYD's federalism project for Syria. Nevertheless, the party continues to advocate "the unity of Syria, as a country and people". On 13 April, PYD forces officially handed over the valley's villages to the Khabour Guards and Nattoreh, though the YPG kept a military base near

Tell Tamer Tell Tamer (, or Til Temir, ) also known as Tal Tamr or Tal Tamir, is a town in western al-Hasakah Governorate, northeastern Syria. It is the administrative center of the Tell Tamer Subdistrict consisting of 13 municipalities. Originally buil ...

. The Assyrian Democratic Party said that this was a first step towards establishing Assyrian self-administration in the Khabur valley. Party President Ninos Isho also stated during a meeting with Russian deputy foreign minister Mikhail Bogdanov in April 2017 that the party wants a new Syrian constitution that grants self-determination, more rights and recognition as native people to the Syrian Assyrians. The Assyrian Democratic Party also took part in the Northern Syria regional elections in December 2017 as part of the PYD-led "Democratic Nation List". Party official Wail Mîrza called the election "historical", and further said that such elections are what Assyrians "are striving for all over Syria". The ADP took part in the Sochi peace talks of January 2018. On 20 September 2018, the Assyrian Democratic Party announced the creation of a united military leadership for Nattoreh and the Khabour Guards, known as "General Command of the Assyrian Forces". The Khabour Guards already left the "Assyrian Forces" in the following December.

References

Works cited

* * {{Assyrian/Syriac/Chaldean political parties 1978 establishments in Syria Assyrian political parties Assyrians in Syria Organizations of the Syrian civil war Political parties established in 1978 Political parties in Syria Political parties in the Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria Political parties of minorities in Syria