Phil Sands, The National, UAE
DAMASCUS // To the frustration of many Syrians and the international community, opponents of the president, Bashar Al Assad, have struggled to form a united front as they seek to topple his powerful, autocratic regime.
On Saturday, a coalition of seasoned political activists joined forces with street protesters to form a National Coordination Committee with an elected 80-member leadership council.
Two days previously, a different set of well-known activists had unveiled the formation of a national council involving exiled and internal opposition figures at a meeting in Istanbul.
The same week, a third group of dissidents set-up a separate initiative designed to bring about a shift to democracy.
In addition, there is a bewildering, largely opaque range of loosely affiliated protest organisers and Islamic groups involved in the six-month-old uprising.
Although all profess to share the goal of bringing democracy to Syria – and most have said they wish to do so using peaceful methods rather than through force of arms – they have been unable to convincingly join forces.
Problems holding meetings have been a major hurdle to better organisation, with activists inside Syria typically forced to gather secretly in order to avoid arrest, while many dissidents have fled abroad for safety, further complicating coordination and dialogue among opposition factions. {…}